# Opalo's 3 gallon planted Picotope



## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

I think it would be nice to have a place to talk about my little project, the future iwagumi betta Picotope. I'll probably use this thread to post updates on the tank, test results and plant updates, silly things Opalo does, and anything else related to the tank. 

*Latest pic:* (4/3/14)









*Tank:*
-3 gallon JBJ Picotope. Very attractive, sturdy, rimless bowfront tank. Has been used as a pico reef, planted tank, and betta tank in the past









*Equipment:*
-Tetra Whisper filter with an Aquaclear sponge and carbon, and an old Aquaclear 70 that I use as a "sump"
-50 watt Tetra heater
-13 watt 50/50 compact fluorescent (new light coming soon)
-a couple of stick-on thermometers
-Black gravel, pink gravel and sand covering organic potting soil









*Current inhabitants:*
_Fish:_
-None at the moment. Opalo is moving in soon!

_Plants:_
-Water wisteria
-Coming soon: dwarf hairgrass
-Coming soon: moss?
-Coming soon: emersed plants

Here's what the soon-to-be sole inhabitant of the tank looks like. Opalo is a delta tail cellophane male from Petco.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

*4/3-4/4*
Opalo is still in his temporary .7 gallon tank today. I'm hoping that I can move him soon. I'm sure he'll like being in a bigger, heated and filtered tank. I wish the cycle would hurry up already!

I got a new heater today, since the old one was only heating the water up by a few degrees. The temperature is a nice 78-80 degrees now.

My wisteria cuttings started sprouting roots, so I planted it again. As you can see from the photo, most of it floated out of the substrate shortly afterwards. 

Current water parameters:
Ammonia: just over 0
Nitrites: .5 ppm (spiked to 2 ppm after I planted the wisteria, hoping it goes back down!)
Nitrates: 20 ppm (as of 2 days ago)
PH: 7.6
Temperature: 78
Tank has been cycling for almost 3 weeks


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## BettaLover1313 (Apr 15, 2013)

Lovely looking tank! I'm sure Opalo will be very happy in there!


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## BlueLacee (Dec 8, 2013)

he is beautiful


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

*4/4*
I moved Opalo into his permanent home today! He seemed excited. When I was acclimating him by floating his cup in the tank, he kept biting at the cup and trying to get out. It was funny.  He had a little trouble with the flow from the filter, so I reduced it by stuffing the intake with a piece of filter sponge. Once he got settled in, he seemed to like the extra space. His favorite place to swim is in the crack between the rocks, over the pink gravel path. He likes the wisteria, too.

He was swimming so fast, I was having trouble getting a clear photo!









He's a small betta. That tiny white thing by the gravel path is him. 









Coming up for air:









I don't know what's going on with the nitrites. If I test it at different times of the day, I get different results. It'll be 0 in the morning, 2 ppm in the afternoon, and .25 a few hours later. The ammonia goes up too, but never above .25. I think it might have to do with the soil leeching into the water. I get an ammonia and nitrite spike every time I disrupt the substrate. I'm hoping that they'll stop spiking once the tank is completely cycled and the soil sits for a while. Until then, I'm planning to do small daily water changes to keep the levels low enough for Opalo.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

Got a new light today. It's a 20 watt, 6700k daylight, CFL spiral bulb in a clip-on desk lamp. It looks much nicer than the bluish light I was using before. I figure I can probably grow anything I want with such a bright light, though I should probably get a DIY CO2 setup going too. I also got my first filter plant, which is actually a cutting from one of my houseplants.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

*4/5*
Opalo is doing well in his new tank. His favorite activity is to swim along the side and flare at his reflection.  He also swims really fast from one end of the tank to the other. I didn't know it was possible for a betta to swim so fast!

Still getting nitrite/ammonia spikes. I'm beginning to think that the tank isn't as cycled as I thought. >.< I had 1 ppm of nitrite today, so I did a 60% water change. I'm going to do a 100% change if it doesn't drop by tomorrow. I also cleaned the gravel and put in some more fine gravel. If I keep getting these nitrite spikes, I may have to either move Opalo out and wait it out a few more weeks, or try to boost the bacteria in some way. Opalo doesn't seem stressed, at least. I swear, he's been about 10 times more active since I moved him. I think I even saw a bubble nest today.

Water test results (after water change):
Ammonia: just over 0
Nitrites: ~.30-40 ppm
Nitrates: 10 ppm
pH: 7.5
Temperature: 77 F


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

New plans for the tank...








The lighter green will be hairgrass, and the darker green will be java moss. The wisteria is...well, wisteria. I've been looking at pictures of tanks with moss walls, and moss attached to rocks, and I really like how it looks. I think it would look nice in this tank.

I might be getting hairgrass tomorrow. Depends on whether or not Petco has healthy looking plants.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

*4/6* 
Well, I wasn't able to get hairgrass. They didn't have any left at Petco. :-( I did get a pack of Cryptocoryne wendtii (which contained about 5 small plants) and a clump of java moss, bound together to look like a mossball. I took the fishing line off the "mossball", cut up a plastic mesh bag, and used it to tie the moss around the bigger rocks. I planted the crypt plants and changed the rocks around a bit. Afterwards, I did a 90% water change.

Can't wait for the moss to grow more!  The rocks will have to be a bit ugly and mesh-covered for a few weeks, I suppose.









Also, Opalo has been bubblenesting like crazy. He made this nest about 5 bubbles deep after I took this picture. It was fun to watch him work on it!









Water parameters after water change:
Ammonia: not tested
Nitrites: just over 0
Nitrates: not tested
pH: 7.5
Temperature: 76 F


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

*4/7*
I got dwarf hairgrass today. :-D I walked into Petsmart just to look around, and saw they had hairgrass packs for $8.99. A bit pricey, but I got a decent amount of hairgrass for the price, and it seems very healthy. It looked like they had just gotten a shipment. So, I picked out the healthiest one and bought it.

I didn't want to damage the roots too much, so I gently broke it into 3 clumps, and worked loose about 20 plants from the sides. I planted the big clumps where I want it to be the thickest, and then scattered around the individual plants. Afterwards, I did a 30% water change (I had already done a 50% change this morning). I planted it without taking any water out of the tank, so Opalo was swimming around my arms and dashing against my fingers the whole time. It felt really cute. 

The tank is fully stocked now, assuming none of the plants melt or die. I hope the hairgrass doesn't melt too much. It looks like it was grown submersed (doesn't have seed heads), so hopefully it'll work out better than my last experience with hairgrass. 

