55 Gallon Tank Kuhlis & Caves

[emmykenzie]

Alright guys; here I go again... xD
As soon as my 120 gallon cycles Freshwater Riverbed | Freshwater Aquarium Journals Forum | 485219
I’m going to have a big... empty... cycled tank....
Heres the foundation I’ll have; The tank has white gravel, a marineland 350 filter, and a 150W fluval heater.

Substrate:
I’m going to keep the white gravel even though I really don’t like it because I want the beneficial bacteria on the gravel. I ordered Seachem Black Sand so I’ll be mixing that with the gravel. I have small blue/green glass stones in the bottom of the tank too.

Specs:
The tank pH will be kept between 6.5-7.0. The temperature around 75-80.

Decorative Stuffs:
Fun part... wow ok...
I bought these two BEAUTIFUL pieces of spider wood.


I purchased some lava rock to create a cave system. I purchased both red & black via Etsy

Also ordered the cutest little “hide”

Plants:
Ugh more fun
I’ve got water sprite already in the tank.

I’ve just ordered the follow plants:
Purple Cabomba

Xmas Moss
Creepy Jenny
Micranthemum

Red Myriophllyum
Red Flame Sword

I’ll be quarantining the plants for a bit so I ordered them now even though the tank isn’t ready.

Okay now for stocking plans......
Firstly, I want to get a Blue Phantom Pleco in there ASAP.
Then I’ll be purchasing Kuhli Loaches in lots of 3-5 until I reach between 10-12 Kuhlis.
Finally, my resident Rainbow Shark will make his way into the tank. He’s a beefy boy, easily 6in+. This picture is about a month old, he’s ripped the tank up and grown since then lol!
I want him to be the LAST in the tank; he’s a touch aggressive and I think he’d be less so if he were the last in the tank. ..... then I’ll have an empty ... cycled.... 10gallon... don’t worry... I’ve got plans for that too ;D ..... whispers.... plants... Driftwood .... Dwarf.... Puffers.....
Please let me know if you want any links to anything. I’ll be sure to keep updating both threads!
Best and thanks for looking,
Emily

 

[emmykenzie]

Lava rock shipped today!
The black sand is here! 45lbs!

please enjoy my michael Scott socks lol...

I must continue to remind myself that patience is a virtue!
thanks for looking!

 

[emmykenzie]

Hello! Update time!
Currently quarantining a Blue Phantom Pleco, boy is he gorgeous!! Very tiny too! I’ll take some photos when he makes his way to the front of the glass. Did a 95% water change on the tank and changed the substrate... It was a pain and a hassle, definitely cannot stress how much flourite sand needs to be washed. I got my purple aflame swords and planted them throughout the tank! Can’t wait to see the progress on these!

Here’s the first stage: Spiderwood
Water is still a touch cloudy but that will settle




I can’t stress how excited I am to get the rest of my plants in and the lava rock! My vision is slowly coming together!
Thanks for looking!!
Emily

 

[Perlumia]

Aw, I love your little pleco. How big will it get?

 

[emmykenzie]

Aw, I love your little pleco. How big will it get?

Thank you so much! It’s likely he could get to be 7 inches!

 

[emmykenzie]

Introduced 8 Kuhli loaches today. They have been in quarantine at a LFS for 1 month.... So in they go! More photos coming soon...

 

[emmykenzie]

My noodle swarm is beginning to trust me more! They come out to eat and are much less shy! Day 3 so I’ll take that as a win. Even on day 2 they very happily ate for me! So excited to get more pictures! Setting up a camera on the tank now for some video action!
Thanks for looking as always!

 

[Ouse]

Wow you are so dedicated to this! The scape is ideal for fish that like to hide during the day such as your pleco and loaches. Loving the use of wood!

 

[emmykenzie]

Wow you are so dedicated to this! The scape is ideal for fish that like to hide during the day such as your pleco and loaches. Loving the use of wood!

Thank you very much! You have no idea how much that means! I did a good deal of research before deciding to buy Kuhlis! Now I can really begin to study their behaviors! I’m very excited. I love loaches!!

