15 Gallon Fluval Flex Stocking

[ReMz]

Lol! I'm slowly pigeon holing myself into a planted tank as I wait. And make sure the cycle is going.
HALP!

Before I do something crazy and open a tank journal thread lol.

 

[PheonixKingZ]

I feel the same way!! I love to aquascape, and see other people’s aquascapes!!!

P.S. did you guys know that aquascaping is a professional profession? Just YouTube “James Fendely Aquascaping” he is amazing!!

(YouTube “Thegreenmachine”

Thegreenmachineonline.com

 

[ReMz]

Whelp! Parameters were perfect for some pea puffers. Fell in love with em at the LFS. They had 4. Perfect for this tank size. I have a seemingly unlimited supply of pest snails in my community, so tons of live food!

Tank is probably 80% done. These guys have awesome little personalities as soon as I added them. Doubt I'll add any other fish to this tank unless someone can make a suggestion. I'm ok with just these little dudes. They are pretty young right now and I can't really sex them... so will be fun to watch em grow.

 

[ReMz]

And a good pic

 

[PheonixKingZ]

Wow!! Stunning!!

Now.... just as fish keeper to fish keeper tell me everything!! Heater, filter, rocks, plants, lighting, etc. etc.!!

I can’t wait to hear back from you!! Just set it up like this....

Heater:

Filter:

Rocks:

Plants:

Substrait:

Lighting:

Etc. etc.

(You don’t have to do it, but I think it would be fun! )

 

[FreshwaterCentral]

Enjoy the Dwarf buffers, but keep in mind that they can be quite hard to feed.

https://meethepet.com/dwarf-puffer-fish-carinotetraodon-travancoricus/

They don't do great on flakes or granulas.

 

[PheonixKingZ]

Yes, pea puffer like snails the best , Andy he said he hadn’t plenty in his community tank!

 

[ReMz]

Wow!! Stunning!!

Now.... just as fish keeper to fish keeper tell me everything!! Heater, filter, rocks, plants, lighting, etc. etc.!!

I can’t wait to hear back from you!! Just set it up like this....

Heater:

Filter:

Rocks:

Plants:

Substrait:

Lighting:

Etc. etc.

(You don’t have to do it, but I think it would be fun! )

Thank you!

You got it!

Tank: Fluval Flex 15 gallon all in one

Filtration: Stock pump. Stock 3 stage filter media included. Added API Bio-Chem Stars to first and last chamber. Filter outlets pointed at the top of the tank at different angles. (The puffers didn’t like the current down low where they hide). I think I will be adding a sponge filter into first chamber as a buffer to collect debris.

Heater: Marineland 15w - pretty basic. Half the cost of Fluval alternative.

Substrate: Fluval Plant and Shrimp Stratum. Was going to add sand on top, but really liked the look of this stuff. So left it bare. Note: it is pretty light, so getting plants to stay put is a pain. Patience was needed. Also, the directions caution against using this for fish that dig or burrow - seems to have some ferts already added.

Rocks: 1 elephant rock from the LFS. The light ones were misc. assorted rocks from the same LFS. About $45 worth of rocks.

Plants: Val and Java fern from my other tanks. Variety of different crypts. 3 types.... I would have to get back on anything but the wendtii. 4 Amazon Swords - 2 different varieties. Micro sword (the grass). Frogbit and duckweed floating. Going to be adding some micro plants to the open area on the left after I see how this lighting does.

Lighting: Stock 7500k LED with RGB included with the Fluval Flex. It is pretty awesome, remote with full customization to the light scheme/color. I am trying it out to see how it does. Might add some more DIY lighting if needed.

Future: More filtration additions, light C02 injection, more plants, minor aquascaping with maybe a tall piece of driftwood. Think I’ll try a large ghost shrimp in there for a cleanup crew. If the puffers leave it alone, great, if not, food.

 

[ReMz]

Enjoy the Dwarf buffers, but keep in mind that they can be quite hard to feed.

https://meethepet.com/dwarf-puffer-fish-carinotetraodon-travancoricus/

They don't do great on flakes or granulas.

They are digging their frozen blood worms. 2 out of 4 also will snack on some freeze dried blood worms.