Also, maybe it's my imagination, but I swear the java moss grew since yesterday. The original "mossball" only had a few little bits left on it, and now it has long strands hanging off. I also lifted up the netting a bit, and it already appears to be clinging on to the rocks.  Maybe I'll be able to take off the netting soon.


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## DenaTaggart (Mar 8, 2014)

*Beautiful*

WOW, very nice


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

Thank you!


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

*4/8*
Not much to report on the tank today. I keep trying to get just the right amount of water flow from the filter. If I make it too low, not enough water gets into the "sump", and the heater doesn't work well enough. If I make it too high, poor Opalo's fins turn him into a scaly sailboat. My short-finned female and plakat bettas used to like high flow, but I suppose it's different for the large-finned males. 

Water test results (before water change):
Ammonia: 0
Nitrites: ~.10
Nitrates: 0 :shock: (I guess between the plants and the frequent water changes, these are all getting used up?)
pH: 7.4 
KH: 5
Temperature: 75


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## Canis (Apr 15, 2013)

Subscribing, this looks like it will turn out looking really cool!


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

Thanks!  I hope it turns out looking nice. This is the hard part for me - waiting weeks (or months) for things to grow...haha.

*4/10*
Tank is doing well. The nitrite and ammonia levels are staying low even without water changes now, so I think the cycle is stabilizing again. Opalo is doing great too. He's started flaring at me and making loud bubble popping noises whenever I walk by. He also bubble nests constantly. I don't think any of my previous bettas have been so lively! 

I made a DIY CO2 setup yesterday. It was very simple. I rinsed out a Simply Limeade bottle, cut a tiny hole in the top, added the sugar water and yeast, put in some airline tubing, and sealed the hole with silicone. After a few hours, when it started bubbling, I attached it to an air stone and put the air stone in the tank. I now have a nice, steady stream of tiny CO2 bubbles. :-D

Here's the "CO2 system". Funny how it still looks like limeade!









Here's Opalo guarding one of his huge bubblenests. 









Water test results (before water change):
Ammonia: 0
Nitrites: ~.10-15
Nitrates: ~2 ppm
pH: not tested
KH: not tested
Temperature: 76
Planning to do a 25% water change later


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

*4/12*
Water test results (before water change):
Ammonia: 0
Nitrites: just over 0
Nitrates: 5 ppm
pH: <7.4
KH: 6
Temperature: 77 F


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

*4/12*
I cleaned and rearranged my desk today, so the tank looks much nicer. Gotta love desktop tanks.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

The tank is still doing well. I removed the mesh from the rocks, since most of it is attached well enough to stay stuck on. There were a few stubborn pieces that were stuck to the mesh, so I left it in the filter. Maybe I'll eventually end up with extra sheets of moss. :-D The wisteria is growing like a weed. I discovered that a single half-dead loose leaf, with no stem or roots attached, was sprouting a new plant. :shock: The Cryptocoryne is doing well too. It's sprouting some new leaves already. I think the hairgrass is growing as well. It hasn't turned into brown mush yet, so I'll take that as a sign that I'm doing something right!

I also had to stop using the CO2 bottle. The top kept leaking. I started up a new bottle today, and it just started bubbling, so we'll see how it goes. 

I've had a slight bloom of green algae, but nothing major. It's mostly just on the big rock and the filter output. I actually kind of like how it looks on the rock. :lol:

Here's a photo of the tank from today:









And a couple of cute photos of Opalo. 


















Water test results (before water change):
Ammonia: 0
Nitrites: just over 0
Nitrates: just over 0
pH: 7.9 :shock:
KH: 5
Temperature: 77 F
Did a 50% water change yesterday

The pH reading shocked me a bit. The only thing I can think of that might have caused it to rise is a rock I added a few days ago. It was a small piece of old, dry live rock from my old reef tank. I tied it to a filter plant to keep it from falling sideways. I forgot about the fact that live rock raises the pH...oops! Opalo and the plants seem to be fine, at least.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

*4/15*
Water test results (before water change):
Ammonia: 0
Nitrites: 0
Nitrates: not tested
pH: 7.6
KH: not tested
Temperature: 78 F
Did 20% water change (one of the Crypts was floating, so I had to replant it, which kicked up lots of soil)


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

*4/16*
The new CO2 bottle is working quite nicely. My problem now is figuring out where to put the air stone. I obviously want the CO2 to circulate in the water a bit, rather than just rising to the top. I have to keep the flow relatively low for Opalo, so unless I put it right in the center of the tank, there isn't enough flow to push the bubbles around. I tried putting the tubing directly in the filter intake, but it kept slipping out - not to mention, I was worried the sponge would fall out and Opalo would get stuck. :shock: So, my current solution is to put the air stone directly in the filter. It seems to be working well. The pH has dropped and I think the plants look greener, so maybe they're getting more CO2.

I'm going to buy a low range pH test kit and a new air stone today. I've been putting off buying the test kit because I thought it was expensive, but I just checked the price and it's under $5. Most of my test kits are leftover from my old saltwater tank, but they seem to work just fine for freshwater as well.

Water test results (before water change):
Ammonia: 0
Nitrites: 0
Nitrates: not tested
pH: <7.4
KH: not tested
Temperature: 78
No water change done today


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## BlueLacee (Dec 8, 2013)

It looks amazing. He is a very expressive fish


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

Thank you!  Yes, he is very expressive. I love his personality. He's so much more active and attentive than my previous bettas.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

*4/17*
Water test results (before water change):
Ammonia: just over 0
Nitrites: 0
Nitrates: ~15 ppm
pH: 7.5
KH: 6
Temperature: 78 F
Doing 50% change today


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

*4/18*
I got a new betta! :-D Two days ago, the Petco near me got a shipment of very nice looking bettas. One of the fish was this gorgeous gold dragon. I kept thinking about him and another multicolored male. I went back to see if either of them were still there, and this handsome little guy still was!  I think he's a halfmoon, but I haven't seen him fully flare yet, so I'm not certain. 

He's currently in a 2g acrylic tank with some fake plants and a filter. I may eventually get him a 2.5 gallon, or perhaps another picotope...haven't decided yet. After I quarantine him for a bit, I'll probably try to loop his tank with the picotope so that they can share equipment. 


















