I took a bunch of photos yesterday and uploaded them to the net...thought I'd start a thread to post all my stuff up.
I got my 120gal back in the spring...actually picked it up on Easter Day from a lady on craigslist. It came with the stand, two cascade filters - 1000 and 700, fish - Red Bay Snook and Jack Dempsey, and a couple of decorations. This is what got me into cichlids and also was my first experience with canister filters.
Lets just say that after the first day...my fish were doing this:
I also added a Blood Parrot and a Midas...as well as some plants and the tree decoration.
I couldn't figure out was wrong. Total beginner mistake, you have to aim the spraybars up, to get oxygen into the water. I was doing water changes daily because I thought the tank was cycling. So many beginner mistakes. Happy I figured all those out and didn't get discouraged.
Little Midas:
I also added an Albino Tiger Oscar who got a little beat up. He was jsut a baby, so I put him in my 5gal desktop tank to recover.
The 5gal also housed some Tiger Barbs, a glass catfish, and some feeder goldfish that were never eaten in the big tank.
I also added an otto cat to do cleanup:
Soon the glass cat and the otto cat were missing, as well as a goldfish or two. Seems Oscar was feeling better. I woke up one morning to this:
Nom Nom Nom:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uzg-wT4Ex70
Meanwhile, the big tank was doing much better:
Polly, my Blood Parrot started out looking almost like a con - all black and gray stripes:
And Snook spent most of his days moving gravel from one spot to another:
In fact, I think Snook and Jack might have been trying to have babies, they were inseparable for quite some time:
Ahh yes, here's Al, my albino chocolate pleco - I actually had him in the 5gal when I started. He was partly the reason I got the bigger tank because he wasn't going to last in the 5gal at all. Rookie mistake. The 120gal also came with two more common plecos. I have common plecs coming out my butt.
One more full tank shot:
After the eating of the glass cat and the otto cat and the goldfish, Oscar seemed healthy, and the Tiger barbs would make great dither fish for the 120gal. So in they all went. I was also fortunate enough to work for a company that has a lot of fake aquatic plant samples, so I loaded up the tank. It was quite colorful to say the least.
To the mix, I added 3 albino tiger barbs:
And 2 Blue Acaras - if you're going to overstock, you might as go crazy:
Oscar - growing up. He was quickly becoming one of my favorites as he'd follow me everywhere and eat out of my hand.
And Midas was growing up as well:
Soon the fish all seemed to be getting along "swimmingly" with one another. Well, minus the Tiger Barbs, they disappeared one by one over the course of a week. But everyone else was happy. And it was time for my tank to take on a more natural look.
Granted, the driftwood never did work and it had to come back out.
Polly's orange was starting to come through:
Midas was growing a hump:
Oscar was doing great:
And these two were still trying to make babies:
Soon I was buying more tanks...and wanting more fish. Thats when a Tiger Shovelnose Catfish appeared on Craigslist. Who could resist a big cat. So Felix came home with me.
He was put all by himself in an 80gal tank. I had two HOB Marineland Emperor 400's that I bought for the 120gal when they were on sale. This was perfect as I was able to take one off the back and immediately have a cycled tank. So one of those as well as a new Tetratec PF500 went on the 80gal. I picked up the PF500 at a random Petco for $22, original price $85. Who can complain with that. The morning I picked up Felix, I setup the tank and painted the back, through some decorations in it, but he was going to have to live with a barebottom tank for the moment.
Shortly after, I setup my 55gal. Both tanks are currently setting on the floor. The 55 came with a stand, but its not very nice looking. My hopes were to have a double stand made, but I was quoted a price of $400 and didn't really want to spend that much. So on the floor they go until something better comes along.
I put the two Blue Acaras (Blue and Cara) in the 55 as well as Polly, and a common pleco (Spot). The 120 held Midas, Snook, Jack, Al, and one more common pleco (Tiny). Yep, I'm a dork, I name my fish.
This didn't last long because soon, I was buying more fish.
I came home with a Jaguar Cichlid, who originally started off in the tank with Felix. He's rather large, I'm guessing 8-12months old. He was in the trade-in tank, so the guy warned he was probably a bruiser. It looked like he might have been with a bruiser as well, as he has quite the bite out of his dorsal fin.
To me, he was a beautiful fish:
However, this was soon the case...intrigue turned to fin nipping...
So a divider went up until I could figure out what to do. He quickly picked up the name Jagoff, because he was Jackoff.
Meanwhile, I picked up two Peacock Bass as well. I positive they're Mono's as they seem to be the normal LFS variety. They went in the 55. However, they seemed to be nervous about the blue acaras and the blood parrot that shared their tank.
