I am a bit late, as the meat of my update happened earlier this weekend, but here it goes.
Hello All!!
I am very excited to share some news, mostly good and some on the negative side.
First things first, and this is the main thing.
The first fish were added to the aquarium! I am not one for impulse purchasing but Big Al's genuinely got me this time. My eyes lit up at the sight of a nearby location having $1.99 CAD Sparkling Gouramis; one of the best deals I think I have seen on a labyrinth fish during my 6 years of breeding them. They are quite timid right now and I think that is because they are still adjusting to the new environment, the plants haven't grown in, and I threw out 97% of my floaters when I took down the previous scape leaving with a very bright surface.
Because of this, I am okay with the understanding that my idea of apistogrammas may not be possible as they treat these fish as a caution and may raise stress all over the tank. I will figure out a new plan to put my cave/nook area in the scape to use, probably with a more peaceful dwarf cichlid like a bolivian ram or a keyhole (maybe flag acara if I can get my grubby hands on it). My initial idea of the first breeding project back to the scape may instead turn into an apisto breeding project.
*As for the sparklers, I will upload photos tomorrow both raw and edited.
Second thing, the negative part.
While my swords are slowly recovering and have all started to send out new leaves (I talked about their problem in a separate thread, the leaves were deteriorating), the crypts from my previous setup are surely not coming back. I have suspicions as to why and it is entirely my fault through manual error, not water quality. When I initially set up the tank, I planted them, filled it up, and then realised I didn't weigh/secure the wood which started floating, and I also felt that I rushed the scape which looked linear. I took it all down and then redid it after about 3-4 hours. During that time I was ignorant and decided to leave the aquatic plants that I had taken out after planting them in and putting them in a dry bin together, causing the crypts to most likely die and were not healthy enough upon return. For the case that this could possibly get better, I have purchased multiple liquid ferts and will be dosing appropriately and generously.
I also got 3 nerites for $12.99 and a new plant which I have forgotten the name of, which looks somewhat like a christmas tree but reddish orange.
After buying new strip tests and testing the water:
I tested the water and I found it to be slightly on the alkaline end of the comfortable zone for my predicted tank stock, which I lightly dosed some API pH down into my tank. The ammonia was ~0, same with the nitrites, nitrates being low; around 0-20ppm.
Last note- the plants that were recycled from my old tank are all fine otherwise, but some of them have very gross looking leaves near the bottom. Is it possible to take them out, cut off the top half where the leaves are healthy and then replant that without much risk on how much they contribute to the bioload?
Have a good night everyone,
Samuel
