# Mame's 20 Gallon Community NPT Journal



## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

Perhaps it's premature to start a journal thread, since I literally don't own anything I'll need for this tank - besides the betta, a bag of substrate, and some plants. But, the ideas for this tank are just floating around in my head right now, and I need a place to write them down! 

A bit of background...I've actually never had a planted tank any bigger than 3 gallons. I had a number of failed small tanks, and then finally lucked out with my current 3 tanks. I feel like I finally have the knowledge (or, rather, memories of what _not_ to do) to start a bigger tank, without just having an expensive mistake in the living room.

I wasn't planning on getting a bigger tank any time soon until I got Impulse. (Yes, his name tells his story.) He's currently sitting in my horribly scratched, rather unattractive 2 gallon. I was going to get him a 3 gallon round tank, but I figured, if I'm starting a new tank, why not go for a big one this time? Impulse has no idea how lucky he is. ;-)

I can't really do much until I get the actual tank. I'm waiting for the next $1/gallon sale to start at Petco. Over the next week, I plan to start gathering the supplies I need (everything). Once I get the tank, I think it'll fall into place nicely. It's tough to wait, though. :lol:

So, here's my plans for the *equipment:*
-Tank: 20 gallon long 
-Lighting: Two or three desk lamps with 26 watt CFL bulbs
-Filter: Petco Power Filter (10-30 gallon size)
-Heater: Tetra Whisper Heater (10-30 gallon size)
-CO2: DIY yeast systems (I'll probably need 3 or 4 bottles)

*Substrate/hardscape/dosing:*
-Miracle Gro Organic soil
-Brown play sand and gravel cap
-Locally collected rocks/wood
-Some sort of background (which I'll probably need to make myself)
-Seachem NPK fertilizers, Nutrafin Plant gro, Flourish Excel

*Fauna:*
-Male betta
-3 platies
-8 to 10 orange von rio tetras
-some mystery snails
-some nerites
-bladder and pond snail hitchhikers (I have made peace with these)

*Flora:*
-Glossostigma (glosso) carpet
-Lagarosiphon madagascariensis (crazily-fast-growing pretty weedy thing)
-Ludwigia x arcuata (pretty red/brown weedy thing)
-Ludwigia repens (red Ludwigia)
-Pogostemon yatabeanus (slighty weedy pine-like thing that likes growing out of the water)
-Myriophyllum tuberculatum (this thing's name should be "magical melting plant")
-Clinopodium brownei (water mint)
-some sort of moss (Christmas moss or java moss?)

I'll post a photo of my plans for the aquascape in a little while. I went to a very beautiful part of Colorado a while back, with misty rolling hills, dense forests, and impressive rocky plateaus. This tank will be based on that.


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## DaytonBetta (Feb 4, 2014)

You should consider looking on Craig's List for aquariums. With a 20 long you'll probably want a stand specifically for aquariums since it will be quite heavy when filled. I've gotten some great deals on Craig's List.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

I'm a bit nervous about getting actual aquariums from Craigslist...it would suck to get a cracked/scratched one. I've been checking Craigslist for aquarium stands, but haven't found one I liked yet. If all else fails, I could move the 2.5 and the Picotope, and make the 20g a desktop tank. I have a big, very sturdy cherry wood desk, so I'm sure it would support ~220 lbs. Thanks or the tip


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

So, I got the 20g yesterday. :blueyay: Still working on changing it from a disgusting, muddy mess to a less disgusting, cycling mess. Right now, I had to use some old live rock and smooth stones to prop up the sand. It's definitely not what the tank will ultimately look like, though. (Actually, it mostly looks like a mud puddle right now.) I'm going to go to some sort of garden/landscape store in the next few days to see if they have better rocks. I haven't been able to find any outside that I like.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

Regret of the day...adding sand without rinsing it first. I thought it would settle or clear up after a few water changes. I just spent 1 1/2 hours doing about five 50% water changes and picking out floating bits, and it's still a mud puddle. >.<

I should get paid on Tuesday and can get the light fixtures! I'm also getting a Walmart gift card, which I'm going to use to buy the heater. Then I'll have all the equipment I need to start.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

With the help of about 10 large water changes and a bit of Jungle Clear Water, the tank is finally almost clear! I think I finally decided on the final plans for the aquascape. Now I just need to find the darn rocks. I think I can get away with using some flatter, smaller rocks if I arrange them right. 

Unfortunately, Impulse died today. He was acting strange for the last few days, and he developed some raised scales yesterday. He seemed to be doing a little better today, but he was gone when I got home a little while ago. It's disappointing...he was just starting to color up. :-( 

I might be getting a new fish from a member here, though! He'll probably end up going in this tank right away.


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## Pandanke (Jun 16, 2014)

So sorry to hear about Impulse, at least he wasn't suffering though. A new fresh tank and a new boy may be just the thing to help you keep your mind off of it, though. I know I'll just be heartbroken when mine pass someday.

Not rinsing sand is one of those mistakes you do once and never again, haha. I am glad you got it to clear down though! I made a mess like that recently with a dirted tank, ugh! Sand is my favorite substrate, way much more so than gravel. Being able to hover over it to clean it versus digging around is way easier. I think my plants like it more, too!

Remember you'll need to poke or rake it once in awhile if it's more than an inch to prevent noxious gas buildup, though! Cause I've seen it happen that people don't, and then the sand explodes, some fish may die, and there is sand... EVERYWHERE!!!

Can't wait to see updates! <3


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

Pandanke said:


> So sorry to hear about Impulse, at least he wasn't suffering though. A new fresh tank and a new boy may be just the thing to help you keep your mind off of it, though. I know I'll just be heartbroken when mine pass someday.
> 
> Not rinsing sand is one of those mistakes you do once and never again, haha. I am glad you got it to clear down though! I made a mess like that recently with a dirted tank, ugh! Sand is my favorite substrate, way much more so than gravel. Being able to hover over it to clean it versus digging around is way easier. I think my plants like it more, too!
> 
> ...


Thank you. I've lost enough pets to not be as affected when one of the smaller ones dies...but it still stings when a new, young one dies. I tend to get a new pet right away when one dies. I don't like looking at empty tanks and cages for too long.

I kind of got spoiled by pet store sand and gravel, lol. The play sand was just so filthy. I'm used to getting yellow water and floating bits from dirt, but this was just ridiculous! I'll definitely rinse it next time!

