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Now you will have to borrow a camera. We all want to see & admire your baby plecs when they come out swimming.

What do you feed them? BBS?

Is your sword the Echindorus Amazonicus? I'm planning a few of those in the new discus tank (as they are recommended as being good for discus), but the size factor has worried me too. Is there anything to be done to limit their size (eg planting them in a terracotta pot). I'd bury the put completly in the substrate, so you couldn't see it. Would that work?

Cheers
TW

TW,

It doesn't look like I will have any baby plecos this time around. Dad has left his cave and there is no signs of little ones about the tank.

The sword plant. I think it is the Echinodorus amazonicus but it could also be Echinodorus bleheri. I am not sure I could tell the difference.

When I had this plant in my 55G it got fairly large but I had it in very low light and no CO2. Now in high light, better substrate and CO2 it is getting huge. I have a feeling it might grow right out of the tank.



55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Wings , Breeding is such a hit and miss affair. Better luck next time .
How do you like the new home btw ,settling in Ok ?

Garry

The new home is pretty nice. It is kind of neat going into October and we are still having 80+ degree days. Back home its been in the 60's. I haven't had a lot of time to really check things out to make it feel like home as this teaching thing is taking tons of time.

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Too bad about the babys. Better luck next time.

Glad you're settling in. I'd be enjoying the warmer weather too - I not a cold weather person at all.

Our spring started in September, the days are getting warmer now. I LOVE summer.

Cheers
TW

It doesn't look like I will have any baby plecos this time around. Dad has left his cave and there is no signs of little ones about the tank.

Yesterday I was doing my water change and I found one baby BN hanging out around the filter output. I am guessing there maybe more in the tank but some of them might have became food to my giant danios or skunk loaches. My eyes are on the lookout for more babies every time I look at the tank.

I just thought that you guys might like to know.

Sorry, no pictures....

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Wings,

With my limited access to this site it took me forever to even see this log.

Hope you find more BNs,

Ingo

---

Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

LF,

Are you just super busy with work?

Thanks for the kind wishes. I have not seen anymore baby BN today. I am guessing they might turn up as they grow.

What do you think about the tank?



55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

A baby BN.....Congrats! How exciting!

So you decided not to change any of the decor.....you are just going to let everything grow up? Would like to see a pic when you think it looks good.

Wings,

Busy with work, family, NJAGC, my tanks, and life in general .

I am also a little bored when all I have to say is stuff that I have said so many times before, like "no major changes in my 40G (or 125G, same thing)", "you should add more plants", and the like

And with regards to your tank, the latest picture I found in your photobucket seems to be from Aug. 29th, is that right? There, the rock on the left is not doing anything for me, the wood is very nice, and the plant mass is too little. But I am certain that at least the last part has changed in 1.3 months, right?

Ingo

---

Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

And with regards to your tank, the latest picture I found in your photobucket seems to be from Aug. 29th, is that right? There, the rock on the left is not doing anything for me, the wood is very nice, and the plant mass is too little. But I am certain that at least the last part has changed in 1.3 months, right?

Yeah, I have not taken any other pictures of the tank yet. I might bring the camera home from school again sometime soon if I can fine something school related to use it for.

Thing are growing in a little bit. I am seeing some pretty nice growth on the Anubias, ET, crypts, and sword. The 4-LC is taking forever and a year to take off though. The vals are not growing tall yet but looking much healthier than when I got them. I wonder if they will just need a while to settle in or they don't like the soft water here.

So you don't like the rock on the left? What to do you picture there? The anubias on that rock has flowered once and has a second one on the way.

fish patty,
Right now I am just letting things grow in. I might once the 4-LC grows in make a meadow path back under the sword and large driftwood on the right. Time will tell.

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

spotted a baby BN again today. Only one though...

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

spotted a baby BN again today. Only one though...

That's great news, one is twice as good as none.

Cheers
TW

Wings , Good news Mate , hope he (they) survive . There must be a project you can devise
to borrow that camera ?
Can't wait to see some more shots .

Garry

Update:

Fish:
I have seen two baby BN at the same time this week.

Plants:
Most of the plants are growing pretty well. The sword has exploded in height and leave size and is currently threatening to grow out of the tank. Both types of crypts (Wendtii + balansae) have filled in rather nicely. Java Ferns and Anubias are growing at expected levels. The few rather small clippings of ET have thickened up quite a bit.