3/4 are picking at live snails. 1 is just being a bugger about eating anything. I have a baby brine shrimp kit on order.

The smallest dude stuffs his face til it concerns me he might actually pop lol. His belly gets about a third the size of his body and it looks scary. The others snack til full. He snacks til he keeps spitting out bloodworms - and then keeps going.

They are well fed.

 

[PheonixKingZ]

Cool!! Thanks for sharing!! Do you have the gosht shrimp yet?

Edit: And wont the pea puffers eat the ghost shrimp?

 

[Byron]

They are digging their frozen blood worms. 2 out of 4 also will snack on some freeze dried blood worms.

3/4 are picking at live snails. 1 is just being a bugger about eating anything. I have a baby brine shrimp kit on order.

The smallest dude stuffs his face til it concerns me he might actually pop lol. His belly gets about a third the size of his body and it looks scary. The others snack til full. He snacks til he keeps spitting out bloodworms - and then keeps going.

They are well fed.

A couple comments on food/feeding here. Bloodworms are not a good staple food and should only be fed once a week as a treat. This refers to the fresh frozen bloodworms. Freeze-dried are best not fed at all, but if they are (again only once a week) make sure you soak them thoroughly in a bit of tank water; feeding freeze-dried foods that are not completely soaked is dangerous, as the fish eat them and then the moisture swells the food up inside the fish, causing serious issues. This might be part of the "plumpness" you mention.

Froozen daphnia and shrimp would be good foods that can be fed more often than bloodworms. Snails of course are good not only as food but it serves to keep the puffers' "beaks" sharp so they can eat properly.

 

[ReMz]

Cool!! Thanks for sharing!! Do you have the gosht shrimp yet?

Edit: And wont the pea puffers eat the ghost shrimp?

Went to the store today and they only had small ghost shrimp that would be food. I have read about several larger ghosts that become permanent tank mates. I will hold off and let the tank mature a bit. Then try a shrimp.

 

[ReMz]

A couple comments on food/feeding here. Bloodworms are not a good staple food and should only be fed once a week as a treat. This refers to the fresh frozen bloodworms. Freeze-dried are best not fed at all, but if they are (again only once a week) make sure you soak them thoroughly in a bit of tank water; feeding freeze-dried foods that are not completely soaked is dangerous, as the fish eat them and then the moisture swells the food up inside the fish, causing serious issues. This might be part of the "plumpness" you mention.

Froozen daphnia and shrimp would be good foods that can be fed more often than bloodworms. Snails of course are good not only as food but it serves to keep the puffers' "beaks" sharp so they can eat properly.

You need to read entirely before commenting with your "gospel." It comes off pretentious and annoying.

These are dwarf puffers. How much have you researched and learned over 10 years of fish keeping? Maybe a little? Cool. I've spent days researching puffers and specifically dove into dwarfs. This was not on a whim.

These guys have live snails. ONE goes crazy on frozen blood worms, not freeze dried. I tested to see if I could get them to eat freeze dried, some do. And of course I soak them prior.

As we speak I have baby brine shrimp about to hatch.

Being these are pea puffers, they have no beak trimming issues. They can scarf down blood worms multiple times a week. But hey, they have snails to eat if they choose.

Thanks for being another forum expert that didn't read, and wanted to flaunt your expertise. I will probably leave if I encounter one more person like you. It is obnoxious when trying to enjoy the hobby and share.

Not once did I ask, "I'm new to fish keeping. How do I feed these weird things?"

Or

"New tank! What can I add! What is cycling?"

Yet here I am. Originally looking for some tank stock ideas, identifying that I am experienced. Hounded with what my water parameters are and advice on how to cycle a tank. Then told how to feed my puffers. I think my first post made it pretty clear I was not a newbie and was looking for some fun input. Nope, glazed over and fed the responsible fish keeping manual.

Presumptuous responses piss people off. i.e. Me.

/end rant

 

[Byron]

The purpose of my last post was to caution on the harmful effects of feeding bloodworms. From the original statements some might assume the opposite. That should be clarified if any forum is to have value.

 

[PheonixKingZ]

Cool!! Keep up the good work!