Banasophia's Fresh Start: The IM Nuvo 12 g Atoll

[banasophia]

So here’s the next question… should I be using RODI or distilled for my top off water? I’m thinking yes, to avoid gradual buildup of minerals and whatever is in the water purifier as evaporation occurs over time… 

[banasophia]

Aannnddd… what percentage should I be running the light at? 
 

[banasophia]

Making progress… added the ghostwood and second dragon stone, got the water tested, and picked up 7 ember tetras today. Already added Dr Tim’s for freshwater. 

 

[MrP]

On 4/21/2023 at 10:50 AM, banasophia said:

So here’s the next question… should I be using RODI or distilled for my top off water? I’m thinking yes, to avoid gradual buildup of minerals and whatever is in the water purifier as evaporation occurs over time… 

Topping off with RODI would be ideal. Using tap water can substantially elevate your gh and kh over time. I have atos on my freshwater tanks. Easy peasy. 

[DevilDuck]

Since you're already making RODI for your reef tank, than using it as top off for your freshwater is fine.

 

 

[banasophia]

12 hours ago, MrP said:

Topping off with RODI would be ideal. Using tap water can substantially elevate your gh and kh over time. I have atos on my freshwater tanks. Easy peasy. 

 

12 hours ago, DevilDuck said:

Since you're already making RODI for your reef tank, than using it as top off for your freshwater is fine.

 

 

Sounds good, will do distilled or RODI rather than tap water. And I have my ATO from my Evo 5 I broke down recently… I should set that up! 
 

And guys - the new fish are schooling and swimming in a circle against the flow around the tank right now, super cute!

[banasophia]

 

[debbeach13]

They are just too cute. Tank looks great!

[banasophia]

6 hours ago, debbeach13 said:

They are just too cute. Tank looks great!

Thanks so much! Still have all 7 and they are still swimming around in their circle. I wonder if they found a place to rest while the lights were out during the night… one had found a spot in the back left just before lights out last night. 

[Lebowski_]

I always forget how little they are! Looking good, very peaceful.

[banasophia]

Okay, so now that I’m seeing the ember tetras, I’m questioning also having a little school of tiny corydoras since I’m wondering how they will swim around in the space together, if they will also try to school in a circle? Should I stick with my plan? Sound I consider something else? 
 

I do love zebra plecos, though the price tag is a bit extreme. Other small plecos I like that could be feasible include a dwarf snowball or a queen arabesque. Though my non-human bestie chat GPT says not to do a pleco since they produce a lot of waste… do you human besties agree? What about otocinclus catfish? The planted nano betta/community tanks at my LFS have them.

 

 

 

 

Also wondering if the flow pattern will work for the betta. I do have my Evo 5 I can put him in if I add him and he seems stressed by the circular flow. 

[Lebowski_]

29 minutes ago, banasophia said:

Okay, so now that I’m seeing the ember tetras, I’m questioning also having a little school of tiny corydoras since I’m wondering how they will swim around in the space together, if they will also try to school in a circle? Should I stick with my plan? Sound I consider something else? 
 

I do love zebra plecos, though the price tag is a bit extreme. Other small plecos I like that could be feasible include a dwarf snowball or a queen arabesque. Though my non-human bestie chat GPT says not to do a pleco since they produce a lot of waste… do you human besties agree? What about otocinclus catfish? The planted nano betta/community tanks at my LFS have them.

 

 

 

 

Also wondering if the flow pattern will work for the betta. I do have my Evo 5 I can put him in if I add him and he seems stressed by the circular flow. 

Plecos are my heart and joy so I am bias. They generally want a lot of structure - wood and lots of caves. I like them in slightly larger tanks personally, but the dwarf varieties won’t be too cramped.
 

They do create a lot of waste but so do catfish (especially the sinking shrimp pellets they love) so I’m not sure that would play a big role in the decision either way.

 

Both are viable options so it will be up to taste. As for the betta, we won’t know about flow until you see him on the tank. I imagine the flow won’t be an issue, especially if you add some more plants.

[banasophia]

2 minutes ago, Lebowski_ said:

Plecos are my heart and joy so I am bias. They generally want a lot of structure - wood and lots of caves. I like them in slightly larger tanks personally, but the dwarf varieties won’t be too cramped.
 

They do create a lot of waste but so do catfish (especially the sinking shrimp pellets they love) so I’m not sure that would play a big role in the decision either way.

 

Both are viable options so it will be up to taste. As for the betta, we won’t know about flow until you see him on the tank. I imagine the flow won’t be an issue, especially if you add some more plants.

Okay, thanks! Yeah I love the look of plecos myself. Originally when I was getting my first tank I wanted a zebra pleco tank but ironically I thought it would be too expensive so I decided on saltwater. 😬🙄😆

 

Looks like dwarf snowball plecos are known to eat shrimp, so that may be a consideration with those since we’re leaning toward adding some shrimp. Very cool looking though. 
 

What other plants should I add? 

[Lebowski_]

36 minutes ago, banasophia said:

Okay, thanks! Yeah I love the look of plecos myself. Originally when I was getting my first tank I wanted a zebra pleco tank but ironically I thought it would be too expensive so I decided on saltwater. 😬🙄😆

 

Looks like dwarf snowball plecos are known to eat shrimp, so that may be a consideration with those since we’re leaning toward adding some shrimp. Very cool looking though. 
 

What other plants should I add? 