On the down side the 4-LC has shown very little growth. I believe this was the case last time too when I started out with it. Then it over ran my tank. Time will tell.

I am also having a bit of a problem with BBA. It seem to have two different types. One type is very short and thick bushes while the other type is longer and branchy. In the first couple of weeks had just a little amount in the tank and it seemed to go away. Last week I found a ton of it when I was doing my water change. I trimmed off most of what was infested and started dosing Excel all week.

The most of the algae has turned bright red. Does this mean it is dying? Last night I trimmed off most of the infested leaves again. As a result of dosing Excel I have pretty much melted off my vals. They were just starting to thicken up too!

I have not tested my CO2 since I first set up the tank but I was over 30ppm. My dosing schedule has been as follows:

~Saturday - Water change, 1/2 tsp KNO3, 1/8 KH2P04, 1/8 Potassium Sulfate, 10 ml Iron
~Sunday - 10ml micros
~Monday - off
~Tuesday - off
~Wednesday - Same macros as Saturday
~Thursday - 10ml of micros
~Friday - off

I picked this schedule because I had a pretty low plant mass of slower growers in the tank.

Now that things are filling in, should I also start dosing on Mon. and Tues?

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

The most of the algae has turned bright red. Does this mean it is dying?

That's the colour my BBA went, when dying. I had it on my driftwood & lowered the water level to below the BBA. Then painted Excel directly onto it.

In other places, where I it was directly on leaves, I sucked up some Excel in a medicine dropper & squirted it directly on the still submerged leaves. Seemed to work really well for me.

Great news, a 100% increase in baby BN /:'

Cheers
TW

Wings,

BBA is not long and branchy, that must be Staghorn.

For the BBA, yes, red is dead
But how did you get it? Did you change something? When did you go to the weird schedule? Why did you not reduce the dosage and fert every other day? I think the ups and downs of only twice a week had something to do with it.

Ingo

---

Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

BBA is not long and branchy, that must be Staghorn.

For the BBA, yes, red is dead
But how did you get it? Did you change something? When did you go to the weird schedule? Why did you not reduce the dosage and fert every other day? I think the ups and downs of only twice a week had something to do with it.

LF, I guess I have/had BBA and Staghorn. Both types have turned bright red. I think at this point I have 90+ % of it out of the tank.

I am not sure where I got it from.

I started doing the skip two days thing over a month ago. Should I start going to everyday? Remember that most of my plants are slow growers.

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Wings,

Enough was this no camera stuff. This is a visual hobby. These days you can get a camera for $50. Sell some plants or fish if you must, but get a camera.

I refuse to use my imagine to wonder what your algae looks like

My Scapes

Enough was this no camera stuff. This is a visual hobby.

Well, he is right, and you know it!

Ingo

---

Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Someone find me a good one!

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

I just saw a 'keychain camera' at a local tech shop. It's a 3 megapixel thing with a flash and datacable but no display. It was $5.99. Yep a whopping 6 bucks. It wouldn't be perfect by a long shot, but it would be better than nothing. I used to take great pics with my old 3 megapixel canon. Maybe you can find something like that?

:j

Thanks for the input plankton but I think my wife and I are holding out for something a little better.

Tetra - What mp is your camera?

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Wings,
My camera is 5.0mp, It is also about two years old, but unless your printing pics bigger than 8 x 10 the 5.0mp will do fine, most are probably higher these days anyway.



My Scapes

If you really want nice shots and have a bit of a budget, go for a digital SLR. You have complete control of your shutter speed, iso, field of view, focus, colour temp etc. Even the older Canons and Nikons are WAY better than any of the new fixed lens cameras. While a comperably priced fixed lens may take more information (megapixels) they are still gathering that info through a tiny optic. If you are going for a point and shoot, both Canon's and FUJI's have nice colour and even a higher range megapixel camera wont break the bank. Look for one that offers manual control of the shutter speed at the very least.

Thanks for the camera info.

My wife and I are thinking of an SLR for "our" Christmas present but that is up in the air. I personally would like a nicer point and shoot as I would want to take it on fishing outings where I would want the extra weight and space. Maybe I will start looking around. I have a bit of cash on hand from selling plants.

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Hey wings, I believe Olympus makes pretty decent digital point and shoot cameras that can take a fair bit of weather. Perfect for watery adventures! I think they also have fairly good zeiss optics.

Good luck!