 

[emmykenzie]

Just an update; I’ve made some decisions about stocking! I’ve incorporated the lava rock and there’s more on the way so there will be plenty of hiding space for everyone involved!
final stocking will be;
12–16 x Kuhli Loaches
1 x Blue Phantom Pleco
1 x MTS
6-10 x Rummynose Tetras
6 x Cherry Shrimp
6 x Amano Shrimp
32- 46 Total Fish

Tomorrow I’ll be going to my LFS for a few things and I’m planning on picking up some shrimp!

 

[Ouse]

I like it!

 

[emmykenzie]

I like it!

Thanks for keeping updated! I elected for the shrimp because of the amount of hiding spaces I have in my tank. I think they will feel safe and with the size of my Kuhlis they will all end up maturing together. I decided against the puffers for territorial concerns. I’m afraid it may become a similar situation as it would putting my shark in the tank.
I want to add some bright fish too so I think a school of rummynose might be perfect. Also the pop of color from the cherry shrimp!

 

[Ouse]

Sounds like a good idea!

 

[emmykenzie]

Sounds like a good idea!

Thank you! I’ll post more pictures later after I head to the LFS!!

 

[emmykenzie]

Amano Shrimp, Cherry Shrimp, MTS - Golem, & a member of the noodle army!

 

[emmykenzie]

Small update for today! Tank is happy as can be! Kuhlis are becoming more and more comfortable which warms my heart! Squirtle, our resident Blue Phantom Pleco even hung out with me while I observed. She would hide whenever I tried for a photo! Tomorrow is mega water change day!

 

[emmykenzie]

Oh my! I went away for a night for a family event and I come back home to a very clean, but abused tank! Not sure who the culprit is here but my precious myriophyllum, water sprite, and Cabomba have been absolutely ruined! Oh well I hope they enjoyed their snack

 

[emmykenzie]

Little update today! Ive only seen 3 of my 4 cherry shrimp the past few days. They seem to be scattered and hiding for the most part though they don’t run from their other tank mates. I’m not overly concerned with the behavior as my Amano shrimp are happy as ever! Planning on testing my water parameters this week to see how things are holding up! Golem was on bloodworm clean up duty!
Also really need to grab that plant matter off the intake lol!

 

[phnx314]

FYI, plant murderer may have been the pleco. My BN used to snack on my swords as a baby.

Your kuhlis are adorable!! I have 6 in my 45 and I love them tons. Also, I have 7 cherry shrimp in my killifish tank and I rarely even see three at a time, I’m sure it’s fine.

 

[emmykenzie]

FYI, plant murderer may have been the pleco. My BN used to snack on my swords as a baby.

Your kuhlis are adorable!! I have 6 in my 45 and I love them tons. Also, I have 7 cherry shrimp in my killifish tank and I rarely even see three at a time, I’m sure it’s fine.

Interesting! It’s very possible you’re correct considering I don’t see him much during the day! I’m going to start feeding zucchini soon to try to avoid this with the rest of my plants. Thank you! They have such big personalities for such tiny little noodles. I love loaches for that reason. It’s ironic because my RCS were running around all day today! I’m nearly positive there’s only 3 now which means I’ll have to get more! ... I’ll take losing one little dude out of the 18 aquatic creatures I’ve added in the past 3 weeks!
Thanks for looking and have a great day!

 

[emmykenzie]

Update for the day! Had a very lively feeding day today! Got some sweet footage. I’m currently gathering footage from all my tanks to incorporate into the YouTube channel that I’ve been talking about! Here’s some photos for today!
Cherrys are out and about today, still only see three so I believe we’ve had one loss! I’m so happy I elected to add shrimp, they’re so much fun to watch! Also added a Madagascar lace plant! Forgive the glare from my other tank on many of the photos!
EDIT: I just happened upon this hilariousness as I walking by. The cherry shrimp doing a little shell detailing for my mystery snail.

 

[emmykenzie]

Hi! Unfortunately we had one Amano casualty today , however the 4th cherry showed itself! So we’re back to one casualty!