 

My favourite plants are fillers (Hygrophila, Star Grass, Vals) which suck up nutrients, and floaters which outcompete algae. Hygro "Sunset/Roseanervig" is one of the few red plants that I've had grow in a lower tech tank. It grows like a weed, and like many stem plants, you can continuously trim and replant it.

 

@DevilDuck made a great point earlier - plant it as heavily as you can. I think underplanting is the #1 mistake a lot of people make, and algae ends up growing because there is not enough competition.

 

 

[banasophia]

23 minutes ago, Lebowski_ said:

 

My favourite plants are fillers (Hygrophila, Star Grass, Vals) which suck up nutrients, and floaters which outcompete algae. Hygro "Sunset/Roseanervig" is one of the few red plants that I've had grow in a lower tech tank. It grows like a weed, and like many stem plants, you can continuously trim and replant it.

 

@DevilDuck made a great point earlier - plant it as heavily as you can. I think underplanting is the #1 mistake a lot of people make, and algae ends up growing because there is not enough competition.

 

 

Awesome you mention the sunset hygro… that was one of my favorites I came across yesterday.. look how pretty it is in this person’s tank:

 

‘

 

 

[Lebowski_]

14 minutes ago, banasophia said:

Awesome you mention the sunset hygro… that was one of my favorites I came across yesterday.. look how pretty it is in this person’s tank:

 

‘

 

 

 

 

I grew it in a 72bow back in the day under Metal Halides and then again under some LEDs and honestly, there wasn't too much of a difference in colour. They grew like weeds under Halides (I had to trim at least once a week) and were slower under LEDs, but were still beautiful. I do remember them melting when I first added them, and I ended up cutting the stems into a bunch of "cuttings" and planting each of them, so just be aware of that possibility.

[NatureGuy]

2 hours ago, banasophia said:

Okay, thanks! Yeah I love the look of plecos myself. Originally when I was getting my first tank I wanted a zebra pleco tank but ironically I thought it would be too expensive so I decided on saltwater. 😬🙄😆

 

Looks like dwarf snowball plecos are known to eat shrimp, so that may be a consideration with those since we’re leaning toward adding some shrimp. Very cool looking though. 
 

What other plants should I add? 

Water wisteria is my favorite 

[banasophia]

16 minutes ago, NatureGuy said:

Water wisteria is my favorite 

Oh that’s a really pretty plant, thanks!

[banasophia]

Okay… here’s the dilemma… the guy holding our betta said I’ll need to get it next weekend. Should I try to add any additional fish/shrimp/plants/snails before then? 

[Lebowski_]

45 minutes ago, banasophia said:

Okay… here’s the dilemma… the guy holding our betta said I’ll need to get it next weekend. Should I try to add any additional fish/shrimp/plants/snails before then? 

More plants is always a good call!  @NatureGuy mentioned Water Wisteria - it's a hygro and will grow quickly and easily. If you do get it, key it well trimmed as it has a way of shading it's bottom leaves causing them to rot. I also find it's a favourite of nuisance snails so I would give it a quick look over to make sure it's not carrying pond snails with it.

 

As for the shrimp - well, if the Betta is a shrimp chaser, it won't matter. Unlike the Tetras, it won't be about territory, it will be for food. If you introduce the shrimp after the betta, I would put them in a small net, then distract the betta and release the shrimp near the bottom of the tank.

 

Cory's have armour and the betta likely will ignore them.

 

Snails are a lot like shrimp - will be betta personality dependent. A healthy betta will definitely bother snails, but the large snails will ignore it.

[banasophia]

Ordered some additional fish and plants for the tank. Also ordered a case of freshwater test discs for my Aquaspin so I can keep a close eye on the parameters since I’ll be stocking the tank pretty heavily. I am totally rushing my stocking plan to get my other fish in before my betta.  
 

Luckily I work from home and can keep a close eye on things and adjust if needed (likely by setting up an additional tank). 
 

The floating plants are sprouting new leaves and I’m really liking the floating plant corrals I ended up ordering from Etsy. I’ll have to get some pics for you guys soon, but lights are already out. 
 

I’m really fascinated by the whole planted tank thing, and the idea of balancing the plants’ photosynthesis / CO2 consumption / oxygen production with the fish bioload. So much to learn!

[growsomething]

My fascination turned to frustration 😀

 

Looking forward to seeing what you end up figuring out.  

[banasophia]

One of the ember tetras had gone missing today and didn’t come out during feeding, and the water was getting discolored by the tannins, so I decided it was time to do my first water change. Once I turned the pump off the 7th fish thankfully came back out.
 

I changed out two gallons… seems so easy with freshwater… I did let the water sit overnight and then used water conditioner. Also readjusted the return nozzle to get a bit of surface movement because it was really still at the surface before, a film was developing, and I was worried there might not be enough gas exchange. 

 

The fish are swimming around together again. You can see the floating plant corrals… I liked that they are black… I was going to try to make my own with airline tubing but I think these blend in better.
 

 

 

[NatureGuy]

You shouldn’t have to let the water sit if you're using water conditioner I don’t think 

[banasophia]

1 hour ago, NatureGuy said:

You shouldn’t have to let the water sit if you're using water conditioner I don’t think 

I was wondering about that, thanks. It does help it get up to room temp though, so that seems like it could be a good thing since it’s quite cold coming out of the tap.
 

I didn’t heat it, just used it at room temp. Should I heat it?