Welcome back!

[Chub_by]

Nice thread. I'm not surprised you have no significant ammonia/nitrite, as the bioload of 12 small tetras is pretty much non existent when not overfed. That being said, some kind of nitrates are obviously going to build up over time without any plants/algae.
Why not keep the bristlenoses and reintroduce floaters?

 

[esoxlucius]

Why not keep the bristlenoses and reintroduce floaters?

I was toying with the idea of getting more salvinia, but like you said, salvinia's floating. The surface would have looked lush but the rest of the tank pretty barren. The salvinia would have blocked the light for anything else to really flourish.

And anyway, I spent an hour this morning with my little net! Both bristlenose are now in my 360. So the algae will be back in my hex tank soon....along with 0ppm nitrate. It'll be interesting to see how long it takes the algae to take a grip of the tank again now.

 

[jjohnwm]

Bristlenose plecos are the bomb!

I'm curious, Esox; how big are those bristlenoses? Are you at all concerned that they may end up stuck between the teeth of some of those bruisers in your 360? I had a bit of a scare some months back when a young bristlenose ended up dead and thoroughly jammed inside the mouth of my Red Wolf (R.I.P.). The bristlenose was quite dead when I discovered the predicament, and the little cat was so thoroughly held in place by all those spines and stickers that it had to come out in pieces.

How about your Giant Goramy? Is his mouth big enough to inhale one of them? And is he one of those "less friendly" Giants that is likely to try?

 

[esoxlucius]

I'm curious, Esox; how big are those bristlenoses?

They are about an inch and a quarter each. I released them in one quiet corner and they both dive bombed to safety, plenty of hiding places in that tank for little fish.

My only concern would be my biggest clown loach. They are always looking for tit bits in the nooks and crannies, and that's where the bristlenose will likely be!

My chocolate cichlid would almost certainly have a go at them too but she never feeds on the bottom. She's predominantly a mid to top water fish so I'm not too concerned with her.

My GG? No chance. He feeds from the surface and in mid water, he very rarely goes near the bottom. And no, he certainly isn't one of those brutes that you hear about on occasion. He's a pussycat. I've been blessed with him really because he's certainly got a lot of tankmates to pick on should he go that way, lol.

 

[jjohnwm]

Ummm....okay....

I must admit that I would not feel comfortable with this idea, knowing that there a couple fish that might be capable of scarfing down those plecos. Not only would the little guys not fare well, but likely anything that tried to eat them would suffer for it as well.

I long ago gave up on saying things like "Oh, no worry, he/she would never do that!"...whether talking about a fish, a dog, a cat...or a person! The only entities on earth in which I have complete, unadulterated trust are you and me...and I'm even a little iffy about you...

And when it comes to fish in aquariums, well...when the potential eater and the likely eatee are confined together, 24/7, with no chance to ever get more than a few feet apart...anything that might conceivably happen, will happen...and probably sooner rather than later.

Good luck!

 

[esoxlucius]

I'm not sure if I actually started a thread on this one, I can't remember now, but about 12 months or so ago the wife's mate came down asking if I'd take some more fish from her (this is the woman who I definitely started a thread about some while ago titled "lost causes", you may remember it).

Anyway the fish she wanted to palm off on me this time were two little bristlenose, about an inch apiece. I didn't have my hex tank at the time, it was still up the attic at this point, so I put those two little fish in my 360. For a few weeks I never saw them, I actually thought at one point that they must have been eaten.

But they eventually showed themselves and have been ever present since. They are now about 4" piece, chunky little buggers. I'm hoping the two new arrivals progress in a similar manner, though of course, you are right, they're in the hands of the fish gods until they put some size on.