Aquariums

[Riot]

I ended up with two 75g tanks.
(I dont plan on running both)

Now i'm just debating on wtf to put it.

[Impactfour]

One good option is using one as a sump for filtration and equipment. There are tradeoffs to all style of aquarium styles, but I've always been partial to all-in-one aquariums or tanks with sumps.

As far as the fish go I like to reccomend African lake cichlids. They're colorful and active. Plus they're mouthbrooders, and relatively involved parents which is fun. Also they build fun little burrows. They're hardy as can be, but can be pretty damn territorial or rough on each other. When you get the balance right it's really a beautiful thing.

[Nish]

Riot, have you had tanks before?

[Riot]

Absolutely no experience!

[Impactfour]

Then definitely ignore my above post for now! Except maybe the bit about African cichlids, with a bit of study and a good book or two I had a really nicely running African cichlid tank I managed myself around the age of 10.

Sump tanks on the other hand require a good deal of extra knowledge and care that I wouldn't recommend for a first time tank. I'd set up the 75 with a hang off the back filter or two, the aquaclear series are great and can easily used most forms of filter media you might need.

A basic understanding of the nitrogen cycle, pH levels and how alkalinity works/effects pH with an API test kit will do wonders. Definitely test your local tap and treat accordingly or get/make RO/rodi treated water.

[Trbo323]

Now i'm just debating on wtf to put it.

Usually people start with water.


Sent from my motorola edge 5G UW (2021) using Tapatalk

[Riot]

Impactfour - I have an Fx4 filter. (Thanks Black Friday!)

Ive been doing nothing but research. It’s overwhelming. I’m at the point now where I need to pick a fish in order to set up the tank appropriately. Obviously, with this size tank, lots of people are saying Cichlids. A few friends are suggesting I do a community tank with small fish. Less fish as a focal point, but way more fish and a more active tank. I’m still in the fence.

I’m working 12’s all week, so I won’t have much time for anything, but in the next couple of days I’d like to get drift wood soaking in a bucket and the tank cleaned up and in position.

I will also be taking my cousins established filter sponge to help with the initial cycling.

Will update as I can.

[Tarsun2]

you have to play the long game here. dont rush it (youll be setting yourself up for failure if you do). plus, if you rush it, your project wont last as long lol.

you got a great filter there. easy to clean, easy to set up, takes very little energy, and has a bunch of great features. the fx4 does not hold allot of biomedia but, as long as you dont overstock the tank youll be fine.

get a decent chem kit. you have to monitor the nitrogen cycle.

do you have a stand for them?

https://www.youtube.com/@thekingofdiy

this guy has been making videos for many many years and has allot of good content. stand building, maintenance, fish, filtration... a bunch of everything.

do you have a heater?
do you have a light?
do you have a bubbler?
do you have a gravel vac?

75g is a pretty big tank. should look really nice.

a cichlid tank is cool. there are lots of colors to choose from and you can put a bunch in there.


theres one point i want to reinforce that does not get mentioned enough.
the filter removes crud from the "tank" but its still "in the water" so to speak. all the crud from the tank gets picked up by the filter but the tank water flows through the filter. fish poop and pee and if the filter isnt clean and the tank water isnt changed, it can become a toxic mess.

[Riot]

you have to play the long game here. dont rush it (youll be setting yourself up for failure if you do). plus, if you rush it, your project wont last as long lol.

you got a great filter there. easy to clean, easy to set up, takes very little energy, and has a bunch of great features. the fx4 does not hold allot of biomedia but, as long as you dont overstock the tank youll be fine.

get a decent chem kit. you have to monitor the nitrogen cycle.

do you have a stand for them?

https://www.youtube.com/@thekingofdiy

this guy has been making videos for many many years and has allot of good content. stand building, maintenance, fish, filtration... a bunch of everything.

do you have a heater?
do you have a light?
do you have a bubbler?
do you have a gravel vac?

75g is a pretty big tank. should look really nice.

a cichlid tank is cool. there are lots of colors to choose from and you can put a bunch in there.


theres one point i want to reinforce that does not get mentioned enough.
the filter removes crud from the "tank" but its still "in the water" so to speak. all the crud from the tank gets picked up by the filter but the tank water flows through the filter. fish poop and pee and if the filter isnt clean and the tank water isnt changed, it can become a toxic mess.

Thanks for the reply.

Only running one tank. The seller was like “just take it all!” So, I did.

No heater yet. Trying to figure out what wattage.
Yes, a light came with it.
Air pump, yes, actual piece that bubbles, no? Well, maybe. I’m not sure what the air pump consists of.
Don’t even know what a gravel vac is.

Have not yet decided on substrate. Trying to determine what fish I’m going to put in and pick the best substrate for the tanks inhabitants.


As for the DIY guy. My trainee at work is a long time fish guy and also recommended him. I watched a video but he just seemed like an influencer and I found him To be annoying. The trainee said that he used to be really good but, obviously, hit the big time on YouTube and his content shows it.

[Nish]

I can't disagree with you about his new stuff.

Watch his older videos/playlists about starting a tank, the nitrogen cycle etc. go back probably 5-6 years for good stuff.

[Tarsun2]

same.
its weird, there is a sweet spot for sure.

his early stuff (when he 1st started out) was how to make a filter out of a water bottle. stuff like that.
later on, he got more refined.
his current stuff is influencer only content.

you have to find the content when he was building his tank room/building.
he talks about building stands, lighting, water changes and just overall important things.
he recently got burnt out (like most long time youtubers) and even confessed that there are only so many ways to make a fish tank build exciting and that the constant turnover really got to him.

