sirdarksol

Welcome to Fishlore from another Minnesotan!

maisy

lol, all we did is wash them with some water (from a well, out in the country *sigh* miss that) and put it in the tank...our fish could probly' survive if we didn't wash them at all lol. They were pretty hardy for tropical's.

maisy

Well, I figuered out that both Robin and Marian are girls, the nipping has ceased 'Robin' has the right and Marian has the left. The only thing 'Robin' does is chase Marian away when she gets to close to him *ahem* her.

We also got four zebra danios (not veil-tail, thats what Stripes is) and one is pretty cool, his/her bars/stripes are kinda 'broken' so thats her name.

sirdarksol

Now that welcomes have been made, I just wanted to throw a few little bits of info into the mix.

First of all, you say that your fish have "lived forever," yet your fruit tetras only lived for two to three years. The shortest lived of the tetras (that I know of, at least) have a life-span of three to five+ years. Most other fish have similar life spans, while some fish, such as the common pleco, can live up to fifteen years. Goldfish and koi are the Methuselahs of the aquarium world, living somewhere between 25-255 years!

This brings me to my second point. Without the pleco and crayfish, your aquarium is pushing being overstocked. The general guideline for stocking fish is 1" of adult fish per gallon of tank. The gourami get to be 6" apiece (12") the neons count for 1.5" (6"), the zebra is 2", and the cories get to be roughly 2.5" (10"). This puts your tank at 30" of adult fish before counting the pleco and cray, both of which produce waste far out of proportion to their length. In fact, it is suggested that a common pleco be put in nothing smaller than a 55g. Without these two creatures, most of the current stock in your tank could easily survive for four or more years.
Most folks around here would suggest finding new homes for those two, either by getting a larger tank for them, or by finding a fish store or friend that can put them in a larger tank.

Lastly, the rock in your tank appears to be a lime formation (common on rivers around here), which can raise the hardness of your tank water. I could be wrong on this, so it's just something to keep an eye on.

I know that this is a lot of information, and a lot of it likely goes against what you've learned in the past (much of what was "known" about fishkeeping up to the nineties was based on false assumptions, and a lot of this information is still being spread by some sources), but part of the reason that Fishlore is here is to make both aquarist and aquarium denizens happy by providing information and help to keep members' aquariums as healthy as possible.

maisy

Heh, that shows how much I know about fish

Thanks for the info, my parents are technically in charge of the 30 gallon tank, but I have a 10 gallon, could the danios say go in there? And what would you say a size of tank needed for the crafish would be? (I know this may sound stupid, but I don't think she's going to grow anymore...and she hasn't molted in a while, but I could be wrong). We have no room to have a tank big enough for Leo though. Geesh, gourami's grew that big. And thanks for the full grown lengths of the danios and tetras.

sirdarksol

No problem.
Yes, a few danios could go in a 10g tank. They're pretty hardy guys. I normally wouldn't suggest doing so, but they're already in a difficult situation, and this would make things better.
Not sure about the crayfish, I just know that they produce a lot of waste. If she hasn't molted in awhile, you may want to try feeding her some nori (the seaweed that they wrap sushi in. You should be able to get it at the grocery store). Shellfish need iodine to molt, and nori provides a really large amount of iodine.
If I had to guess, a 20g tank would probably do well (if the cray is under 6"), a 30g or more if it is over 6".

This is all information that the pet stores should give people when they buy fish. Instead, you get pet stores like the one near my brother's day program, where they tell people that a common pleco, a goldfish, and two black skirt tetras would do fine in a 10g tank. Most of them fall somewhere in between, and just don't bother to say anything.
If it were up to me, I'd try to find a new home for the common pleco and either get a bristlenose pleco (they stay under 6") or a small school of otos (tiny suckermouth fish). Get a new tank for the cray (most crays don't need a heater, so you might be able to save money that way). Since the tank isn't under your control, this may not be possible. Just giving the best scenario I can come up with.

maisy

She is way under 6 inches, I have a pic of her....



I moved the rock she was under this morning, she's making I don't know, indentions? in every corner

Redtail_Shark14

welcome to fishlore. boy was it hot today in Minnesota!

maisy

No kidding! my basil wilted lol, inside for it

sirdarksol

AH! That's why she hasn't eaten the other fish. She's tiny.
It wouldn't be horrible for her to be in the main tank, but it still would be better for her to get a tank of her own, if you can swing it.

Give in to Multiple-Tank-Syndrome. Get your parents infected, too. MTS is not only the best way to make the fish happy, but it's the best way to make you happy, too.

Thus spake the spirit of Fishlore.

maisy

Hehe, my parents are considering putting the 30 gallon in my room
I am thinking about getting multiple tanks in my room (would love a 55 gallon though) but I don't know if I'll have enough space

lol, yeah we had one though that was twice as big and she ate all the silver-tipped tetras until we stopped her and now only that one is left *sigh*

maisy

I've just found a free 55 gallon tank on craigslist, and I know the 30 gallon will fit and if I got this (I don't know if both will) I think it will (48 inches/4 feet wide)

http://minneapolis.craigslist.org/zip/738920971.html

sirdarksol

Awesome! Free tank. Find a cheap filter and heater and you're good to go.

maisy

And what's good about it...mom hasn't said no, I think she actually likes the idea

edit: the aquarium was gone in the first 3 hrs. I was #25 to inquire about it lol. I'm going to save up for a 55(?) and put Leo in it, the danios in the 10 and will have saomething for Gloria

Charmaine

Hi and welcome to fishlore.

The male gourami has a longer dorsal fin than the female. The male's fin touches his tale whereas the female dorsal fin only goes half way. So Rbin would be a female!!

maisy

Well I guess thats good, I think (we'll just have to spell her name differently, thats all)

sirdarksol

Keep an eye on Craigslist. I got a fully set up 90g (it was supposed to be a 55g, but the folks didn't know what they were selling me) for something like $150. It's a good idea, though, to ask to see it filled and examine it for leaks.

Edit: http://minneapolis.craigslist.org/for/740261952.html
Check this out. It's only the tank, but it's a good start.
This is actually really close to where I live. I wish I had space for another tank, but my wife would kill me.

maisy

Wow, nice deal

Thanks, I'll definetley keep an eye on craigslist, the tank though is about 2 hours away from me. If I was driving, I wouldn't care, but my mom (or dad) is driving...maybe I can pay for the gas? *shrugs*