*Also, here's a video of the picotope. Took a long time to edit!*
http://youtu.be/cR8jWa6Gu-A


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

Forgot to mention, I've decided to name the new boy Mr. Gold. Bonus points to whoever gets the reference. :-D

Also, got a better look at him, and he's definitely a halfmoon. His fins are ridiculously large. I think the filter's flow is bothering him, so I might replace it with a couple of airstones or a simple sponge filter until I get the tanks looped.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

*4/19*
Opalo may have ich. Last night, I started noticing several white spots on his fins that weren't there before. :-( If they spread, I'll have to move him to the temporary tank for ich treatment. :-(

Also dealing with a brown algae outbreak. It's been happening for a few days now. I scrubbed it off all the rocks and plant leaves yesterday, but it came back today. >.< I'm thinking that they're probably diatoms. I had been keeping the light on for less hours to keep the green algae under control, so that would make sense - not to mention, the tank is still under two months old. I'm hoping that it will go away on its own. It doesn't seem to be affecting the plants much.

Mr. Gold is doing well. He's enjoying his new tank. He's such a pretty fish.  He flares at me continually. I love seeing his huge fins! I've never had a halfmoon before. The half-broken Theo heater that I have in his tank has suddenly started working again. It only heats the tank to about 78, even at the maximum setting, so I think the thermostat just isn't working right. It should work OK until I get him a permanent tank set-up, though.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

*4/20*
Opalo definitely has ich. I've moved him to his .7 gallon tank for now, with a heater, an airstone, and some plastic plants. The picotope will have to be fishless for a while. :-( I'm hoping that I can move him back in within 7-10 days or so. Right now, I'm treating him with heat and salt. I have the temperature at 85-87 (which is hard to accomplish with a heater with no thermostat...), and I added a teaspoon of salt. He seems to be handling it OK. Hopefully, this will be enough to get rid of the ich, and I won't need to resort to nasty ich medicines. I just have to wait and see, I suppose.

Mr. Gold is still doing well. He's a picky eater. I have no idea what they were feeding him before, but I have a feeling it wasn't pellets!  I have to treat him for ich as well. >.< Before I noticed the ich on Opalo, I transferred over a filter sponge and an airstone from the Picotope. Ugh. I'm planning to just treat him with salt until/unless I see ich spots.


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## Canis (Apr 15, 2013)

Sorry for the misfortune! I hope he gets better soon!


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## DaytonBetta (Feb 4, 2014)

Ugh! I hate ich. I hope he gets better quickly.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

Thanks folks. This is my first experience with ich. The only other contagious disease I've dealt with is marine velvet in my old reef tank. I only had one fish at the time, so it wasn't a huge loss, but it still sucked. I couldn't have fish in the tank for months afterwards. I'm just glad that ich is curable within 1-2 weeks, and not very fatal.

*4/20*
Water test results:
Ammonia: ~.10-15
Nitrites: 0
Nitrates: 15
pH: not tested
KH: not tested
Temperature: 77 F
Did 60% water change and scraped algae

I'm not sure why the ammonia rose. The only thing I can think of is that a couple of leaves from a filter plant fell in the water. (Do rotting plant leaves produce ammonia?) It's not high enough to make me concerned, so I'm just keeping an eye on it.

Some happy news...the plants are pearling like crazy. The whole tank turns into a giant air stone after the lights are on for a few hours. I like to just watch it. I never knew java moss could pearl. :shock: Also, the DHG is spreading like wildfire. I think it likes the high light and CO2. It keeps sending up new plants into the water, which I have to cut off and replant. Does hairgrass usually do this?

Here's a couple of photos of the air stone plants:


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

*4/21*
Opalo is doing much better today. I'm so happy that the treatment already appears to be working. His behavior is back to normal, and he only has one spot left on his tail. I'm still going to treat him for at least a week, though.

I'm having a hard time getting the temperature in the temporary tank to stay stable. I tried covering the top with aluminum foil, but that made the temperature rise to 89 F. If I leave it off, the temperature hovers around 82-84. I'd like for it to stay at around 85-87. I'm still trying to figure out a good method.

I did a 100% water change in the temporary tank, and a 100% water change in Mr. Gold's tank today. I added water with 2 tsp/gallon of salt to Opalo's tank, and water with 1 tsp/gallon to Mr. Gold's tank.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

*4/21*
I got a 2.5 gallon for Mr. Gold today. I'm so excited to get started on it.  It will be less elaborate than the other tank. I think I'll go for low/medium light and DIY CO2. As for plants, I think I'll go with java moss, wisteria, anubias, and maybe rotala? Still trying to design an aquascape, but it will include rounded rocks and driftwood.

Here's the tank. I added dirt today, so I'll have to wait a few days for it to settle. Then I can add sand/gravel and start cycling it.


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## DaytonBetta (Feb 4, 2014)

I don't think you will need CO2 for any of those plants, except maybe the rotala (I don't have that one). The others are all low-light, easy plants. I like Bacopa a lot too.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

DaytonBetta said:


> I don't think you will need CO2 for any of those plants, except maybe the rotala (I don't have that one). The others are all low-light, easy plants. I like Bacopa a lot too.


The water will be shared with the Picotope (if I can make it work), so there will be some CO2...I agree it's not really needed, but it certainly doesn't hurt.  It's really easy to set up for tiny tanks as well.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

*4/22*
I did a 50% water change on the Picotope today. The brown algae is driving me crazy. Increasing how long the light is on hasn't helped much - I just have various types of green algae now too.  I'm hoping that it will get better on its own soon. Scraping brown algae off hairgrass and java moss is time-consuming. :roll:

I also trimmed the wisteria again. Some of the less healthy lower leaves were turning yellow, so it was definitely time for a trim. Once the cuttings sprout roots, I can plant them again. I should have enough to add a few stems to the 2.5 gallon as well.

I tested the ammonia today. It was still slightly above 0, but has definitely dropped, thankfully.

I got some gravel for the 2.5 today. I think I figured out how I'll do the aquascape. I'm thinking that I'll put anubias and moss on the wood, and then put stem plants in the corners. I might put some floating wisteria around the top to look like leaves. I might put in some sort of foreground plant, but I'm not sure what type yet.

Here's a couple of photos, before and after I filled it.  I added a small in-tank filter to help filter out the soil pieces. As soon as the water clears and I'm sure the soil isn't leaching anything, I can try looping the tanks. By then, Opalo will be done with his treatment and Mr. Gold will be out of quarantine, so I should be able to add both of them to their respective tanks. :-D


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

*4/24*
Had a pretty bad scare yesterday. In the morning, Opalo was fine, and he swam to the top for his pellets as usual. I left the house for about 2 1/2 hours, and when I got back, I found him floating at the top. His belly was badly bloated and he was breathing hard. The bloating went down after a few hours, and he's swimming normally again today. I'll be fasting him for a few days, though.