Yikes, I've never heard that about the exploding sand...do you think it would help to have plants with deep roots? There's a few inches of sand in some parts of the tank. It's the only way I could figure out to make natural-looking hills. I've heard there are also snails that dig through the substrate. Maybe I'll look into getting some of those...

Good news - I'll definitely be getting a new betta on Wednesday! His name is Tiger, and he's a black orchid DT. I'm thinking I'll name him Granite or Carbon. Here's a photo of him from his current owner's for sale thread...


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

I got 10 lbs of lace rock today at a LFS. It looks really, really nice. :-D I think I may need a bit more sand to make the slopes look nicer, though. I'll rinse it a few dozen times this time around. :roll:

Tank finally cleared up!









The rocks...









And, after adding the rocks, the tank is back to being a mud puddle. >.<


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

20 gallon mud puddle...er, tank, now with plants! I was a bit disappointed to see how small the cuttings look in a 20 gallon.  I'm sure they'll take over the tank in no time, though, especially the 10 lagarosiphon cuttings. 










I'll probably attempt to keep them in the sand (plant them) tomorrow. I might rearrange the rocks on the right as well.


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## Pandanke (Jun 16, 2014)

I hear malaysian trumpet snails help a LOT with aerating, and so do deep-rooting plants, but it is still a good idea to give the deeper areas a thorough poking (I like to use chop sticks) once a month or so.

I saw Tiger on a for sale thread, he is sure gorgeous colored up... Excited to see him in your tank!


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## myexplodingcat (Apr 9, 2014)

Gorgeous fish! Yeah, you want to poke/rake the sand sometimes... and make sure there isn't more than 3 inches of it (I think is the rule)... If you want taller hills, you can use gravel on the bottom to boost it up like I did with my paludarium. (That lets water under the sand, if you do it right.)

MTS would be an excellent addition to this kind of tank! They're awfully cute and they do benefit tanks with lots of sand or dirt.

You'll be glad to hear I've got some lovely java ferns growing along nicely c: I don't think you want to do the plant trade I suggested a few weeks ago right now because it looks like you're awfully busy populating this tank, but if you like, I can send you some bigger ferns early to help cycle! Then you can send along whatever you feel is a fair trade later on--I'd definitely be interested in some MTS if you get them, all you have to do is overfeed them a bit and they'll reproduce.

Oh! And I have spearmint cuttings if you can keep the leaves out of the water, that'd help cycle things too. They grow lots of roots and make the water smell nice--Felix likes them.  You'd have to find a way to float them upright, though. (I'm envisioning tiny float rings like kids have in pools.)

As for the sand, I suggest you take a big tub and rinse the whole bag thoroughly, and then store it in a container where it can't scrape around. For the leftovers from, say, a five-pound bag of sand, you can use paper towel rolls duct taped shut... but I don't think your leftovers can fit into such a thing. Maybe a couple storage bins. Just not a bag, that'll have the sand grinding against itself and producing dust.

I don't know if putting your filter in would hurt it... probably not a good idea, I'd think. I'd suggest a scheme involving a big funnel, quite a few of those papers used for gravity filtration, a siphon, and a roll of duct tape, but I realize that normal people don't solve their problems by mishmashing Chemistry class with Red Green (a dangerous combination). Of course, I don't know you well enough to judge your weirdness level...

Let me know if there's anything I can do to help!

Edit: And you mentioned you were having a die-back with your plants... I do have wisteria I could spare if yours ended up getting hit badly.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

I think its a bit too late to add gravel, unfortunately, since the plants and sand are already in. :-( (And I have very little motivation to move around the dirty sand, lol). It seems loose and wet when I stick my fingers in, so hopefully a bit of water gets in there. I'll definitely get some MTS and poke the sand with chopsticks. 

You know, I may still want to do the plant trade. My small tanks are still wildly overgrown, even after trimming everything. 

I figured out that my melty plants with brown holes had a potassium deficiency. (Well, I'm 90% sure. It matched the symptoms, anyway.) This causes the old leaves to get brown pinholes and yellow/melty leaves.  As soon as I started dosing some new Seachem fertilizers, the plants went back to normal. They're still a bit damaged looking at the bases (the old leaves don't heal once they're damaged), but their growth has taken off. Thankfully, I corrected the problem before any of them died entirely. Moral of the story: don't skimp on your NPK ferts! I think they got enough from the soil at first, but I'm not surprised that they needed extra ferts after 4 1/2 months, considering how heavily planted the tanks are.

I appreciate the offer of wisteria, but I think I'm good.  My wisteria is growing like a weed again. I got five decent size cuttings just from the recovering ones in the Picotope. :shock: 

I apparently can't keep mint alive. I mean, my water mint is doing great, but I can't keep any other kind of mint alive. I've been trying for years, but it always dies one way or another, usually without me knowing what caused it. I get a little angry when someone tells me how mint took over their yard. :lol: Got any spearmint secrets?

That's a good idea for the sand. I had about two pounds left, so I rinsed it in a bucket and dumped out the water about five times. I did lose a good amount of sand down the drain, though. It doesn't kill the filter or anything, but I've already been through a couple of filthy filter sponges. 

You may find that I am weirder than you'd expect. 

Edit - odd idea - what about teething rings for the spearmint? They float, I think. They're definitely non-toxic as well. I'm thinking of the plain, hollow/water-filled ones like this: http://thumbs.dreamstime.com/z/teething-ring-11962071.jpg


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## myexplodingcat (Apr 9, 2014)

You wanna know why your water mint survives when your on-land mint doesn't?

They _suck_ water. Seriously. I have to water my mint plant heavily every two days. It doesn't look like its pot could hold that much, but it can. (They also like to be rootbound.) Mint doesn't mind if the soil is soggy. That's why it grows so well in my paludarium. Just needs the leaves in the air. They also like lots of light. Some mint sprawls, other kinds send up stalks from a base.

I got my mint plant at Wal-Mart, it doubled in height in a few weeks, and I've had to trim it back multiple times. There's a vase of cuttings on my desk that I haven't even been able to fit in my tank. I'd gladly pass some on.

That... is really, really funny. XD Teething rings might just work. You could tie a bundle together and just float it like that.


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## cmwong27 (Jun 4, 2014)

I can't wait to see photographs of it when it's planted. And I agree with everyone else, what a handsome boy! Was Impulse pineconing? SIP


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

See, that could be the issue with my mint. I normally only water my garden plants and houseplants every 2-3 days or so, or else I get fungus gnat infestations. It's really dry here, so they get very little rain in the summer. That explains it perfectly!

