Or should I say "Aqua Clear". I bought a new filter for the tank, and man is it nice. It has an adjustable flow rate on it, so I turn it down to low while they eat, and it causes there to be less water movement which equals less wasted food. I still haven't bought a test kit for my own, which I need to do, but I think things are going well in there.
I bought Daisy... did I tell you we named the puffer Daisy?... I bought her some dried brine shrimp and ooooh man does she love them! Chomps 'em right down. She is looking great. Getting friendlier every day, eating out of our hands.
"Dad" as Emily has named our red top zebra, may very well be looking for a new home. He is a MEAN bugger. He keeps attacking everyone, and it isn't good for the overall moral of the tank. So I might return him. Get a couple of calmer ones.
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Friday, February 22, 2008
Off the Charts
No, that isn't a good thing. After a 50% water change the other day, AND adding Cycle to the tank... I took a sample in to Ed today and the ammonia is off the charts. It is darker green than the darkest green on the card. I'm surprised the fish in the tank are still alive. So I bought this little pack that you put in your filter that is supposed to remove ammonia, and I'm letting that run for now. I did a gravel vac too (with 20% water change). I'm bringing some water back over later for him to check and I'm going to buy a new filter. The one I have is crap. And the saga continues!
Thursday, February 21, 2008
"That's Dad"..
Well I hope our Red Top Zebra is a boy... Emmy named him "Dad". So we now have "Nemo", "Hoover", "Dad" and "brown fish". Oddly enough, "brown fish" is my green spotted puffer ;)
So long, farewell...for now
I am down one fish. When I awoke yesterday the stripey (yellow/black) one was acting bizarre - flipping around in the tank, hyperventilating, smashing herself off of rocks and things in the tank. So I brought her down to Ed and he tossed her in his tank with the others of her kind and she still acted funny. He tested my water and my ammonia was off the charts. So he said it was from the ammonia being so high. He kept her, hoping he can get her feeling better in his zero-ammonia water, and I bought some bacteria builder and came home.
After a 50% water change, I sprinkled in some more salt and two caps of the bacteria builder. Everyone else is acting fine, but I am going to give it another day and then I'm going to head back over and Ed said he would give me a new fish. Either one of the same kind or different.
This isn't on the same subject as fish, but you know I just have to say... some people go overboard when it comes to pet stores. Ed and his lovely wife Lisa just opened this pet store in my town. The place is wonderful. You can walk in, lean on the central pen filled with gerbils and bunnies - and you wouldn't even know you were in a pet store if you closed your eyes. Lisa keeps things THAT clean. It's all she does is clean. So what is the problem? They sell puppies. Dum dum dum.... Which has brought protesters to their store, a full page slam ad in the local paper and then a write up by the local paper on them. They only ever have one - SOMETIMES two puppies at the same time. The puppies are in a central wooden pen during the day, and get walked every day, and go home with an employee at night.
So to avoid bad publicity, they promised not to buy puppies from the guy they normally bought from (in Wisconsin or something, he flew the puppies to them). But that means now they have to find someone local to buy from. Two issues there - one is that there aren't many small breed breeders locally (which is what they want to sell), and two- the local breeders want to sell the pet store the puppies at a higher price than the STORE would sell them for. So it really sucks for them. They're just trying to make a living, provide a service to this area that we presently don't have (there are no pet stores here, and haven't been) - and people have to throw a wrench in the works. Idiots.
After a 50% water change, I sprinkled in some more salt and two caps of the bacteria builder. Everyone else is acting fine, but I am going to give it another day and then I'm going to head back over and Ed said he would give me a new fish. Either one of the same kind or different.
This isn't on the same subject as fish, but you know I just have to say... some people go overboard when it comes to pet stores. Ed and his lovely wife Lisa just opened this pet store in my town. The place is wonderful. You can walk in, lean on the central pen filled with gerbils and bunnies - and you wouldn't even know you were in a pet store if you closed your eyes. Lisa keeps things THAT clean. It's all she does is clean. So what is the problem? They sell puppies. Dum dum dum.... Which has brought protesters to their store, a full page slam ad in the local paper and then a write up by the local paper on them. They only ever have one - SOMETIMES two puppies at the same time. The puppies are in a central wooden pen during the day, and get walked every day, and go home with an employee at night.
