journal My First Ever Tank

[agbart]

So finally got around to setting up my Xmas present (a Fluval EBI)

This is where the tank will sit

About 2 minutes after I filled the tank and put in all the stuff

What it looks like on my desk

Hopefully everything stays alive and I can throw some shrimp in there soon.

[Masta]

Looking good :encouragement: Maybe you should throw in some moss if you haven't got any in there already

[agbart]

You can't quite see it from the pics but there's a rock and some shrimp tubes behind the driftwood and urn that both have moss on them. It's only been a couple of hours and it's looking really clear already. Fingers are still crossed that everything stays alive.

Here's a pic from the side

[fishmosy]

Great stuff mate. Will be good to see how it goes over time.

[agbart]

So 24 hours later and the water is now crystal clear and the plants are still alive, so far so good.

I really need to learn how to take a good pic, it doesn't do the tank justice

[Jess]

Looking great, I really like those Fluvals! Will look even better when it is ready for a few shrimp :P

[Triggs]

Love your tank. It's got a nice relaxing feel to it.

Look forward to watching its progress.

[agbart]

Thanks, I'm really enjoying having it on my desk. I find myself staring at it even though there isn't any shrimp in there yet. It is very relaxing and will be even better to stare at once there's some shrimp in there I imagine.

[agbart]

So I've had the tank going for a week now and would like some help interpreting some water test results I got today. I've put 8 shrimp from the local river in 3 days ago and besides 3 suicides they seem to be settled in and doing fine.

The test results are

KH - 1

GH - 5

PH - 6.6

Ammonia - 0.5

Nitrite - 0.0

Nitrate - 10

Do these results indicate that my tank is going through the cycling process?

Thanks in advance.

[Gbang]

you lucky b^%!$@#!!!! i wish i could do that!!!!

cycle seems fine to me. maybe wait one more week and do one or two 30% water changes?

[Triggs]

Yeah results show you're in the cycle process.

I'd also wait a week or two until ammonia is 0 and nitrate is under 5ppm

[agbart]

Ok will do, thanks guys.

[agbart]

Some pics of my shrimp. Theye were taken with my phone so aren't the best.

[agbart]

Some new additions to the tank. I love the colour these guys bring to the tank.

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Unfortunately I don't think they will last very long with my long arm shrimp, the little buggers are trying to eat them already and they've only been in there 5 minutes.

So it's back to the river for the long arms to be replaced with something a little more placid and maybe a bit of colour as well. Does anyone know a place online where I could get some cheap shrimp that has a bit of colour? I'm not real keen on the top grade stuff yet as I'm still learning and although my tank is stable and the long arms are very happy I'm still worried about killing anything fancy I put in there.

[ineke]

Nice tank and shrimp

Hi Agbar

thats a nice setup you have. You will find yourself looking at the tank more than the computer!!! One of my cubes is next to my computer too and I get lost in the goings on in there.

Cheers

Ineke

[agbart]

So my long arm shrimps are gone, replaced with a nice little bunch of cherries I got from Gbang. I changed my tank around just a little bit before they came and they have settled in and gone to town on all the algae in the tank. Turns out I had a lot of algae because now everything is so green and bright. I thought I was killing all my plants as the leaves were all brown and the moss on the rock was mostly brown but nope just covered in algae which these little guys have now taken care of.

I'll buy a real camera one day and get some decent pics but in the meantime here's some taken with my phone.

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[Squiggle]

Very cool tank agbart, love the moss rock :encouragement:

[JohnH]

Nice tank and in a good spot so you can look at it while on the net. I have my 3' divided tank right next to my desk so I can stare into it and relax :cool-new:

[OzShrimp]

very cool, that moss looks really good. Is that volcano rock its attached to ?

[CNgo2006]

Nice tank there, agbart, is that an internal filter you are using? Be careful with those when you get some breeding action as some can suck up shrimplets between the intake slots. Make sure the bio sponge fully blocks entry from the inside or cover the slots with black panty hose or something.

[agbart]

Thanks for the comments guys. I'm really enjoying having the tank on my desk but there's just one big problem...... I WANT MORE!! More tanks, bigger tanks, more shrimps, different colour shrimps, more plants, more everything. I've been bitten by the bug big time and I think it's gonna send me broke.

very cool, that moss looks really good. Is that volcano rock its attached to ?

I'm not to sure what type of rock it is, I got it from here. It didn't come with anywhere near that much moss but I recieved a nice packet of moss today from Aquathumb and it has now got a good thick covering on it.

Nice tank there, agbart, is that an internal filter you are using? Be careful with those when you get some breeding action as some can suck up shrimplets between the intake slots. Make sure the bio sponge fully blocks entry from the inside or cover the slots with black panty hose or something.

Yeah it's the stock filter that came with the EBI and I had read about people using panty hose to cover the intake slots. I did a raid on my wifes panty draw and couldn't find any, turns out she never wears them and hasn't for quite a long time (panty hose that is). It got me in trouble in the end as it was our 6 year wedding anniversery yesterday plus the 4 years we were together before that and apparently I should know these details about my wife by now.I have promised to be more observant in the future.

[CNgo2006]

Yes that's it youre an addict! Shouldn't have gotten so deep by getting that good gear of Gbang, one taste is all it takes and now it will be hard to quit!

Mate pantyhose from eBay is like $1 but let the missus know that you're getting them and why or else she may get weird ideas and there'll be hell to pay!

[Neo-shrimp]

Agbart your tank looks serene and love the scaping...well done...