I keep trying to envision what it'll look like in a couple of months, when it's heavily planted and full of fish. It's a bit hard to do, when all you can look at is a muddy sandy thing. :lol: 

I'm not sure if Impulse was pineconing. He had a few patches of slightly raised scales on his sides, and he was less active for a few days...then he just died. He was just recovering from popeye (which caused him to lose one eye), so I can't help but feel that it was related to that. 

I'm going to get the lighting fixtures today. :-D I'm also going to get two DIY CO2 systems going. That should help the plants get established.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

Let there be light! (and plants)



























I definitely need a third fixture. The 20 watt daylight bulbs came in 3-packs, so I have an extra one lying around anyway.  The plants are doing nicely. The only ones that melted were a couple of small stems of lagarosiphon - but they were floating in my Picotope for a couple of days, so I'm not surprised. The rest are all looking nice and green (or red). 

Note: the sand isn't actually flaky and pink. I dumped in a huge amount of fish food two days ago to see if it's cycled. I put in two established sponges from my other tanks at the same time. I'm going to test the water tonight. I had tested it a few times before, and was only getting low or no ammonia/nitrite readings - but the 100% water changes probably had something to do with that.


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## myexplodingcat (Apr 9, 2014)

Whoo! Plants!

Yeah, I agree, that needs the extra light. Although that shadow might be in part from that wad of sheer plant matter that you have floating there.

Man, that looks like so much fun.  Hope you're enjoying yourself!


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

That wad is a ball of frustration...uh, er...plants that floated out of the sand. There's definitely a dark spot in the middle. I'm going to pick up a third lamp in a few days - would have done it today, but the store I went to only had two steel colored clip-on lamps. 

I certainly am!  Although, as much fun as it is to start up a tank, I like it a lot more when the tank is successfully running and full of fish and plants. I feel like I'm enjoying myself just a little bit each day. :lol: Not much you can do with a cycling tank once the water is tested/changed and the plants are adequately fiddled around with...


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## myexplodingcat (Apr 9, 2014)

Oh, but it's the anticipation! You know? Like when you're a kid right before Christmas and you know there are lots of presents waiting for you?

Well I guess not so much if your parents did the Santa Claus thing and you couldn't see the presents beforehand. My 'rents never bothered, just put everything under the tree once it was wrapped so we could enjoy the pretty gifts before all that careful wrapping was torn away 

Hmm. Have you tried putting the bottom of the stems in at an angle, and weighing them down with a small rock or something? At least until they set up shop a bit better, maybe? Or tie a piece of acrylic thread around a stem and bury/"stake" the thread in the sand as well?

I'll see if I can get myself a flat-rate box while I'm out tomorrow. It looks like you're ready for some planties. Do you want some mint, or just the java ferns? (seriously I have so much mint.)

And I have this little knitted betta tube I could throw in... it's made of acrylic yarn, so it won't bleed or decompose in the water. I had it in Felix's old tank for a while and all I got were some fibers in the filter (but he never used it). It's royal blue. I don't have room for it in either tank, but if you have a fish who might like it, I'll send it too. I made it in thirty minutes, it's not a lot of work or anything.

I was gonna post a comic (click at your own risk) jesting about the idea of controlled, slow-release enjoyment, but realized after I'd made it that it was a hilariously terrible double-entendre involving some pretty bad toilet humor. The context of this post makes it sort of make sense, but it also makes it worse...

I clearly need sleep, I can't believe I didn't catch that as I drew it. One would think I never attended middle school...


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## DaytonBetta (Feb 4, 2014)

myexplodingcat said:


> You wanna know why your water mint survives when your on-land mint doesn't?
> 
> They _suck_ water. Seriously. I have to water my mint plant heavily every two days. It doesn't look like its pot could hold that much, but it can. (They also like to be rootbound.) Mint doesn't mind if the soil is soggy. That's why it grows so well in my paludarium. Just needs the leaves in the air. They also like lots of light. Some mint sprawls, other kinds send up stalks from a base.
> 
> ...


Good tip on the mint. I have a pretty chocolate mint in a pot outside, it is growing like crazy and does take a lot of water. I may take a cutting and root it for the land part of my terrarium, It's always damp because of the false bottom and I'm having trouble finding suitable plants. Mint might be the answer.


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## myexplodingcat (Apr 9, 2014)

How're the parameters today, MameJenny? Hope your cycling is going well 

I have some plants set apart in a glass of clean water for you... eight decent-sized baby ferns, plenty of mint, and that knitted tube (about 2in long and 2in in diameter). Don't feel bad if you end up not using the mint or tube--I haven't been.

I think out of those ferns, you have a good shot of at least some of them reaching maturity and giving you a bunch more baby ferns. They can grow pretty slowly though. They're about an inch and a half tall on average, with two to four leaves apiece.

I think I'm going to be able to get my hands on a flat-rate box in the next few days. Until then, any adjustments? I'm attaching pics. I could send some smaller ferns too but I'm not sure they'd survive the shipping.

You can just send back whatever you can spare or whatever you think is a fair trade--I do have wisteria and bacopa already but would definitely take more, lagaro would be great, water mint is great; I wouldn't mind waiting for a bit if you're planning on getting MTS and would be willing to send me some. If it's more convenient for you, I can pay for your share of the shipping in return for snails or more plants. Just tell me what you'd like to do.

Enjoy~


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

Haven't tested the water yet. I was just getting all my things together to do a water change. I'll know in a couple of minutes. 

Currently, I have several types of extra cuttings...
-lots and lots of lagarosiphon (seriously, the tanks are FULL of this stuff) 
-several types of ludwigia (ludwigia repens, ludwigia aracuta, a couple of unknown ones) - several cuttings
-some java moss - about the size of 2 quarters
-duckweed (maybe 1/4 cup full)
-water wisteria (a couple small cuttings, and a baby plant)
-water mint - 2-3 small cuttings
-pogostemon yatabeanus - a bigger cutting or two - good for submerged or emersed purposes, grows quick
-possibly a bit of green rotala 
-My green oxalis houseplant also needs a bit of cleanup, if you have any interest. These would be in the form of small tubers. They take anywhere between a week and a few months to sprout. No guarantees on these - I've never shipped them before.

Let me know which ones you're most interested in! Otherwise, any leftovers will go in the 20g with the others,  Sorry for not getting back to you sooner! Your plants look gorgeous, BTW.


