20gal tall set up

mysticganja420

Well im new here thought i would share a video of my Eclipse 20gal tall tank and fish. This place seem's like a pretty laid back and great place to get salt/fresh water tips/tricks and info.. With this post i also ahve a few questions, I know tetra are a schooling fish but will diff tetra school together? liek if i add say bloodfins to my tank will they school with the tetra i currently have now?(or any other tetra for that matter) Or is it tetra only group with there own kind? Also what would you recomend for a bottom feeder? I had a red tail shark but he died when i had to move the tank(stress is my best guess) So looking for the best bottom feeder for my set up. Well that's it here is the link to my video(posted on youtube for the HD) and look forward to hearing from yall and enjoying the forums :)

mysticganja420

went out bought me 2 more Blackfin tetra's and a green cory cat toi add to the tank.. now just thinking up idea's to better plant the tank

doki

looks pretty good, you should get some driftwood for that pleco to hide under and suck on.

Olympia

More shelter would be appreciated. It's a tall tank so I'd get some tall plants to provide more cover.
Do you know what kind of pleco that is?
Most pleco do appreciate a real piece of driftwood to chew on (it might be neccessary for good health, but I'm not too sure).
Tetra will only school with their own kind.
I'd recommend to get 2-3 more cories (of the same species) as they are social and will become stressed on their own. Be sure to supplement them with some veggie matter, sinking cat fish food is the best option.

Geomancer

Olympia answered everything.

I would not recommend a Pleco, not unless it is one that gets no larger than 6".

Are those live plants? If so ... they don't look to be truly aquatic ones. Unfortunalty a lot of pet stores sell plants that can not be submerged for long and will eventually rot away. For the most part plants that have variegated leaves (dark in the center, light on the edges like what I see in the video) are not aquatic.

They are fine for the short term, but when they show signs of dying should be removed.

mysticganja420

Wow lots of replys ty ty :D Went out and bought some Anacharis Plant to add more cover to the tank and will be adding more as i get the money. The pleco i got from petsmart all i know is he is indeed the big one i beleave 14-18" when an adult so when he get to big i will prob give him away to a friend with a larger tank.

Now will the driftwood that can be bought at petsmart be fine to put in the tank for the pleco for the time being? And lastly whats a cheap SAFE way to add more cover to the tank? Im not into say the fish decorations like ships and so on but would much more perfer something like that fish would normaly live in like plants and rock... And i take it it's prob not a good idea or safe for the sife to just clean off some rocks from around the area and put them in... Any idea's? thanks again and so far have enjoyed looking over the posts here :)

mysticganja420

wanted to add a pic in last but passed the 20min edit limmit lol but here is a pic of whats going on so far with the new plants

Geomancer

The best driftwood, in my opinion, is Malaysian. Grapewood is notorious for fungus, with a possibility of toxic fungus. Mopani is known for fungus also, but less so on the toxic side.

Natural rocks can be used provided they do not dissolve in water, for example limestone. Calcerous rocks will affect the water parameters (GH, KH, pH).

A natural cover for fish are floating plants. Amazon Frogbit, Water Sprite, Dwarf Water Lettuce, etc.

You need to return that Pleco. Growing up in too small of an environment has serious negative repercussions like stunting and poor health. If you got him at Petsmart you have a 14 return window for a full refund.

mysticganja420

tyvm Geomancer for the info it helps a lot! :) I wish i could take the pleco back but he was 1 of my first buys about 8 weeks ago along with my first blackfin tetra's but i just got off the phone with a buddy who has a 48gal fresh water and he is going to start looking around for a home for him and to be nice he said he had a extra rock thats sitting in his un-used 32 tank with plants so he said he would swing it by later so that helps a lot! Im going to ahve to head down to petsmart tomorrow and get me a pice of driftwood like you recomended and look into floating plants. Thanks again and will post pic when the rock is in

Olympia

I agree with Geomancer about the wood choices. In general the darker the wood the better it is. You may want to boil it after you buy it, it will naturally tan water and boiling will take some of this out.

About rocks.. 2 starting points are if it is shiny, don't put it in. If you pour vinegar on it and it bubbles, don't put it in. Also don't put any of those shiny polished stones you buy in it...

I know you don't like fake decor (I don't either) but consider getting some big cheap plastic plants until the real ones grow in... I can see the stripe on your betta.. this is a stress stripe and means he is uncomfortable in his habitat right now.
All your other fish would also enjoy more shelter.. these fish need heavy planting to be happy. :)

Plecos poop a ton and will make the tank filthy, so keep an eye on him.