FishProfiles.com Message Forums

Okay, I've got 3 empty tanks, two 10 gallons and one 5 gallon. What do you guys think I should do with them? Right now they are laying around collecting dust...something needs to be done. I'd like one of the 10 gals to be a female betta set up...but I'm open for suggestions. Ideas???

-Formerly known as the Ferretfish

how about a nano reef. Thats what i am starting soon with my 10g! they look so nice and arnt that expensive to do.

-jim

How about shelldwellers in a ten? Multis, for example, are fairly easy to find, adorable, as fun (IMO) as any larger cichlid, enjoyable little excavators, easy to breed, etc. Brevis would be good too.

Or a planted tank - the 5 is a great size for a little garden, small enough to be a fun challenge but large enough not to be irritating. Plus, at that size, all the plant "extras" are suddenly cheap - you only need one bag of some great plant substrate (EcoComplete or Fluorite, for example - or what I've been meaning to try, Ecocomplete *over* Fluorite!) over some peat and mulm, for example. DIY CO2 will work very well, and that Hagen almost-DIY kit will make it a lot easier to hide. Even a small piece of driftwood or attractive rock can make a big statement in a small tank. Plant heavily enough that you can't see the substrate and just skip out on the filter - a pair of killies (or guppies, or fun shrimp, etc), weekly water changes and a good fert regimen and you'll end up with art.

OR, hmm, I'm a big fan of Ember Tetras - tiny, gorgeous, look great against green plants, fit well in either size although the 10 would be better.

You could breed cherry shrimp in one - get a good rate of production and you might actually turn a small profit.

-Molly
Visit shelldwellers.com!

Killifish!!

Leopard Geckos!!

Good ideas Molly...I would have never thought about shelldwellers, everyone usually just recomends dwarf puffers. If they are available to me I might consider that, what kind of tank parameters do I need for them? I never kept cichlids before, so I wouldnt know how to set it up either.
Fallout...leopard geckos? this is a fish site :%)
and Jim, Nano sounds coolio, that might be an option! I've been following your thread on that for awhile and its spiked my interest.

EDIT: cant spell!

[span class="edited"][Edited by ferretfanatic 2004-08-01 20:20][/span]

-Formerly known as the Ferretfish

Very easy care - harder water (crushed coral in the filter helps a lot), sand, shells (I highly recommend extra-large escargot shells), filter, heater, other normal additions, a trio of multies or pair of brevis and ta-da, happy fish. Very hardy guys, they just need a weekly water change and a little privacy. Slow growers but once they hit adulthood there's no stopping them having fry slightly on the unfortunate side!
However, best to start with your water conditions - if your water's naturally soft and acidic, you're better off with a pair of Apistos (also very very cool) than trying to get it up to spec.
So - do you know your pH, GH, and/or KH?

-Molly
Visit shelldwellers.com!

I have NO idea. But i'll be at the LFS this week, and bring a sample of my tap water and get back to you, if they can test that.

-Formerly known as the Ferretfish

You can just ask about pH, they're sure to test for that. The other two are nice to know but usually you can guess at them from your pH - acidic water is usually soft, basic water is usually hard, yada yada.

-Molly
Visit shelldwellers.com!

You could use the 5 gallon as a fry tank or, you could put an Africa dwarf frog in it ?

Or you could use it as a Betta tank, with females, or 1 male.

The females you could put in a 10 gallon as well.

You could have a cory tank with a shoal of 6 in a 10 gallon.

These are just some ideas, when you made up your mind plz post back and tell us, i'd like to know.

Well, one ten gallon is def. going to be an all female betta tank i think. I'd really like that. The other ten...prolly Molly's shelldwellers idea if I can do it. Any other ideas people??? THankss

-Formerly known as the Ferretfish

Okay- i got it tested, pH of my tap is a little more then 7.2, i'd say like 7.4 so its slightly on the basic side of things. I think once i add rocks/crushed coral it'll bring it right up to where it needs to be for shelldwellers, but I gotta find an LFS that can get them from me first. Thats going to be the bigger challenge. On the upside, I brought home 4 panda babies who are acclimating as I type. yay

[span class="edited"][Edited by ferretfanatic 2004-08-02 19:08][/span]

-Formerly known as the Ferretfish

Sounds great! Some crushed coral in the filter and you should be fine, just don't do any massive water changes. Hit on calling around - ask if they get in Multis (or Neolamprologus multifasciatus), then ask about shelldwellers. Some places know they have one but not the other (I called around about multis and was told no one carried them, and then I called about shelldwellers and was told, yes, they had multis - but OTOH, some places the employees may know the fish by name but not the type).

-Molly
Visit shelldwellers.com!

If you're up for a challenge: Dwarf seahorses. Been looking into these guys, and they'd go extremely well in your 5 - to the point of having a couple pairs.

If not marine: Ummmm - 5 gal for a gorgeous male betta???

Killies???
Smaller tetras or rasboras? (Such as ember tetras )
Planted with pygmy cories and habrosus cories!!