Well you guys know me by now so let’s just say I’ve got something up my sleeve.....
VOILA! Shrimp sale at my LFS and boy were they stocked. $6 per shrimp!! I bought 7! 2 Amano, 2 Blue (1M 1F), 2 more cherries (1F 1 Juvie) , and the only one they had of this beautiful brown spotted neo. They are under a 2 hour drip acclimation. Currently watching them chow down on some delicious algae wafers. I’m so happy they are eating, especially during acclimation.

Noodle army is incredibly active and they recognize me as their lunch lady. lol! I’ll post an update with some delicious shrimp photos soon.

I wanted to also add these photos I took at my LFS today, boy am I lucky...


Goonch catfish & sooo many discus! I DO NOT OWN THESE FISH.

 

[emmykenzie]

Tank is crazy active after today’s water change! Counted 6-7 Kuhlis out at one time! Now that more shrimp are in the tank they have become bold and are constantly out and about! I was lucky enough to snap a photo of squirtle before he returned to his cave. I pick up my rummynose tetras this week for quarantine. I am planning on holding them in 85 degree water and dosing with light NOXICH during their week of observation. They are coming straight from the distributor and I’ll be picking them up in bags with oxygen. Going to pick up some zucchini at the store to do a veggie feeding on my tanks this week too!
Thanks as always for accompanying me on this journey!

 

[phnx314]

Tank is crazy active after today’s water change! Counted 6-7 Kuhlis out at one time! Now that more shrimp are in the tank they have become bold and are constantly out and about! I was lucky enough to snap a photo of squirtle before he returned to his cave. I pick up my rummynose tetras this week for quarantine. I am planning on holding them in 85 degree water and dosing with light NOXICH during their week of observation. They are coming straight from the distributor and I’ll be picking them up in bags with oxygen. Going to pick up some zucchini at the store to do a veggie feeding on my tanks this week too!
Thanks as always for accompanying me on this journey!

That brown shrimp is awesome.

 

[emmykenzie]

That brown shrimp is awesome.

Thank you so much I was so excited when I saw that little guy! I had to have him

 

[phnx314]

Thank you so much I was so excited when I saw that little guy! I had to have him

Not certain but from the pic it seems to be a she

 

[emmykenzie]

Not certain but from the pic it seems to be a she

Good call! I think you are correct!

 

[emmykenzie]

I recently started an Instagram for my home aquarium. I’m going to do updates on these forums for really exciting and detailed posts from now on or for other tank related things. Please follow me if you’ve enjoyed my content!
thanks for looking!
Ig: MandEmsVivarium

 

[Ouse]

I recently started an Instagram for my home aquarium. I’m going to do updates on these forums for really exciting and detailed posts from now on or for other tank related things. Please follow me if you’ve enjoyed my content!
thanks for looking!
Ig: MandEmsVivariumView attachment 780093

I’ll definitely follow it!

If you get a notification that you got a follower remember I’m the one with the pfp.

 

[emmykenzie]

Update time!! I’ve been trying to get pictures for the past three days but everyone is a bit too quick and my camera quality too poor LOL!
Anyway
ALL of my female cherry shrimp are pregnant! I’ve seen molted shells everywhere the past few weeks which is a great feeling! Even Squirtle has come out more readily! We added the rummynose tetras on Wednesday this week and they are happy as ever. Snail population has exploded! I’ll be attempting to remove some this week as I’m going to make a “snail tank” out of the 2g tank I have sitting around. Crypts are growing like crazy along with all the other plants! Here’s some pictures to enjoy and thanks for looking!

 

[emmykenzie]

Zucchini feeding was a HUGE hit today! I even had the opportunity to photograph my pleco! The video from today’s feeding will be on Instagram!!
Also a photo of my favorite Kuhli loach pattern !
thanks for looking!

 

[emmykenzie]

Hey everyone! Long time no post!!
Last I posted all my cherry shrimp were pregnant and I am happy to announce that today I have counted 4 teeny tiny cherries. As I sit here writing this post more and more continue to show themselves! My brown shrimp is also pregnant by my male cherry! (Photo 5 it is very hard to see but there is a baby shrimp there)
We see our Pleco; Squirtle every day now and she seems to be very motivated by zucchini.
Even more exciting still and to my own disbelief; I have a pregnant Amano!
Here’s some photos to enjoy!