139.2L (36.7 gallon) aquarium journal

[elephantnose3334]

A new chapter of my fishkeeping journey has offically begun. The new 91cm x 36cm x 42.5cm aquarium (that I got for free from a neighbour in a retirement village where my nana lives) has been set up (without the hardscape) earlier today, with the filter being tested after it was filled up. I've got on the night of 3 June I have used fine river sand as the substrate (the same as the 148.6L tank). Before it was set up, the tank had been going through a leak test for almost a week despite having a few scratches (on one side of the tank glass, not both) on it. The scratches might have come from an algae scraper by the person who previously had the tank for 6 months before giving it away to me. The equipment are the same as the 3ft long 39.2gal aquarium I have in the toyroom. The black card is taped to the back of the aquarium. Hopefully I will set up the light tomorrow.

The tank doing a leak test (it passed)

The water is cloudy at the moment, but it will clear up in a few days (yes, we washed the sand before putting it in the tank).

There is a gap on the lid, probably used for the Aqua One filter. But I want to use the gap for a houseplant cutting or two so their roots can grow underwater. Is it a good idea to use it for this purpose? Also, I am planning on the hardscape (something related to wood) at the moment.

 

[Colin_T]

Is the coverglass 1 or 2 pieces?

You should be able to put some plants on a frame above the tank and let their roots grow into the water. I wouldn't rest anything heavy on the cover because only part of it is being supported by the tank.

Years ago they sold support strips that hang on the side of the tank. If you could find some of them you could put them on the tank and rest the coverglass on them so it has more support.

 

[elephantnose3334]

Is the coverglass 1 or 2 pieces?

You should be able to put some plants on a frame above the tank and let their roots grow into the water. I wouldn't rest anything heavy on the cover because only part of it is being supported by the tank.

Years ago they sold support strips that hang on the side of the tank. If you could find some of them you could put them on the tank and rest the coverglass on them so it has more support.

The tank did not come with support strips. The coverglass might be one piece, but I'll check tomorrow.

 

[elephantnose3334]

I added the wood and plants (Java fern and ambulia) in the tank today. The tank had been cycling for two weeks and I will keep an eye on the tannins of the wood if they slowly leach into the water (they had been soaking in a container of water for a week). I will let the tank continue to cycle for another week before I add the inhabitants in.

 

[Colin_T]

What fish are you putting in there?

 

[elephantnose3334]

What fish are you putting in there?

My younger sister's three pygmy corydoras (I will add more pygmy cories with them to make a school of 10-12 total) need to be moved from her 10 gal tall, as dad said, so I will do that once I cycle the tank. Dad does not want three tanks in the house, so that's reasonable. For nano schooling fish, I will do my research. This will be a South American nano fish community tank.

 

[elephantnose3334]

My dad and I have finally moved my younger sister's pygmy cories from their old tank to their new home. I also got 7 more pygmy cories for company. They now have much more space to explore and forage than in their old 30 x 30 x 45cm tank.

The fish just before they were being moved from the old tank to the new tank

In their new tank

New pygmy cories being acclimated into the tank to join the current cories

The tank now

 

[elephantnose3334]

Today's Canon pics of the pygmy cories:

 

[elephantnose3334]

Are there any good nano South American fish (common and rare) that go well with the pygmy cories? Something like ruby tetras, ember tetras, or reed tetras for example.

 

[Colin_T]

pencilfish
hatchetfish (they jump so you need a good cover)
ember tetras would be fine.

 

[elephantnose3334]

It's time for an update. I had been neglecting the tank a bit because I had focused more on the silvertips than the pygmy corys. A snail boom occurred a few weeks ago and they're laying eggs everywhere. A few pygmy cories disappeared/died in the tank over the weeks, and would I need to make immediate change on my schedule and what I do to try and keep them alive.

I cleaned the glass (with a glass cleaner) today to get rid of any snail eggs sticking on the walls and try to feed the fish a bit more often (I feed them once a day in the early evening). I'll try to focus on this tank more like I would for the second tank.

 

[Colin_T]

It's time for an update. I had been neglecting the tank a bit because I had focused more on the silvertips than the pygmy corys. A snail boom occurred a few weeks ago and they're laying eggs everywhere. A few pygmy cories disappeared/died in the tank over the weeks, and would I need to make immediate change on my schedule and what I do to try and keep them alive.

not sure what you mean by the comment that is bolded???

once the pygmy cories settle in they might start breeding. If they are well fed they will be less likely to eat any eggs.

 

[elephantnose3334]

not sure what you mean by the comment that is bolded???

once the pygmy cories settle in they might start breeding. If they are well fed they will be less likely to eat any eggs.

Changing my habits. The cories unfortunately spend the majority of their time 'surfing' on the glass (stress response).

 

[Colin_T]

Glass surfing isn't always stress, most of the time it's simply new fish working out where the sides are. If you let algae grow over the back and sides the fish can see it easily and won't surf on those parts, but they might surf on the front glass because that's usually kept clean to see the fish.

As for pygmy cories surfing the glass in a 3ft tank, that's unlikely to be stress considering how long you have had them for. If they do it in the first few days of being added to the tank, it's trying to figure out where the sides are. If they do it months after they were added to the tank they might be looking for breeding sites (areas to lay eggs) or just hungry. If the water quality is off, then it might be stress related but normally if the water is bad, the fish become nervous and skittish and panic when someone goes near them.

Have you got a current picture of the cory tank, or maybe a video showing them surfing?

 

[elephantnose3334]

Glass surfing isn't always stress, most of the time it's simply new fish working out where the sides are. If you let algae grow over the back and sides the fish can see it easily and won't surf on those parts, but they might surf on the front glass because that's usually kept clean to see the fish.

As for pygmy cories surfing the glass in a 3ft tank, that's unlikely to be stress considering how long you have had them for. If they do it in the first few days of being added to the tank, it's trying to figure out where the sides are. If they do it months after they were added to the tank they might be looking for breeding sites (areas to lay eggs) or just hungry. If the water quality is off, then it might be stress related but normally if the water is bad, the fish become nervous and skittish and panic when someone goes near them.

Have you got a current picture of the cory tank, or maybe a video showing them surfing?

I will take a new picture of them and the tank tomorrow.