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Long post regarding my tank

pollyandpear said:
I am going to respond properly later but here at some photos of the tank face on. I also have two air stones running at either end of the tank.
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Great stuff! No way that tanks needs stripping down and starting again in my opinion.

Surface agitation looks good actually with the HOB waterfall and dual airstones, so you're fine there.

I really think a better (larger quantity) water change regime, and stricter/more regular fert dosing and you should be fine longer term. Adding some more plants would help also (50-100% increase in plant mass I'd say), if it doesn't deviate from your intended aesthetic. Most of the algae should be easy to remove manually (an old toothbrush helps).

I'd also love to know how you managed to get your Mollies to pose in tandem like that! :D
 
Thank you all once again.

Okay so it is clear I am not doing regular or big enough water changes.

I will schedule these every Monday from now on and also use Fert on that day.

I tend to feed my feed every other day, but the baby more regularly.

I have some shrimp on order so hopefully they will help.

I will trim the plants of any rotting leaves, and give the light, filter and stones a scrub with an old toothbrush.

At this point I won't move the fish or tank over, but as mentioned, soon I will have to drain the tank to be able to physically move it to it's new cabinet.

Eventually I have a different look I want to achieve, but there is no rush for this and I can wait.

In regards to livebearers, if I could start the tank again I think I would go for completely different fish, but as I have the fish I do, I guess I just want to focus on them and keeping them healthy and happy for now.

RE the Mollys, they love to swim at the front of the tank when I come close!
 
Wookii said:
Where did you get your fish from? I wouldn't rule out unhealthy stock as a contributor to your fish losses if from a local shop,
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I’m sure this is half of your problem. Those corydoras you showed previously looked to be of poor quality. I’d always stay clear of domestic livebearers too as the quality is shocking. There are some local shops near me I wouldn’t touch with a barge pole, all their fish are in a terrible state and I can easily see how if a beginner was purchasing from a shop like that they’d never succeed.

Do not gut the tank and start again. You’ll be back to square one. The only way you can improve is by learning from your mistakes.

10litres of water changes on a 160l tank is not enough. Up it to at least 25 percent a week, I’d do 50 percent if it was me. Take your time and maybe find a new shop to source your fish from. You’ll get there eventually.
 
The first 6 copies I got were from the Aquatic Design Centre in Balham. The other two and the Molly's were from Maidenhead Aquatics.

I have just done a big water change, cleared algae, cleaned the heater and the filter, and chopped any algae covered leaves. I also moved the light up so it sits a bit higher and hopefully is less intense. It has meant a bit of surface coverage has gone but it grows so quickly it'll be back!

There is a fish shop called Fish Planet London - it looks good although when I went there once they did did give me some advice (I can't remember what) that you guys didn't approve of.

Aquatic Design Centre was recommended on here, and I have to say the man who sold me the fish asked me lots of questions and steered me away from certain fish, so either I was unlucky with that bunch or it was something I did.
 
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Sad thing is I've just seen two of mories have slightly pink mouths and missing barbells.. This doesn't bode well
 
My shrimp have arrived - I am not home so my partner has put the bag to float in the tank to bring the water temp to the same.

How should we release the shrimp? Should he wait an hour or so and then empty the bag into the tank, or just use a net to put just the shrimp in?
 
pollyandpear said:
My shrimp have arrived - I am not home so my partner has put the bag to float in the tank to bring the water temp to the same.

How should we release the shrimp? Should he wait an hour or so and then empty the bag into the tank, or just use a net to put just the shrimp in?
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No, you need to acclimate them to you water.

Open the bag, roll up the top edge a little and use something to clip it to the edge of the tank. Then add a little water (half a cup full depending on the size of the bag) from your tank to the bag every 15-30 minutes or so for at least a couple of hours. If the bag starts to get too full, just use a cup to take some out. After 2-3 hours, net the shrimp out of the bag, and add them to your tank, and remove the bag and throw the remaining water.

You might want to distract the Mollies with some food in one corner, and add the shrimp to the opposite corner (nearest the hardscape and plants) so they don't see them as a food addition!
 
Thank you! Sadly most of the shrimp look dead :( But will follow the procedure above x
 
Not sure if you can see much
 

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pollyandpear said:
They were sold as amano shrimp - got them on ebay from a seller with a very high rating.
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Ah okay, I'd assumed you'd gone with cherry shrimp of some sort - make sure you take some pictures of any dead shrimp in the bag so you can claim for any losses through eBay.
 
Someone recommended Amano so I went for them! I don't mind what type of shrimp I have. Really sad so many are dead though. Have sent ebay a message with photos x
 
pollyandpear said:
Someone recommended Amano so I went for them! I don't mind what type of shrimp I have. Really sad so many are dead though. Have sent ebay a message with photos x
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Sorry you are having yet more issues. Amano's are fine, but they don't produce young in freshwater (their young require salt water to develop), whereas Cherry shrimp will willingly breed in freshwater and form a self sustaining colony if conditions are reasonably favourable.

I would suggest you get some Cherry shrimp (there are lots of colour options available) to supplement your remaining Amanos. As you are in London, I'd wager there are lots of breeders locally that you can collect from to avoid the shipping. We have alot of members here from London, so they might be able to suggest some sources.
 
Sadly woke up to one of my Cory dead, I expected this having noticed the barbels worn down.

Really sad, I've had this one since the beginning and now down to just 2 again.

Most of the shrimp in the end did seem to be alive but I've seen two dead this morning and the rest I can't see :(
 
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Yeah, I don't remember reading about the filtration here, apart from it being a HOB. Perhaps you could increase biomaterial/flow? The water looks a bit turbid, then again it might be algae/photo quality. If it is bacterial, then whatever defective stock you might have bought into would be made worse by having their defenses constantly fighting off diseases. Until you have a good water quality, you might consider doing constant water changes. Mind you, they won't do that much, bacteria multiply pretty fast... But building up a colony in the filter takes time.

As for the amanos, I've never had them myself, but I understand they can be finicky compared to cherries.
 
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