Member Spotlight on Sirdarksol
Online Aquarium Fish Magazine | Member Spotlight - Sirdarksol
Introduction
After losing a gourami to ammonia poisoning, I began scanning books and the Web for information on what I had been doing wrong and how I could do it right. I eventually found Fishlore and began asking questions. After a few months, I found a really cheap tank setup with which I could separate the temperate fish out of the tropical tank, and Multi-Tank-Syndrome set in.
I now have four tanks operating at my house.
The Collective:
Unfortunately, the Collective has suffered a few losses, and is waiting to be rebuilt in its new home, an 80 gallon tank that makes the original 20 gallon seem like a betta bowl. Currently living in the tank are two gold barbs and two glassfish. They will, however, soon be joined by enough of their kin to make a solid school.
This tank is also my biggest experiment with planted tanks so far. A base of Eco-Complete has a "river" of natural gravel "flowing" through it. The river is edged by a wall of slate. Eventually there will be some extra decoration, probably a piece of driftwood and some pagoda stone.
There is currently some anacharis in the tank as a place for the fish to hide. Eventually there will be a wide range of plants that will be determined by the lighting I get. I also plan to set up a freshwater refugium to help filter the water with a "copse" of lucky bamboo.
The Continuum:
Three pieces of Mopali driftwood are coated with java fern and java moss. A strand of anacharis is growing in one corner, and I'm trying to convince a piece of chain sword to grow in the tank.
The Betta Tank:
Miyamoto's Abode:
A piece of driftwood is covered with a number of pieces of java fern, and some red myrmio provides snacking material for the fish. In theory, there is a pair of Amano shrimp hiding in the plants and the driftwood. They are seen periodically, though have remained hidden for over a month.
Filters, Fish Foods
For filtration, I use Whisper filters (either the "i" series or the HOB types), and have forsworn UGFs unless I can run them with a power head (as I have in the Collective).
I feed my fish a variety of high-quality foods (I'm in the process of phasing out anything that has fish meal as the primary ingredient), including a home-made food made from spirulina, nori (the seaweed wrap used in sushi), freeze-dried blood worms, Vita-Chem, and held together with gelatin. In addition, I feed them fresh veggies periodically, and am always switching their food around in order to provide a varied diet.
Other Hobbies
Acknowledgements
My late Grandpa, whose fish tank originally sparked my interest in fish.
David E. Boruchowitz and his book, The Simple Guide to Freshwater Aquariums.
Amano Takeshi, whose zen aquarium landscapes have inspired me.
And, most importantly, my wife, who has put up with (and even enjoyed) the proliferation of tanks and fish in the house.
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