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## myexplodingcat (Apr 9, 2014)

I really like the look of ludwigia, lagaro and rotala.  Simon is nuts about his java moss (which you were the one to give me!)--in fact, he's hiding in it right now--so I'll ask on his behalf. Felix would probably enjoy several tablespoons of duckweed, his tank's getting quite a lot of light from the window and could use some shade.

So, ludwigia, lagaro, rotala, java moss, and duckweed are what I'm most interested in. 

That's a really nice looking houseplant! I've never seen it before. I'd definitely be interested.

Funny you mention a houseplant--I also have a flowering houseplant cutting sitting around. Do you like fuschia? This plant is always blooming* for me, when it's not busy producing more buds. I could send you a couple of cuttings... they root well in a vase of old tank water and then you can plant them. Attached is a pic of the mother plant, which is budding right now, and one cutting in a vase. I think I've inadvertently done a mirror selfie in my dark window with this pic. Woops.

Other plants I could send (from left to right)... lucky bamboo (dracaena sanderiana) in the shot glass, low-light bromeliad pups in the pot, and the only peacock fern cutting to still be in good shape for me (I haven't figured out a good way to keep that plant yet). Peacock ferns are semiaquatic, so that would be floated somehow with your mint or in just really soggy soil--which it sounds like you probably can't do, though--it's a marsh plant.

If you're interested in any of those, let me know. Lucky bamboo grows reeeeeeeaaallly slowly, but can be kept in shallow tanks once it's large enough to have leaves sticking out of the top, and I have no idea how long that would take, probably a really long time. The bromeliad is a forest-floor plant and likes indirect light and a good amount of water, although it doesn't need to be soaked. I've never shipped plants before but I know how it's done.

Giggling at Simon poking his head through his java moss. XD What a goofball.

*the linked photo isn't mine, it's just the same kind of flower


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## myexplodingcat (Apr 9, 2014)

You know, you could probably get a bunch of clear pony beads and some acrylic yarn and make little wrap-around floater bracelet ties for your semiaquatic plants! That might be more attractive than teething rings. If you like, I can send you several yards of black acrylic yarn from my stash so you don't have to spend $4 on a whole skein. I have literally a pound of black acrylic yarn sitting around. I think I have white too if you'd prefer. Or colors if you're into that (name a color, I probably have it). Green I definitely have.

Just a suggestion!

Edit: Actually, plastic buttons would be an even better option, as they'd keep the plants standing upright better, and they'd be easier to wrap around multiple times!

edit edit: Or you could suction cup a tied bundle to the side of the tank... Can you tell I've been reading the DIY thread?

edit edit edit: Perler beads are food-safe!

edit 4: looks like normal pony beads are anyway, though: http://texasbooklady.blogspot.com/2012/06/stained-glass-cake-stand.html


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

I would be interested in any plants you need to get rid of, really.  I had trouble with pests a couple months ago, and my houseplant population is a bit low. I like to keep some plants in my 3g's sump filter, so water-loving plants are great! 

So, rotala, duckweed, ludwigia, lagarosiphon, a few oxalis tubers, and java moss it is!  

The oxalis is a great houseplant. I have a really bushy pot that I've had since I was 5 years old (and my dad owned it for about 10 years before that). I also have several smaller pots of it that I started from tubers. It likes moist, but not wet, soil. If you can plant it with some nutrient-rich substrate like some sort of manure (I use rabbit poo), it loves that - but regular potting mix works too. It takes a long time to start sprouting and getting established, but once it gets big, it's pretty impressive. If I send you some tubers - don't be surprised if they take up to a month or two to sprout. Just keep their soil moist and in a nice sunny spot. As long as the tuber is firm and not rotten or crusty, the plant is still alive. 

Thanks for the suggestion of the beads! I have some white acrylic yarn, so I'm good.  

Side note: I now know I'm not the only one who edits her posts multiple times! lol

If you'd like, I can send out the plants on Monday morning.  I can take a few photos beforehand so you can decide if it's a fair trade. 

As for the 20g, it seems to be going backwards a bit. I think it's in the middle of a bacterial bloom right now. There's a thin layer of slime on everything, and the water is really dirty. The ammonia today is 4 ppm (up from 1 ppm yesterday), nitrites are 0 (down from .25 yesterday), and nitrates are 0 ppm (have not changed >.<). I'm going to add in a bit more established media in the next day or two. Looks like I'll have to put Tiger in the temporary tank when he arrives in two days.


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## myexplodingcat (Apr 9, 2014)

http://www.bettafish.com/showthread.php?p=4767994#post4767994

Here, let's move this particular discussion over to the Classifieds... I don't want to spam your journal thread too much. 

Oh, and just send what you feel comfortable sending. You can post pics if you like, but I trust you more than just any random Internet person and I know you'll come back with something reasonable.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

I got Tiger in the mail today! He's a bit stressed, but seems to have successfully traveled cross-country. :-D He's in my 2 gallon at the moment, but I plan to move him to the 20g as soon as it's done cycling. Here's a photo of him:









I also got some nice red and green myrio from lilnaugrim. I should also be getting some java ferns in the mail from myexplodingcat (as you can probably tell from the previous few posts, lol) in the next few days. :-D I haven't tested the water in the 20g yet today, but the water is entirely clear and the white slime is vanishing. My bedroom also smells considerably less like dead, rotting things. :-D


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## myexplodingcat (Apr 9, 2014)

Yikes, poor Tiger. I'm sure he'll color up again soon, though. Fish who have been really stressed in the past seem to lose color easily when stressed again, so I bet he'll be back to normal soon.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

He's already colored up a lot since I took the photo, so he's making progress! His fins are completely black now, and his body is a lot darker. He's eating pretty well too. I got him to eat 4 pellets. I'm sure he'll be back to normal in a few days.  I think I'll name him Granite. I was going to name him Graphite, but it reminds me of graphite disease too much. 

I tested the 20g. The ammonia is still at 4 ppm, but at least I'm back to having .25 ppm of nitrites. :-D


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## myexplodingcat (Apr 9, 2014)

MameJenny said:


> He's already colored up a lot since I took the photo, so he's making progress! His fins are completely black now, and his body is a lot darker. He's eating pretty well too. I got him to eat 4 pellets. I'm sure he'll be back to normal in a few days.  I think I'll name him Granite. I was going to name him Graphite, but it reminds me of graphite disease too much.
> 
> I tested the 20g. The ammonia is still at 4 ppm, but at least I'm back to having .25 ppm of nitrites. :-D


I thought he might. Glad he's eating. Granite sounds cool.  Yeah, I think that disease has permanently stuck itself into all our memories, filed under "Dread." I mean, it's not like most of us aren't already stuck with weird dreams about our fish.