I've been neglecting the picotope a bit, between Opalo getting sick, one of my mice dying, and generally being busy. It's doing fine, though. I'm going to test the water and do a water change tomorrow.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

*4/25*
Opalo was doing worse last night, but he's back to normal today. I guess he must have pooped. :shock: I'm going to fast him for another day, then start feeding him normally again. I think I'll feed him freshly killed fungus gnats for a day or two after he's done fasting. It's probably better than the pellets.

In a few more days, I can probably loop the 2.5 to the picotope. I think I figured out how I'll do it. I just need to wait for the 2.5 to get a bit more cycled so that it doesn't destabilize the picotope. I figure I can probably do that around the 30th, which should be about the same time that Opalo is done with his treatment and Mr. Gold is out of quarantine. I also bid on some plants on Ebay, so hopefully, they'll be arriving a day or two after that. 

Picotope water test results (before water change):
Ammonia: 0
Nitrites: 0
Nitrates: ~20 ppm
pH: 7.6
KH: 6
Temperature: 78 F
Going to do a 60% water change tonight

2.5 gallon water test results (before water change):
Ammonia: ~3 ppm
Nitrites: ~3-4 ppm
Nitrates: 0
pH: not tested
KH: not tested
Temperature: 70 F (no heater)
I had around 4 ppm of ammonia and no nitrites yesterday...then I added in a filter sponge from the Picotope. That got things going.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

I ordered 500 duckweed (duckweeds?) from Ebay a minute ago. Hope I don't regret this...haha. I really wanted a floating plant, and I love how duckweed looks. If it reproduces as fast as people say, though, I'll be swimming in the stuff (as will the bettas) in no time.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

*4/26*
Opalo is doing very badly tonight. He's floating on his side and having a very hard time swimming. I removed the aquarium salt in case that's the cause, and I replaced it with 1 tsp/gal of epsom salt. Hopefully that will help him. :-(

Mr. Gold is doing well. I'm really hoping that I can move him to a cycled, heated tank soon. I think he'd enjoy it. I noticed today that he has a tear in his tail. It doesn't look infected or anything, so I'm just keeping an eye on it.

The Picotope is doing nicely, at least. The diatoms are slowly getting replaced by normal slimy algae and a bit of fuzzy, cotton-like algae. It's not enough to concern me - huge knock on wood - but it's still time-consuming to clean off the plants.

I replanted the wisteria, which is sprouting lots of baby plants. I've got about 6 or 7 of them in my filter. Also, one of the hairgrass clumps came out of the substrate a bit, so I tried to move it a bit...and discovered that it was sending out lots of runners in every direction. :-D

I did a 100% change in Opalo's temporary tank today, and a 70% change in the picotope.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

*4/27*
Opalo is doing much better. He was still in bad shape when I left for church at about 7 AM, but I got home about half an hour ago, and he's doing fine now. There's several nice brown poops on the bottom of his tank.  I got him Omega One betta pellets, which will hopefully help keep him from getting bloated again. I fed both bettas two pellets each, and they loved them. I guess the Aqueon pellets will just be for cycling tanks from now on.

2.5 gallon water test results:
Ammonia: 1 ppm
Nitrites: >5 ppm
Nitrates: not tested


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## Canis (Apr 15, 2013)

Thats so good to hear! Glad he's doing okay ^^


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

Thanks! I'm so glad he's doing better. I just hope he doesn't get worse again.

Here's a photo I just took of the Picotope: (please excuse the brown algae)








As you can see, some of the older, taller hairgrass is slowly dying off. There's a lot of shorter green ones, so I assume that it's just getting rid of the old leaves. The wisteria and java moss shed a lot of their old leaves as well. They're much greener now. I keep looking at the hairgrass and thinking it hasn't grown too much...then I go back and look at the old photos, and wow, that stuff has doubled in size. Haha.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

I won a plant package RAOK today! I was so surprised. I almost forgot I had entered. Between that and the plants I got/might win from Ebay, I may have way too many plants. Maybe an excuse to start a bigger tank...? ;-)


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

The plants are all shipped now. If all goes well, I'll be getting them on Wednesday. Can't wait.  The only one left now is the one on Ebay, which ends in about 20 hours...I'm still the high bidder, though. :-D


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

*4/30*
Lots of big changes for the tanks! I moved Opalo and Mr. Gold to their regular tanks yesterday. They're really enjoying them. Mr. Gold is much more active, and Opalo is doing well too. 

I got my plant packages today! I'm loving them. A few of the RAOK plants were melted, but the rest are very nice looking. They're all quite leggy, but I think they'll probably be nice and lush in no time (after several trimmings). I'm loving the duckweed. It gets EVERYWHERE, which is quite bothersome, not going to lie about that. I still love how it looks, though. :-D

I won the Ebay plants too, so they should be here on Monday. I'll probably put them all in the 2.5 gallon, which still looks quite bare. The plants in the package are Pogostemon Yatabeanus, Clinopodium Brownei, Hydrocotyle sp 'Japan', red Ludwigia, Bacopa Caroliniana, Lagarosiphon Madagascariensis Ludwigia x. l Arcuata (I think I already have some of this from the RAOK). 

I had a slight mishap after I finished planting everything. I was filling up the 3 gallon, and accidentally overfilled it. Needless to say, I'll be finding pieces of duckweed on my desk for a long time. :lol:

I took the big piece of wood from the 2.5. I think it was a bit too bulky. I'm going to get a few smaller pieces of wood instead, and cover them in java moss. 

The pump I was going to use to loop the tanks decided to break, so I just added an air stone and some old filter media to the 2.5. Back to the drawing board, I suppose. :-?

Here's the duckweed-coated picotope:









With some new red plants. :-D I might have to call it the "jungle iwagumi" at this rate.









Closeup of the duckweed roots:









And here's the 2.5 gallon: (notice the very happy, partially-flaring halfmoon in the corner)


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

*5/6*
The tanks and fish are both doing well.  I got my other plants in the mail yesterday. They're all gorgeous. I especially like the red Ludwigia and the Lagarosiphon Madagascariensis. I put those two in the picotope, and the rest in the 2.5. They're all doing very well, no melting or leaf shedding yet.  

