New 120 Freshwater Build

Let’s move forward with some more pictures!

Added some fish!

Even though Ripley tried to claim the box as hers the minute it came into the house...

So initial additions include:

2 Pairs of Blue Ram Ciclids (hopefully)
A pair of Kribensis (again hopefully)

My local fish store has assured me they have no problem switching one if I didnt end up with Male-female pairs. So that's cool.

8 Glo Fish Tetras (no comment please )

And a cool little dwarf catfish from Lake Tanganyika. This one is a bit of a gamble as my ph is going to tend low due to the large amount of driftwood leaching tannins into the water. It seems to sit around 6.6, which is fairly acidic, but I'll keep a close eye on it and if it doesn't do well I'll return it and get something different.

And also half a dozen snails. I don't remember the names but I'm sure people here can look them up if they're interested in knowing. For me, stripey ones and spotty ones are good enough for names lol. (I did look them up before buying them but just don't remember the names)

... do you not know the nitrogen cycle and anything about fishless cycles?



No fish in the tank means no ammonia being created. No cycle is started.

So you add ammonia ***WITHOUT FISH IN THE TANK (just so this is clear)*** to grow the good bacteria. When there is enough bacteria that there's no ammonia after addint it to the tank, your cycle is complete and you can safely add fish to the tank. Voila. A month+ of impatiently testing over and over

As to constant testing, I cheated and got one of these!

 

The snails look like nirites.

I don't care for the idea of glofish but I have to admit that colourful school does look quite good in a blackwater setup.

All of them look fantastic though, I like the nice rich tannins you got going.

(I need one of them patches too. For in between tests lol)

 

Ok so I got some new lights. Now first off keep in mind this is a planted tank on a budget. I was at Costco today and saw a 3 pack of LED wifI connected controllable "smart bulbs" for $30. The colour is adjustable from very warm to full daylight as well as a full colour spec trum. They are "100 watt equivalent" and say 800 lumens each. I was hoping for more but the price was right. After setting them up on my phone I realized these are VERY customizable. So after playing with the app a bit I have them programmed to come on full brightness at 6am at around 4000K. I like that look the best, still some brown tinted visible but closer to full daylight. Then at 8pm they switch to a blueish purple light to enjoy the glofish in the evening. The coloured spectrum of these lights is not nearly as bright as I'd hoped, but I really only wanted that for a nightlight anyway so that's fine.

One thing I noticed is the plastic dome really diffused the light around the bulb and into the room... so I cut them mostly off. Very happy with the result.

I love that I can change the colour of the lights with my phone and program the time they turn on and off as well as the colour.

Thoughts..?

 

just make sure the bulbs aren't heating the water, that is, if it needs to be raised. My chinese box lights were heating the water, and I had to raise it to a bit over 2 1/2 feet above the water.

 

just make sure the bulbs aren't heating the water, that is, if it needs to be raised. My chinese box lights were heating the water, and I had to raise it to a bit over 2 1/2 feet above the water.

These are LED so give off very little heat. I know some bigger LED grow lights can give off a fair bit of heat, but I think the actual wattage of these is only around 12 watts each. They get *almost* uncomfortably warm to touch after being on for several hours, but I can still hold the light in my hand without any real discomfort so I think I'll be fine. I haven't noticed any increase in temperature yet and my heaters are still coming on to maintain the temperature. The top of the tank is also fully open with no lid or canopy so I don't see it being an issue.

 

Very cool light effects. I think my favorite is still natural where you can see the nice blackwater

 

I love your lighting choice! Looking great!

 

Very attractive tank!

 

Just a quick update. 2 weeks for plants and a week for fish. Everyone seems to be doing well so far. I can see some plant growth and one of my Anubias is flowering. May get some more fish this weekend...

 

Its still looking amazing. Ironically I'm loving the coloured skirts in this set up. It actually makes them look good.

 

So yeah.... I got a few more fish...

No pics until tomorrow as I had a dinner to go to that I had forgot about... I quite literally got home with fish, tossed the bags into the tank to float while I had a shower and then cut the bags and dumped them in the tank. Not the way I like to do it but I had a limit on time.

So new additions are 6 SterbaI Corydoras, 4 bumblebee gobies, and 6 lemmon shrimp. I know it's a bit early for shrimp, but I thought I'd give them a try and see how it goes.

I appreciate all the positive comments. Pics tomorrow!

 

looking good but your sump is way to small for that size tank.

 

So yeah.... I got a few more fish...

No pics until tomorrow as I had a dinner to go to that I had forgot about... I quite literally got home with fish, tossed the bags into the tank to float while I had a shower and then cut the bags and dumped them in the tank. Not the way I like to do it but I had a limit on time.

So new additions are 6 SterbaI Corydoras, 4 bumblebee gobies, and 6 lemmon shrimp. I know it's a bit early for shrimp, but I thought I'd give them a try and see how it goes.

I appreciate all the positive comments. Pics tomorrow!

Gotta ask on the bumblebee gobies... were you aware that they are actually brackish? They are sadly often not sold that way.

 

Gotta ask on the bumblebee gobies... were you aware that they are actually brackish? They are sadly often not sold that way.

There are freshwater varieties too.

 

looking good but your sump is way to small for that size tank.

It is. I plan to upgrade to a larger one when I find a deal on a used tank close to me. For now it's not a huge problem, just need to add water more often.

So the small fish and shrimp were getting sucked into the overflows... rescued some, lost 3 shrimp.
Problem should be fixed now. Bought a sheet of plastic canvas from Walmart for $3 and cut to fit around the inside of the overflows.

 

1 month update.

Added some micro grass and a half a dozen red shrimp now that my overflow is safe for them!

Very happy with the way it's looking. Can see some growth on the java moss for sure and possibly on some of the other plants. Still haven't set up a CO2 system yet...

 

1 month update.

Added some micro grass and a half a dozen red shrimp now that my overflow is safe for them!

Very happy with the way it's looking. Can see some growth on the java moss for sure and possibly on some of the other plants. Still haven't set up a CO2 system yet...View attachment 624683View attachment 624684View attachment 624685View attachment 624686View attachment 624688View attachment 624689

Cute! I like the grass too

 

Sorry I haven't posted any updates lately.

*Pick your favourite excuse and insert here*

But the tank is doing well. Added DIY CO2 about 3 weeks ago. Plants growing well. Shrimp turned out to be a mistake. None visible in the tank now. Thinking they became fish food for the rams... and I lost my female Kribensis somehow I have since added a replacement and she seems to have hitched up with the male nicely.

I was supposed to have an order of 50 neons yesterday but my LFS messaged to say they didn't ship well and that they would put in another order next week for me. Also still waiting on 2 Madagascar Lace plants.

So far I've gone through the diatom bloom, that lasted about 2 weeks, and now working through an algae/cyanobacteria bloom that is just starting to settle down. Thinking in another month or 2 it should be balanced out.

 

Have you considered rummy-nose tetra? They're not as flashy as cardinals, but they school so nicely, and they're temp compatable with the fish you've previously mentioned. LOVE your setup!

 

Have you considered rummy-nose tetra? They're not as flashy as cardinals, but they school so nicely, and they're temp compatable with the fish you've previously mentioned. LOVE your setup!

I do like rummy nose tetras and they're on my list of things to possibly add, but almost the same price as Cardinal tetras here so... maybe after I get some neons and or cardinals.