So now I had a couple of problems. Really, just more newbie mistakes. So I juggled some fish. Jack came out of the 120 and went in the 80, as well as the blue acaras, and the blood parrot. Felix doesn't bug them, and they don't bug him. To be honest, I think having those fish in there is helping Felix get over his eating problem. As all he wants is live food, but after a few days of seeing them eat pellets and flakes, he seems to have taken a liking to his carnivore pellets and freeze dried krill.
Jagoff went into the big tank with the Red Bay Snook and Midas. I will say, they have their scuffles, but everyone can hold their own. Snook and Jagoff seem to be hitting it off as well. Meanwhile, Midas sticks to himself, but he runs the show.
This picture was taken last week, Midas is quite the big boy now:
And within a week, he's grown a massive hump on his head:
I also added sand to the 55 and the 80, and Felix is loving his digs:
Just yesterday, 4 more Peacock Bass arrived. Shipped in from SoCal. They're Orinos, so the Monos have someone to play with.
And some current full tank shots. Here's the 55, sitting on the floor, under a table. I'd like to get some driftwood and more rocks for it to make it look more natural, but until then, the decorations do alright. I also painted the back black, for me, thats easier and better looking than the backgrounds you buy. Plus the filters blend in a bit. The filtration on it at the moment is a Marineland Emperor 400 HOB as well as a Tetratec PF300 HOB.
The 120 needs some driftwood too, but the stones look nice, I think. Since getting it, I've painted the background black, as well as the trim. I've also stained the stand a few shades darker to match the rest of the house. It holds the Jaguar, Midas, and Snook as well as two common plecos. Its filtration is a cascade 1000, 700, and a fluval 304.
And the 80 also sitting on the floor. Again, I'd like to add driftwood and stones, but for right now, the decorations work. It also has a black background and sand, same as the 55. It's filtration is a Marineland Emperor 400 HOB and a Tetratec PF500 HOB. It houses a Tiger Shovelnose Cat, two blue acaras, a Jack Dempsey, and a Blood Parrot.
And, that pretty much sums it up at the moment. I have a feeling I'll be juggling tanks and adding more shortly as my fish are growing fast. Not to mention, I'd like to start breeding convicts in addition to my feeder guppies. Those tanks will probably go in the garage. And then I'm going to need a giant tank, or outdoor pond to house the TSN when he gets bigger.
I got my 120gal back in the spring...actually picked it up on Easter Day from a lady on craigslist. It came with the stand, two cascade filters - 1000 and 700, fish - Red Bay Snook and Jack Dempsey, and a couple of decorations. This is what got me into cichlids and also was my first experience with canister filters.
Lets just say that after the first day...my fish were doing this:
I also added a Blood Parrot and a Midas...as well as some plants and the tree decoration.
I couldn't figure out was wrong. Total beginner mistake, you have to aim the spraybars up, to get oxygen into the water. I was doing water changes daily because I thought the tank was cycling. So many beginner mistakes. Happy I figured all those out and didn't get discouraged.
Little Midas:
I also added an Albino Tiger Oscar who got a little beat up. He was jsut a baby, so I put him in my 5gal desktop tank to recover.
The 5gal also housed some Tiger Barbs, a glass catfish, and some feeder goldfish that were never eaten in the big tank.
I also added an otto cat to do cleanup:
Soon the glass cat and the otto cat were missing, as well as a goldfish or two. Seems Oscar was feeling better. I woke up one morning to this:
Nom Nom Nom:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uzg-wT4Ex70
Meanwhile, the big tank was doing much better:
Polly, my Blood Parrot started out looking almost like a con - all black and gray stripes:
And Snook spent most of his days moving gravel from one spot to another:
In fact, I think Snook and Jack might have been trying to have babies, they were inseparable for quite some time:
Ahh yes, here's Al, my albino chocolate pleco - I actually had him in the 5gal when I started. He was partly the reason I got the bigger tank because he wasn't going to last in the 5gal at all. Rookie mistake. The 120gal also came with two more common plecos. I have common plecs coming out my butt.
One more full tank shot:
After the eating of the glass cat and the otto cat and the goldfish, Oscar seemed healthy, and the Tiger barbs would make great dither fish for the 120gal. So in they all went. I was also fortunate enough to work for a company that has a lot of fake aquatic plant samples, so I loaded up the tank. It was quite colorful to say the least.
To the mix, I added 3 albino tiger barbs:
And 2 Blue Acaras - if you're going to overstock, you might as go crazy:
Oscar - growing up. He was quickly becoming one of my favorites as he'd follow me everywhere and eat out of my hand.