I think the one completely melted plant from the RAOK might survive. It has lots of new leaves sprouting along the melted stems. :shock: I'm glad I didn't throw it out!

I was looking at Opalo today, and I noticed that his fins are getting really long. He's starting to look more like a veiltail than a delta. And, speaking of fins, Mr. Gold's fins are starting to grow back. :-D

I gathered a bunch of driftwood from a river near where I live. I'm going to clean it, then cover it in moss and put it in the 2.5. I think I'll take the java moss out of the picotope and plant some of the new plants between the rocks instead. 

I had a strange experience with ghost shrimp this week. I got three from Petco. Within 12 hours, one jumped out of the tank, one died spontaneously, and the third went missing. #3 eventually reappeared. She's full of eggs, so I'm hoping to get shrimplets.

2.5 water test results:
Ammonia: ~.10-20
Nitrites: 0
Nitrates: 5 PPM
pH: 7.6
KH: not tested
Temperature: 78 F

Picotope water test results:
Ammonia: ~.10-15
Nitrites: 0
Nitrates: ~10 PPM
pH: 7.5
KH: 6
Temperature: 76 F

Not sure what's going on with the ammonia. I think my new test kit might be faulty. I tested my tap water, which doesn't normally have ammonia, and it measured as .25. I tested the day before I got the new test kit, and both tanks were at 0. I guess it's no big deal as long as the test doesn't read above .25...:-?

New photos:


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

*5/9*
Picotope water test results:
Ammonia: just over 0
Nitrites: 0
Nitrates: ~20 ppm
pH: 7.3
KH: not tested
Temperature: 75 F

2.5g water test results: 
Ammonia: 0
Nitrites: 0
Nitrates: ~10 ppm
pH: 7.6
KH: not tested
Temperature: 78 F

Planning to do 50% water changes on both tanks later.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

*5/11*
I took most of the moss out of the Picotope and tied it to driftwood today. After that, I put the driftwood in the 2.5 and moved the plants around a bit. I also trimmed some of the more leggy plants. Most of the pieces are only 1-3 inches or so now. They need to grow in nice and thick, considering the size of the tank. Afterwards, I did a 90% water change in the 2.5 and a 10% in the picotope (just enough to vacuum some floating debris).

I woke up this morning to discover that Opalo turned into a double tail. OK, not really. He just tore his fin really badly somehow. It doesn't look infected or anything, so I'm not too worried. I've been trying to figure out what he could have sliced it on, but I haven't found anything sharp.

I'll take a few photos once the water clears.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

*5/12*
Picotope water test results:
Ammonia: *8.0*+ ppm :shock::shock::shock:
Nitrites: 0
Nitrates: not tested
pH: 7.5
KH: 4
Temperature: 78 F

2.5 water test results:
Ammonia: 0
Nitrites: 0
Nitrates: 0
pH: not tested
KH: not tested
Temperature: 79 F

I did an ammonia test on the Picotope and the 2.5 this afternoon after playing with the fish for a few minutes. I went to check on the Picotope's ammonia test and discovered it was off the charts. :shock: I immediately did a 70% water change, and expecting to need to do another, I tested the water again...and the ammonia test suddenly showed 0 ammonia. If I had off-the-charts ammonia, shouldn't I have still had some after only doing a 70% change? I tested it again a few minutes ago, and it was still 0. 

I figure there are a few reasons I got this test result, listed from most likely to least likely:
1. I did the test wrong, or the test tube or syringe was contaminated (most likely)
2. There was a massive ammonia spike from disrupted substrate (likely, but doesn't explain the sudden drop)
3. There was a mini-cycle from disrupting the filter (somewhat likely, although when I switched the filter yesterday, I left all the old media intact. Also, wouldn't I have nitrites?)
4. Something bad got in the tank and killed the beneficial bacteria, and the ammonia will be 8 ppm again tomorrow (unlikely...I hope)

Currently keeping an eye on it. I hope it was just a fluke. :-?


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

*5/17*
Picotope water test results:
Ammonia: 0
Nitrites: 0 
Nitrates: ~5 ppm
pH: 7.7
KH: 5
Temperature: 79 F

2.5 water test results:
Ammonia: 0
Nitrites: 0
Nitrates: ~7-9 ppm
pH: 7.5
KH: 7
Temperature: 76 F

The joys of cycled, planted tanks...I can go a week without water changes and do every other day topoffs and still have good test results. I might switch to doing a large water change once per week instead of a small one and a larger one. I don't think I really need to do two per week, as long as my nitrates stay below 20 ppm or so.


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## mobius981 (Apr 27, 2014)

Amazing read! I learned a LOT, thanks! Tanks and fish look gorgeous, it is all worth the work, isn't it? 

I know there was a struggle with brown algae, have you thought of adding, say, a nerite snail or two? I am enjoying my Columbian ramshorn being my cleaning crew. He cleaned up the brown diatoms for sure, and even heavily planted, I have no algae (fingers crossed).


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## DaytonBetta (Feb 4, 2014)

Congrats on your cycle! Beautiful fish and plants.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

Thanks, folks!  I really appreciate it when other people can enjoy my tanks. I'm glad you learned some things too.  

The brown algae has actually mostly cleared up now. I get a little in shady areas, but that's about it. I'd still like to get a nerite or two for the other types of algae. I got some pond snail hitchhikers on the RAOK plants, and they've been clearing up the algae quite nicely. I like "pest" snails now. 

*5/17*
Tanks are doing well today. Thought I'd share a few photos that I took over the last few days.
Picotope:









2.5 gallon. The driftwood is in there, but most of it floated to the top. >.< I need to figure out a way to anchor it down better.









Here's the lagarosiphon madagascariensis. (Which is a mouthful to try to say. Lagomorph-siphon madagas-something-itis?) It's probably tripled in size, and it's sprouting lots of new stems. I was worried about it, since most of the pages I read about it mention melting, but this stuff is growing like a weed...:shock:









Red ludwigia. Also growing like crazy.









Closeup of hairgrass (and a little algae).









Moneywort and a plant whose name I don't remember. There's some rotala and bacopa off to the side.









Love this photo of Mr. Gold. It's a shame it turned out blurry.









Flaring at the mirror...









Starting to flare:









Opalo flaring...









Flaring and making a huge poop. :lol:









"Stop taking photos and feed us!"


