You mean Kevin, Jeffhas been retired since early 2020
Thanks, was quite a debate as to whether losing the storage was worth it. In the end I already had the tank and most of the other equipment needed so it was worth it. I need a under bed storage container to put under the tank and then I have a spot for storage again
I could actually fit a 40B in that spot but I didn’t want as deep a tank in that location.
Right now Im leaning towards keeping one of my female RTM’s as a solo fish in a 65B, which would open up a 90 that Im thinking of trying the Cuban(s) in or the bleekeri
Cubans are very pretty, like mini jaguars (ish) I'm glad your leaning towards keeping one of the female rtms, they are such a beautiful fish. I initially was gonna order a female but my wife loved the blues of our boy pablo
I'd love to be able to keep a Cuban, but my water here is too soft at a KH3/GH4. They look great and don't get too big, I think it would make a nice addition!
Been a while since Ive updated.
The fishroom has seem some upgrades with second Aquaclear 110's getting added to each 90 gallon. Love the extra flow in the tank. Still need to add the other one to the second 90 gallon.
Snapped a pic of the fishroom with lights coming on in the morning.
The bottom middle tank (30 gallon) needs the same matching Beamswork EA light fixture along with the dimmer/timer. It is currently a different fixture with just an on/off timer. When its on during the day it does not really strike you as different. Its not until the morning "sunrise" or evening "sunset" do you realize it needs something more. So more stimulus money getting spent now, lol
As to fish Im going through some rehoming and new potential projects in the garage but the main 300 gallon that started this whole thread is running great with the 4 male amphs. In the garage I decided to rehome the trimac because it was soo skittish, no matter what I did to make it more comfortable. Thinking to try and get another one at a smaller size and grow it out. The one I had came to me at a bigger size from another hobbyist and was always strange acting in my opinion. Did not act like any other fish Ive ever owned.
Anyway thats it for the updates for now.
The fishroom has seem some upgrades with second Aquaclear 110's getting added to each 90 gallon. Love the extra flow in the tank. Still need to add the other one to the second 90 gallon.
Snapped a pic of the fishroom with lights coming on in the morning.
The bottom middle tank (30 gallon) needs the same matching Beamswork EA light fixture along with the dimmer/timer. It is currently a different fixture with just an on/off timer. When its on during the day it does not really strike you as different. Its not until the morning "sunrise" or evening "sunset" do you realize it needs something more. So more stimulus money getting spent now, lol
As to fish Im going through some rehoming and new potential projects in the garage but the main 300 gallon that started this whole thread is running great with the 4 male amphs. In the garage I decided to rehome the trimac because it was soo skittish, no matter what I did to make it more comfortable. Thinking to try and get another one at a smaller size and grow it out. The one I had came to me at a bigger size from another hobbyist and was always strange acting in my opinion. Did not act like any other fish Ive ever owned.
Anyway thats it for the updates for now.
Had not updated this in a long time. In the end I decided not to disturb the 300 by adding that little Petsmart devil. I rehomed him and left the big tank as is. For those who havent kept up on this ridiculously long thread, lol, it was this one:
The current stock makes the tank look full for sure with Petsmart Red Devil x2, Midas x2, Bala Sharks x 3, Endli bichir x1, Ansorgii bichir x1.
The amphs are actually pretty well behaved with a little pushing but no major issues. An occasional nip at a bala shark and totally ignoring the bichirs. Im super happy with the activity level and color in this tank. I guess the key is that I dont really have too aggressive of amphs. Once the Hoga was removed from the tank, my Petsmart devil stepped up and keeps everything running smooth without having to beat on or chase everyone around too much. The real trouble maker is the smallest true midas who punches way above his weight and challenges even the much bigger fish. He is the one I need to watch as time goes on. Interestingly he is the slowest growing and a bit of a runt in comparison to his sibling from the same batch who has quite a bit of size on him.
Out of my tanks (7 at the moment) this has to be the one that is running the smoothest and that overall Im happy with how it turned out. The garage tanks are kind of a hot mess of trimac growouts spread out in three tanks. Need to do some serious rehoming soon.
Kind of a lame update pic, but water changing the 300. Give a bit of an idea of the size of all the fish in the 300. I really wish I could get a good pic of the biggest bala. I picked it up as an adult from a LFS and I think its grow even more since Ive had it. I dont think Ive ever seen a bala in person this big. My guess is over 14" but might be bigger since I have a tendency to underestimate fish sizes. Not much but a least a picture update.
The current stock makes the tank look full for sure with Petsmart Red Devil x2, Midas x2, Bala Sharks x 3, Endli bichir x1, Ansorgii bichir x1.
The amphs are actually pretty well behaved with a little pushing but no major issues. An occasional nip at a bala shark and totally ignoring the bichirs. Im super happy with the activity level and color in this tank. I guess the key is that I dont really have too aggressive of amphs. Once the Hoga was removed from the tank, my Petsmart devil stepped up and keeps everything running smooth without having to beat on or chase everyone around too much. The real trouble maker is the smallest true midas who punches way above his weight and challenges even the much bigger fish. He is the one I need to watch as time goes on. Interestingly he is the slowest growing and a bit of a runt in comparison to his sibling from the same batch who has quite a bit of size on him.
Out of my tanks (7 at the moment) this has to be the one that is running the smoothest and that overall Im happy with how it turned out. The garage tanks are kind of a hot mess of trimac growouts spread out in three tanks. Need to do some serious rehoming soon.
Kind of a lame update pic, but water changing the 300. Give a bit of an idea of the size of all the fish in the 300. I really wish I could get a good pic of the biggest bala. I picked it up as an adult from a LFS and I think its grow even more since Ive had it. I dont think Ive ever seen a bala in person this big. My guess is over 14" but might be bigger since I have a tendency to underestimate fish sizes. Not much but a least a picture update.
I had not updated this in a bit because it was such a smooth running tank until now. Honestly I never thought it would work and it did for a long time. Probably due to the fact the head Petsmart red devil ran the tank so well. No real chasing on his part, basically a face down of a fish and it got back in line. This was awesome to see these 4 big amphs get along so well.
Notice I had begun with the "until now"... The big devil injured itself severely on a piece of driftwood in the tank and has passed. Then of course other problems develop (rule of three's) the next largest midas is now having a swim bladder issue and cant really run the tank so the other two are causing chaos and there is no peace or calm at the moment. Without a peacekeeper in the tank I think my big amph tank is done with. I have to reevaluate what to do now. I hate tanks in constant turmoil. I have my garage tanks for the troublesome fishes, the living room is supposed to be calm!
So I am thinking about what to do next. Try and raise out another batch of amphs? Or completely change the choice of cichlid?
Notice I had begun with the "until now"... The big devil injured itself severely on a piece of driftwood in the tank and has passed. Then of course other problems develop (rule of three's) the next largest midas is now having a swim bladder issue and cant really run the tank so the other two are causing chaos and there is no peace or calm at the moment. Without a peacekeeper in the tank I think my big amph tank is done with. I have to reevaluate what to do now. I hate tanks in constant turmoil. I have my garage tanks for the troublesome fishes, the living room is supposed to be calm!
So I am thinking about what to do next. Try and raise out another batch of amphs? Or completely change the choice of cichlid?
