Aquarist..dito tayo

[arizona]

I've been keeping cichlids for 10 years now.

Unfortunately, the fad for african cichlids has faded and I'm having a hard time looking for stores that sells a wide array of these wonderful fishes.

Can anyone recommend some pet shops that sell cichlids like peacocks, electric blue alis, emperor, etc? Preferably within quezon city. Thanks in advance.

[JazonEsti]

I've been keeping cichlids for 10 years now.

Unfortunately, the fad for african cichlids has faded and I'm having a hard time looking for stores that sells a wide array of these wonderful fishes.

Can anyone recommend some pet shops that sell cichlids like peacocks, electric blue alis, emperor, etc? Preferably within quezon city. Thanks in advance.

Cichlids ba yung naghuhukay? Salamat! MEron kasi akong alaga dati, pgkakaalala ko Cichlids pero di ako sure.

[aljar3d]

lol i read "aquarius"

jog on nothing to see here -_-

[ApoyNaMainit]

Mukhang, problema niyo ang left-over food sa aquarium? Bili kasi kayo ng scavenger, pleco or coridoras, Suggest ko Corydora nlng ang bilihin niyo kasi yung mga mura na pleco dirty black or dirty white lang ta's masyado sila lumalaki. Ang Corydora nmn mas cute at di masyado lumalaki. Hangang 1 inch lang ata sila.

[rage_within]

scavengers... corydoras ang da best. unless you have a very big tank, plecos are good for the job kasi kahit lumulutang na leftovers, sila bahala.

if budget is not an issue, try amano shrimps.

by the way, been into the aqua-hobby for 24 years (yes, i am old). i'm into nature aquariums/planted tanks now, since less demanding and less maintenance sya na bagay sa job ko.

Cichlids ba yung naghuhukay? Salamat! MEron kasi akong alaga dati, pgkakaalala ko Cichlids pero di ako sure.

depende sa cichlids, maraming klase ng cichlids... from angelfishes to oscars and even to the common tilapia. what exactly did you have?

namatayan nanaman ako ng 2 tetras. hindi ko alam baka dagil sila sila mismo nag bubully and nipping each other's fin

nakabili na rin ako ng submersible hydrometer. and my water temp clocks at 28 degress Celsius. medyo higher ng konti sa recomended water temp (20 - 26)

hay. gusto ko na mag shift sa swordtail

don't give up just yet. magaganda neon tetras but kelangan mo lang aralin ng maigi ang pangangailangan nila. you also need balance sa environment na ibinibigay mo sa kanila.

basically water... i've read previously na may chlorine issues ka. use aged water... imbak ka ng tap water sa malinis na timba, place it on a clean area and wait for a couple of days hanggang sa sumingaw ang chlorine. use a test fish (usually guppy or kataba) and see if it lives for a day sa tubig na inimbak mo.

acclimating... when introducing new fishes or doing water changes, importante ito. sa bagong fish, lagay mo muna yung plastic bag nya sa tank na paglalagyan nya, let it float there for 20 mins para mag-pantay yung temperature ng tank water at water sa plastic bag nya. sudden temp change can shock and easily kill neon tetras... that's a proven fact. after 20 mins, spill out half ng plastic bag water then introduce tank water sa bag. let them be for 10 minutes para masanay naman sila sa water condition gradually. repeat again if you feel it's necessary. kapag nakita mong walang problema sa behavior nila, let them loose sa tank.

security... importante rin ito since naturally dahil sa size nila, prey animals ang neon tetras. they are schooling fishes na hindi mabubuhay kung 3 or 5 lang sila sa tank... strength in numbers, remember that. also... mimic mo natural environment nila... dapat hindi ganung ka-bright yung tank (tama yung ginawa mong dark/black background). if you have bright lights, introduce heavy foliage. mas maganda kung real plants dahil it could give off oxygen sa water na kailangang-kailangan ng neon tetras. hindi rin sila sanay sa malakas na current, so if you have an airpump na naka airstone, try mo yung pino yung pores para hindi malalaki bubbles.

feeding... flakes or micro pellets are fine... basta don't overfeed. just feed them the amount that they could consume for a couple of minutes. kapag napanis ang tubig, magbilang ka ng patay kada 10 minutes.

filtration... number one ang clean water. by experience, an undergravel filter works for me since walang current.

water changes...unless you have a crappy filtration system, do 30-50% (only) water changes once every 2 weeks. ayaw nila ng nagugulo sila and they can easily be stressed. malalaman mo yung kapag nawawala kulay nila... worse, namamatay na lang bigla.

tank mates... again, they are prey animals. they do best with the same kind like cardinal and rummy nose tetras. otoclinus (siamese algae eaters) and corydoras are also good.

yun na muna... pag may naalala ulit ako, post ko.

hope this helps.