Oh, man, that reminds me... I had one of those last night. I had been forcibly evicted from a schmancy apartment I was apparently living in by the king of Iowa (yeah...)--and I'd snuck back into my apartment to rescue my fish. And for some reason I kept finding fish that weren't mine in my super-messy apartment. Which was weird for multiple reasons--because I like to keep my spaces clean, and because not only were they fish I'd never seen before, but...

They were platinum white bettas! They weren't just VTs--they were HMs and CTs! And I kept thinking, "Oh, man, I don't know whose these are or how they got here and I don't have tanks for them, but MameJenny has always wanted one of these so I just need to get in contact with her as soon as I get away..."

It doesn't help that I've always had weird dreams anyway. The addition of fish to my life hasn't made them any less so. I just thought you'd think that was really funny. But just so you know, if I ever see a platinum at PetSmart, I'll snap him up for you and let you know.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

Oh man, I can't believe I made it into one of your dreams! And a really funny one, too! :lol: lol, thanks for sharing that!

I have weird dreams about my pets all the time. Usually, I end up finding pets in hidden rooms of my house that I didn't know I owned. In one dream, I discovered that I had 20 different rabbits - all different breeds and colors - that I had adopted without remembering. (Dream logic: yeah, it's definitely possible to adopt not one, but TWENTY animals without remembering doing so. :roll They were all emaciated and sick, and I felt terrible that I had forgotten them...I guess it was more like a nightmare, actually.

In another dream, I dreamed that my rabbits started reproducing. No, not that way. They were literally cloning themselves. (Humans were doing it too, but dream logic strikes again: I was much more worried about the bunnies.) I became very distressed about the fact that I couldn't figure out which bunnies were the original copies. Eventually, I discovered the obvious solution of tattooing their ears, and all was well and good in dream land. Except for the fact that people were still cloning themselves, and everyone seemed to think that nothing was odd about that. But dream logic thought that was just fine.

Oh, I appreciate that!  I rarely see any white bettas in pet stores. There's a lot of stressed cellophanes who look like they'll marble. Opalo was a lucky find - he's a real cellophane, and I bought him for $3 at Petco. Impulse was a lucky find too - he was a real platinum dragonscale with a few red dots. I always look for whites at the local Petco, where they get lots of unusual colors. I've seen coppers, butterflies, lots of multicolors, bicolors, and even a bright pink female. But no plain white males. :-(

Graphite disease is in my "worst fears" list, along with a bunch of human diseases, rabbit diseases, cancer, mycobacteria...actually, just anything contagious and/or untreatable.


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## myexplodingcat (Apr 9, 2014)

Is there a difference between "platinum" and "white?" Are platinums iridescent or something where whites aren't? I've seen people both use them interchangeably, or talk about one and then talk about the other as though they're different.

I've, um, never had rabbits... but that sounds... uh....... I think I'm good with fish and cats. XD That rabbit-cloning thing sounds like a recipe for a B-movie.

Most of my fish nightmares in the past involved somehow accidentally spawning my bettas, and then looking for containers for all the fry. I've dream-put fry in ice cube trays in order to separate them. That has dwindled since I made a point of actually researching how breeding is done. I just hope my parental units don't go on my computer and find a bunch of search history about breeding bettas, lest they think that I was plotting my way into actually doing it.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

You know, I'm honestly not entirely certain. A lot of people seem to use them interchangeably. I believe platinum refers to bright white, or slightly silvery bettas. White seems to be more of a general term for anything off-white or cellophane-ish. 

Haha, rabbits are actually really great animals.  I've had one of mine for 5 1/2 years. They're really social, loving little animals. 

I seem to remember having some sort of dream that I found a cellophane female for Opalo, and decided to breed them. I kept dropping fry all over the house in very strange ways. D: (I think one jumped in my cup of water, one got eaten by my nonexistent cat, a few ended up in my salad, and a few more got stuck to my hands. I don't remember the rest. :shock

I think that if my parents searched through my browsing history, a few betta breeding sites would be the last thing I'd need to explain. :lol: 

That reminds me, though - it was really funny when I told them that I got a fish in the mail. I didn't really say anything to them before he arrived. They knew that I'd be getting fish for my 20g, though. The conversation went something like this:

*Me:* I got a new fish! He came in the mail. I bought him from someone online.
*Them:* You...fed your fish?
*Me:* No. I bought a new fish. He came in a package in the mail just now.
*Them:* You got those plants (_from the plant trade_), and you're buying a fish?
*Me:* No. I literally got a live fish in the mail. I bought him online.
*Them:* Is he dead?
*Me:* He's a live betta. I bought him.
*Them:* Wait, you can buy live fish and get them in the mail?

Anyway, Tiger (now renamed Granite) is doing great. :-D He's completely colored up now, and he even built a big bubble nest this morning!


















The 20g is looking nice. The plants are growing nicely.



























I also got some nice driftwood. I decided the tank would look nice with some mossy driftwood in the center. I'll eventually get some Christmas moss to put on the wood.









...and, after adding the wood, the tank is cloudy again. :roll:


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

Here's the tank today.








The water is clearing up again. There's been an explosion in the growth of the bladder snail population, though. I assume it's because of the extra fish food I've been adding. I don't want them to get too out of hand before the tank is established, so I just remove them or crush them when I find them.


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## BambooTikiBettaGirl84 (Jun 29, 2014)

This is just a suggestion for clearing water, I have a HOB filter that also has a UV santilizer built in. It does wonders and keeps my water crystal clear, maybe you could look into one of those.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

You know, I might, if I continue having issues with cloudy water. I think my main issue so far has been the dirty sand. It kicks up lots of filth every time I move things around.  It's definitely getting better, though! Thanks for the suggestion. 

I bought three red platies today. I'm planning to quarantine them for a couple of weeks, so I figured I might as well get them now. I also sorta impulse-bought a really colorful male DTHM with ammonia burns. Oops. ;-) Photos coming soon...


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## Jennalyn (Jun 23, 2014)

Ahhh, so you're where the handsome Tiger-now-Granite ended up! I remember seeing his transformation in the pics thread and admiring his gorgeous coloration. He built you quite an impressive nest!


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## myexplodingcat (Apr 9, 2014)

Granite looks super cool! And that's a really nice bubble nest he made you.

