Sick Molly

[Retired Viking]

For years I had only plastic plants , I thought that they were easier to take care of but since having live plants the last two years I only have live plants. They are good for the water quality, absorb the ammonia and add oxygen and use up CO2 in the water. Here is a picture of my 55 gallon tetra tank.

 

[AilyNC]

Oh! And female livebearers (mollies/platies/guppies/swordtails) can store sperm from males for a year or more. So removing the males doesn't solve the problem, and as you saw, females are often gravid when you get them from the store. I'm sorry you've had such a rough intro to the hobby, it didn't need to be this stressful.

I have a small incubation thingy that sticks in side of tank in the water. I got it today hoping to isolate & save the Molly that died. But again no idea of that's suitable for fry and really don't think this tank is ready for more.

My son thankfully doesn't notice. He just likes to say hi to them, watch them swim and hide. He'd probably miss the Plecos though.

Yeah it's been stressful. But at times lovely. I really just sitting and staring at them

 

[AilyNC]

Just curious, is there a reason you're using the easy balance chemicals?

The LFS recommended it for my hard water (KH 20, GH 10) & PH (over 8.7 and up around 9) and the tetra app that scans the strip tests also recommended same.

So new water I add easy balance & aqua safe. I did add Safe Start this past few days but ran out.

 

[AilyNC]

For years I had only plastic plants , I thought that they were easier to take care of but since having live plants the last two years I only have live plants. They are good for the water quality, absorb the ammonia and add oxygen and use up CO2 in the water. Here is a picture of my 55 gallon tetra tank.

Omg what a gorgeous set up. I've no idea what gallons are but it looks huge. I think when we've space I'll upgrade to a bigger tank but that's down the line. You must get great joy out of looking at that

 

[JuiceBox52]

Omg what a gorgeous set up. I've no idea what gallons are but it looks huge. I think when we've space I'll upgrade to a bigger tank but that's down the line. You must get great joy out of looking at that

Measure the height, width and depth of the tank to calculate the gallons

 

[Retired Viking]

Thank you, It is around 210 liters. Big enough to do a lot with but not so big it takes over a room.

 

[AilyNC]

Measure the height, width and depth of the tank to calculate the gallons

Mine is 33.5cm height x 60cm width x 30cm depth but I cheated and used a convertor - 15.32 US Gallon or 12.76 imperial Gallon.

 

[AilyNC]

Thank you, It is around 210 liters. Big enough to do a lot with but not so big it takes over a room.

Future tank goals

 

[JuiceBox52]

Thank you, It is around 210 liters. Big enough to do a lot with but not so big it takes over a room.

My favourite tank size

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

You can still do a lot with a smaller tank though, once it's not ovestocked with fish. Mine isn't the best by any means, but it's the same size as yours, and this is after a year of plant growth. No major lights/CO2 or anything like that, just a cheap amazon light, some root tabs, and some trimming now and then.

Last October, tank was about four months old. Most, but not all, of the plants came from the amazon place I linked earlier.

Last week;

And I only started keeping a tank a year ago myself. Just kept adding more plants, fertiliser now and then (and I often forget that!), moving the plants around when I found out I had huge plants at the front and small ones at the back, and mucking about with different driftwood and things.

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

Mine is 33.5cm height x 60cm width x 30cm depth but I cheated and used a convertor - 15.32 US Gallon or 12.76 imperial Gallon.

Exactly the same size as my tank in the photos

 

[AilyNC]

I think the Plecos are young bristle nose pleco. They grow up to 5 inches so I imagine still too big for this tank.

 

[AilyNC]

You can still do a lot with a smaller tank though, once it's not ovestocked with fish. Mine isn't the best by any means, but it's the same size as yours, and this is after a year of plant growth. No major lights/CO2 or anything like that, just a cheap amazon light, some root tabs, and some trimming now and then.

Last October, tank was about four months old. Most, but not all, of the plants came from the amazon place I linked earlier.
View attachment 111765

Last week;
View attachment 111766And I only started keeping a tank a year ago myself. Just kept adding more plants, fertiliser now and then (and I often forget that!), moving the plants around when I found out I had huge plants at the front and small ones at the back, and mucking about with different driftwood and things.

Your tank is amazing! I'm looking forward to adding plants now, it just really enhances the tank

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

Your tank is amazing! I'm looking forward to adding plants now, it just really enhances the tank

Thank you I just took most of it down since I'm changing my tanks around, and I'm now battling worms in my tanks, but hopefully it'll be even better when it's re-built. Plants do add so much, and it's great for your water quality and for the fish too.

I personally wouldn't feel happy to keep a bristlenose in this size tank, not for long, anyway. If you think you could upgrade the tank size within about six months or so, then I'd say you could keep one for now and probably manage. But if you know it's not realistic, probably best to return them both

There are other smaller bottom dwelling species that are just as cute that might work though, depending on your water and the stocking you end up keeping, so all hope is not lost! You can have a cute little relaxing tank with some guidance on stocking. Stick around the forums, the more people who join the hobby and have success, the better.

 

[Essjay]

The LFS recommended it for my hard water (KH 20, GH 10) & PH (over 8.7 and up around 9) and the tetra app that scans the strip tests also recommended same.

So new water I add easy balance & aqua safe. I did add Safe Start this past few days but ran out.

I had missed the bit about Easy Balance, thank you @JuiceBox52

The chemicals we add to a tank end up inside the fish so we should keep additives to a minimum. All you need to use is a dechlorinator (water conditioner) to remove chlorine/chloramine for tap water and if there are plants in the tank, plant fertiliser.
Tetra Aqua Safe is a dechlorinator but it also contains 'natural plant extract to protect fish gills and mucus membranes' which usually means aloe vera. This is detrimental to fish long term, so when the bottle runs out can I suggest getting this instead

API® | TAP WATER CONDITIONER™

API TAP WATER CONDITIONER treatment removes toxins from tap water instantly, so you can add fish to your aquarium (or add them back after a water change) immediately.

apifishcare.com

The dose rate is 1 drop per 3.8 litres of new water. With small volumes this makes it tricky to dose, but the smallest bottled have a dropper in the lid or get the 118 ml size and a dropper to dose it.


You do not need Easy Balance. The fact that it says

Regular use of EasyBalance Plus reduces the need for water changes for up to 6 months.

is an indicator that it is all hype.
Tetra Safe Start is one of the better bottled bacteria and will have helped towards cycling you tank.