Wings this is the most recent version of my camera. You really can't go wrong with it. Mine is the S2 now there up to the S5. This is a GREAT camera for the price. It also has an amazing video mode and 12x Optical zoom and super macro. My ISO (film speed) only goes up to 800 on this one it goes to 1600

Canon S5 IS

Holy #$%^ I was just reading the camera detail and it has an "Aquarium Mode"

22 Shooting Modes, including 9 Special Scene Modes

Auto The camera chooses all the settings so you can concentrate on your subject.
Program Access advanced exposure compensation features while shooting mostly automatically.
Av Aperture-priority You define the aperture to either isolate your subject or have clarity throughout the entire picture, and the camera will choose the corresponding shutter speed.
Tv Shutter-priority You select the shutter speed to stop or blur action, and the camera finds the appropriate aperture. With slow exposure times, Canon’s noise reduction system activates to ensure low image noise.
Manual The ultimate in creative control, you set ISO speed, exposure compensation and white balance.
C Custom Define and store your own settings to achieve the effects you prefer.
Portrait The camera sets a large aperture, focusing the subject and artistically blurring the background to make your subject "pop."
Landscape For front to back sharpness, the camera sets a small aperture.
Sports Ensure highly accurate autofocusing when shooting fast-moving subjects.
Night Snapshot Get natural-looking pictures with brighter backgrounds and subjects lit by flash.
Super Macro Close to almost touching distance to capture the subject detail.
Stitch Assist Build awe-inspiring panoramas by neatly aligning sequential images.
Movie Shoot in VGA (30 fps/30 fps LP) and QVGA (60 fps/30 fps) for up to 1 hour or 4 GB).
Night Scene For impressive sunset or nightlife shots, the camera properly exposes the background and uses slow-sync flash for the subject.
Foliage Capture brilliant shots of autumn foliage, greenery and blossoms.
Snow Shoot clear snow scenes without darkened subjects or an unnatural bluish tint.
Beach Get clear shots of people at a sunny beach without darkened faces.
Fireworks Grab brilliant images of skyrocketing fireworks.
Aquarium Achieve proper flash-free exposure and natural hues at indoor aquariums.
Indoor Reduce blur and improve color accuracy when shooting handheld indoors.
Color Accent Choose to retain a single color in your image while other colors turn monochrome.
Color Swap Select a color and replace it with a color you specify for special effects.


My Scapes

Planton,

I have thought about that one. Some of my favorite tank shoots are using an Olympus.

Tetra,

Thanks for all the info. I think if I am going to spend around that amount we might as well go in for the big deal camera.

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Wings , That camera is a bargain . If you want a Digital SLR , go for the Cannon EOS 400D but you will pay 3 to 4 times the one Tetra gave you. It is however continually rated as the best in all the computer mags I read .

Garry

Really quick update!

I was looking at my female BN this weekend and she looked quite this compared to earlier this week. I then noticed that the male BN was back in his log. I got out my flashlight and found a large clump of eggs he is guarding.

Spawn #2

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Congrats wings! I hope you can find a home for any & all that survive.

I was looking at my female BN this weekend and she looked quite this compared to earlier this week. I then noticed that the male BN was back in his log. I got out my flashlight and found a large clump of eggs he is guarding.

Wings, seeing is believing. You don't expect us to take your word for this, do you?

My Scapes

Just rub it in a little bit more that I don't have a camera!

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Well, not long to Christmas now Wings. By then, you can show us a picture not of eggs, but a nice little batch of young BN's, taken courtesy of a nice new christmas camera

Cheers
TW

Well I think we might actually get a camera! Looking at a Canon TX right now.

BN pleco update:

The second set of babies came out of the cave a couple of days ago. I have counted about 10 of them hanging out in the tank. The one from the last batch that I see on a daily basis is at least 2x's as large as the current batch.

I took a few pictures will the wifes film camera. We will see how the pictures turn out.

All the algae issues seem to be taken care of. I am now dosing 6 days a week. Growth is pretty good. I want to get a few stems in there but I am not sure what yet.

Thats all for now.

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Wings , great news about the BN's also the Camera .Bring on the Photo's .

Garry

Not the greatest pictures. Taken with my wifes old Canon SLR film camera.

Dad BN hanging out in his cave
Baby BN hanging out around the filter output
Close up of a baby BN

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Hmmm , not very easy to see , but I'll take your word for it . You definately need to shout yourself a digital camera .

Garry

You definately need to shout yourself a digital camera .

I know! We had one all picked out then realized that we should probably fix our cars instead.

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric