My Two Planted Tanks.

[SimoUK]

Hey,

did a short video erlier to show my two planted tanks.

First in the video, We have my 40 gallon community.

FISH:
One old-timer male angelfish
Two dwarf gourami's, one opaline, one golden
2x Congo tetra (great fish)
One Panda Garra
3 Peppered Corys, One Bronze

Plants:
4 X Java Fern, with some excellent new growth on, you can just make out in the vid.
Java moss attatched to bogwood.
And the name of the long thin one escapes me xD

Filter: Rena Filstar XP2, Great filter, easy to clean, up to 70gal they claim, so its great for my 40.

C02:
Got it a few days ago, its biological, sugar is not required, you throw the canisters away after each use, and buy another one, all you do is add water and yeast, as there is already foor for the yeast in the bottle you buy. And came with a diffusion reactor.

Lighting:
Nothing special. 2x T5 30 Watts

Second tank:
Goldfish tank,

1x Black moor (had him for a year)
4x WCMM's (had them for a year)

Filter:
Fluval U2

lighting: 1x 15W T5

AND THE VIDEO: http/yfrog.com/m9fishtankkkz

Thanks for watching, looking forward to any comments xD

Simo

 

[Verminator89]

Nicely done. Have you concidered adding some Echinodorus Bleheri. Youll find it reduces any algae you get and its a nice big background plant that will look good offset to one side. Perhaps even some Crypts for the midground?

I bet my old timer angel beats yours. Mines ancient, he even looks like he's lived a life. Also, you garra does he like to munch up and down your arm during water changes? I had 3 in my tank, untill i sold them (why i'll never know!), they were awesome. Every water change i'd have my arm in syphoning the grit n grime on the bottom and i'd always have atleast 2 of them munching away up and down my arm and around my knuckles apparently eating something. They're fantastic creatures.

 

[SimoUK]

Thanks for the reply and i'll research those plants later thanks! im looking to add more in as i have plenty of space at the moment.

And yep xD my panda garra goes all up and down my arm when doing anything in the tank Awesum fish, very active, funny when they up and down the glass too

 

[Verminator89]

Mine used to jump out the tank too unfortunately, at first i used to sit and watch with a bucket (of tank water) ready and i'd wait. Sure enough every so often one would go for a mad dash up the glass, out the water still going up the tank and fly out the top. I'd catch them in the bucket and put them back in. Apparently they do this when acclimatising to a new tank However one morning i woke up and one was dried and crispy on the floor So from that day on i got a lid for the tank. I'll defo get some more soon, when i have a free tank, i'd like to give them a tank and have about 10-15 in there, fast water flow with big pebbles in

 

[SimoUK]

hehe yeah, that would be a great tank, i dont think many people know about them though, and ive never come accross any in a fish store. Would have to order online. Thankfully yet mine has never tried to jump out of the tank. Fingers crossed xD.

 

[Verminator89]

You kidding me, you don't see them in LFS near you. I'm in the West Midlands and a few shops in my home town (Coventry) have got them and certainly a few more toward Birmingham have got them. I've seen 2 or 3 different variants colour wise too!

 

[SimoUK]

I have never seen on in any of my lfs's unfortuanately. Im in the midlands too Burton-upon-trent area, staffordshire I have never seen any other colours either! Not Fair!

 

[Verminator89]

If you can get down to the South-West side of Birmingham they have two quite good Maidenhead Aquatics that i've seen Garra sp in one of them atleast.

Maidenhead Aquatics (Shirley Aquatics, near Solihul) Postcode: B90 4EN - i went there today, more of a general/KOI specialist. but a good selection none-the-less.

Maidenhead Aquatics (forget the name, its in a garden centre) Postcode: B94 5JU - found this one today, Satnav took me from Cov to it today, Tropical specialist, they have MANY cichlids and Plecs. Plecs i've never heard of for like £45 for a less than 2" specimen. Good store, if not a little small.

World of Water in Dobbies garden centre (Mancetter, Atherstone) Postcode: CV9 1RF‎

A5 Aquatics (Near Nuneaton) Postcode: CV11 6BG - its quite a good lil store if not a little pricey.

I suppose Northhampton is a bit far for you, unless you get onto the M1 and head south junction 16 is easiest way for you to get to both their Maidenhead Aquatics. Postcodes: NN5 6UJ and other store NN4 6HP


I thought it might help in future. Some of them may be a bit of a trip perhaps for you, however some a same distance from me to them, as you are to them and i do them regularly when i want to make a day of fish hunting Some great shops there.

EDIT: Perhaps the furthest drive there for you would be 50mins max on main roads i'd say.

 

[SimoUK]

Thanks, i was at maidenhead the other day, xD its quite good there, certainly the best ive been to, ive only ever been to 3 different fish shops xD

 

[SimoUK]

Ohh, another question i have is, same, ive been considering switching from gravel to sand because it looks better, has anyone on here done the switch? is it hard?

Thanks Simo

 

[Verminator89]

I'm going to be doing so myself again soon. It'll be a complete strip down job though, fish/plants/rocks/wood the lot out and into buckets. Then remove as much gravel as you can into a bucket and the last bit you'll just have to fight with. I took my tank outside (extremely carefully), securely propped it up upside down (very securely!) and placed a bucket underneath then used a hose and sprayed it. There might be other methods, but this is the one i went with in the past. That was all done on my 3ft tank to put it into comparison.

I go hunting for aquatics shops whenever i get time off work. Find a postcode, punch it into the satnav, and away i go Like today It's all i did all morning. Northamptom for me next Wednesday i thinks!

 

[PDSimon]

I couldn't see the vid... but your conversation about those fish is interesting, I made a thread about it on general chat because there was a news article about using those fish in a spa type place in london, where they'd put there feet in a tank and the fish would take of all the dead skin! Apparently leaves your skin really smooth...

Can't say I've ever seen them for sale either

 

[Verminator89]

Yes they are often used for pharmaceutical purposes

 

[SimoUK]

I couldn't see the vid... but your conversation about those fish is interesting, I made a thread about it on general chat because there was a news article about using those fish in a spa type place in london, where they'd put there feet in a tank and the fish would take of all the dead skin! Apparently leaves your skin really smooth...

Can't say I've ever seen them for sale either

Shame vid is still working here!