isaisbreetai
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heya Wirralbull there is no wood in this tank, just rocks and plants, the wood in the background is just a laminate background that I picked up. The reason for the brown discoloration is the tannins leaking from the topsoil base that I have used. I will definately take some more pics, but I want to wait until the 17th so that my breeder box isn’t in the way. The tank is basically a thin 1/4″ layer of top soil that I have baked in the oven to kill off any organics, topped with an inch of inert gravel I had laying around from a previous project. I planted it with some cryptocoryne I had taken from another tank, then filled it with water and added the CPDs. My wife actually took the shots so I’m not 100% sure what she did, but if you are talking about not being able to see the sides of the tank it’s because she couldn’t back up far enough to get the whole thing in.
I’m glad you like the tank, and if you have any more questions I would be happy to answer
I have to agree with Ballaquatics here, but if you are really concerned about it see if you can get some gravel and a small chunk of sponge from a mature tank. If the gravel is a different color then yours, put it in some cheese cloth and place it in your tank. The sponge can be put in this bag as well or if there is room in your filter place it in there. Once your tank has matured you can remove these. A good place to start looking for this stuff would be your lfs or a friend that has a long running tank.
Here are the pics I have to start:
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I have added a bunch of left over Hygro to the breeder basket as well to give the CPDs a more comfortable feel. I have Java moss on a couple of rocks inside the basket as well.
Sorry I haven’t updated this with pictures, but a combination of real life complications and tanins so brown you couldn’t tell there were any plants in it any way. I have some good news, in the tank that I was using to test the breeding trap I have babies, really hard to tell how many but 12 are always right up front easy to count. In the journal tank my Cryptocorynes have started to undergo typical crypt rot, so I have added some Hygro stricta to fill spots in until the Crypts recover. I will try and get some pictures this week.
In my honest opinion I would say that the tank would be WAY over stocked at just 22 gallons. I have also heard stories of full grown Angels munching happily on CPDs.
Ben,
My first attempt to breed CPDs was using a DIY breeding trap. While it caught some of the eggs, it missed some as well as the fish scatter the eggs around and near whatever vegitation they choose to spawn on. If you aren’t concerned with the number of fry you end up with then a breeding trap is fine in my opinion, if you are looking for greater numbers then I would suggest using one of the other methods discussed in this forum. Good luck to you and keep us in the knowyou can try http://tntaquatica.com/. They are out of Edmonton, AB they have been saying they are getting some in “soon” for a couple of months now, but the guy is nice to talk with and could let you know.
I find the more plants there are the more they move around. That being said I wouldn’t say that mine are very bold, they still flee if something gets close to the tank unless there is food in the tank
I have used a similar product to cycle my tanks a couple of times, when I was “forced” to rescue toilet bound fish from people. What I find works best is to add the chemical to the tank before the fish and let it sit with filter running as long as possible (I would say at least an hour) then slowly acclimate the fish to the tank. I have almost no experiance with shrimp so I’m not sure how they will handle this.
Having said all this I do agree that the more you can add from an old tank (gravel, water, filter media) the better off you’ll be.
Good luck and let us know how it goesWelcome to the forum! You might want to post where you are from so that the breeders on here make sure that you are close enough for the fish to survive the trip.
I have seen people put as many as 1.5/gallon and the fish and water conditions have been fine. In a 15 though it may seem over-crowded with that many so I would say 10-15 (added in 2-3 batches over a couple of weeks). I would also base the number on how much hardscape you have taking up space in the tank as well
The problem I have found with putting CPDs into a communtiy setting is that they are slow eaters, and when they have to compete for food they may not get as much. I would also be worried that a cichild pair would become territorial and wreck your cpds, I however have little experiance with cichlids so I may be wrong here.
