New Tank Cycling now

[charles]

This is what was set up saturday just been. There's a couple of goldfish, couple of silver sharks and a couple of baby yabbies (freshwater crayfish) in there for now. 3 or 4 weeks to go. Will put up shots of the other smaller aquarium later

 

[rheann]

Hey, that tube thing is really neat. What is it, did you make it?

I made a rock cave for my axies, I used black aquarium silicone to glue them on. If I ever can afford a kiln, I would like to make some interesting caves for my axies too

 

[theresa]

Great looking set-up, thanks for the step by step. How many gallons is the tank?

 

[charles]

Rheann - my local petstore had it. was only $20! (Aust) Figured that the two into one type thing could turn out cool when I get two axies.

Theresa - Its 2ft by 1 ft by 1 ft. Bout 55 litres I think

More photos to come later today or tomorrow. The water has cleared up a lot and the fish seem ok in there, apart from the yabbies being agressive. The tank will be re-organised closer to finishing cycling, its just set up to be the easiest for now. (plants will be moved further back, another rock or ornament, more plants, etc.)
Thanks

 

[sin]

tank looks great, the tube looks really neat, i don't know whether this is an idea for you but some java moss tied to it would look nice, i bet your axies are going to love lurking in the tube

 

[charles]

yeah, I've been meaning to ask - Where's the best place to get java moss? Garden store or trying all the pet stores? I've got some rocks I was thinking of it for, and possibly get some wood and plant it.

 

[rob]

tank looks good

also like the pipe configuration, u will find java moss in most aquarium shops
"its fairly common in Aus" i attached mine with 2kg fishing line to my cave... u will also need some lighting if u want to grow plants properly..

 

[charles]

Looking better now. especially with lighting

Will get some shots of the small tank soon. The big one seems more interesting though! Might be able to spot the yabbie out the front of the pipe if you look closely!

 

[alex]

wow that looks really nice, and will look outstanding once you have it planted more and another ornament in it. i am also looking for java moss but none of my pet stores or garden centers have them.

 

[jojo]

thats a nice lookin setup charles. Your axies will be happy in there, thats for sure!

I CANT BELIEVE THAT YOU PICKED UP THAT HIDING TUBE FOR ONLY $20.
The half log things a generally cost more then that (the bigger ones anyway).
Nice pick up!

If that is a hang over filter, you may want to raise the water level abit. I have one of those too and the splashing from the water pouring tends to cause too much water movement.

 

[charles]

Yeah, I couldn't believe it either. From the nice little local pet store / hydroponics supply.

He seems to have a good range that isn't too pricey (plants and fish are pretty similar to most though, except feeder fish - 25c!)

If you're in sydney, he's just up from taylor sq on flinders st. He has another one or two there

And it is a hangover filter, but I can adjust the flow till its pretty small. And I've got the bubble stone right under it so it dissapates and it doesn't have too much water movement. I'm going to try a few different locations around the tank with different water levels and see how it goes.

(Message edited by graphite on January 18, 2006)

(Message edited by graphite on January 18, 2006)

 

[theresa]

I tied a plastic plant around the output lip and it dissipates the current, also have the water just under the lip .
Gosh, I wish we had a place to buy sand like that here in seattle.No one seems to carry it....

 

[charles]

it wasn't intentional to have the bubbles (airstone in a rectangle bar, bout 10 cm long) where it was, just sorta thought it could look cool. but it seems to disapate the downflow a whole lot. Just bout to try moving a couple of things around now, but figure i'll put them somewhere together eventually if its going to work well. maybe someone else can try and see what they think.

Up till recently was thinking about leaving it unlit, but now conisidering some...

 

[charles]

Going to the petstore today/tomorrow (tuesday!)

Going to confirm the axies I want (and get them to order them if necessary) and check out their driftwood and plants. Fingers crossed for some java moss or a nice planted log.

Nitrates and nitrites are rising, but ammonia is a lot slower. Fish and yabbies all seem fine though. Doing 20% water changes most days, and testing the water every second day or so. When I water change should I be avoiding syphoning the fish and plant waste? (I'm not taking too much of it, but a little bit each time) And would it be better to run the tank with a lower water level while cycling?

Hopefully only 3 weeks or so to go! Will be re-arranging a little tomorrow once I've been to the pet store, so more pics probably too!

Any advice or pointers?

 

[dane]

The Tank is cool