Attention all ATS aquarium experts... A fishy problem....

This is what Oscars look like..

reply to post by Theflyingweldsman


I put the first fish in a few days ago, and they seem pretty happy. At the moment there is two neon tetras and two guppies and a bristle-nosed catfish. They look a bit lost in the tank, but I will be adding a few more on the weekend hopefully. They're all pretty social, and seem to always come to the front when they are being watched.

Once I work out how to upload pics from my new camera I'll post up the pics of them.

reply to post by Theflyingweldsman


OK, as promised I finally have my camera and computer getting along, so here's first pics of the new tank.


Main shot of the tank.

The first two Neon Tetras.

The two guppies (sorry about the blurriness, hard to get an in focus shot of them, they're like little race cars...)
You may have noticed it's a little bigger than a 30L tank too... I wound up buying a 90L for the fish....

So where is my daughter's tank??
There is a problem being single dad to two spoiled girls....

Meet Hop, a green tree frog. Not a fish I know.
It's not enough we have them living in our bathroom most days, she just had to have one as a pet... Oh well, watcha gonna do...

My next question is, is it normal for the Tetras to lose all their red and blue coloration when you turn the tank light off? Overnight the two always turn plain silver, and within 20-30 mins of the light being on the colour comes back. I thought this might be a camouflage response from in the wild, but it freaked me out the first time I saw it. I thought they were sick or dying...

reply to post by 74Templar


Looks good, 74. Not hard to do at all, eh?

Uhm, tetras, I believe, have photoluminescent pigment in their tissue, that reacts to lighting. Perfectly normal for their colors to fade and come back.

Many tropical fish have that defense mechanism. They darken at night, for nocturnal predators, and brighten up during the day for breeding purposes. Stress will also cause color changes in many species, but I don't see any stress related problems in your tank. Keep the water clear, and remember to watch for evaporation.

You honestly should have no problems at all. Plenty of oxygenation, filtration, and nice clean fish. Best of luck in your fish raising endeavors. You now have a new hobby!

reply to post by Druid42


I just added another 2 guppies and 2 neons, and I think you may be right. All the ones at the pet store were very pale and faded. I just put them in the tank and already their colour is rapidly brightening. At the moment they're all doing laps around the tank, and generally showing off. I had no idea they'd be so sociable. And of course, my daughter loves to sit and watch them. She named the bristle nosed catfish 'sucker' ( a little harsh but hey he is a sucker fish), but I explained to her not to name the other fish, in case they die and she gets upset, which I think she's cool with.

I checked the pH for the first week, and strangely the water keeps going slightly alkaline. Not too much, but adding the pH down seems to fix it, which I thought was strange for rainwater. All of the initial fish have survived and seem to be quite happy too.

We just added a second green tree frog too ( I should really stop taking her to the local pet store, lol), she has named Drop. So now we have Hop and Drop, and a nice new tropical aquarium full of fish. Over the coming weeks I plan to add about 20 or so more, so stay tuned for more pics.

reply to post by 74Templar


What was the PH, anyway, when you tested it? It should be between 6 and 8.

I wouldn't worry about slight fluctuations that much, just monitor it. The most important thing is to produce a stable PH value over time, even if it runs to one side of the scale or another. It's the drastic changes in PH that are harmful, not slowly varying changes.

I'm thinking it'll stabilize just fine, unless you are going outside the 8 range.

Also, you should let your daughter name all the fish, if she so wishes. Tetras are long lived for a fish species, and the guppies will breed several times before any of them expire. She'll benefit more from bonding, and enjoy the interactions, than to worry about the fish going to fishy heaven. Even in the event you lose one fish due to old age, (very rare) the subsequent "funeral" will be a valuable exercise on the cycle of life.

reply to post by 74Templar

Great Photos.
Nice Tank. Good size.

It's difficult to take photos of Aquariums (Aquaria?) because of the depth-perception of the auto focus.

I reckon manual focus, zoom and patience is the only way to get good results.

With autofocus i can't get closer than a foot from the tank.

Use flash for more detail.

reply to post by Druid42


The pH looked like it was hovering around 9 when I did the first check a few days after the initial setup. I then did a 25% swap out of the water and let it sit for a few more days. It then came down to around 8pH, and tends to drift up towards it if I don't put the pH down in to bring it back to neutrality, but over the last few days it has seemed to stay at 7pH, even after adding 9 fish so far.

The funny thing is it doesn't seem to be bothering the fish too much, and it comes down pretty quick after adding the pH down. I think I'll just keep an eye on it and add accordingly if need be.

reply to post by Theflyingweldsman


It took me a week to figure out the anti-shaking feature so I could take pictures that didn't look like I was shivering to death or something taking pictures.

It might take a while but I'll figure it out how to take decent pics before long. The delay is the biggest killer so far, by the time it takes the shot the fish are gone...