New 40 Breeder Planted Tank

About a week ago, I upgraded from my 20 gallon long planted tank to a 40 breeder.

Here are some pics of the 20 the night before the switch...

And here are pics of the 40g 3 days after it was set up...

And last but not least, a vid of the fish feeding...

5 Pitfalls to Avoid when Treating Fish

1. Dumping the med powder directly into the tank. The fish can eat some of the powder before it dissolves and lead to death from overdose. This may be true or not. However, it makes sense to me and it's better to be safe than sorry.

Instead... Let the med powder fully dissolve in a medicine cup with a little tank water before pouring it into the hospital tank.

2. Putting the fish directly into a bucket of fresh dechlorinated tap water when you suspect he is stressing out from the med(s). This shocks the fish and can lead to more stress, which might be that extra nudge that pushes the fish over.

Instead... Do a 50% water change with dechlorinated tap of approximately the same temperature. This halves the concentration of meds without the stress associated with a 100% water change.

3. Treating the fish for less than 10 days.

Instead... Treatment should take a minimum of 10 days and a maximum of 14 days. Less than 10 days and you risk the disease not being killed off completely, which may lead to the development of resistant bacteria that are even harder to kill. But treating for more than 14 days can lead to liver damage from the meds. This means treat as soon as possible once you confirm the fish is sick, so you don't have to treat longer than 10 days.

4. Not doing daily water changes and remedicating.

Instead... At least in the case of Maracyn 1/2 and kanamycin sulfate, both effective in treating bacterial infections, daily 25% water changes and remedicating with the proper dose, help keep the water clean and reduces the amount of TDS (total dissolved solids). This helps reduce stress for the fish while also keeping ammonia low.

5. Not bleaching the hospital tank after each treatment is completed. Some of the bacteria may survive to wreak havoc the next time you set up the tank for another fish, making it even more difficult for the fish to get well.

Instead... Fully disinfect the hospital tank with a 1:20 bleach to water ratio. Then rinse thoroughly, let dry, fill and add a double dose of dechlorinator, and drain before storing the tank for the next use.

Bristlenose Pleco (Ancistrus spp.)

The bristlenose pleco (BN plec) is a great algae eater for mid-sized and larger aquariums. It comes in two main types at the LFS, brown and albino. There are also long-finned versions of both kinds. The brown BN's get a bit larger than the albinos, which top out at around 4''. BN's are spotted with white edging on the back tip of their tails. Males have the trademark bristles on their noses, which can get quite branchy as they mature into adults. Females on the other hand, have very limited or no bristles. BN's are very easy to breed; a breeding pair will have lots of fry given a spawning cave, which is typically a long and narrow one made of slate.

Although BN's are great algae eaters, eating green, brown, and brush algae, they can also damage plant leaves with their strong suction. Otos are recommended if you want to avoid that. BN's can also be aggressive to other bottom dwellers. My female used to chase the USD cats around and did some minor damage before I took her back to the LFS. A tank should also only have 1 male BN, unless there are a lot of hiding spaces in a sufficiently big tank, as they are territorial. BN are reliable algae eaters, but their diet should be supplemented with zucchini (unblanched is fine) and algae wafers.

Head & Tail Light Tetra (Hemigrammus ocellifer)

The head and tail light tetra is a very nice looking fish that gets to 2''. It has a reddish edging on the upper half of its eyes under the right lighting and conditions, and an attractive black and gold spot on the base of the tail. It is a peaceful fish, despite its big appetite and ability to eat relatively large flakes. I don't know if it's just my tetras, but they don't seem to swim around much. They will occasionally chase each other around, though it's nothing serious. It is best kept in shoals of 6+, though I only have 5 and mine don't shoal unless stressed.

Honey Gourami (Colisa chuna)

The honey gourami is a small but interesting fish. It tops out at around 2'', with females a bit larger than males. Like cichlids and bettas, they will swim to the front of the tank to greet you. You can tell males from females by their colors; the male has a golden edging to its dorsal fin and a chocolate brown chin. The females on the other hand, are more drab but seem to have a bigger appetite than the males. Female honeys also appear fatter. Both sexes have a horizontal stripe across the middle of their bodies when stressed. Since they have relatively small mouths, they should be fed smaller flakes and pellets. Honey gouramis are best kept in the ratio of 1m/2f, but I have 2m/2f and they get along fine. They do best in planted tanks of 20+ gallons without much current, similar to a setup for female bettas.

Female Betta (Betta splendens)

(This profile will only cover female bettas, as I've never kept a male betta before.)

The female betta is a very interesting and inquisitive fish that tops out at just under 3''. You can tell it apart from males because unlike males, females have shorter fins. Also 2 females will usually not fight to the death when put together. This does not mean you can keep only 2 females in a tank, as this would entail bullying of the weaker one by the stronger one (like with most fish). Instead, female bettas are best kept in sororities of 6+. They will develop a pecking order, but the aggression will be distributed among the females.

The good part about keeping bettas is their big personalities, which differs from one to another. They also come in assorted reds, blues, greens, purples, and other interesting and nice colors. Feeding is easy, as they accept both flakes and pellets, as well as frozen brine/mysis shrimp and bloodworms. I fed my 4-betta sorority an algae wafer once and a few of them got injured overnight while eating it. I presumed there was a little fighting involved. Also, they were all extremely fat afterwards; so I'd recommend maybe splitting half an algae wafer in two instead if you want to feed those.

The bad part about bettas is that they're very susceptible to diseases and infections, probably because of the inbreeding to maximize the color and color variety of the fish. This is unfortunate, as most if not all of the female bettas I've kept eventually wound up with bacterial infections, developed dropsy, and died. I do not recommend Maracyn 1/2 to treat it, at least from my experience. It used to help, but recently (2010), I've treated with the Maracyns and my L. dorsigera is now virtually colorless and very drab looking. Another WCMM I treated with those meds wound up with a permanent jag in his stripe and also seems to be smaller than the rest. Instead, I'd recommend treating with kanamycin sulfate, available as Kanapro online, with daily water changes and remed.

Platy (Xiphophorus maculatus)

The platy is an undemanding livebearer which is very prolific (as all livebearers are). They stay small at 2-3'', with females being larger. I only had 2 platies (females) for a short time, as one bullied the other until it got ill. I gave the bully back to the lfs, as my kribs were breeding and it was being attacked. One important thing to note about the platy and possibly most livebearers of equivalent or larger size, is that they can add quite a bit to the bioload. At least that's what I gathered from the constant long strings of waste that these fish produce. I suppose feeding sparingly would help, but I was a bit put off by the mess my platies made. Platies, and livebearers in general, also reproduce constantly. If you don't want the hassle of rehoming fry, you can get females only. However, females are usually already pregnant when you get them.