Both my boys are expressing their satisfaction with your plants by blowing a ton of bubbles in between the duckweed. ^u^ It's super cute.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

The 20g is doing well. The platies were doing great. Emphasis on "were". They were eating, swimming, and looked good. Then, this morning, I got up, looked in the QT container, and all of them were dead. Just...dead. No symptoms, nothing in the tank was changed overnight (as far as I know), and the water parameters were all good. They all just died over the course of 8 hours or so. Thank goodness I had them in quarantine.

So, I took them back to Petco. I got a few suspicious "she-probably-stuck-them-in-an-uncycled-fishbowl" looks, but at least I got "replacement" platies. They didn't have red wag females, so I got three painted platies instead. Needless to say, I bleached and rinsed the heck out of the QT tank before I put them in there. They seem to be doing well, and they're very active. I think I'm going to be afraid to look at my fish every morning now, though. >.<

On a happier note, the 20 gallon is finally cycled! The ammonia has been at 0 for about a week, and the nitrites finally reached 0 today! I'm going to do a 100% water change tomorrow, then move over Granite. The plants are growing like crazy, and I already have to do my first trim. Several are even growing out of the water. There's a massive algae bloom right now - diatoms, green algae, fuzz algae, hair algae...I'm definitely going to need some snails.

Granite is doing great too! I have him in my divided 5 gallon at the moment with Alpha-Betta. He's been blowing bubble nests every day. He's getting much more dark bluish coloring on his body. He even has a bit of a teal color under certain lighting. I call him my mood ring fish, since he turns grey and gets prominent stress stripes whenever he's even a little bit stressed, lol.


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## hrutan (Jun 25, 2014)

That's so sad about your platies. A big neon reminder to QT, right? :-?

Still, it's good to see everything else doing so well.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

Yeah, it was really, really shocking. I mean, I got out of bed half-asleep, casually looked over, and they were just dead in there. I didn't need caffeine after that, that's for sure. I took quarantine pretty seriously before (thank goodness), but now I'll never, ever skip it. When I was cleaning the QT out, I realized that could have otherwise been the 20g that I needed to bleach...and that if they were sick, it could have spread to all my bettas. I'm still going to watch all the bettas like a hawk. >.< 

I'm actually hoping that some chemical got in the water or something, since the thought of a disease that kills everyone without warning scares the heck out of me. :-(


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

The new platies are doing great, thankfully. Their color/markings remind me of tiny goldfish. They're a lot more friendly than the other platies, and they swim to the front when they see me. I do miss having bright red platies, though. I might get one or two red ones once the 20g is established. 

I'll be getting some plants in the mail tomorrow or Thursday from a member here. After that, the tank should be fully stocked plant-wise, unless I manage to get my hands on some interesting moss or glossostigma. 

I moved Granite to the 20g today! He's trying to figure out what to do with himself, lol. He has about 10 times more room than he did in his 2.5 gallon. He also no longer has a flare-buddy. :lol: I bet Alpha-Betta thinks that he finally scared off his roommate. 

He's having a bit of trouble with the flow from the filter, but other than that, he seems to be doing well. He spends most of his time swimming around the lagarosiphon jungle. I can't wait to see what he does with the platies, once they're out of quarantine. 

I'm going to get a new heater, three mystery snails, and two nerites the next time I'm at Petsmart. The snails are desperately needed with this algae bloom! I seriously picked a golfball of fuzz and hair algae off the plants two days ago. The snails don't eat very much of those kinds, but at least they make a dent in it.


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## myexplodingcat (Apr 9, 2014)

I feel your pain. I pulled a bunch of BGA out of Felix's tank today... really should find a way to reduce the light it gets from the window. My mom suggested one of those car shades. Or maybe I could find a translucent sort of fabric to stick to the back like a background.

Platies are awesome c: That's a shame about the other ones, but at least these seem to be doing okay.

I just realized a few minutes ago that you'll be getting Mr. White Fish the same day hrutan gets Phoenix.  A big update day on the journal threads! Can't wait!


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## myexplodingcat (Apr 9, 2014)

Mr. White Fish is in Colorado! Excited?


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

Yep, I'm pretty excited!  I just saw that a while ago! I'll be distracted all morning at work tomorrow, lol.

I got two ivory mystery snails and two zebra nerites today. The mysteries are big, and I think I might even have one of each gender. I hope they like algae, since they've got a nice all-you-can-eat buffet. :lol:

I got some nice plants from Umar today. They look quite nice - all of them arrived in good condition. I also found downoi at Petsmart! I got so excited when I found it. I had no idea Petsmart would carry such an unusual plant. I'll take photos tomorrow, once the tank clears up - it got cloudy again from all the planting. 

Granite is settling in to the 20g nicely. He's still a bit dull and grey, but I think he'll color up again once he gets used to the huge space and I get a better big heater.


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## Pandanke (Jun 16, 2014)

Oh my goodness, I wish my Petsmart had Downoi! I inspect their plant section thoroughly, but all I've found that I really like is their Anubias (very healthy, 2-3 each) and dwarf hair grass... Oh and I keep getting monster sized marimos. My shrimp love marimo balls.

As for the Mystery snails, I think sometimes they are, sometimes they aren't. My first one never ate algae much, but my newest one LOVES algae. My Nerite can go either way, but he is becoming complacent and lazy. My Ottos on the other hand are little studious algae eating poopmonsters.


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## myexplodingcat (Apr 9, 2014)

He's theeeeeeeere!!! Yay! Just wait till you get off work!


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## myexplodingcat (Apr 9, 2014)

How's it going, Mame?


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

Hey, sorry for not updating! All is going well. I've been real busy the last few days, and then I spent the last day caring for a sick rabbit. (He seems to be doing better now. He wasn't eating or pooping, which, as any rabbit owner can tell you, is absolutely terrifying and potentially life-threatening.) 

The fishes are all doing well. Granite is finally settling in to the 20 gallon. He's turning green. :shock: He has a definite teal color under the daylight bulbs. The red on his fins is also spreading - it covers all of his bottom fin now. 

I might move the platies out of QT one or two days early. They're seemingly healthy, but I'm really worried that the water changes and ammonia are stressing them out. I also discovered that, while they won't touch lettuce or cucumber, they love eating duckweed!

The plants are doing nicely. It doesn't look like any of the ones I got from Umar are melting. I got two DIY CO2 bottles set up as well. They're not producing much yet, but I'm sure they'll help the plants once they get going.