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

*5/19*

*Things I learned about snails today*
Today, I got two nerite snails and two mystery snails for the tanks. Unfortunately, one nerite was dead, and one mystery appeared to be dead (but was not). I've gained a new respect for these strange creatures lately, even pond snails.

*1. Snails can SWIM*
I noticed that there was a piece of wood floating around Mr. Gold's tank earlier, so I reached in to take it out...and discovered it was a large pond snail. A snail. Swimming. Not even swimming slowly. I considered taking him out after watching him jump off plants a few times, because it honestly freaked me out a bit. Snails aren't supposed to swim. :shock: How does a snail swim?








_"I'm actually part fish."_

*2. Snails can hang upside down*
Duckweed, which which gets sucked to the bottom of the tank any time I adjust the filter, can apparently support the weight of a small mystery snail. Don't ask me how. It scared me (and Opalo) half to death when the snail suddenly fell out of nowhere. :shock:

*3. Bettas are afraid of snails*
At least, Mr. Gold is. As soon as a mystery snail flipped itself over, he bolted to the back of the tank. (Where he flared at his reflection for a while to prove he's still a fierce man. :lol

*4. Snails can return from the dead*
Or at least, pretend to be dead very well. One of the mystery snails started floating and not moving after about 5 minutes in Opalo's tank. I poked at him a bit and he didn't go into his shell. I watched him on and off while I worked for about 6 hours, and he didn't move once. I went back to remove him, and he was _gone._ He decided it was no fun being dead and brought back to Petsmart, I guess. He's now happily munching on algae and being flared at by Opalo.








_"So what? I've been dead dozens of times."_


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

*5/22*
The plants and fish are doing well. Planning to do a 50% water change in both tanks tonight. The snails are doing a great job on the algae - the tanks both look so clean! Also, the lagarosiphon madagascariensis amazes me. The cutting I took 5 days ago has doubled in size and has 3 new stems splitting off. This stuff might take over my tank. It grows faster than the wisteria!

Thought I'd share a funny little habit that Opalo has. He has trouble finding the pellets in the morning when there's a lot of duckweed in his tank. For the last 3 days, instead of trying to pick through the duckweed, he just sticks his head out of the water and eats the pellet off my finger. It startled me a bit to see a tiny white face poking 1/2 inch out of the water the first time he did it!


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## mobius981 (Apr 27, 2014)

Adorable! I can't wait til I teach Zen to do it! Love your pics, thanks so much! Tanks are awesome!


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

Thank you! :-D


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

*5/23*
Picotope water test results:
Ammonia: 0
Nitrites: 0
Nitrates: ~5 ppm
pH: 7.3
KH: not tested
Temperature: 78 F

2.5 water test results:
Ammonia: 0
Nitrites: 0
Nitrates: ~5 ppm
pH: 7.6
KH: not tested
Temperature: 76 F

It's strange when it's time to do a water change, but you really don't need to...I just topped off the water and dosed some ferts instead.


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## mobius981 (Apr 27, 2014)

Ha, you are forecasting ease of maintenance with a fully cycled planted tank!! I look forward to the day....


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

These tanks are starting to become super easy to maintain. All my previous cycled tanks had nasty nitrate problems. I don't know what I'm doing different this time (more quick-growing plants? Better stocking levels?), but I like it. :-D


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## mobius981 (Apr 27, 2014)

Please please let me know when you figure it out, lol!!


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## danielleduq (May 16, 2014)

what kind of lighting do you use on the 2.5 gallon? I'm considering doing a planted tank for mine and was wondering which lighting works for you


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

I use a metal clip-on desk lamp with a 20 watt daylight CFL bulb. I got the lamp for about $9 at Walmart. Total cost for the lighting was about $13. :-D I suggest using a lower wattage bulb unless you can keep up with CO2 and fertilizer dosing.


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## danielleduq (May 16, 2014)

thanks your fish are stunning!


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

Thanks!  Would love to see your 2.5 some time!

*5/27*
Tanks are doing great. I think that dosing small amounts of ferts every 2 days, instead of a full dose 1-2 times per week in water changes, is doing them good. Some of the slower growing ones are sprouting new stems, and several are even getting red leaves. 

I'm shipping out plants for the first time tomorrow! The tanks were wildly overgrown, and I had to get rid of some of the plants. The wisteria and Lagarosiphon madagascariensis each took up half the tank, so I took some cuttings. They'll be going to a nice new home. 

I also finally made permanent lids for the tank out of plastic canvas. They look nicer than I expected. The one on the Picotope is sinking into the tank a bit, so I need to find a way to prop it up better.

Wildly overgrown tank photos:



























What happens when you go too long without trimming your quick growing plants...(The bubbles are from a bubblenest that I accidentally messed up. Oops. )


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## mobius981 (Apr 27, 2014)

Yay for plastic canvas, tanks look great! Did you see my DIY thread on plastic canvas? Some binder holder edgers might do the trick, or something along those lines!


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

Yeah, I think I saw. I'm going to work on the lids a bit more today. :-D Thanks for the suggestions!

*5/28*
Picotope water test results:
Ammonia: ~.15-20
Nitrites: just over 0
Nitrates: just over 0
pH: 7.0
KH: 6
Temperature: 78 F

2.5 water test results:
Ammonia: 0
Nitrites: 0
Nitrates: 5 ppm
pH: 6.6 :shock:
KH: 7
Temperature: 77 F

I'm not sure what caused the small ammonia/nitrite spike in the Picotope. Could have had something to do with all the plant trimming/rearranging, or something could have died in the tank (plant leaves or snails). I'll keep an eye on it.

I think the pH dropped from a combination of fewer water changes (my tap water pH is about 8.0...) and more CO2. I slightly changed my CO2 recipe, so it's a lot more productive now. 

I'll be doing a 20% water change today and a 20-30% change tomorrow (I don't want the pH to go up too fast).


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

Something funny...I didn't realize how connected the roots are in the 2.5. I tried to pull up a bushy stem of rotala, and half the plants came with it. :shock:


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

*5/29*
Picotope water test results:
Ammonia: just over 0
Nitrites: 0
Nitrates: 0
pH: 7.1
KH: not tested
Temperature: 77 F

2.5 water test results: 
Ammonia: not tested
Nitrites: not tested
Nitrates: not tested
pH: 6.8
KH: not tested
Temperature: 75 F

You know you spend too much time thinking about fish when the highlight of your day is getting a new test kit. :lol:

Also, I'm currently trying to get a platinum HM betta. Betta #3 may be coming soon...:-D


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## mobius981 (Apr 27, 2014)

Ooohhh, a new finbaby! Can't wait to see him...want pics of what a platinum looks like! I bet he will be Gor-Geous!!


