Tfreema's New 75g

Welp, I snagged a Labor Day deal on a 75 gallon tank setup at Petsmart. The stand is really sturdy, it came with glass canopies, and a rubbish marineland light (I will use on extra tanks when needed). I was able to get a 20% off coupon by playing the stupid game on my ap. A $500 setup cost me less than $200.

Let the cycling begin!! My son-in-law found this really cool large piece of driftwood that fits perfectly. I have just thrown it in with a rock holding it down because it was sticking out of the tub I had it soaking in. Also have these other great pieces to decide on.
Note: They are not arranged at all. Just thrown in while cycling and need to add at least one more bag of sand.

What pieces would you keep and how would you arrange them?

SEE PICS IN POST BELOW - IT DID NOT WORK LINKING TO IMGUR
(Desktop use of this forum is bunk)

I also have this piece in the 55 gallon that is coming down where the anubia and java fern have attached really well so I gotta find a spot for it either in this tank or somewhere else.

SEE NEXT POST FOR PIC

My plans are to take down 55g, 45g, 2x20L's, 10 gallon once all plecos are cleared out and combine remaining stock into this 75g. Once all the shuffling is complete, I will have my tank numbers down to 7 plus 2 quarantine tanks that will be used to get school numbers up in big tanks. If I give up the endler/shrimp feeder tank, I can be down to 6 which I am seriously considering.

 

This is why I hate using the desktop. The picture thing never works out for me and edit doesn’t work on ap to add pics. Ugh!








The one in 55g

 

Hey tfreema
My first thought when I read your post was. Not another tank, here she goes again. LOL
Glad to hear your taking down some tanks.
I like the arrangement in the 2nd pic minus the piece in the middle that looks like a rocket.
And if you cannot find a place for the piece in the 3rd pick. Send it my way. I'll be starting/setting up a 75-90g Planted Discus tank in about 1.5 months.

I'll be watching your new creation. I know you will come up with something "Beautiful" you always have.

 

Congrats on the new tank!

I'm not a fan of the app so I use a browser (mostly on my desktop).

For the driftwood, I like the big piece held down by the rock and the one on the right.

 

Hey tfreema
My first thought when I read your post was. Not another tank, here she goes again. LOL
Glad to hear your taking down some tanks.
I like the arrangement in the 2nd pic minus the piece in the middle that looks like a rocket.
And if you cannot find a place for the piece in the 3rd pick. Send it my way. I'll be starting/setting up a 75-90g Planted Discus tank in about 1.5 months.

I'll be watching your new creation. I know you will come up with something "Beautiful" you always have.

Haha! Yeah, only people with a really bad case of MTS think that the solution to downsizing is to go out and buy another tank, LOL.

I think I will fit that piece in somewhere. It is hard to let go of one that the plants have a attached to so well. The "rocket" piece is not my favorite either. I mostly just like the little cave that forms at the base. I may get my son-in-law or hubs to cut it down some. Or sell it if not incorporated.

Congrats on the new tank!

I'm not a fan of the app so I use a browser (mostly on my desktop).

For the driftwood, I like the big piece held down by the rock and the one on the right.

Thanks! I always love a new build.

Yeah, the big piece is a definite that I will build around. My son-in-law found it in a creek while fishing. It has great character. The one on the right has a lot of great grooves and holes to poke plants in so I like it a lot too.

Thanks to both of you for your feedback!

Do you see any problems with this stocking plan? Keep in mind, these are all fish I already have so no "replace this with that" lol.

Centerpiece - Pearlscale PB Platinum veil tail angelfish (he is a beauty)
9 adolfoi corydoras (for starters, will be about 15-20)
1 rainbow shark
1 very large male bn pleco
School of 16 Congo tetras (at least until I decide if they will be eaten by ctenopomas in the 120 gallon or not - if moved to 120 gallon another larger bodied tetra or rainbow school)

 

Any interest in breeding those Adolfoi? That would be the cheapest way to increase the numbers. They're not as prolific as other common cories but they should give you 15-30 per spawn. You'll want more than 20 in a 75g.

Congo tetras are another fish on my aquarium bucket list.

