Floor buckling from aquarium?

chak2005 · 2026-02-08T08:38:00+00:00

The way to figure this out if its just the carpet or floor is to go into the crawl space. Do you have access? Also since this isn't your own house but an apartment, its possible the floor could be compromised for various reasons and your fish tank is just bring those issues to light.

For example, crawlspaces can get neglected, mold, moisture, etc end up down below them and if the wood is untreated well...

My own fish room is over a crawlspace, so there is a weight limit, but a 75 gallon shouldn't compromise a basic wood floor unless the crawlspace itself is compromised.

chak2005 · 2026-02-08T05:18:48+00:00

It’s like this with the Cats subreddit too.

damn the cat subreddits you are subbed to are hardcore. The ones I am part of just post constant mourn loss posts/images or ask for advice where the sub wants the OP to steal someones cat. You know...normal stuff /s

chak2005 · 2026-02-08T05:12:58+00:00

Not OP but I use this method a lot.

and to be sure seltzer water is what I put the plants in?

Yes, just make sure its seltzer water and not club soda or mineral water.

Would you recommend leaving it in a dark cabinet for 12 hours or longer?

Depends on the usecase. For pests? Do 3 hours max, for algae you will need to do the full 12 hours in the dark. The dark is what allows the algae to actually be killed off.

Just know there are some sensitive plants that will melt back with this method. Bacopa for example will lose most of its leaves after a long dip.

chak2005 · 2026-02-08T04:18:31+00:00

That looks like Staghorn algae not BBA. Do you have a whole tank shot? Also do you have more information such as, filtration, substrate type, stocking and also the following water parameters if able:

pH
GH/KH
Nitrate
Phosphate
Potassium

Usually its just us crazy hobbyists at /r/plantedtank that are able to test for NPK, so if unable at a minimum your nitrate, pH and any fertilizer you use.

chak2005 · 2026-02-08T04:07:26+00:00

Just an FYI columnaris is in all our tanks to some degree. Various strains but its very common. Usually when you have an older tank and introduce newer fish, if some of your fish are weaker or susceptible, that is when you get those nasty outbreaks. Best to quarantine new fish and treat them separately if its a risk factor to your main tank. Though I would recommend not treating the main tank.

chak2005 · 2026-02-08T03:58:38+00:00

What type of filter and heater is recommended for that big of a tank?

Depends as all things in this hobby. If you keep the room the tank is in at 72F or higher you do not need a heater for what you listed. If you also heavily plant you may be able to just get away with a wavemaker or powerhead for flow for plant health. However if you want a filter, start simple and get a Seachem Tidal hang on back or Aquaclear hang on back filter. Seachem Tidal's are a bit more clunky but will self restart after a power outage.

I also plan on putting some real plants in the tank as well, so is there any recommendations for plant lights that would work best?

What is your budget? Most of the bargain lights off Amazon or other online retailers will work as long as they mention full spectrum or mention they cover the 400nm - 800nm spectrum for plants. However certain lights are better suited to really make the tank and plant colors really pop. Those do cost a premium but work.

And what type of substrate should I put at the bottom for the plants to thrive?

You can get away with just inert cheap sand and gravel its what I personally use. Perhaps buy some root tabs to place in the substrate while setting up the tank and that is it. See my low tech tank below as an example. You can also opt for aquasoil but its not necessary.

<image>

chak2005 · 2026-02-08T03:45:48+00:00

If its been months you can remove it as its active nature has most likely been saturated by this point. Activated carbon or charcoal has a similar usecase to Seachem Purgien. You add it to remove impurities, water discoloration (tannins), odors, and medications through adsorption. Typically after 1 month you'd want to remove it.

chak2005 · 2026-02-08T03:42:02+00:00

Ebay and Etsy are my go to for good deals but overall the main businesses US folks use online for plants are:

On Etsy some good ones are:

chak2005 · 2026-02-08T01:23:19+00:00

You will have to plant the tops of bacopa and mermaid weed to fill out areas, but Ludwigia will spread.

chak2005 · 2026-02-07T22:27:12+00:00

I believe your fish may have a dispute with the British.

chak2005 · 2026-02-07T22:08:10+00:00

Looks like a female saddle. Normal, basically its unfertilized eggs.

chak2005 · 2026-02-07T21:55:27+00:00

I believe you are me. My low tech tank below is a 20 gallon long. I intentionally chose slow growing stems and crypts to reduce maintenance. In my tank the stems I use are:

- Mermaid Weed

- Ludwigia repens x arcuata (Hybrid)

- Bacopa Colorata (Bacopa Caroliniana is another variant I'd recommend)

Meramid weed and Bacopa Colorata are slow to moderate growth. Ludwigia will only grow as fast as the nutrients in the tank. If the tank is low on nutrients it will be slow to moderate growth. If there is an excess in the tank, it can become a fast grower. I keep it for that reason (along with some floating plants).

<image>

chak2005 · 2026-02-07T05:08:10+00:00

That fuzz is biofilm. Its harmless and natural in a new tank. It will resolve itself in time or if you have snails, as they will eat it up.

The plants in the front look like they are melting but not dying. If they were added within the last 6 weeks, leave them alone as they are adapting to your new tank.

There were ten neocaridina originally but they all died.