[Riot]

I’ve been using Prime Time Aquatics and really like them.

anyone watch their stuff?

[Tarsun2]

heaters are notorious for failing. they are electric devices made of glass sitting in water and constantly being heat cycled. its a rough life. lol
some people use 2 heaters that by themselves would be too small. this way, if one fails, the tank temp wont drop too low. also if it fails "on", it wouldn't overheat the tank.
thats usually if you have allot of $ in fish.

i tried the inline heaters and they are fine but a pain to clean and youre introducing to more leak/failure points.

the fx4 should be more and enough flow to keep the poops from settling on the bottom. there will still be allot that gets into the gravel though. the biggest contributor to "old tank syndrome" is not cleaning. and the gravel holds a ton of crap. water changes are good but if the gravel is not cleaned/vacuumed, the tank will quickly fall out of cycle. they are cheap, so thats nice.

with the bubbler, ive always enjoyed the look when its fed into the output of the filter. the bubbles are kind of blown into the tank. not everyone likes that look though.

[Riot]

- Reinforced tank stand
- Cleaned tank
- Went to Aqua Den and asked lots of questions
- Bought lid, Substrate, heater, and they included a couple of water additives to hurry the cycling process along.


Tomorrow, I plan to rinse and add the substrate.
Add some water.
Friday, I hope to finish adding water (I don’t have a hose to the basement, so it’s bucket time, baby!) and then Saturday, my cousin is coming over to help me get the filtration set up.

Then… we wait.


Also, buy my paintball stuff, I don’t have the funds for this! Lol

[Nish]

You're thinking about it wrong.

But a Palmer's. Instant weekend paintball gun and bubbler for the aquarium during the week.

[Impactfour]

Are you planning on doing any live plants? I found that anubias varieties, java moss and java ferns can grow in almost any condition and light. They also help to a degree with both oxygen production and water filtration, plus they look pretty as hell.

[Riot]

The employee at the fish star said I could, but the cichlids would just eat anything live I put it. Lol

[Impactfour]

I didn't realize you were going through with doing a cichlid aquarium. Do you have any species in mind yet that your hoping to go for?

[Nish]

Really look into the ones you get and how to manage aggression. Walking out to check on the tank and seeing your Frontosas ribs ruins morning coffee.

[Riot]

Impactfour Nish - When I walked into the store today I told the kid... Convince me what to put in a tank.
He asked if I wanted Live Plants and I said yes. He told me not to go Cichlid. At which point, I told him it wasnt a make or break deal and the conversation sort of led me to the Cichlid world. The guy seemed to be well versed in the fish tank world and told me to get it up and running and bring the water back every couple of weeks for free testing. Once ready, he said he'd start me with a Giant Danio (Some sort of large adjective, anyways) and that way if they don't make it... It's not a huge investment.
Eventually, I ended up buying some Cichlid specific substrate (I know I could've just gone sand at Home Depot, but this was specific and I want to start a relationship with this local shop, so I paid up for it, only realizing later it does say "African" on it. So, unsure if South American will benefit the same.) In any case, the only thing I mentioned wanting wasn't even a Cichlid, but rather a Clown Loach, which I read would do fine in a Cichlid tank. Beyond that, I don't have anything picked up yet. I believe a blue Jack Dempsey was on my list. I'm just going to go to the store when it's time and ask his advice based on the ones I think look the coolest.

I imagine as much as the store wants to make money, it would also be a bad look to direct someone to buy a handful of fish that are notoriously going to kill each other. Though, I am aware from my own research and from him telling me, that I should be prepared to see some death if I go the cichlid route just due to their natural aggression.

[Impactfour]

African cichlids live in brackish waters, which have a slightly higher pH and salinity content than south or north American cichlids tend to require. If the employee didn't object to potentially adding a clownfish I'd imagine they were showing you freshwater (American) cichlids, which Jack Dempsey's would be an example of.

These tanks can be equally fun as African cichlid tanks, and come with a similar level of caution required when picking tank mates.

If you could describe the substrate further that would be great. I have a feeling it could be a substrate typically used to increase/maintain the pH and calcium carbonate levels that African cichlids prefer, which wouldn't be great for a Jack Dempsey or clown loach

[Tarsun2]

dont get sand from home depot.
get aquarium substrate from a pet store.

rinse it off before you put it in the tank.

cichlids are kind of like a catch-all for a few varieties. most all of which are colorful and fun.

i had a small cichlid tank with 3 or 4 at one point.

a 2x4 on end can support a massive amount of weight. so long as the stand is square and level. Make sure the bottom of the tank sits FLAT on the top of the stand. only the outside edges need to be supported. as the water fills up and gets close to the top, look at the water level all the way around the tank. this will give you a good idea of how level everything is. if its really off, you can drain the water, shim the base of the stand, and re-add the water.

[Riot]

I said reinforced the stand, but really, we just took it apart and put it back together correctly. Lol

[Outbreak]

I have a breeding a pair of Apistogramma Cacatuoides (dwarf cockatoo cichlid) in a heavily planted 29gal with Ember Tetras for dither fish.

[Impactfour]

Apistos and German rams are definitely my favorite FW cichlids, super cool fish

[Riot]

They don’t eat your plants?
Very nice looking, any further back shots of the set up? Thanks for sharing!

[The Inflicted]

Don't have an aquarium but the house did come with a little waterfall/pond feature. It's a real bear to keep cleaned out since there's no filter but I've found that it supports a decent minnow population. This is from when I first added them when they were able to coexist with the frogs. In fairly short order they devoured all the frogs, tadpoles, and eggs and are now the only animals I can see in there.