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

Here's a pic from his listing...








His fins are a bit unusual looking and I think he'd be considered spoonheaded - but he's still gorgeous. And he's in the US - a plus, since I don't want to pay $40+ extra for transhipping fees. Trying not to get too excited though, just in case, since there's a bit of a bidding war going on.


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## mobius981 (Apr 27, 2014)

OMG what a darling betta baby! TY so much!! Keeping fingers crossed for you!!


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

Thanks!  The other bidder seems to have lost interest, or he's just waiting. 2 days left...Biting my fingernails here...

I'm already thinking of what I could do with this guy. Some possible thoughts: 
-I'm hoping to start a 30ish gallon community in a few months. I could move one of the bettas to that tank once it's set up (probably Opalo, since he has shorter fins)
-I've always loved the idea of having a betta in one of these: http://www.thegreenhead.com/imgs/cold-drink-dispenser-2.jpg They have some 3 gallon ones at Walmart.
-I have this image of a tank in my head with dirt, a thin layer of gravel, and then a thick layer of broken pots at the bottom. There would be lots of moss and low-light plants coming out of the bottom. It would look something like a forgotten garden. I'm thinking a tall, rounded tank would be pretty neat...maybe a big (2-4 gallon) vase or bowl?


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

OK, I got outbid on the one in the photo I posted, but I found a nicer one by the same seller. He has a smoother shape and nicer fins, and costs half as much (but will probably get bid up). I bid on him, so unless his price goes up dramatically before the other auction ends, I think I'll go for this one. The worst part, though, is that I have to wait an extra day for this auction to end.


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## myexplodingcat (Apr 9, 2014)

Wow, he's really pretty! He does have nicer fins and he isn't spoonheaded like the other guy. He's almost full-out platinum white! That's supposed to be really tough to breed.


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## DaytonBetta (Feb 4, 2014)

He is so pretty! I hope you get him and it's a reasonable price.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

Thanks! I believe he actually is a platinum. I love how white his fins are. And yeah, I've read that it's hard to get platinums to stay white for most of their lives. Most of them get black or red coloring, apparently. Opalo is a cellophane, not a platinum, but he's definitely developed a bit of subtle gray coloring. I wouldn't be too bothered if the new guy changed colors a bit, though.

The wait is killing me. I'm checking Ebay every 5 minutes. :frustrated:

I got some pretty black sand and got my 2 gallon running. I have it set up with a 13w light and an internal filter. It's definitely a semi-temporary setup, of course. I dumped in a bunch of my old Aqueon pellets to cycle it. Hopefully, the cycle will be finished by the time he arrives (according to Ebay, by June 10th). I'm going to add in ceramic media from the Picotope as soon as I get ammonia readings.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

Well, he ended up more than tripling in price in the last few hours. I really don't want to pay that much. I guess I'll go back to looking for a new one. :-(

*6/2*
Picotope water test results: 
Ammonia: 0
Nitrites: 0
Nitrates: not tested
pH: 6.7
KH: not tested
Temperature: 76 F

2.5 water test results: 
Ammonia: 0
Nitrites: not tested
Nitrates: not tested
pH: 6.8
KH: not tested
Temperature: 76 F

New 2 gallon water test results:
Ammonia: 2 ppm
Nitrites: 1 ppm
Nitrates: not tested
Day 3 of cycling


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## mobius981 (Apr 27, 2014)

Awwww, here is hoping you find your new baby really soon!


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

I actually may have just found another one from an Ebay seller who, by chance, lives about 15 minutes away from me. :shock: I'm trying to work out the details right now...May be able to pick him up in person.


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## mobius981 (Apr 27, 2014)

wow! let's hope that first little guy was meant to guide you to this one...go figure!!


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## MistersMom (Aug 9, 2011)

Love your tanks and fish!!! Good luck with the new one you're looking into!!


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

Thanks MistersMom! 

Yeah, I still can't believe that I found a local betta breeder with exactly what I was looking for. :shock: I just bought him a few minutes ago. He's mine now! I just need to arrange to meet up with the seller and pick him up now. :redyay:

This is him:


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## Pony (Apr 26, 2014)

Awesome!! Congrats on the new fella, he's gorgeous!


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## Rimbaum (May 22, 2014)

Oh my goodness, what a beautiful fish! I'm so glad you could get him!


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

Thanks folks!  I'm hoping to pick him up tomorrow. I'm so excited! :-D His tank isn't done cycling yet, so I guess he'll be going in the hospital tank for a few days. 

*6/3*
Updated tank photos...Tanks are completely


















The lagarosiphon madagascariensis is growing out of control. It's taking over the tank again. I can't reach in there without getting it wrapped all around our hands. I'm selling a couple of packages of it in the Classifieds forum right now...I hope it sells before my tank gets taken over. :shock:


















Opalo's ridiculously long fins:


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## mobius981 (Apr 27, 2014)

OMG! He looks wonderful adorable darling gorgeous! Yay! I know you are excited!!


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## MistersMom (Aug 9, 2011)

I've always loved planted tanks..... i just could never keep a plant alive haha.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

Thanks! :-D I never had much luck with my first couple of planted tanks. I went through 3 tanks of melting plants before these...glad I kept trying. 

Bit nervous at the moment...the Ebay seller told me I could pick the betta up any time, but didn't give me his address. I sent him a message yesterday, and he hasn't replied yet. I'm trying not to be too impatient...:-?


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## mobius981 (Apr 27, 2014)

Any news about new betta-baby?


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

Yep! Seller got back in contact with me. :-D Apparently, the Ebay message system is glitchy, and a couple of our messages didn't send. But we got it worked out. I'll be picking the betta boy up tomorrow morning! :-D


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

So, I may or may not have felt like a kid on Christmas Eve last night, and had trouble sleeping. :lol: 

I went to the seller's house today, knocked on the door...waited two minutes...heard voices and dogs inside, but there was no response. Went back to double-check the address, and I was at the wrong house.  So, I walked to the correct house. I was surprised how small the fish is - I'm used to seeing almost fully grown pet store bettas. He's probably half the size of Opalo. The seller gave me an Indian almond leaf, which is pretty neat looking. I put a piece in the new betta's tank. 

Here's a few photos of the new guy (who still needs a name!)

On the way home...


