And Midas was growing up as well:
Soon the fish all seemed to be getting along "swimmingly" with one another. Well, minus the Tiger Barbs, they disappeared one by one over the course of a week. But everyone else was happy. And it was time for my tank to take on a more natural look.
Granted, the driftwood never did work and it had to come back out.
Polly's orange was starting to come through:
Midas was growing a hump:
Oscar was doing great:
And these two were still trying to make babies:
Soon I was buying more tanks...and wanting more fish. Thats when a Tiger Shovelnose Catfish appeared on Craigslist. Who could resist a big cat. So Felix came home with me.
He was put all by himself in an 80gal tank. I had two HOB Marineland Emperor 400's that I bought for the 120gal when they were on sale. This was perfect as I was able to take one off the back and immediately have a cycled tank. So one of those as well as a new Tetratec PF500 went on the 80gal. I picked up the PF500 at a random Petco for $22, original price $85. Who can complain with that. The morning I picked up Felix, I setup the tank and painted the back, through some decorations in it, but he was going to have to live with a barebottom tank for the moment.
Shortly after, I setup my 55gal. Both tanks are currently setting on the floor. The 55 came with a stand, but its not very nice looking. My hopes were to have a double stand made, but I was quoted a price of $400 and didn't really want to spend that much. So on the floor they go until something better comes along.
I put the two Blue Acaras (Blue and Cara) in the 55 as well as Polly, and a common pleco (Spot). The 120 held Midas, Snook, Jack, Al, and one more common pleco (Tiny). Yep, I'm a dork, I name my fish.
This didn't last long because soon, I was buying more fish.
I came home with a Jaguar Cichlid, who originally started off in the tank with Felix. He's rather large, I'm guessing 8-12months old. He was in the trade-in tank, so the guy warned he was probably a bruiser. It looked like he might have been with a bruiser as well, as he has quite the bite out of his dorsal fin.
To me, he was a beautiful fish:
However, this was soon the case...intrigue turned to fin nipping...
So a divider went up until I could figure out what to do. He quickly picked up the name Jagoff, because he was Jackoff.
Meanwhile, I picked up two Peacock Bass as well. I positive they're Mono's as they seem to be the normal LFS variety. They went in the 55. However, they seemed to be nervous about the blue acaras and the blood parrot that shared their tank.
So now I had a couple of problems. Really, just more newbie mistakes. So I juggled some fish. Jack came out of the 120 and went in the 80, as well as the blue acaras, and the blood parrot. Felix doesn't bug them, and they don't bug him. To be honest, I think having those fish in there is helping Felix get over his eating problem. As all he wants is live food, but after a few days of seeing them eat pellets and flakes, he seems to have taken a liking to his carnivore pellets and freeze dried krill.
Jagoff went into the big tank with the Red Bay Snook and Midas. I will say, they have their scuffles, but everyone can hold their own. Snook and Jagoff seem to be hitting it off as well. Meanwhile, Midas sticks to himself, but he runs the show.
This picture was taken last week, Midas is quite the big boy now:
And within a week, he's grown a massive hump on his head:
I also added sand to the 55 and the 80, and Felix is loving his digs:
Just yesterday, 4 more Peacock Bass arrived. Shipped in from SoCal. They're Orinos, so the Monos have someone to play with.
And some current full tank shots. Here's the 55, sitting on the floor, under a table. I'd like to get some driftwood and more rocks for it to make it look more natural, but until then, the decorations do alright. I also painted the back black, for me, thats easier and better looking than the backgrounds you buy. Plus the filters blend in a bit. The filtration on it at the moment is a Marineland Emperor 400 HOB as well as a Tetratec PF300 HOB.
The 120 needs some driftwood too, but the stones look nice, I think. Since getting it, I've painted the background black, as well as the trim. I've also stained the stand a few shades darker to match the rest of the house. It holds the Jaguar, Midas, and Snook as well as two common plecos. Its filtration is a cascade 1000, 700, and a fluval 304.
And the 80 also sitting on the floor. Again, I'd like to add driftwood and stones, but for right now, the decorations work. It also has a black background and sand, same as the 55. It's filtration is a Marineland Emperor 400 HOB and a Tetratec PF500 HOB. It houses a Tiger Shovelnose Cat, two blue acaras, a Jack Dempsey, and a Blood Parrot.
And, that pretty much sums it up at the moment. I have a feeling I'll be juggling tanks and adding more shortly as my fish are growing fast. Not to mention, I'd like to start breeding convicts in addition to my feeder guppies. Those tanks will probably go in the garage. And then I'm going to need a giant tank, or outdoor pond to house the TSN when he gets bigger.
cool fish hun