[rage_within]

hello im a fishlover also umm im planning po kasi na mag set up ng isang well planted na aquarium nakakita kasi ako sa cartimar and sa robinsons gale and nagandahan po talaga ako kasi makakarelax. ano po ba ang kailangan i-consider sa paglalagay ng live plants sa aquarium?

nagtanung po ako sa gale at ang sabi kailangan daw japanese substrate ang gamitin ko - totoo po ba?

tapos yung sa cartimar naman and sabi sakin i have to buy this C02 tank pero ang mahal 3k to 5k yung tank. tapos kung maliit naman yung aquarium pwede na rin daw yung liquid form na C02 na ipapatak everyday sa tank.

another question umm di po ba nagrerelease na din naman ang isda ng c02 so bakit kailangan pang bumili ng mga nabanggit ko sa taas.

thank you po sana matulungan niyo ako

ang substrate, depende yan sa halaman na aalagaan mo. carpet plants like HC or Glossostigmas need finer substrate of course dahil sa small and fine roots nila. about Japanese substrates... yes and no. they do have the natural elements na kailangan ng planted tank but they get a bit pricey. bicol sand are affordable, about P50 a kilo sa cartimar if di ako nagkakamali. experts even mix layers of each type depende rin sa pangangailangan ng setup nila. and not all Japanese substrates are easy to handle... like for example (by my experience lamang) yung Amazonia 1 and 2 ng ADA, di sila pwedeng hugasan dahil mawawala yung nutrients nila, pero saksakan naman ng dumi sa unang buhos sa tank. napakamahal pa. you'd spend a couple of weeks cycling the tank and you'd still get murky water. this is good for people who have patience, too bad i dont. so i currently use GEx brands for my planted and shrimp only tank.

starter plants... da best ang anubias, any species ng anubias. though slow growing, less demanding naman sya. best syang nakatali sa driftwood or kung ibabaon mo sa substrate, yung roots lang at wag yung rhizome at mabubulok sya. re-search ka ng plants na madali para sa beginners.

considering PH testing can be a bit tricky. i suggest reseach ka sa web muna. for me, i don't really consider since i control my C02 distribution, and do frequent water changes (50% a week).

purchasing C02 tablets or drops can be expensive but less effort syempre. but kung masipag ka, a DIY C02 generator could help. again, depende pa rin sa plants mo ito. anubias and other less demanding plants doesn't care about C02 distribution.

lights is a must. use CFLs or flourescent tubes, not incandescents. maximum 10-12 hours a day, depende sa pangangailangan ng plant species mo. longer than that, then consider taking care of algae instead of plants.

any tank size na lower than 4 gallons are considered as nano tanks take it easy on the plant load and C02 intake, mahirap ibalanse yung PH.

sa simula, tricky ang planted tanks... maraming gagawin, maraming kailangan.... at nakakainip! pero once na magbalanse na't nagta-thrive na yung plants mo sa sistema na ginagawa mo... less maintenance na... happy plants... happy owner.

[saweverything]

^ sir thanks po for the infos. marami po kayong alam. :_)

[rage_within]

sharing experience lang po. had been an addict and lost a lot of fishes and plants in the process without researching beforehand. been a tank collector but ended up giving them away to friends because they're taking up space. accessorized too much with things i don't really need.

fish or plant keeping is a rewarding hobby, basta alam mo ginagawa mo. make your pets' welfare a priority rather than just feeding your enthusiasm. research... research... tsaka bumili ng isda or plant.

[saweverything]

^ na try niyo na po ba yung shrimps? nakakita po ako sa cartimar and galleria and i find them very relaxing especially sa well planted na aquarium.

[rage_within]

yup... i got red bee shrimps, red cherry shrimps, and amano shrimps... now all-together in one planted tank.





di naman sila nag-aaway, away... yun nga lang mas aggressive sa feeding sessions ang amano because of their size against the bee and RCS. but all are very good scavengers and algae eaters. very-low maintenance na rin ang nangyari sa planted tank ko dahil i don't feed them much. shrimps eat the algae and detrious, and even feed on their own shedded exoskeletons (full of calcium which they need). i only feed them algae wafers once or twice a week. they're also good in eating left-overs ng isda, though di advisable lalo sa floaters. they seem to feed 24/7. you would always see them picking on plants for hair algae, or picking on the substrate for detrious and left-over food.

i have 17 amanos, 5 RCS, and 6 bee shrimps.

amanos are far more cheaper than the dwarf shrimps. sa price range dito sa japan, 5 bee shrimps = 10 amanos. di pa ako nakakakita ng amano shrimps dyan sa pinas, but kung meron... good for beginners sila. and masyado silang mobile kesa sa dwarfs, lalo't kapag feeding time kung marami sila tapos pag-aagawan nila ang isang algae wafer, para silang nagra-rubgy (football). they get more relaxed and mobile sa tank kung marami sila, about 5 shrimps pataas.

