Recent content by A201

Replacement cartridges are more or less a scam. If there is room inside your power filter, ditch the cartridge and replace with an appropriately sized sponge, or a small mesh sack, filled with ceramic media.

The rock looks really good to me. Probably not a good idea to take a hammer to it. Doing so might convert a cool looking, functional rock into a dud.

The EBJD's are a little on the fragile side, and I did fail to raise a few of them to adulthood. The standard JD also has beautiful color & markings. Although JD's have a bad reputation for being aggressive, its been my experience that a full grown male GT can easily beat down an adult male JD...

When buying from a LFS it's important to hand select every fish you buy. Inspect the vendors display tank carefully, watching for obvious signs of disease. Have the store employee feed the fish. Heathy fish should literally attack the food. Only select the strongest, most vibrant specimens...

Yeah, dry pellets are said to expand in water. I could see a potential intestinal blockage occurring. I think your aquarium shop pro gave good advice. I generally feed Omega One small grain sinking Cichlid & Catfish pellets. Rarely a problem with bloat issues.

I agree that an Oscar probably would eventually outgrow the tank. If you are still considering a Jack Dempsey, look at the Electric Blue Jack. The Blue Jack's are genetically weaker than a standard JD, but are a wildly beautiful Cichlid. They are usually a little smaller too, and maybe just a...

I did just that in my African Cichlid days. Selecting only males of a variety of different species.

Green Terrors aka (Rivulatus) are great fish to keep. One of my favorites. Males grow to 9 - 10 inches. Females 5 - 8 inches. The males are more brightly colored than females w/ orange trim on the fins. Need to be in a tank of at least 75 gal. Here's a pic of my best male GT that I ever kept...

Regarding the possibility of gill flukes. If you are currently using Prime water conditioner, Prime is a sulphur based product. It will neutralize, to some extent, the potency of Praziquantel (Prazipro). If you choose to medicate again, select a water conditioner that does not contain sulphur.

The water movement looks to be more than adequate to sufficiently aerate the water. Looks good.

Over the years, I've had a couple of fish that survived mouth rot. The bacteria destroyed most of the mouth tissue, which left a gaping hole. Both lived a less than normal life. Eating was a little more difficult. A gaping hole for a mouth isn't pleasant to look at. If it becomes obvious the...

Your Betta might survive the "Mouth Rot" aka Columnaris, but all tissue destroyed by the bacteria will not regenerate. The antibiotics dissolved in the water column will likely have little effect on the Columnaris bacteria. Medicated foods would probably work better. The Betta might heal up...

Swordtails and Firemouths originate from the same Central American waters. A group of medium to full sized Swordtails could probably coexist with adult Firemouths.

I think your aquascape looks really good. I think an addition, rather than a complete rearrangement might be a better solution. Just adding a good sized gnarly piece of Spiderwood would change things to the positive. I have numerous XL chunks of Spiderwood in my tanks. You really can just...

I believe the lump is either a viral blister, or a bacteral bulge. If its a virus, the lump will eventually rupture, releasing virus spores into the water column. With some luck, the wound will heal up naturally. If the bulge is due to a bacteria infection, the bulge will also rupture...