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NC122606

NC122606

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LynnwoodFishDad
I am moving the discussion to here so the mods do not go sicko mode on us.

Honestly, What do you think is better to do
Get 1 Bolivian Ram
Or
Get a Non - Bonded Pair hoping they will Breed?
 

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Go for the pair. I love watching the courting behaviors. Both my dwarf rainbows and phantom tetras have spawned this month and I’ve gotten to see it both times. Those adorable cardinals has caviar for breakfast so no babies on my end.

Regardless, watching them court is cool.
 

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Honestly, What do you think is better to do
Get 1 Bolivian Ram
Or
Get a Non - Bonded Pair hoping they will Breed?
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Get 4 Bolivians to spread out aggression would be my preference. Is this the same tank with the keyhole cichlids?
 
Nah, I was just wondering this question.
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Yeah, I would always go for more Bolivians, they're rather social little guys IME.
 

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  • Thread Starter
  • #7
I’ve never had them personally. Edited my previous post BTW.
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Ok, I see!

Next Question,
How do we make transportable Instant Cycle?
 
Go for the pair. I love watching the courting behaviors. Both my dwarf rainbows and phantom tetras have spawned this month and I’ve gotten to see it both times. Those adorable cardinals has caviar for breakfast so no babies on my end.

Regardless, watching them court is cool.
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Watching them raise kids is even better. They're rather great parents, actually, and so adorable about it!

Next Question,
How do we make transportable Instant Cycle?
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I think that the key is having a food source in the bottle. It would still not have a huge shelf life, but you could make it last for a good bit if you figured out a food source for it.
 
I think there is something close. The substrate I used in my tanks is basically volcanic gravel that has been soaked in fish water. It comes wet. Can’t remember the name.

If you package it and brand it something like organic feee range tank starter it will sell! LOL
 
  • Thread Starter
  • #10
I think that the key is having a food source in the bottle. It would still not have a huge shelf life, but you could make it last for a good bit if you figured out a food source for it.
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You know that thing where you freeze things and you could revive them? Maybe that could work?
Oh, it is called
Cryonics.
 
Watching them raise kids is even better. They're rather great parents, actually, and so adorable about it!
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I would love to get there but I cram too many fish in my tanks. When these are gone, I’m definitely doing fewer fish and setting up a breeder.

You know that thing where you freeze things and you could revive them? Maybe that could work?
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Cryogenics. In theory, you could make some kind of dissolving capsule with the bacteria and stabilizer in different layers.
 

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You know that thing where you freeze things and you could revive them? Maybe that could work?
Oh, it is called
Cryonics.
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I mean, I know that we can do it, but don't we still have a hard time returning stuff to life afterwards? And besides, I'm pretty sure that would be rather expensive. I think that we're looking at something that would actually work for the market, and I don't know if that would. If it it's cheep enough, though, frozen filter insta-cycle could be a brilliant product.
 
  • Thread Starter
  • #13
Cryogenics. In theory, you could make some kind of dissolving capsule with the bacteria and stabilizer in different layers.
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Not bad but, how do we thaw it?
 
Ding Ding Ding, we have one instant rich guy, all you've got to do is work out the logistics of it

Not bad but, how do we thaw it?
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Yeah, that's my concern. We're good at freezing stuff, haven't gotten that good at bringing it back yet though.
 
  • Thread Starter
  • #15
Well all we would need is one freezer that can get that temp and we could produce it from that.
 
I’m not sure it needs to be frozen, but you could make it like the frozen food cubes. Thaw it by tossing in the tank.

Another option would be to have “pre-soaked filter sponges” that are vacuum sealed. It would require testing to see how long the BB can survive frozen or vacuum sealed.
 
  • Thread Starter
  • #17
Some sites state you can store it at -80 C?
 
Some sites state you can store it at -80 C?
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So you put the BB into clarifying/stabilizing solutions and freeze. Target each little cube treating 5 gallons and sell it next to the Cyclips and Blood Worms in the freezer.

Done and done! Or just sell jugs of pre-cycled water with bio media in an attached package.
 
  • Thread Starter
  • #19
So you put the BB into clarifying/stabilizing solutions and freeze. Target each little cube treating 5 gallons and sell it next to the Cyclips and Blood Worms in the freezer.

Done and done! Or just sell jugs of pre-cycled water with bio media in an attached package.
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Or we can put the Media in the water.
But, you still need Ammonia...
 
We need a chemist/biologist on this thread. LOL
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I'm not either of those, but I know how to make up really good sounding stuff so I could provide rather nice sounding but completely useless information on the subject.
 

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An LFS near me has a sump where they keep mesh bags of bio-rings. They sell bags of seeded media for $9...no freezing required.
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Well, if you want to go with something simple, effective, and easy to sell, I suppose that might work. lol. I feel like you just successfully smacked us all down in two sentences. Nice.
 