 

Any interest in breeding those Adolfoi? That would be the cheapest way to increase the numbers. They're not as prolific as other common cories but they should give you 15-30 per spawn. You'll want more than 20 in a 75g.

Congo tetras are another fish on my aquarium bucket list.

I may breed them if I don't wind up trading with our local breeder for some of his fry. It is much easier to get them from someone else than going through all the trouble to breed, although cories are some of the easiest to raise. The high bioload plecos have just about done me in, lol. Hopefully, once I have had a break from them for a while I will be more apt to grab a few cory cat eggs to hatch. The guy I got these from has some great stock. I have not lost a one and some were tiny.

You are probably right. I will keep increasing the shoal until it seems like enough. The only other bottom dweller will be my big boy bn pleco (he is really huge for a bristlenose).

I actually got the congo tetras to grow out for my African region 120 gallon tank. I am just really concerned that the ctenopomas will make snacks of them, especially the females. They would need to be about 3" to be safe and only some of the males are at about 2" in body, maybe 2.5" with fins. The females are staying really small so they would not survive. It looks like it would have to be an all male school. I also have some juvies that have lots of growing to do so I thought I would just put the entire school of 16 in the 75 gallon and let them grow for a while. The balance in the 120 gallon is really good right now so I am not rocking that boat any time soon. I finally got a nice group of ropefish and African butterfly fish that are thriving.

 

Adolfoi and duplicareus are harder to breed as well as lower egg count per spawn than most corydoras (why they cost more). I would definitely go with a local breeder over breeding if possible. Unfortunately, there's not many local breeders of any fish I've found in my area. That's why I've been working on breeding to stock my tanks first.

I put 10 juvie SterbaI (all less than 1") in my pleco tank with 14 plecos and they all seem to be getting along great, even during feeding. My L240 and L075 are pushing 6" now. How big is your BN? My biggest BN is a male about 5". I have a female in another tank that's about 4.5" and another male that's about the same. All are in different tanks because I don't want them to breed.

I've been thinking of ways to cut down on tanks and breeding. I'm currently doing 30g+ water changes every day now. I broke down 2 10 gallon after replacing them with a 30 gallon breeder. I do need to start breeding my OLCs so I might replace my breeding SterbaI with them in a 10g.

 

Adolfoi and duplicareus are harder to breed as well as lower egg count per spawn than most corydoras (why they cost more). I would definitely go with a local breeder over breeding if possible. Unfortunately, there's not many local breeders of any fish I've found in my area. That's why I've been working on breeding to stock my tanks first.

I put 10 juvie SterbaI (all less than 1") in my pleco tank with 14 plecos and they all seem to be getting along great, even during feeding. My L240 and L075 are pushing 6" now. How big is your BN? My biggest BN is a male about 5". I have a female in another tank that's about 4.5" and another male that's about the same. All are in different tanks because I don't want them to breed.

I've been thinking of ways to cut down on tanks and breeding. I'm currently doing 30g+ water changes every day now. I broke down 2 10 gallon after replacing them with a 30 gallon breeder. I do need to start breeding my OLCs so I might replace my breeding SterbaI with them in a 10g.

I was really excited when the club member said he was having success with adolfoi. I got his first batch after BAP submission because he really wanted the long fin green dragon bn pleco trio I had, lol. He traded 9 cories for the 3 plecos. He is working on building up his shoal now so none available any time soon.....

Constant water changes and maintenance of nasty filters with those high bioload plecos wore me out. Plus going around to feed in 12-15 tanks every evening has been exhausting. I have had to figure out a way to keep the fish I want and get things more manageable.

I am not good at judging size, but here is a pic of my big boy. I would say about 6” maybe.

 

Plus going around to feed in 12-15 tanks every evening has been exhausting.

Well not 12-15 but I was up to 6 along with 2 grow out tubs.
And it turned into a chore (Not Fun!).
Had 4 going for quite a while which seems to be the sweet spot for me.
Now down to 3. Since I am giving breeding a pause and just sold the last 2 dozen EBA to the LFS (well still have 2 sets of unsexed trios for the auction). I am giving the 20L a thorough cleaning. Got to be ready for the Plants I plan on picking up in 2 weeks for my 75-90g upgrade for the Discus.

