New To Hobby, 2 Flowerhorns

[Dr_Shakalu]

Hey everyone. Well, after many years of raising fish (aros, bala sharks, bichirs, plecos,) I decided that I wanted fish with more color than just silver. Now, I'm a flowerhorn addict. I am just learning about flowerhorns and there is so many things to learn with hobbyist having different opinions. Since I am a novice, I don't want to spend too much money if what I do is wrong. As a new hobbyist, I don't care what type there are just that they look good to me. I just want bright colors and a kok with potential. I got rid of all my fish except the plecos (7 inches each) and divided my 180 gallon tank into 2 sides. I paid $75 each for both and I don't know if it was a good deal but the owner took the time (almost an hour) to teach me what to do. He is a great guy and said that I can call him anytime with questions. He also told me that I can buy a 40 lb. bag of salt for $3.99 at Orchard. Here's some pictures. Please give me some opinions, good or bad, and tell me what else I can do. My water PH is 6 and he gave me a big bag of coral to up the PH.

 

[Runitis]

You said you split it into two sides then why do I see two dividers which indicates 3 sides? Also you seem to be doing good and those
Fh look good. Just get on a good pellet and keep up with water changes. I would also.remove the Pleco because its a good chance the fh will kill them. If not now then later

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[Dr_Shakalu]

It was 3 sides because I didn't get rid of the other fish yet. I actually gave all of my other fish to a friend for free. I wanted to get the 2 flowerhorns before someone else got them so I split the tank into 3. Do you think the plecos will get picked on by the flowerhorns? If so, I'll give them to my friend also. Thanks, Ed

Hey everyone. Well, after many years of raising fish (aros, bala sharks, bichirs, plecos,) I decided that I wanted fish with more color than just silver. Now, I'm a flowerhorn addict. I am just learning about flowerhorns and there is so many things to learn with hobbyist having different opinions. Since I am a novice, I don't want to spend too much money if what I do is wrong. As a new hobbyist, I don't care what type there are just that they look good to me. I just want bright colors and a kok with potential. I got rid of all my fish except the plecos (7 inches each) and divided my 180 gallon tank into 2 sides. I paid $75 each for both and I don't know if it was a good deal but the owner took the time (almost an hour) to teach me what to do. He is a great guy and said that I can call him anytime with questions. He also told me that I can buy a 40 lb. bag of salt for $3.99 at Orchard. Here's some pictures. Please give me some opinions, good or bad, and tell me what else I can do. My water PH is 6 and he gave me a big bag of coral to up the PH.

 

[Oscar Mike]

I've been breeding and caring for flowerhorns for several years. The two you picked up are good quality and size for that price so I wouldn't be as concerned with overpaying as much as your ph levels. FH can survive at 6-8 but will look stressed at anything under 7.4 so you have your work cut out if its currently at 6. http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?1904-Results-Using-crushed-coral-to-raise-KH-PH According to this post the guy was able to raise his ph from 6.2 to 6.8 in 8 days using 2 tablespoons of crushed gravel in his 55g so u might have similar results with closer to 7 tablespoons, but I have the opposite problem with tap at 8.0 so I can't say for sure. Also about the pleco, he might get by with nipped fins for a while but once they start courting the male will kill it just to show off. No question about it once there's eggs in the tank so i would give him up while he still has a tail. Leaving the lights on for more than 2hrs a day is bad for their color tho so u shouldn't have an algae problem unless the tank gets direct sunlight, in which case a brush or magnet cleaner would be your best bet long-term. That 180 is way more than big enough for a pair too btw so I doubt you'll need the divider for long but its definitely a good idea to start with so they can get used to eachother and their surroundings. Just don't disturb them too much while courting and good luck with your project!

 

[Aquatic Nut]

Very nice zz dragons. They should brighten up more once they acclimate and you raise that ph up. Are you trying to pair these? They both look like males.


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[Dr_Shakalu]

Yeah, they are both males. Being a novice (and lazy), I'm just going to keep males. I think that the kok on male flowerhorns make them more attractive. When I first started reading about flowerhorns, I thought kok was pronounced you know what until I found out it was pronounced "coke"!!!!

Very nice zz dragons. They should brighten up more once they acclimate and you raise that ph up. Are you trying to pair these? They both look like males.


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[Oscar Mike]

Ah ok I thought maybe you found a big kok female lol. I especially like that double row in the second pic, looks a lot like the female SRD I have being shipped from Thailand next week. Oh and I thought it was pronounced like that for a long time too until another breeder corrected me, I still catch myself pronouncing it that way in my head