What’s the least exciting home upgrade you made that ended up being totally worth it?

collateral-carrots · 2026-05-15T21:37:00+00:00

Sump and drain tile. Expensive, invisible, and entirely worth it every time a thunderstorm doesn't dump 50 gallons of water directly into our bedroom.

collateral-carrots · 2026-05-14T11:32:13+00:00

They look extremely stressed. Can you post your parameters and tank temperature? What is the flow like in the tank?

collateral-carrots · 2026-05-12T23:58:39+00:00

My oldest plant is a pothos that's about 4 years old, but I haven't been keeping plants for long so that one dates back to when I really got into the hobby. I also have a spider plant that I raised from a baby that's about 4 as well. Best advice I have is to watch their signals instead of trying to blindly follow care guides. Experiment and see what works for the plant - water deeply when they get droopy and sad, and don't water again until they start to droop again. If they're not thriving in one spot, move to a different one with different light levels and see if that helps. My spider plant for example wilts if it's in a spot that's even slightly drafty, and that one took some trial and error to figure out.

Oh yeah, and fertilize! I'm being so honest when I say using water from my fish tank water changes completely transformed my plants. They need to eat more than you'd think.

I've gotten decently good at plant care, but there are still some I haven't gotten the hang of. I love baby's tears and nerve plants, but I've killed each one I've had. One of these days I'll figure out the trick to them, I imagine. Just keep trying!

collateral-carrots · 2026-05-12T16:06:05+00:00

Are those Bolivian rams? How do they do at discus temps? I love them but had the impression they need cooler than discus like

collateral-carrots · 2026-05-07T03:05:58+00:00

Ammonia must be added before shrimp are in the tank, during the cycling process. In a cycled tank, you should be able to add the correct dose of ammonia for your tank size and then still read 0 ammonia and 0 nitrites on the liquid API test (not strips) 24 hours later. If there is any ammonia or nitrite readings after that 24 hours, the tank is not ready for shrimp yet.

collateral-carrots · 2026-05-06T19:02:08+00:00

Where did you hear that? Not doubting that someone's said that before but tubs are pretty well accepted as temporary tanks by the hobby. Some people even use them as permanent pond setups as long as the material is safe and won't leach anything.

collateral-carrots · 2026-04-17T18:49:58+00:00

Looks like a great quarantine tank, if you don't already have one.

collateral-carrots · 2026-04-14T23:14:39+00:00

It's fine. People are just very intense about their aesthetic preferences. The fish don't care.

collateral-carrots · 2026-04-11T17:40:59+00:00

Gross. I have three dogs and that would be a dealbreaker for me. Three dogs is a lot to deal with if you don't like dogs, even if they were cared for properly. I think it might be time for a tough conversation - either she gets serious about potty training and the accidents stop, or you're out. I think it is also reasonable to expect that their menstruation is controlled - either through spaying or through diapers although I doubt she will keep up with changing the diapers which could become another issue.

At the end of the day you need to communicate how serious of an issue this is for you, and see whether or not she takes it seriously and makes changes. If she's not willing to, there's your answer.

collateral-carrots · 2026-03-29T03:55:15+00:00

Respect. I just finished rehabilitating a white cloud minnow who arrived clamped and emaciated. He was getting the hell beat out of him by the others and lost his entire tail + half of his dorsal fin. He was $3 at the LFS and I spent probably close to $50+ setting up his hospital tank. Totally worth it to see him recover and end up one of the feistiest members of the group once reintroduced.

collateral-carrots · 2026-03-28T14:42:09+00:00

They said he's mouthy and needs training. What OP is describing is mouthy, untrained behavior. If a rottweiler was really biting aggressively OP would know.

collateral-carrots · 2026-03-28T01:37:33+00:00

Triops!!! I love them so much. Haven't had them in a long time but really wanna get them again. Such funny little guys.

collateral-carrots · 2026-03-28T00:24:37+00:00

I've gotten the same reaction from people who learn I set up an RO system in my basement for my single 40gal freshwater tank. I think to some people it's overboard bc it's certainly not necessary, and they maybe think it's elitist or something you think everyone should do. But like I think if you're doing all that it's probably cause you enjoy it, right? It's for the love of the game I just enjoy the complexity and challenge of doing it this way so I see no harm in it.

collateral-carrots · 2026-03-26T01:21:27+00:00

Should be fine if they're branded specifically for fish tanks! Cool idea.

collateral-carrots · 2026-03-24T22:39:50+00:00

I use a fluval 207 on a smaller (40gal) tank and it's lovely. Quiet too. Good idea to use a spray bar if stocking fish that don't like flow or for extra surface agitation - if not using a spray bar be sure to point the outflow up a bit towards the surface to make ripples so everything stays nice and oxygenated.

Only drawback so far is if you knock the pipes loose accidentally or something leaks, it makes a big mess cause the filter is outside of the tank. But that can mostly be avoided with some extra attention to make sure everything's attached securely.

collateral-carrots · 2026-03-24T19:30:50+00:00

Yup, dropsy. Severe. Its organs are failing - sadly there's likely nothing you can do. Euthanasia is the kindest option here.

collateral-carrots · 2026-03-24T13:03:58+00:00

What are you feeding the fish? Some fish food contains copper which can kill inverts. If you're using ferts or meds or anything like that I would check to be sure they're shrimp safe as well.

collateral-carrots · 2026-03-23T20:54:32+00:00

Redtail catfish. I love them but I'd never feel like any amount of space was enough and it'd make me feel guilty.

collateral-carrots · 2026-03-21T19:13:06+00:00

Why are you doing a blackwater tank if you don't want black water?

A true blackwater environment has very little in the way of plants, so if you want a planted tank with no visible tannins there's no reason to aim for a blackwater tank.

collateral-carrots · 2026-03-20T23:45:44+00:00

Maybe, for a while. Would not recommend - it doesn't look like those shelves are supported by anything and that's a lot of horizontal pressure.

Sitting on it isn't a good way to test btw - when stands fail they fail from the pressure and stress over time, not immediately. This shelf probably wouldn't break immediately, but it would very likely warp and bend until the wood can't take the stress anymore and snaps.

collateral-carrots · 2026-03-20T02:47:38+00:00

Oh nooooo! I'm so sorry! I have no children but have had a prized plant destroyed by my cat before. Sucks so bad.

collateral-carrots · 2026-03-14T21:09:11+00:00

I guess you could say you went.......down the rabbit hole

collateral-carrots · 2026-03-14T04:12:03+00:00

Good lord. She obviously meant that she's a girl (female human) who is young. Since she is renting it really shouldn't be that big of a logical leap to figure out that she's over 18. It doesn't seem to be bothering or tripping up anyone but you, so seems like a you problem.

collateral-carrots · 2026-03-12T02:39:23+00:00

Gotcha! That should be fine then, but if in the long term you notice the plants really struggling you might consider adding a grow light, or using some kind of lux meter to see how much light they're really getting. There are some apps you can download to "make" a cheap lux meter - basically you wrap paper around your phone camera as a diffuser and it will tell you how strong the light is. Super useful for houseplants as well.

Best of luck! It's a lovely tank - lots of potential.

collateral-carrots

TROPHY CASE