My 10gal quarantine tank to become a display

[mcordelia]

That is a gorgeous piece of driftwood! If you take the castle thing out you can maybe attach a couple anubias's or something to the lava rock, that could look cool. I like this scape because it's fish-friendly but with plants can still look very pleasing to the eye

 

[Naterjm]

That is a gorgeous piece of driftwood! If you take the castle thing out you can maybe attach a couple anubias's or something to the lava rock, that could look cool. I like this scape because it's fish-friendly but with plants can still look very pleasing to the eye

the castle is just to appease the kids. For now. They’ll come around, lol.

So I’ve been trying to maintain the cycle in this tank, as it’s been empty for a couple weeks. But I’ve been feeding with flakes and algae pellets. Weekly water changes, no cleaning. Trying to grow algae, as I knew the next set of fish was ottos, and man was this tank covered. Brown algae everywhere.

dropped in 3 ottos, they’re all pretty much full grown, 24 hours ago, and now the tank looks absolutely cleaned out of algae. They’re so sneaky that it would take you 5 minutes just to find them all. And there’s only 3.

I guess it’s time to drop in the algae wafers and get the zucchini prepped.

I love these little guys and man do they move quick.

I wish I got a picture before, because that glass was brown to the point of having my wife and kids ask why the tank was so dirty looking...

 

[Naterjm]

I don’t know why, but I love ottos.

most of the time they’re boring watch, it’s almost like deer in headlights as soon as you walk up to the tank. They just look back and you and I swear they’re saying “what?! What are you looking at?”

But these guys are looking great so far, water parameters are holding strong. They’re absolutely destroying food. I’ve had to clean the intake pre-filter sponge and gravel vac 2 days in a row, just because there’s soooo much poop.

Thats a good thing though I guess, we’ve got full bellies and what appear to be happy fish. If they keep this up, I think I’ll be ready to move them into the 20 in 11 days.

I want to get them into wafers first, they seem reluctant, but not totally against it so far.

 

[mcordelia]

Awesome to hear!!! Also what was your family's reaction to the tank after the otos has their go at it?

 

[Naterjm]

Thoroughly surprised at how it cleaned up

 

[DAnCSF]

LOL - Ain't a shouldn't a QT be kept simple. but hey one can never have enough display tanks yup I'd say you got MTS...BAD LOL

 

[Gypsum]

Yeah, my 30L quarantine tank became a fry tank when the black corys spawned, but our fry attrition rate was far too high, so the obvious solution was to make it into a full time, fully cycled display tank that could house cory fry as needed. So we got it some plants, wood, and Microdevario kubotai as permanent residents. In reality, it's just a bad case of MTS.

 

[Naterjm]

LOL - Ain't a shouldn't a QT be kept simple. but hey one can never have enough display tanks yup I'd say you got MTS...BAD LOL

I have one more round of quarantine after this one is up, then this is actually a display for my younger boys’ room. It will be fully cycled and stocked almost immediately.

BUT then I’ll need a quarantine tank for that tank.

that one will probably go in our room.

I wonder how long it will for my wife to catch on...

 

[DAnCSF]

I have one more round of quarantine after this one is up, then this is actually a display for my younger boys’ room. It will be fully cycled and stocked almost immediately.

BUT then I’ll need a quarantine tank for that tank.

that one will probably go in our room.

I wonder how long it will for my wife to catch on...

Ah ha - you don't have a"dedicated" quarantine tank as such...I suppose significant other "won't catch on" till she; trips over the tanks, notices the water splash floor damage, or the increased charges in the monthly water bill...but once she does there will be hell to pay....LOL.... Mine didn't say much till she accidentally visited the; mancave/fish room/emergency guest quarters LOL. Btw way you given me an new CV DYI project a rolling cover/table for my canister.

 

[Naterjm]

Good stuff!

i have couple pieces of live edge maple I’m going to make a shelf above the tank, so I can hang some lights, get rid of the cheap plastic lid, replace it with an acrylic lid. Etc. Eventually

 

[DAnCSF]

Now wait a minute I was gonna to that for my 55 in order to hang a heat lamp for my possible tree frogs in the terrarium section LOL I guess... great or was that simple minds think alike LOL...

 

[Naterjm]

Haha, maybe a bit of both, somewhere is the middle...

 

[Naterjm]

So, I just remembered that I have these bath mats I picked up from my loca hardware store, about a year ago.

they retailed for $110 plus tax each, and I bought them for $9 each on clearance.
It’s about time I break them down and make something out of it....

these are teak, so it will
Be nice to work with some quality material... stay tuned!

 

[Naterjm]

And this is what $300+ worth of teak looks like broken down....

 

[Naterjm]

Building a shelf...