The 150: a work in progress.

[sumthin fishy]

The tall ones in my picture are rotalla of 2 different color varieties. Under lower light the leaves are a bit smaller, and not as red, but will still grow. They do grow pretty fast as you can see. I could send you some for cheap. I need to figure out shipping live plants and you could be the Guinea pig. Maybe send 2-3 20+ inch stems and a handful of trimmings for $2 plus shipping?

 

[dvandevelde1]

The tall ones in my picture are rotalla of 2 different color varieties. Under lower light the leaves are a bit smaller, and not as red, but will still grow. They do grow pretty fast as you can see. I could send you some for cheap. I need to figure out shipping live plants and you could be the Guinea pig. Maybe send 2-3 20+ inch stems and a handful of trimmings for $2 plus shipping?

That would be amazing. How much would shipping be? I'm very interested. My zip code is 08758 I'm in Southern New Jersey.

 

[dvandevelde1]

Well I've decided I'm going all black diamond sand. I took the stupid white gravel out and redid the hardscape. I will be getting sand sometime after Christmas. Idk how I feel about the scape now but you guys can help me determine if it's better or worse. I have an issue though... The wood I'm using never fully dried out I guess, and it's now getting all covered in white, milky-looking fungus. :/ I've had this problem before and it eventually goes away but I really need to get some snails to help clean this stuff up. Any good snails that will eat this stuff?

 

[dvandevelde1]

I went to Walmart and looked at their fish section and there were 4 gold mystery snails and a flame tetra. I bought the tetra and the 4 snails and put them in the tank to help with cycling and fungus/algae control.

 

[SnakeIce]

I like those tetras, they get to a decent size, 3.5 inches, and don't mess with other fish. They occasionally nip at each other but that was more a factor of the small space I had some in than anything else. They don't live quite as long as other similar tetras though, 5ish years versus 6 years that bleeding hearts, red minor, black phantom... will live to.

You have a male.

 

[dvandevelde1]

I like those tetras, they get to a decent size, 3.5 inches, and don't mess with other fish. They occasionally nip at each other but that was more a factor of the small space I had some in than anything else. They don't live quite as long as other similar tetras though, 5ish years versus 6 years that bleeding hearts, red minor, black phantom... will live to.

You have a male.

Thank you so much for the info. Now I gotta come up with a name for HIM. How do you tell the sex, by the way?

 

[SnakeIce]

The top fin on the males is longer with a scythe shape point on it. Your picture caught him with it extended enough so it is obvious. The females dorsal fin is 3/4 as long for their size and rounded but if they don't have the fin flared it isn't obvious, in other words the roundedness is held pinched together at times and can appear as if the fin is pointed. The females get a bit bigger than the males also, but that would be a point of comparison you wouldn't have with just one.

 

[dvandevelde1]

First... I have bad news. I was moving around some of the big rocks and I guess the tetra was in them and when the rocks shifted.... He got squished... I was and still am so, so mad. What are the chances? Anyways... There is good news. My brother and I drove about an hour from where I live today to a tractor supply co. and got some(300 lbs) of the black diamond sand blasting sand. I put this into the tank and I ended up picking up some Anacharis from the lfs. I rescaped the tank and here's what it looks like. I apologize for the cloudy water... Will be posting better pictures when the water clears up. I think I'm pretty satisfied with this. What ferts should I be using? I also need to figure out what kind of fish I should get and I'd love some feedback on that topic..

 

[tanker]

The average plants in a fish tank does not need additional ferts. If you have lots of plants, CO2, high lights==Yes, need ferts.

 

[Greggz]

The Black Diamond looks nice. As far as stock goes, that's a tough one. We all have different favorites.

Keep in mind that fish tend to stay in certain "layers" of the tank. For instance, in my tank the Rainbows always stay in the top 2/3. My Roseline sharks stay in the bottom 1/2. My Clown Loaches and Rams tend to stay in the bottom 1/3. With your tank being so tall, I would pay attention to the "layering" effect. You have a lot of space to fill, and don't want half the tank to look empty.

Or you might think about going with some fish that are tall? Altum Angels? Good luck and looking forward to seeing how it develops.