As for the other fish: I moved most of the plants out of the Picotope, and switched them to the 20g. They were all getting too long and leggy for the tank - plus, I really wanted to reclaim the iwagumi aquascape.  I left in the hairgrass, the crypt. wendtii, some lagarosiphon, and java moss. 

Alpha-Betta and White Shadow (the name of my amazing new white delta!) are doing well in the split 5g. Silly White Shadow is so passive. I haven't seen him flare once! :lol: I put in the silk flowers and pearls today, and it looks amazing. The colors complement the bettas so well. I think I'll get a white teacup for White Shadow's side, to complement the all-white theme. I'm also attempting to do a fish-in cycle. Bettas sure are hardy. I discovered that the ammonia was 1 ppm and the nitrite was .50 ppm the other day, and both of them looked fine. :shock:

Anyway, here are some photos of the 20g! I'll take some more photos of the Picotope, the 2.5g, and the 5g tomorrow. 




























Some of the plants...They've grown since I took these photos. :shock:


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## myexplodingcat (Apr 9, 2014)

Those plants :shock: For a minute I thought you were saying that started out as an Iwagumi landscape... then I realized you were talking about a different tank. XD

Also... green?! XD He sounds really cool!

Wonder if White Shadow's simply that shy, or if he's just taking extra long to claim his territory. I wouldn't be surprised if he were intimidated by Alpha-Betta! Little guy will have to learn to stand up to his roommate!


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

The plants are huge. :shock: It amazes me just how BIG they get in a 20 gallon. And that's without CO2! And actually, I guess the aquascape is a bit like an iwagumi, since it's based around 3 big rocks and 3 chunks of driftwood. But yeah, I was talking about Opalo's iwagumi 3 gallon. :-D

Heck, if I were a tiny white fish, I'd be afraid of this big flamboyant thing too...


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

Oh, and a small betta rant...there's a little crowntail at the local Petsmart who's been there for 2 months. :-( He started out beautiful, active, and colorful - he's a red and blue marble. Now, he's sad and grey, has SBD, and looks like a shadow of his former self. If I wasn't already at my max capacity, I'd buy him in a heartbeat...I'm almost tempted to "rescue" and rehome him.


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## myexplodingcat (Apr 9, 2014)

Poor baby!  I would be super tempted to do that, especially since Walmart carries these. In my area, they're $10 apiece. Anything would be better than what he has, even if you don't have a spare little-tank heater.

  

PS: Where'd you get your tank lamps?


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

That's probably the only kind of fish bowl I'd get. I admit, I've always kinda liked the idea of having a betta in a bowl. You know...a "big", 2-5 gallon bowl with a heater and live plants. :lol: If the CT boy is still at that Petsmart the next time we drive by there, I think I'll definitely buy him. I do have an extra temporary tank and a heater.

I got my clip on lamps at Walmart. They cost about $6, I believe, for the black ones, and $9 for the silver ones. They work nicely. :-D

I got some frozen food for the fish yesterday. They all love it. I mean, they really, really go wild over it. :shock: The platies all swim to the front when they see me walk by, even the young, shy one. Granite is more enthusiastic about feeding than he's been since I put him in the 20g. White Shadow also discovered that if he swims around and latches on to the feeding syringe, he gets bloodworms squirted straight into his mouth. :lol: It's really funny. Even the mystery snails seem to like the food!

Granite and the platies are doing great together. He still flares if they get too close, but I've seen no other aggression. They seem to be coexisting perfectly. Actually, for the most part, they just ignore each other.  I think he'll do great with the tetras, too, once I buy them.

Something I thought of the other day...algae is a lot easier to deal with if you consider it to be more like an aquatic weed than a disease that needs to be eradicated. When you're growing organic crops or a garden, you're never going to get rid of weeds entirely. Like algae, they appear when there's enough nutrients, light, and water. You just have to keep their population in check and as low as possible so that the desirable plants don't get overpowered. This has given me a new perspective on algae. :-D It's just a part of a natural aquarium, just like the fish and plants, albeit a slightly ugly part...


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## myexplodingcat (Apr 9, 2014)

MameJenny said:


> Granite is more enthusiastic about feeding than he's been since I put him in the 20g. White Shadow also discovered that if he swims around and latches on to the feeding syringe, he gets bloodworms squirted straight into his mouth.


Aww! That's super cute!

I'm glad Granite and the platies are getting along. That makes me hopeful that Simon will be okay with his.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

If he's a passive betta, I think he'll do great. :-D I was worried about their size and color looking too much like that of a betta, but apparently Granite can tell the difference. They're really fun fish - I think you'll like them.  They have a lot of personality for a little fish. Mine have unofficial nicknames now - Splotchy, Blackie, and Biggie. One has a black splotch on her face, one is much darker than the others, and the third is larger than the others. lol

I'm starting to think that I might want a different type of schooling fish. I went in a new LFS yesterday, and they had some really pretty fish. They had some HUGE silver fish there. They looked like permits, but I don't think they were saltwater fish. They were at least 1 1/2 feet long, right at eye level, and really menacing. :shock: (There was a betta in a community setup in the next tank over, and he probably thought he could beat up the big fish easily. ;-)) I saw a really nice, big school of neons, some rummynose tetras, and some really tiny bright red rasboras. (Maybe Boraras brigittae?) They also had celestial pearl danios, which are tiny and gorgeous. I loved the tiny rasboras, but I don't think they'd fare well with a hungry betta. I do like the rummynoses, but I've read that they nibble on plants. Hmm...


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## myexplodingcat (Apr 9, 2014)

These things?

https://www.google.com/search?q=dwa...-WyAS51YCQBA&ved=0CAgQ_AUoAQ&biw=1280&bih=728

I like them! Looks like their care/size is similar to that of neons, except I like their coloring more.

CPDs are a really nice find! I think they like slightly lower temps than bettas do, but some folks can find a happy medium where both fish will do fine.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

Yeah, they definitely looked like the mosquito rasboras. They were adorable. I doubt they were larger than 1/2 inch long. I seriously thought that it was some sort of fry until I looked closer. The CPDs were only a little bit larger. I always thought they were a lot bigger!

I'm seriously considering the rummynoses. I love the black and white pattern on their tails...I think they'd be a nice contrast to the orange platies. I'm thinking that a group of around 12 would be quite nice. Another one I thought of would be glofish...yep, you read that right. I've always liked the thought of having a rainbow school of fish.  It doesn't quite feel right to put something so unnatural looking in a NPT, though...lol. Plus, I'm not sure how much I want to push my luck with Granite. I've also read that they like cooler water, which isn't all that much of an issue, since I usually keep the tank at 76F or so...but I'd hate to stress them out with slightly-too-warm water.