Looking forward to your build, Inspiration / something different for the "Discus".
You have the touch for creating "Beautiful" scapes.

Learning all the Time.

 

I have 15 tanks running now and it's not too bad feeding all of them. I have most of my foods in 4oz containers with snap lids that make access to food really fast and easy. Much easier and faster than twist cans or ziploc packages, especially when you have to do it daily or multiple times per day.

 

tfreema, congrats on new tank!

That same model was our first upgrade when I caught MTS after having our original 20 gallon for a few months.

May I ask how you got the 20% off coupon, and what game/app were you referring to?

Thanks

 

Well not 12-15 but I was up to 6 along with 2 grow out tubs.
And it turned into a chore (Not Fun!).
Had 4 going for quite a while which seems to be the sweet spot for me.
Now down to 3. Since I am giving breeding a pause and just sold the last 2 dozen EBA to the LFS (well still have 2 sets of unsexed trios for the auction). I am giving the 20L a thorough cleaning. Got to be ready for the Plants I plan on picking up in 2 weeks for my 75-90g upgrade for the Discus.

Looking forward to your build, Inspiration / something different for the "Discus".
You have the touch for creating "Beautiful" scapes.

Learning all the Time.

Thank you jmaldo! You always have some awesome scapes as well. I do enjoy scaping a natural looking tank.

It can wear you out especially when you cannot just take a break when you want. Not until all the babies are raised and moved out. With established tanks, if over filtrated and under stocked, you can skip a week here and there on water changes with no ill effects. Or you can fast them for a day or two if something comes up. Fry/growout tanks must be changed very frequently and fed often.

I have 15 tanks running now and it's not too bad feeding all of them. I have most of my foods in 4oz containers with snap lids that make access to food really fast and easy. Much easier and faster than twist cans or ziploc packages, especially when you have to do it daily or multiple times per day.

I have a big pack of them from when I was creating microworm cultures for folks. Both my cultures crashed and I haven't gotten any more since I don't plan to need them any time soon. They are handy little containers that I grab for feeding, collecting worms, scooping the veggies out of tanks along with the dang pest snails, etc.

I think part of why it takes me so long is that I have some oddballs that need special attention. African butterfly fish need crickets. I have to shoo the ctenopomas to the other end of tank and lure the bf out and make sure each one gets a cricket. Same with when I feed them cut up meal worms or turtle floating bug bites. These guys only eat from the surface. Then there is the ropefish and african brown knife. The ropefish have learned their food is on the terra cotta saucer under the spider wood where the ctenopomas cannot get to it so that has leveled out, but that dang knife fish will be heading right for the food I am dropping in and then turn around and go the other way. I am WAY overfeeding that tank trying to get it fed. The bengal loaches have gotten too fat so I gotta figure that one out.

tfreema, congrats on new tank!

That same model was our first upgrade when I caught MTS after having our original 20 gallon for a few months.

May I ask how you got the 20% off coupon, and what game/app were you referring to?

Thanks

Thank you! I am really impressed with this stand. It is really sturdy. And the black theme matches my other tanks, lol.

Download the petsmart ap and sign up for the treats program. Play the treat trail games to get points for coupons. Currently they have 10%, 15%, and 20% off a single item coupons available. That can be a big help if you plan on a large purchase such as a tank or large canister filter.

 

All my fish know when it's feeding time so I just dump food in and they have a feeding frenzy. The only special feeding is the fry, they get microworms but I've started giving them TCTG dust and #00 Ken's growth. I was worried about my bottom feeders but I've learned what works and more than enough make it to the bottom and even the mid-feeders now know to pick off the substrate. Depending on what I'm feeding, I put really small pieces or really large (Repashy slices) so there's food for at least a few mins to an hour for everyone.

The 4oz cups usually last a few weeks or more because I rotate thru the different foods so I don't have to refill them too often.

 

So, I put some plants I got from a couple folks in the tank I just cleaned out until I could get duckweed out and use for new 75g. I know these were not in there before because I moved all deco and dug around to make sure all assassin snails were out. Ugh!