So to avoid bad publicity, they promised not to buy puppies from the guy they normally bought from (in Wisconsin or something, he flew the puppies to them). But that means now they have to find someone local to buy from. Two issues there - one is that there aren't many small breed breeders locally (which is what they want to sell), and two- the local breeders want to sell the pet store the puppies at a higher price than the STORE would sell them for. So it really sucks for them. They're just trying to make a living, provide a service to this area that we presently don't have (there are no pet stores here, and haven't been) - and people have to throw a wrench in the works. Idiots.
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Things are clearing up
So I have done two vacs of the gravel and in turn, two 20% water changes. This morning my water is looking nice and clear. Not perfect, but alot better.
I decided the fish and my puffer needed some better food, so I went down to the LFS and picked up some "Cichlid Delight" frozen packs. I don't know how much of a "delight" they are... no one in the tank seems too keen on them. Ed likees to toss the whole cubes into his tank and the fish go NUTS for them.. mine go "Woo hoo!....oh it's that crud again... nevermind". The only one who seems midly interested in finishing it off is the puffer, and even he is kind of "bleh" about them. So once they are gone I don't think I will buy them again.
I talked to Ed about getting some ghost shrimp or some snails, and he said he would ask his supplier about them. My puffer really needs some snails to be happy, and the shrimp would be a nice addition to the food in the tank.
We still are without names for 75% of the tank. The blue guy.. Nemo... the Pleco... Hoover. But I have no names for the others. They need names so I can bond with them. Yes, I'm talking abou tfish, but I think the more of a connection you feel to your pets, the better care you take of them. You become invested in their well-being.
I will watch them today and get a feel... maybe names will come to me.
I decided the fish and my puffer needed some better food, so I went down to the LFS and picked up some "Cichlid Delight" frozen packs. I don't know how much of a "delight" they are... no one in the tank seems too keen on them. Ed likees to toss the whole cubes into his tank and the fish go NUTS for them.. mine go "Woo hoo!....oh it's that crud again... nevermind". The only one who seems midly interested in finishing it off is the puffer, and even he is kind of "bleh" about them. So once they are gone I don't think I will buy them again.
I talked to Ed about getting some ghost shrimp or some snails, and he said he would ask his supplier about them. My puffer really needs some snails to be happy, and the shrimp would be a nice addition to the food in the tank.
We still are without names for 75% of the tank. The blue guy.. Nemo... the Pleco... Hoover. But I have no names for the others. They need names so I can bond with them. Yes, I'm talking abou tfish, but I think the more of a connection you feel to your pets, the better care you take of them. You become invested in their well-being.
I will watch them today and get a feel... maybe names will come to me.
Sunday, February 17, 2008
Puffers and Cichlids and Plecos.. Oh My!
Aquarium, take two. Three if you count the goldfish bowl disaster. RIP poor Mike the goldfish...
After my freshwater tank went belly up (pardon the pun), I had a long talk with my LFS guy. Ed graciously filled up a bag with marine salt and pH buffer, and another bag with bacteria culture and sent me home to start my tank cycling. A few trips back and forth so he could test my water and I could do a 75% water change, and we were in business.
I ended up with the following fish, who I *think* I have properly identified, but am still researching.
Cobalt blue Zebra
Melanochromis Auratus
Maylandia Emmiltos (Red Top Zebra)
Green Spotted Puffer
This little bugger bit my finger just as I snapped the picture...
Common Pleco ("Hoover")
The Pleco is the only one with a name, and I hope he doesn't mind that I have turned his home into a brackish water tank... he is my only survivor from Project Aquarium, take 1. Emily likes to call the blue one "Nemo", so that might stick, and she calls the black/yellow one "Black".. but it is a female, so I'll be changing it.
The tank is already cloudy, so i did a 20% water change and am going to swing by and have Ed check my water levels tomorrow. The cloudiness is expected from the cycling of the tank, but I want to be sure things are ok. Plus, I need new food for my little buggers.. turns out they don't enjoy flakes so much.
I may invest in some snails so that I can feed the Puffer a better diet and keep his teeth filed down.
I'm excited, and hope things are going to go well this time.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)