[project_ichigo]

Ako po aquarium enthusiast po ako ten years ago, I used to breed beta splendens and sell to petshops. nung nawalan kami ng tubig sa gripo, napilitan ako itigil ang 1st love ko. ngayon, i'm planning to start all over again. Pwede bang gamitin yung tubig gaing sa truck na nagdedeliver ng tubig? or do i still need to condition it for a week before putting the fish. I'm planning to set up a 25G aquarium-all ciclids sana.

[rage_within]

project_ichigo... i dont know how it would affect chichlids, but for sure deep-well galing yung nasa water trucks. walang chlorine.

but condition mo na rin siguro muna... age it then place test fishes.

[project_ichigo]

project_ichigo... i dont know how it would affect chichlids, but for sure deep-well galing yung nasa water trucks. walang chlorine.

but condition mo na rin siguro muna... age it then place test fishes.

salamat dude sa reply. matagal-tagal na din ako di nakapag alaga, di ko na alam kung magaang pa kamay ko sa pag alaga ng mga fishies.

san ka nakakuha ng banded shrimps? sa singapore lucky shrimps tawag nila dyan. no two shrimps are alike daw.

[rage_within]

san ka nakakuha ng banded shrimps? sa singapore lucky shrimps tawag nila dyan. no two shrimps are alike daw.

andito kasi ako ngayon sa japan. saan ba location mo, pinas ba? sa cartimar meron nyan, try mo sa Pet City. usually msa ibang shops din na nagtitinda ng gamit na pang-planted tanks, merong mga dwarf shrimps.

[bonaddictus]

naku anbg galing ng post mo rage. Salamat ng marami. I wasnt able to visit the forum for a while.

sa ngayon mukhang all I had was a bad water conditio. And yes dapat conditioned ang water. Water issues talaga ang naging problem ko noong una. For now stable na ang tubig ko. 22 neons na laman ng tank ko. I will go up to 50 siguro dahan dahan muna.

I do 40% water change every week, pero gusto ko sana bawasan ng 2 tabo na lang per week, try ko lang ang effect. naka drift wood din kasi kaya problem ko yung pag-amber ng tubig.

ito isda ko na ngayon:

22 neon tetras
1 shrimp (ordinary lang, yung nahuhuli sa ilog)
1 black ghost
1 fighting fish (as advice by the petshop owner na pinagbibilhan ko)

yung fighting fish serves as parang referee kasi madalas may mga naghahabulang neons and sometimes they ended up dying. kaya ko nilagyan ng fighting fish. Pero parang gusto ko palitan yung fighting fish ng gourami kasi minsan nung kainan na, nakikain itong isang neon tetra dun sa Fighting, ayuN! tinuka siya! deads..

Pero bakit ganoon itong neon, natural ba sa kanila na maghabulan at mag-nip ng buntot ng hinahabol nila? or underfed sila kaya nagtutukan?

[rage_within]

what the... fighting fish?! with neons... sure ka? unless ambassador of goodwill yung betta splendens mo, i don't think it's a good idea with neons. granting na sufficient ang hiding spots nila at they could dart away easily when attacked, stressed out sila lagi dahil sa constant threat. (especially male) bettas "by nature" are aggressive, territorial, and... carnivorous. may binibilhan nga ako ng fighter plakats (betta splendens) sa cartimar (his name is Jett), ang ipinapakain nya sa fighting fish ay live full grown guppies.

the black ghost... ito ba yung meron ka?



ayon sa Wikipedia, "They will eat smaller fish in the tank and are intolerant of conspecifics. "

yung pag-"amber" ng tubig... you mean yung nagiging dark yung tubig dahil sa katas ng driftwood? i think it's ok since sa natural habitat ng neon tetras, maraming kahoy and dead leaves kaya ok ang black water.

Pero bakit ganoon itong neon, natural ba sa kanila na maghabulan at mag-nip ng buntot ng hinahabol nila? or underfed sila kaya nagtutukan?

remember in a group, laging may runt at laging may bully. same goes with people na someone would just bully the weaker one. those might also be males competing for a female, just setting territories, or just showing whose alpha male/female.

