And So It Begins...

[BigIan]

YIPPIE......

The alge has gone, and the tank is nearing the end of its cycle. unfortunately the ph has dropped to 6 or less i`m hopeing this is because of high amonia levels and will all be sorted out when i do my big ass water change at the end of the cycle....


out of interest how large should the water change be at the end of the cycle? I`ve herd some say 100% others say 50 and every where in between. any suggestions apriciated

 

[ceilidhgirl]

wow i'm soo jealous of our nice big tank



mine's about as big as i can get

must look for a bigger house!!!

it really is worth the wait for the fishles cycling, my new guys look so happy exploring their new place. i dont think they can get used to having all the extra space

my attempts at pics are not the greatest, but 'm getting better every day. plus guppies are quick little wotsits and they never stay still when u want them to lol

cant wait to see what u put in there

love

ales xx

 

[BigIan]

thats the second tank....

the first one was so big it would have colapsed through the floor
the stocking should hopefully be...

6 angels (two black veil tails, two ghost angels and two koi veil tails)

3 green sailfin mollys (adoping these from my mate as his have just had fry)

8 corydoras (don`t know what variety to get yet)

 

[clareriley]

looking good!

 

[Womby]

i like your tank it is really nice

keep up the good work, cant wait to see the angels in there

 

[BigIan]

ATLAST its finished, my tank is cycled,

after alge blooms, plants dying snail infestations and now a plantera ( i think its how its spelt) out break my tank is ready for fishys......


but i`m nervous, what if i`ve done something wrong?
what if i put the fishys in and they die???

any one else get this feeling on their first tank???



updated pic of the tank... can any one recomand a good ground hugging plant for the forground that dosent require much light?

and the view from my bed

so hopefully this weekend i`ll be popping some angels and corys and a plec in there

 

[Laxison]

Hey BigIan...what did you use to seal the rocks together for your cave? Everything looks great!

 

[BigIan]

aquarium silicone.... it was dead simple....

When i next get some spare cash and see some decent slate i`m going to make a more natural looking one...

 

[mark.w.jones]

This tank could end up being stunning. Great job so far mate. I think personally it would look better with a black background + and an enormous piece of wood of some description. You need loads more plants as well. Plants looked better when you plant big groups of the same species together IMO. Yours look a little sparse and spread out too far at the moment. Greenline aquatics do a multi pack with 25 plants which might be a good start. Order online, websites a bit crappy, and then delivery is quick as well.

Just my opinion remember

 

[ceilidhgirl]

wow everything is looking great hon

i totally got first fish jitters as well.

unfortunately 2 of my guppies came from the store with bacterial infections, i got so upset when the first one died but when the second one died it wasn't so bad.

i think as a fish keeper its something you get used to, they can't all live forever after all and don't be too upset if you experience some losses.

i know i did all i could for my little guys, but i guess their time was just up , but because i know i did all i could it made me feel better and that it wasn't anything i'd done wrong.

anyhoos, i'm sure you'll be fine, looking at the care and attention you'e given to the tank then you're fishies will be very happy

keep us all updated

love

Ales xx

 

[BigIan]

tank is now stocked with 2 veil tail koi/marbled angels.

2 white angels

1 big black angel who isn`t in the best state, his fins are tatterd and i`ve just noticed white spot on him but hes not scratching much and i`m treating with white spot meds and melafix so hopefully he should be ok...

4 black and white corys of unknown name

3 corydorus metae (sp?)
wo
2 skunk corys

and 2 little red crabs,


I`m well chuffed, the tank looks ace, i stuck some more plants in aswell


i also have another black angel sat in our lasses tank and a chocolate albino plec who will be joining my tank in a month or two

Pic`s will follow

 

[pieman]

Fantastic tank so far, can't wait for the pics of the fish

 

[BigIan]

Why don`t corys like having their photo taken?

"spike" the black angel, he`s had the poo kicked out of him by something before i bought him and is quite scared and had a slight bout of white spot (cleared up now) and apears to be healing up nicely

The 4 baby angels. all of whom follow each other around the tank as if lost

the tank

the crabs are no more. one has escaped i think and the other comitted suicide on the light.



let me know what you guys think now it has fishes

 

[AlexAndCarmen]

The fish are gorgeous. Sorry to hear about the crabs. The first pic looks like a panda cory. Do they have black bands on their eyes, black fin and a black band by their tails? Your angles are lovely. We have two, and they grow so quick, and are absolute pigs when it comes to feeding time

 

[BigIan]

nope those arent panda`s its a corydorus metae, Or "bandit cory"

I wanted panda`s but they are aparently to fragile for a new tank, so as i went searching various LFS looking for the right angels i fould four of those, two skunk corys that looked lonely, and another 3 corys that i forgot the name of but are black and white,

They all school together and the 3 who i`ve named mo curly and lary are the most playful things i`ve ever seen, the run up and down the tank and play in the bubbles...

they`re ace