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## myexplodingcat (Apr 9, 2014)

MameJenny said:


> Yeah, they definitely looked like the mosquito rasboras. They were adorable. I doubt they were larger than 1/2 inch long. I seriously thought that it was some sort of fry until I looked closer. The CPDs were only a little bit larger. I always thought they were a lot bigger!
> 
> I'm seriously considering the rummynoses. I love the black and white pattern on their tails...I think they'd be a nice contrast to the orange platies. I'm thinking that a group of around 12 would be quite nice. Another one I thought of would be glofish...yep, you read that right. I've always liked the thought of having a rainbow school of fish.  It doesn't quite feel right to put something so unnatural looking in a NPT, though...lol. Plus, I'm not sure how much I want to push my luck with Granite. I've also read that they like cooler water, which isn't all that much of an issue, since I usually keep the tank at 76F or so...but I'd hate to stress them out with slightly-too-warm water.


Wouldn't they be pretty much like their normal counterparts, though? Like, if you could keep a danio school, you could keep a Glo-danio school? Or does that gene they altered make them more sensitive to warmer water too?


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

If I remember right, they're essentially the same as regular zebra danios - they're just genetically modified to be neon colors. I've actually read that they're more peaceful and easier to care for than regular danios, but that could be the company that sells them talking. I'm not sure if the altered gene/breeding, etc. has any other effect on them, though. I should probably make a thread about this in the compatibility section - I haven't found much info on keeping them with bettas (at least, not in tanks that aren't 5 gallon "glofish kits". :roll


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

I'm officially horrible at keeping journals updated, lol.

I've had some trouble with the 20g and its inhabitants. Granite and two platies came down with a mild case of ich last week, and for a while, I wasn't sure that Granite would make it. I'm happy to report that, after several days of 85F temperatures, there's no sign of any ich left, and Granite is doing great. 

One platy did pass away this morning, though. I'm honestly not too surprised. That platy was never quite as active or healthy looking as the others, and she hadn't been doing well since the ich outbreak. I tested the ammonia/nitrite and they were at 0, and everyone else is doing great, so I think the ich was just too much for her. 

The plants are all doing very well. Everything is growing like crazy. I shipped out my first plant package from the 20g this week, and I'll be shipping out another next week (should be ich-free by the time I send them out, since I've had the cuttings quarantined for a week). 

I'm hoping to be able to get a couple more platies and some schooling fish in the next couple of days. I think it'll be OK to add all the fish at once (after QT, or course), since the tank has been cycled with no major ammonia spikes for about a month now.

I'll post a few photos later today!


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## myexplodingcat (Apr 9, 2014)

Pooooke, Mame... have you forgotten this is here? LOL


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

Haven't forgotten it, lol. I'm just officially awful at updating journals. That and college.  (I still live at home, though, so I am still in close proximity to my tanks. :-D)

The 20gal has had a few major changes. I got 6 zebra danios for the tank 13 days ago, and they moved into the 20g today. I also moved the 20g to the main level of my house. My family finally decided that it would be OK to have a few fish tanks in the living room - which was perfect, since having two tanks on my desk left very little room to actually use the desk! Moving a huge, heavy, thickly planted 20g was interesting, to say the least. (Thankfully, we have an elevator in our house, so it was easier than you'd expect.) I'm happy to report that the tank made the trip without getting any tiny cracks or leaks, which was my biggest fear. The plants got a little messed up, but that's to be expected. They'll grow back.

The platies are doing nicely. I'm pretty sure one is pregnant. Apparently, female platies can hold sperm for a few months after contact with a male, and then have miraculous virgin platy births a few months later. I don't know when she'll give birth, but she looks just like the pregnant platies I've seen online.

Granite is doing really well. He stays right next to the platies most of the time. He's done really well with the zebra danios so far. He mostly just ignores them. I only saw him flare at them once. 

The other fishes are doing well too. I moved the divided 5g and Mr. Gold's 2.5g into the living room as well. White Shadow was getting stressed out by the extra noise and activity, so I moved him to the Picotope and moved Opalo into the divided 5g. Opalo is doing really well in the 5g. Alpha-Betta finally met a betta who will actually flare back at him. :lol: Not to mention, Opalo is twice his size!

White Shadow is doing nicely in the Picotope as well. The Picotope had a major black brush algae outbreak, but I think I'm getting it under control. (Excel spot treatment works wonders.) He likes resting on the lagarosiphon jungle. 

The only big issue I've had is that the 5g has seemingly lost its cycle. I tested the water one day because White Shadow was lethargic, and it had 2 ppm of ammonia. :shock: I don't know what's going on, exactly. I put in some more filter media and increased the flow. I'm planning to redo it and add dirt soon anyway.

My upcoming plans for the tanks -
-get a few Glofish for the 20g
-get one more platy
-redo the 5g, re-cycle it
-rescape the Picotope
-rescape the 20g


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

So uhh...I kinda accidentally absent-mindedly impulse bought a platinum DT at Petco. I hid him in my purse and nobody knows yet. :-D I have six bettas now...

White Shadow's been worrying me a bit. He was really lethargic and stressed looking for a couple of days, so I moved him to the hospital tank. I put in Stress Coat, IAL, and some Prime. I ran out of ammonia tests, so I couldn't rule that out - frustrating! He was looking like he had a little fin rot, but they look fine now, just a little bitten. He perked up a bit today, but he's only really eating frozen bloodworms right now. He spits out anything else. If this goes on for another day, I guess I'll have to make a post about it...


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## myexplodingcat (Apr 9, 2014)

Haha, try putting a few little plants in. It's magical  Giving a stressed fish a plant is like giving a sick person chicken soup. Fish anxiety medication.


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## MameJenny (Jun 11, 2012)

Unfortunately, he passed away last night. :-( I'm not sure what happened. I really didn't think he was sick enough to die. Poor little thing was about the cutest betta I've ever seen.

I guess it wasn't coincidence that I ran across a new white DT in Petco a few days ago. At least I still have one white betta.


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## myexplodingcat (Apr 9, 2014)

MameJenny said:


> Unfortunately, he passed away last night. :-( I'm not sure what happened. I really didn't think he was sick enough to die. Poor little thing was about the cutest betta I've ever seen.
> 
> I guess it wasn't coincidence that I ran across a new white DT in Petco a few days ago. At least I still have one white betta.


Oh no  Well, at least your new boy can give you some comfort.


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