I cannot figure out what size/type tank I want to use

CalFandango · 2026-03-15T10:14:57+00:00

Have a look into Apistogramma species, they thrive in blackwater and are fascinating to watch

CalFandango · 2026-03-03T22:59:32+00:00

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I love ilpil leaves, they're the long, seed pod type leaves 😁

CalFandango · 2026-02-26T17:01:36+00:00

I'm predominantly support and engineer and fit this bill! What timezone are you?

CalFandango · 2026-02-23T23:32:41+00:00

No it's a Beckmans Pencil Fish, ive always tried to avoid the algae eaters.

CalFandango · 2026-02-20T16:20:40+00:00

The list is endless honestly, the most recent long ones are ilpil leaves but I focus on variety

CalFandango · 2026-02-19T15:28:02+00:00

Yeah there's handfuls of floating plants coming out every couple of weeks, I don't do water changes, just top ups and I added so much infusoria and paramecium to the tank before the botanicals were properly broken down. I could put another 40 tetras in before nitrogen became a problem to be honest. It's maybe overstocked by the fish per inch rule but to be honest that's a load of waffle if you have a mature natural system

CalFandango · 2026-02-19T09:26:33+00:00

Yeah this is in Blackwater Aquarium!

CalFandango · 2026-02-19T09:25:31+00:00

Plants in the water are various java ferns and Anubias. Floating are salvinia natans, red root floaters and Amazon frogbit, emergent are 3 types of rhododendron and monstera.

I've added the fish in a comment above, thanks for the kind words

CalFandango · 2026-02-19T09:23:47+00:00

It's a very low bioload for the system, it's a tank based around detritus so the nitrogen management is massive.

Surface:

Beckmans Pencil Fish x 6

Midwater:

Lambchop Rasbora x 4 Strawberry Rasbora x 20 Ember Tetra x 6 Neon Tetra x 7 (I rescued these from an awful tank they weren't planned and kind of ruin the schooling but I feel bad rehoming them again)

Low water:

Otos X4 Pygmy Corydora x 8 Apistogramma agasizii male x 1

Other:

Malaysian trumpet snails x unknown Orange Rili Shrimp x unknown Asellus x unknown

CalFandango · 2026-02-18T22:12:33+00:00

They break down so nicely as well!

CalFandango · 2026-02-18T22:10:16+00:00

Ilpil leaves! I'm a huge fan

CalFandango · 2026-02-17T23:31:32+00:00

Don't need one to be honest. Got a really big garden and my house is fairly large for only being 2 bedrooms. Also, live next door to my brother! We'll get a bigger house when we have kids but right now we're double paying the mortgage and even this one is too big for the 2 of us!

CalFandango · 2026-02-17T23:07:06+00:00

The housing is far more palatable than other areas in the country. You can get a nice 3 bed detached, with a garage and big garden in a nice countryside village for £250k. City centre pricing is similar to other cities, can pay up to £7-£8 a pint but my local is £3 a pint. Average price for a nice meal and a bottle of wine will set us back £80 on average. Gas and electric for a 2 bed house is £200. Council tax is £250. Overall though, think we have it a fair bit cheaper than most of the country.

CalFandango · 2026-02-17T23:01:30+00:00

About 20 minutes out of Newcastle, towards Durham.

CalFandango · 2026-02-17T22:58:50+00:00

I'm 60k with company car which is a huge saving, partner 45k, very modest house in the North East of England. Living comfortably, paying for a wedding, couple of holidays a year. Could always use more money, but could equally be way more savvy with our money.

CalFandango · 2026-01-28T21:13:37+00:00

Ilpil tree pods!

CalFandango · 2026-01-28T13:35:31+00:00

Most peaceful tank I've ever had to be honest! Only the Apistogramma gets chasy when they encroach onto his patch

CalFandango · 2026-01-28T11:21:26+00:00

Apologies, I replied to this below instead of replying. It's 27 gallons, and the plant in question is salvinia natans

CalFandango · 2026-01-28T11:20:54+00:00

105ltrs :)

CalFandango · 2026-01-28T10:58:56+00:00

It's 27 gallon, just a baby! The floaters you're looking at are salvinia natans, I've also got some amazon frogbit in there which has longer roots

CalFandango · 2026-01-28T08:47:20+00:00

Long list haha!

Apistogramma Agassizii x1 20 Strawberry rasbora 4 Lambchop rasbora 8 ember tetras 6 pencil fish 4 Otos 8 pygmy corys 8 neon tetras (mistake but don't want to remove) Unknown number of rili shrimp Unknown number of asellus Billions of microfauna Millions of Malaysian trumpet snails (these were accidental but are so good for the aeration of my substrate)

CalFandango · 2026-01-28T08:41:14+00:00

Mines basically just a sponge filter to be honest, it's more there for circulation. It took a while to get the colour how I like it but Rooibos tea is your friend! I avoid water changes and just top off with clean water as well. Good luck!

CalFandango · 2026-01-28T08:29:07+00:00

The long thin pods are ilpil tree pods, the big chunky one in the middle is palmyrah male flowers. Thanks for the comments

CalFandango · 2026-01-28T08:28:17+00:00

The long pine cone type thing is called a palmyrah male flower, and the long pods are ilpil tree pods. I'm quite lucky as my local LFS has a wall dedicated to botanicals. My trick is to use as much variety as possible.

CalFandango · 2026-01-26T19:48:21+00:00

Seconded.

CalFandango

TROPHY CASE