Well, if you want to go with something simple, effective, and easy to sell, I suppose that might work. lol. I feel like you just successfully smacked us all down in two sentences. Nice.
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I wish I could take credit for it. I wish I had thought of it!! It's pretty ingenious. Also probably impossible to patent. Knock yourself out - get rich! lol
 
I wish I could take credit for it. I wish I had thought of it!! It's pretty ingenious. Also probably impossible to patent. Knock yourself out - get rich! lol
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Yeah, but first I would need to own a fish store, and I honestly don't know that just selling it in one little area would be enough to get rich. Honestly, I'm just surprised that more stores don't do this. It seems rather simple and pretty darn profitable. I know that if I was buying fish from the place anyway, I'd certainly pay extra for the pre-cycled media!
 

What do you know about that, someone already invented our brilliant idea lol. Seriously, that's kind of awesome, I wish that I'd known about that when I was cycling my tanks.
 
You don't have to reinvent the wheel. Just market it better.
 
You don't have to reinvent the wheel. Just market it better.
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Yeah. I guess maybe the reason why you don't see that much pre-cycled media in stores is because a lot of people just don't cycle their tanks. Really stinks for those of us who are trying to be responsible before getting fish.
 
Would you add Corydoras first or a single Krib first?
Or does it not really matter?
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I would always put the least aggressive fish in first, so in this case the corys. Basically, you want the corys to be comfortable in the tank, and when you put the Krib in, you want it to view the corys as just a part of the tank, not competition or anything like that. Also, when did we start talking about Kribs and Corydoras, did I miss something?
 

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  • Thread Starter
  • #32
I would always put the least aggressive fish in first, so in this case the corys. Basically, you want the corys to be comfortable in the tank, and when you put the Krib in, you want it to view the corys as just a part of the tank, not competition or anything like that. Also, when did we start talking about Kribs and Corydoras, did I miss something?
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Nah, I went to my LFS and saw them. Also, How many would you add at a time?
 
Nah, I went to my LFS and saw them. Also, How many would you add at a time?
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That depends on your cycle. If the tank can process the amonia, I would say add in the whole school of corys at once. They're really social and it would be the least stressful thing for them if they have lots of buddies. So my answer is basically as many as you're comfortable adding in at a time. Honestly, you can just carefully add in enough ammonia so that it can handle all the corys and put them all in at once with no problems.
 
  • Thread Starter
  • #34
That depends on your cycle. If the tank can process the amonia, I would say add in the whole school of corys at once. They're really social and it would be the least stressful thing for them if they have lots of buddies. So my answer is basically as many as you're comfortable adding in at a time. Honestly, you can just carefully add in enough ammonia so that it can handle all the corys and put them all in at once with no problems.
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Hm, I did add 3 Mollies at once...
But then again they are only like 2.5 - 3 inches?
 
6 Pandas.
My LFS re-stock freshwater on Thursdays.
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I wouldn't worry about it with just six corys. My personal rule is to never more than double the bioload (because beneficial bacteria can roughly double in a day, so as long as you have less than doubled the bioload your tank will be caught up in a day), and mollies are pigs so I'm quite sure corys will have a lower bioload than the mollies. Personally, I'd go for it.

Of course, whatever you do, be sure to test the water daily as you're adding new fish and do water changes if anything looks off.
 
  • Thread Starter
  • #38
I wouldn't worry about it with just six corys. My personal rule is to never more than double the bioload (because beneficial bacteria can roughly double in a day, so as long as you have less than doubled the bioload your tank will be caught up in a day), and mollies are pigs so I'm quite sure corys will have a lower bioload than the mollies. Personally, I'd go for it.
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Ok thanks, I will be getting them on Saturday!
The mollies are pigs -._-.

Of course, whatever you do, be sure to test the water daily as you're adding new fish and do water changes if anything looks off.
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One more thing...
My LFS just got African Butterfly Fish in stock and I will really want to pick one up!
 
Ok thanks, I will be getting them on Saturday!
The mollies are pigs -._-.
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Yeah, I've heard that all livebearers eat and poop a lot. I'm pretty sure they have a larger bioload than pretty much any other similarly sized fish. As a side note, do you have a quarantine tank set up or a plan for quarantine?
 
  • Thread Starter
  • #40
Yeah, I've heard that all livebearers eat and poop a lot. I'm pretty sure they have a larger bioload than pretty much any other similarly sized fish. As a side note, do you have a quarantine tank set up or a plan for quarantine?
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I do not have a QT set up, but I can try to get one. What size?
 
I do not have a QT set up, but I can try to get one. What size?
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I think that for a 29 gallon tank, you could a 10 gallon quarantine tank. I would personally recommend decorations, substrate and plants. You should just be able to use leftovers from the main tank, the decorations are just a way to make the fish feel safe. I like to quarantine for around a month, though I will confess that sometimes my quarantines ran a little short.