What are they?

 

Hmm...Possibly blood worms/ midge larvae hitched hiked on the plants you just added?

 

Hmm...Possibly blood worms/ midge larvae hitched hiked on the plants you just added?

They do look a lot like bloodworms. Definitely hitchhikers on the plants.

My concern was camallanus so I dosed that tank with levamisole and will do a 2nd dose in two weeks before I pull plants for new scape. No biggie, I plan to add more sand and work on the hardscape this weekend anyway. And I can start adding other plants from different tanks that I trust in the time being.

 

Had not thought of camallanus? Good idea to treat if that's what they are.

Learning all the time!

 

I think I got enough sand in the new 75g. Now I am trying to set the hard scape. Wanting to get the big piece in place and go from there. Thoughts anyone?

I need to cut a piece of the branch off to make it sit right. And the rocks are just kinda thrown in.

 

HELP!!!

Ok, I need some help on this crazy branch. I need to decide what to do because each position will require me to cut a different piece off to get it to twist and sit right.

Do I have it come down from the top like this? I would twist it a little for more of an arch, but cannot until I cut the small branch shooting off the base.




Or coming out of the bottom. Again, some pieces would need to be cut off to get the right position.






Or lay over the rock formation kinda casually, lol






Oh, and I really like the bottom of the mopanI wood in the back right corner, but not the pointy top. I am thinking about cutting it down or putting one of my large anubias on it to mask the point. Thoughts?

 

HELP!!! 12]

Ok, I need some help on this crazy branch. I need to decide what to do because each position will require me to cut a different piece off to get it to twist and sit right.

Do I have it come down from the top like this? I would twist it a little for more of an arch, but cannot until I cut the small branch shooting off the base.
View attachment 623982


Or coming out of the bottom. Again, some pieces would need to be cut off to get the right position.
View attachment 623987
View attachment 623989


Or lay over the rock formation kinda casually, lol
View attachment 623988

View attachment 623990

Oh, and I really like the bottom of the mopanI wood in the back right corner, but not the pointy top. I am thinking about cutting it down or putting one of my large anubias on it to mask the point. Thoughts?

What kind of branch is that? I am trying to figure out if I can use an apple tree branch. Lol

 

What kind of branch is that? I am trying to figure out if I can use an apple tree branch. Lol

Manzanita branch.

I think as long as it is hard wood and fully dried out, you can use it.

 

Manzanita branch.

I think as long as it is hard wood and fully dried out, you can use it.

I can’t get the bark off the apple branch, it’s 5’5” and like 3’ wide. It was broken off of the tree for the whole winter and my husband brought it in the house like 6 months go. I really like that branch you have though. I was trying to save some money because wood is so expensive.

 

I have talawa wood that I couldn’t get all the bark off of and really like the contrast.now I wish I would have left more on it.

 

I have talawa wood that I couldn’t get all the bark off of and really like the contrast.now I wish I would have left more on it.

I wonder if the apple tree branch is ok with the bark on? This is the branch. What do you think?

 

I wonder if the apple tree branch is ok with the bark on? This is the branch. What do you think? View attachment 624004

I think as long as it is fully dried out with no sap, it will be ok. The bark may shed a little at a time in the tank.

 

I think as long as it is fully dried out with no sap, it will be ok. The bark may shed a little at a time in the tank.

Ok great thank you. I will let it dry a little longer just to be safe. The bark came right off the thicker parts and the tiny little parts but some of it just refuses to let loose. It’s super thin bark. I don’t mind cleaning the bark out as it sheds during my weekly water changes. Again thank you very much. Your branch looked so cool and I figured I would ask

 

Ok great thank you. I will let it dry a little longer just to be safe. The bark came right off the thicker parts and the tiny little parts but some of it just refuses to let loose. It’s super thin bark. I don’t mind cleaning the bark out as it sheds during my weekly water changes. Again thank you very much. Your branch looked so cool and I figured I would ask

You are welcome! Please tag me if you post pics of it in your tank!! I like to steal good scape ideas, lol,

 

