55 Gallon Freshwater Now Complete

Hello, all. Many of you will recognize me from the many, MANY posts I've had, questions I've asked, etc. I just decided to come back to update you all on things now that my tank is complete and all of my fish are now in the tank. I created a new thread as I want this one to showcase the final product, and for those of you who have been following my journey into fishkeeping to see just how far I've come since starting up my tank in the very late part of March. Before I continue, I want to thank you all so much for all of your help and support; I've truly learned so much because of you all!

Just to recap for everyone, here is my equipment and stock...55 Freshwater aquarium. Cheap hood with LED lights (hopefully, sooner rather than later, I will upgrade to better LED's with a built in timer, and a more sturdy hood), Aqueon Quiet Flow Power Filter (55/75), and Aqueon Quiet Flow Power Filter (30). Two submersible heaters (one preset, which came with the kit, and isn't sufficient by itself, the other an adjustable thermometer, both Aqueon brand), digital thermometer. Several artifical plants, varying colors and heights to make it look as realistic as possible, one decent sized piece of driftwood, a rock formation built of a few circular rocks, and a rock cave built with two rocks and a piece of slate. My Stock:11 Serpae Tetras, 9 Lemon Tetras, 1 Raphael Catfish, 1 Krib, 1 Bolivian Ram, 1 Blood Parrot.

My Blood Parrot is my centerpiece fish, and was the last to be added (just this past Saturday). After doing some research when I decided to get back into the hobby after a several year break from my last attempt at this fishkeeping thing, the Blood Parrot caught my eye like pretty much no other fish, and this was the fish I chose to build my tank around. Everything else was in preparation of eventually adding the Blood Parrot, so this past weekend was a very exciting time for me! Unfortunately, I've yet to see much of this fish, though, as it's spent the majority of the time in hiding since I brought it home. I had heard, though, that this was most likely going to happen, so although I'm watching things closely, and I'm still holding my breath, I'm not overly worried. Still, some words of encouragement, and maybe some experiences from others with this topic may help to put me a bit further at ease. I'd love to hear from others who have any of the same fish as I do, but particularly from those with Blood Parrots. I'd love to see photos, hear about your set ups, hear about your fish, experiences, etc. I'm a brand new Blood Parrot owner, and still a fairly new fishkeeper, and I'd still love to learn more, while sharing experiences with folks who keep fish similar to mine. When I can, I will try to add a few photos to keep this thread updated. Thanks in advance for everyone's participation!

 

Here is a picture of the entire tank. The Blood Parrot is still in nearly constant hiding.

 

I used to have blood parrots, I had 2 of them. The two of them hid for weeks before they finally came out but they will so just give it time. Once they come out and get aquainted they will be the first one to come greet you when you walk near the tank. Just don't get frustrated and don't make the same mistake I did and move everything around in the tank to try and get them out. Mine didnt like that too much and just hid even longer. I had to use sinking food at first as well since they would not come out to eat, so I had to send the food to them lol.

 

Thanks for chiming in, bkaiser3! The info you've shared is particularly helpful as my Blood Parrot is hiding a lot! As I believe I mentioned in the first post on this thread, I read that this was likely to happen, so I wasn't overly concerned when it did happen. However, it is still a bit unnerving to see, so I was slightly worried as it's been days! Although, I must admit that my Blood Parrot is coming out ever so slightly more than on day one or two, so I suppose slow progress is being made; in addition, my few days (so far) is obviously nothing compared to the few weeks your's was in hiding! So, I will wait and be paitient until "he" decides that "he's" comfortable enough to come out.

I just find it slightly weird how the fish that is by far the largest in the tank as well as (arguably) the most aggressive fish in the tank (in talking to people, it seems debatable as to whether the Blood Parrot or Krib is the most aggressive), yet, it's also the most shy fish I have!

 

I was finally able to get a couple of (not great) pics of the Blood Parrot.

 

While I prefer live plants, those are some very realistic fake ones!