[bonaddictus]

yes rage, fighting fish nga. Actually ok naman pero iyonh nga constant stress. pero mas stress sila kapag bully ng bully.

I was able to visit the shop ngayon and I got myself 2 Bala Shark na maliit lang in replacement sa Fighting fish. under observation pa sila with the neons. Mabait naman daw ang Bala pero we'll see. Pinapanood ko nga sila ngayon as we speakm ang naiilang nga yung mga neons ngayon dun sa dalawa. Pero I think much better kesa sila sila ang nagbubully.

Yes yan nga iyong black ghost ko dito. OK naman siya hindi naman siya nang-aano. He spend most of his time doon sa loob ng drift wood, may butas kasi, and talagang bihira lumabas. Happy rin ako dun kasi scavenger siya kapag lumalabas sa gabi, para less pollution ng water.

I am open for suggestion kung ano ang mas mainam na isama sa neons,

suggestion ng pet shop owner is Gourami, plan ko bumili ng dalawa rin.

10 gallons pala ang aquarium ko Im not sure kung kakasya ang 50 neons, but that's the plan

[rage_within]

not to discourage you, but balas move a lot and neons love a peaceful and safe environment. well, just my humble opinion. it's your preference anyway.

we do have a concern about overstocking too... particularly the fish per gallon rule, better be careful with that. but you have neons so it's gonna be okay... if neons lang pag-uusapan. it's ok to have 50 neons sa 10 gallons mo, since hindi sila malalaki and their waste are so small, it could biodegrade easily and be filtered away, given that you have a good filtration system.

if i have your tank... i'd make this setup with your neons. neons lang ha... and some other small tetra species.

[bonaddictus]

uy salamat rage sa bilis ng reply mo. I was actually waiting sa reply mo eh. the picture depicted was actually one of the set ups I have in mind.

And just now, I decided na tanggalin na lang yung Bala Shark. Hanap a lang ako ng ibang paglalagyan. Although friendly siya, malilikot nga sila at nagtatakbuhan tuloy tetras ko.

My dilemma now is when I keep my set-up All-tetras, naghahabulan sila at nagbubully ang bawat isa sa kanila and most likely some of them dies. I am thinking of adding Zebrafish, wala na kasing variety ng Tetras available dito sa amin sa probinsya. may Tetra dun pero iba itsura parang Sap-sap sorry hindi ko alam yung pangalan pero may Tetra sa dulo.

Another thing, I think I am missing 2 tetras. Hmmmmm. If my memory serves me right 22 tetras na dapat ito pero 20 na lang. I just counted them now, errr, hindi kaya nilamon nung Black ghost? wala naman akong makitang Tira-tirang tetra

sira kasi yung cam ko, I would love to post pictures at video sana.

another thing about the filter system? gamit ko kasi yung undergravel. I hate to ask this but what is the proper way of cleaning the whole set-up? since september pa kasi yung tank ko hindi ko pa nililinisan, akk I do is change the water, pero sinusuction ko ng hose yung mga left over-food sa ibabaw ng gravel pero marami pa rin natitira

[rage_within]

no problem. actually Pex is part of the homesickness remedy.

yup, ialis mo na lang yung bala shark. magugulo lang mundo ng mga tetra mo.

when you take care of tetras, think about the quantity. hamo lang kung maghabulan sila, like i've said, natural lang yon. if they die, natural lang din yon. tetras are somewhat sensitive kapag di pa balanse sila or ang environment nila. once stable both... wala ng deaths.

zebrafish... are you referring to Zebra Danios?



surface dwellers naman sila't maliliit kahit malikot and mid level to bottom dwellers naman ang tetras, so ok sila pagsamahin. at least they get the same food type.

about the missing tetras... well, you still have the black ghost knife fish. di na ako magtataka.

about the filtration you have... what type ba substrate mo? if you have crushed corals, palitan mo na ngayon din. that's only good for cichlids. if you have silica sand, pwede mong linisin on the spot with a suction device. if gamit mong substrate ay yung pang-planted tank like Amazonia, just let it be and don't disturb the substrate. either way, get bottom feeders/scavengers to eat left overs and rotting food materials. here are good bottom feeders:

1. Corydoras
2. Kuhli Loach
3. Otoclinus Affinis (Siamese Algae Eater)
4. Amano Shrimp

do not use Plecos/Janitor fish. they're big eaters and big sh*tters at the same time. also, they get really big in no time. (and don't be like those imbeciles who throw away their overgrown plecos in rivers.)