You are welcome! Please tag me if you post pics of it in your tank!! I like to steal good scape ideas, lol,

I sure will. To be honest right the tank is a mess. Lol That’s why I am trying to find affordable things to do. It’s bare bottom because over the years I sucked out the sand little by little and now it’s gone. I did buy more sand but I’m just not sure if I want it in there. It doesn’t look too bad and it’s easy to clean. Here is what it looks like now. I bought some powerful plant lights when I set this tank up and planted it all nice then put severums and blood parrots in, lol needless to say I have zero plants in the tank. Whatever green you see is crappy plastic stuff. So I removed one of the light strips and centered the other on the tank. I actually like it better because it has shady areas that some of my fish like better. Rock cave in the middle and then I took most of the driftwood I had and kind of intertwined in to make it tall and lean it against the back wall. I kind of like the look of that but it took a lot of driftwood to get it tall enough. Anyways if you have any ideas for me that won’t cost a fortune that would be great

 

It is hard when you have fish that destroy your plants, lol. I love it, especially the rock insert and driftwood.

I don't know about severums, but blood parrots like caves. I would build up some more natural rock formations with large enough caves for the blood parrots to get in. A nice big one on the right side with that branch either laying over or coming out of would look nice. And maybe a smaller one in the back left as well as building up some rocks around the base of the cool driftwood to make another cave.

Tip for sand if you decide to put more in. You don't stir it with the substrate vacuum like you would gravel. You just hover it right over the sand and maybe stir up just the very top layer to pick up debris. Sand is compact enough that stuff does not get down into it.

 

It is hard when you have fish that destroy your plants, lol. I love it, especially the rock insert and driftwood.

I don't know about severums, but blood parrots like caves. I would build up some more natural rock formations with large enough caves for the blood parrots to get in. A nice big one on the right side with that branch either laying over or coming out of would look nice. And maybe a smaller one in the back left as well as building up some rocks around the base of the cool driftwood to make another cave.

Tip for sand if you decide to put more in. You don't stir it with the substrate vacuum like you would gravel. You just hover it right over the sand and maybe stir up just the very top layer to pick up debris. Sand is compact enough that stuff does not get down into it.

That sounds nice. I think I will give it a try I just have to find some more flat rocks, especially having the branch hang over it. That would look really nice.

I use sand in all my tanks but the sand I got for this tank was like fine powder. It was a disaster. Lol It looked really nice in the beginning but I soon learned that white was not good. The python water changer didn’t have enough suction to get anything off the sand so I started using it without the syphon adapter and that’s how all the really fine sand got sucked up. I have no problems with my other tanks. In all honesty just putting 200 pounds or more of sand back in that tank with the risk of the python sucking it all up makes me crazy. Lol

Here is a picture of the cave in the big tank that the blood parrots like to use. It looks kind of short but they fit in there comfortably.


I will also show you a couple more of my tanks that I enjoy.

The betta tank isn’t sand obviously lol I realized I said all my tanks had sand, I forgot about the betta tank.

 

Very nice! I love how you have pothos coming out the top.

And yeah, fine sand is bad for getting sucked up in vacuum and filters.

 

Very nice! I love how you have pothos coming out the top.

And yeah, fine sand is bad for getting sucked up in vacuum and filters.

Thank you ,I have pothos for all my tanks. I am a bit of an over feeder so it helps keep my nitrates down. I love the way it looks. I just put a peace lily on top of my goldfish tank to see how that will do.

Thank you again for the help with my apple branch. I will post a picture once I get things looking better, I am going to use your suggestions, I think it will add a lot to my tank

 

Ok, another wood question. I really like this mopanI in how it makes a little cave, but not so much how it comes to a point at the top.

Should I cut it off some? Or just cover it with plants?

 

Cover with moss.

 

nice set up happening here! can't wait to see more!

 

As mentioned tie some moss to it. Sort of a BonsaI tree look to it?

 

I was thinking anubias. I kinda hate the mess of moss.

 

I was thinking anubias. I kinda hate the mess of moss.

anubias plants are nice I have one!

 

anubias plants are nice I have one!

They really are and I have a surplus of them. The growth of mine has exploded.