 

Thank you! I wasn't ready for live plants. Definitely happy with these for now.

 

Not ready because of your light? How come?

 

Just not interested at this point, to be honest. I'm not a fan of tanks that have that overgrown look, and just don't want to deal with the extra maintenance.

 

While I would argue that live plants don't require much (unless you go for carpets of dwarf baby tears or something) I'd say your tank looks great as is! Live plants are easy. especially things like moss..

 

Thanks! Eventually I MAY look into live plants, but no time soon at all. For now, I'm actually quite happy with the artificial ones I have.

 

I was finally able to get a few photos of my Blood Parrot, and I wanted to share. My camera is awful, so these aren't great, but they're the best so far. Unfortunately, I think "he" has ich, which I'm addressing on another thread and with people at my LFS. Below, I'll post some photos and tag some folks who've been particularly helpful to me so far, and/or who might be interested in seeing these.
tyguy7760, Dovah, el337, BluMan1914, MissyRay, CindiL, bizaliz3, Plecomaker, Bithimala, Aquaphobia, hampalong.

 

Beautiful fish! And a busy one

 

Thanks! Yeah, busy or laying on the bottom of the tank, underneath something!

 

Oh not ICH. Is he still eating? how are you treating?

 

tyguy7760, I'm pretty sure it's ich. I just came to that conclusion last night, so I need to change my course of treatment today. But I do absolutely think it's ich. Please check out the latest pictures on my fish disease thread in the disease section. There are pictures there that better show the issue. Let me know what you think when you look at that, please.

 

Hey, JGombs99, hope you're well. Both el337 and CindiL mentioned Seachem's Paraguard in your disease thread. I agree with them and highly recommend this medication as well, it worked wonders for me when my fish got ich from some new arrivals. Good luck!

 

Thanks!

 

Hello, everyone. Just an update for those not following my other recent threads. I was able to get the ich cleared up, but not before it wiped out 6 fish, total. Currently, I'm watching everything, and making sure the tank is truly healthy before making any new additions.

So, as it turns out, my tank is not at all completed as the title of this thread originally alleged. I've decided on a re-stock once the tank is healthy enough. I plan to return the tetras to my LFS, and start over with slightly larger, more vibrant tetras, replace the catfish I lost with something slightly more social, and add a second centerpiece to compliment the Blood Parrot.

When I'm finished, I plan to have approximately 9 Diamond Tetras, 2 Hoplos, 1 Krib, 1 Blood Parrot, and 1 (probably Koi) Angelfish. My hope is this stock will be more aesthetically pleasing, will appear more cohesive, and will be brighter and less drab than what I originally had.

 

Just a quick update. This morning, I was able to re-home all of my tetras (Serpae and Lemon). So now, I'll be able to get started on my re-stocking plan within the next few days.

 

I was able to start my re-stocking tonight. I ended up with 6 Diamond Tetras, and they're acclimating right now.

 

Just saw your thread. .. you gave back your lemon tetras? I have been looking for those here in NYC and no one seems to sell them.

Your tank looks good, for a moment I thought those were real plants!

 

Thank You! Definitely not real plants! I appreciate it, though. It's still a work in progress.

But, yes, I re- homed the Lemon Tetras. They were just too small for my taste. And, they weren't the yellow I expected (apparently that takes longer than I realized). If you ever come to Albany, they've never been difficult to find. Or, I'm sure you could get them online.

 

If you ever come to Albany, they've never been difficult to find. Or, I'm sure you could get them online.

Shipping is too expensive, haven't ordered online yet. Any good local fish stores up by Albany worth checking out? Might be doing a road trip upstate later this summer in that area.

 

Well, to be honest, I'm still new to the hobby, so I'm not positive what constitutes a good LFS. But I go to and like this place called Eddie's Aquarium. It's about 20 minutes outside the city of Albany. Sometimes they have more than other times, but I like them, and find most of their employees to be pretty knowledgeable. They always had the Lemons when I was looking for them.