He seems to be fascinated with this clump of duckweed and algae. I wonder if he's ever seen floating plants before?


















He kept grabbing old debris and duckweed from the bottom of the tank, chewing them up a bit, then swimming to the top and spitting them out. Silly fish.


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## MistersMom (Aug 9, 2011)

How cute!I love Bettas, so much personality.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

That's why I love them too. They all have their own little habits and personalities. 

I let him flare in front of a mirror a few minutes ago. He is so gorgeous. He's definitely a halfmoon. I did notice that his tail looks a bit salty. :-( I'm really, really hoping that it's just his coloring, not ich. I imagine it would be hard to notice bad ich on a white betta...


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## mobius981 (Apr 27, 2014)

WOW!! he looks just adorable, what great pics!! how exciting is this? I would love to see a size comparison between him and opalo!! And he has pinky tinges, looks like, what a sweetie!! And no endless shipping stress...even better! He is bee-yoo-ti-ful!


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

He actually looks a lot less pink in real life, but for some reason the photos make him look really pink. He's pretty uniformly white, though his body has a subtle pale pink tint. I wouldn't be surprised if he eventually looks more like Opalo, with a pinkish body and pink veins in his tail. It'll be interesting to see how he changes as he gets older!

Tomorrow is water change day, so I'll put all three boys in cups for a size comparison. 

I'm thinking of naming him either Ephemeral or Quartzite...not sure yet.


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## mobius981 (Apr 27, 2014)

Um. Ephemeral might not be the best, check definition, how about Ethereal? Or (my suggestion) Gossamer...or Gossamer Dream...


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

Oh - I know the definition - it wasn't meant to refer to a lifespan, but the fact that he'll probably not stay white, lol. I used it for a while as a name for a virtual pet, so it came to mind. Ethereal's a good one too.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

*6/6*
Did a 40% water change in the Picotope and the 2.5, and a 90% water change in the new guy's .7 gallon. Opalo scared me a bit - he HATES nets, and when I caught him to put him in his cup, he jumped out of the net and landed on my desk. :shock: I picked him up with my fingers right away and put him in the cup. He seems fine now. 

Here's a few photos of the fish that I took while they were in their cups. 
Size comparison between Opalo and the new one:


















Pretty shiny fish. :-D









Mr. Gold is beautiful in the sunlight.









"I don't know who you two are, but let's make one thing clear: I'm in charge here."









I don't know why, but I love this photo! His eyes look strange from this angle, though.



























Which fish is it? It's funny that they both look the same in the sunlight...









I didn't notice how much red coloring Mr. Gold is starting to get.









"No, really. I'm the best fish."









Picotope water test results: 
Ammonia: 0
Nitrites: 0
Nitrates: 0
pH: 6.8
KH: not tested
Temperature: 76 F

2.5 water test results: 
Ammonia: 0
Nitrites: 0
Nitrates: 0
pH: 7.1
KH: not tested
Temperature: 76 F

2 gallon water test results: 
Ammonia: 1 ppm
Nitrites: ~5 ppm
Nitrates: 0 ppm
Day 6 of cycling


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

Unfortunately, the new boy (who I named Quartzite) jumped out of a tiny hole in his tank this morning. He didn't make it. :-(


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

*6/8*

Picotope water test results: 
Ammonia: 0
Nitrites: 0
Nitrates: not tested
pH: not tested
KH: not tested
Temperature: 78 F

2.5 water test results:
Ammonia: .25
Nitrites: 0
Nitrates: not tested
pH: not tested
KH: not tested
Temperature: 76 F

2 gallon water test results:
Ammonia: 0
Nitrites: 0
Nitrates: not tested
Temperature: 78 F
Day 8 of cycling (probably cycled)

Couldn't figure out why the ammonia rose in the 2.5 until I noticed the filter was stuck. The water in the tank couldn't reach the filter bacteria, so the ammonia spiked a bit. I'm not sure how long it was like that. I think the filter media bacteria should be OK, though, since there was still water in the filter. Just in case, I put in a few pieces of ceramic media from the Picotope to help re-seed it. Will test again tomorrow.

The 2 gallon is cycled now...too bad I don't have a fish to put in there any more. :-(


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## danielleduq (May 16, 2014)

I'm sorry about your fish  at least he was in a good home in the end you know? 
I love reading this thread!


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

I'm glad he was in a decent home in the end too. I wish he had at least lived long enough for his heated and cycled tank to be ready, though. :-(

So...I was walking through Petco to get a filter cartridge today, and stopped by the betta section. They had a lot of red veiltails and baby bettas, and a few fancy looking rosetails. It looked like most of the bettas were bought up. Just when I was turning to leave the betta section, I noticed a white DT betta sitting on the shelf. So, I spent a few minutes trying to decide if I should get him or not, and...I really don't need to tell this story, do I? You know I bought him. :lol:

He's very cute. He definitely looks whiter than Opalo, so I'm pretty sure he's not a cellophane. His fins look pretty damaged. I'm actually not sure if he's a real doubletail, or just a delta with really short, torn fins. 

He's in the 2 gallon now. Once he settles in a bit, I'll take photos.  I think I'll name him Impulse.


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## Rimbaum (May 22, 2014)

Congrats on the new boy! I'm glad you saw him, here's to hoping he is a double tail and not a poor fish with a torn fin.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

*6/17*
Did a water change on all 3 tanks today. I did a 70% change on the 2.5, a 60% change on the Picotope, and a 60% change on the 2g. A couple of plants are showing signs of what I believe is a potassium deficiency, so I got a pack of Fluorish fertilizers. I've noticed that their growth has slowed a bit as well, so hopefully that'll help.

I took Opalo out of the tank and put him in a cup while I was trimming the plants. As I was refilling the tank, I accidentally knocked over the cup and spilled the poor fish right off my desk. :shock: I spent a frantic couple of minutes searching the floor before checking the water change bucket. I reached into the dark bucket to see if he was under an almond leaf piece, and I felt a little slimy thing wiggle in my fingers. :shock: I immediately fished him out and put him back in the tank. He doesn't seem any worse off. At least he didn't end up on the floor...


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

*7/7*
Sorry about not updating for so long! The tanks are still doing great. Opalo's getting a bit fat - I think 8 pellets and a couple bloodworms a day may be a few too many. :lol: The tanks got really overgrown over the last couple of weeks. I did a big trim to get cuttings for my new 20 gallon. I think I could actually trim them quite a bit more, though.

(please excuse the uprooted ludwigia)


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