One more thing...
My LFS just got African Butterfly Fish in stock and I will really want to pick one up!
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I think that the African Butterfly fish would be fine with cory cats, there are just a few things I'd be cautious with when stocking the tank with these guys. They're serious predators and will happily eat anything that fits into their mouths, so no small fish would be able to live in the tank. Also, their mouths can be bigger than they seem, from what I've heard. It would severely limit what you could do in the upper regions of the tank, as a lot of top dwellers would cause aggression with them. I think they also tend to be rather still most of the time, so you might find them boring. However, if you really want one of these guys, and designing the tank around them wouldn't be too much trouble, I think it can certainly work. I'd just be very careful and look up any fish you plan to keep with them. Also, are you still planning on the keyholes?
 

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  • Thread Starter
  • #42
I think that for a 29 gallon tank, you could a 10 gallon quarantine tank. I would personally recommend decorations, substrate and plants. You should just be able to use leftovers from the main tank, the decorations are just a way to make the fish feel safe. I like to quarantine for around a month, though I will confess that sometimes my quarantines ran a little short.
Ok thanks!


I think that the African Butterfly fish would be fine with cory cats, there are just a few things I'd be cautious with when stocking the tank with these guys. They're serious predators and will happily eat anything that fits into their mouths, so no small fish would be able to live in the tank. Also, their mouths can be bigger than they seem, from what I've heard. It would severely limit what you could do in the upper regions of the tank, as a lot of top dwellers would cause aggression with them. I think they also tend to be rather still most of the time, so you might find them boring. However, if you really want one of these guys, and designing the tank around them wouldn't be too much trouble, I think it can certainly work. I'd just be very careful and look up any fish you plan to keep with them. Also, are you still planning on the keyholes?
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Yes, I still plan on getting the Keyholes. But, my LFS does not have them so I'll have look other places.
Surprising, Bolivian Rams do not sell well there so they do not have them in stock.
 
Yes, I still plan on getting the Keyholes. But, my LFS does not have them so I'll have look other places.
Surprising, Bolivian Rams do not sell well there so they do not have them in stock.
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Alright, how does this stock sound, if you really want the butterfly fish:
2 Keyhole Cichlids
6 Panda Corydoras
3 Mollys
1 African Butterfly Fish
 
You two are making me miss my fish! Darn work trip! I have 5 pandas in one tank and 5 salt and pepper in the other. Love their personalities.
 
Keyholes will be ok without Dither fish?
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Yeah, I think that they'll be fine, dither fish aren't the only thing that makes them feel comfortable. A bunch of hiding places, no super aggressive tankmates, and an appropriately sized tank all help with this. Dither fish is just an idea, and even then they don't always work (like when my neon tetras literally mobbed my poor Bolivan Rams and stole the food out of their mouths almost rather than helping them). Also, I didn't think of this, but I'm pretty sure the corys will make them feel pretty comfortable, because they're small, not to brazen, but reasonably active (so they effectively are the dither fish). Also, upon thinking of it I would personally up the number of corys, maybe up to 8-10? They are supposed to be super social little buggers, I think a bigger school would be great for them. Anyway, yes, I think that you could get away with no mid-dwelling dither fish no problem. Just to be cautious, though I would add the Butterfly fish last. It has the highest potential for aggression, so let everyone get settled in before adding it.

You two are making me miss my fish! Darn work trip! I have 5 pandas in one tank and 5 salt and pepper in the other. Love their personalities.
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Some days I wish that I'd chosen to get corys instead of kuhlI loaches. All my loaches do is hide all day.
 
  • Thread Starter
  • #47
Some days I wish that I'd chosen to get corys instead of kuhlI loaches. All my loaches do is hide all day.
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Ok either I am going to go with Pearl Gourami or African Butterflyfish.
I feel like PG will give me more options.
 
I have an African butterfly fish. As long as they are fed and not stressed, they will not leave the surface of the water and won't see anything below them as mildly interesting. Now, while they look cool and popping some pinhead crickets into the tank is entertaining, when they aren't eating they sit in the same spot all day every day. They love hanging out in a calm corner with some plants to help camouflage them.

I used to see my kuhlis all the time. I think the 20 rainbowfish make them nervous.
 
Ok either I am going to go with Pearl Gourami or African Butterflyfish.
I feel like PG will give me more options.
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Yeah, Pearl Gourami are great, and I think that they fit just fine in your parameter/temperature range for the other fish. The one thing is, I'd recommend getting a pair, because again, they're rather social fish. If you do get pearl gourami, I think that you could add a school of decent sized schooling fish to your tank and be fine. The Butterfly fish, though, would probably eat the schooling fish.
 

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