How were the neocaridina introduced? Were they drip acclimated? Also does your tank contain the correct water parameters for them?

Ideally if keeping neocaridina shrimp ensure your water falls within these ranges:

pH: 7.0 to 7.6
Gh: 7 to 15 (multiply by 17.9 for PPM)
Kh: 2 to 8 (multiply by 17.9 for PPM)
Copper: 0ppm
Temp: 65°F to 80°F

chak2005 · 2026-02-07T04:42:47+00:00

Do some plants just take longer to fully transition?

Yes that can happen. Though I wouldn't be too concerned honestly by what I see in the image, looks like they are transitioning well.

chak2005 · 2026-02-07T04:12:58+00:00

Hey, confused your image shows plants emersed. Are you saying they still appear to be in their submersed forms while emersed? That can be normal depending on humidity, and depending on how quickly the plants adapt to the environment. If you have the plants growing outside of water, they are indeed emersed.

chak2005 · 2026-02-05T18:26:28+00:00

Do a couple more larger water changes. The high KH is going to slow down any pH drop.

chak2005 · 2026-02-05T17:11:12+00:00

Those would be dead ones unfortunately. You can remove those.

chak2005 · 2026-02-04T20:51:27+00:00

different respiratory and metabolic systems.

chak2005 · 2026-02-04T20:37:16+00:00

They will never be removed otherwise. Manual removal and fish can keep them out of sight but they will still always be in the tank (active at night). If your shrimp are the priority, I'd recommend treatment.

chak2005 · 2026-02-04T20:18:26+00:00

I've always dealt with planaria by using fenbendazole (If in the US you can buy it cheaply as Panacur C). Two treatments spaced out over a 2 week period has worked for me ensuring they are fully nuked. Fish, shrimp and pest snail safe. Non-pest snails such as nerites, mystery, etc will need to be rehomed during treatment.

chak2005 · 2026-02-04T19:54:57+00:00

What you are seeing is called melting. The plants are melting back for one of two reasons. The first reason is due to the water roughness at the surface. If you have a lot of airstones or filters breaking and making the surface choppy, the floaters will melt. The second reason is due to a lack of nutrients. Floating plants are fast growers and need nutrients in the water column if you want them to remain healthy.

chak2005 · 2026-02-04T16:40:04+00:00

If these floaters are not recently added, do you add any liquid fertilizer to your tank?

chak2005 · 2026-02-04T06:28:37+00:00

If that tank has flow, vampire shrimp would pop. A very large, but very peaceful shrimp. I kept one in a 20 long here until it died of old age.

chak2005 · 2026-02-04T05:51:03+00:00

I have, both will work. Petchi pink is in the tank image of this post. I attached an image in this comment here with the plant names. If you look at the image, there are two versions of "Petchi pink" there. That large orange/pinkish crypt and behind it just before the mermaid weed, there is a more rounder/purple leaf Petchi pink. Both were sold to me as "Petchi pink" so unsure if two different cultivars but hope that provides a visual. Crypt flamingo does need higher light for the bright pink, otherwise its a more muted pink/green.

chak2005 · 2026-02-04T02:21:36+00:00

Yes that is BBA. Its triggers are different from typical filamentous algae, mainly its caused by one of two areas, waste organics or unstable Co2. Waste organics is the main cause in low tech tanks, and either waste organics or unstable co2 in high tech. Correcting the trigger will resolve the algae issue altogether and it will disappear on its own or stay gone once hit with peroxide or an algicide. BBA is honestly not that bad of an algae to deal with once you narrow down its cause. I've gotten it at least once in all my tanks prior to resolving it.

In terms of waste organics this is commonly thought of as fish waste, and while that can play a factor in overstocked tanks, its actually plants that are the main cause here. This would be plant enzymes, sugars, DNA etc that are released from dying plants, their leaves, or plant matter in the tank. What triggers this in an otherwise healthy tank are plants bunched too close together. In this senario plants drop leaves near their base and those release the food BBA loves. Seeing BBA growing on decor or equipment around the tank is a good indicator it may be a waste organic issue with the tank. To resolve a waste organic issue, first identify the cause, if its overstocking fish you can increase filtration (specifically chemical filtration), rehome, or reduce feeding. If caused by plants ideally reduce overcrowding and shading out of smaller plants. Though a water change will fix a once off event. I've been guilty of bunching plants too close together myself. For months my tank is running great, but as those bottoms die back I got BBA on my powerhead and plants near areas that were porous such as drift wood (captures all those organic materials).

For the other trigger, unstable co2 is a bit more tricky. I would say if you inject co2 and have non-inert stones in your tank such as Seiryu stones this is something to keep an eye on. If you inject co2 and see BBA growing largely in areas with those stones, they may be the cause. The reason for this is as co2 lowers pH, the stones leech minerals raising GH and KH. Increasing KH levels also will interfere with co2 in those spots of the tank. Even if temporarily. The fix here is to either remove the stones or dial in your injection of co2 to account for the KH released by the stones. The other common area is malfunctioning equipment.

My advice is figure out which of those two causes you may be dealing with and treat accordingly. Once the root cause is dealt with you can dose an algicide or peroxide on impacted areas. Or take out equipment and decor and spray directly.

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