Big Worm's tank - Page 11 - APE - Aquatic Plant Enthusiasts

chillplants · 12-13-2009, 09:08 PM

Here is a picture of "the other" eel. He had himself buried in the sand with just his head sticking out.

chillplants · 01-12-2010, 10:41 PM

Time for an update-
Both eels are still alive and well. I bought some live blackworms tonight as a special treat. Big Worm came out and almost took the worms from the tweezers before I had a chance to drop them. That got me curious to see if I can coax them to eat from my hand sometime in the future.
I finally gave up on the glosso and pulled it out. No matter what I did, it always grew straight up instead of sideways. The E. tennellus 'micro' is growing like crazy. I have found several runners that go up under the cave and pop out on the other side. I doesn't seem to mind the darkness under there.
I raised the light several inches to try and clear some BBA several weeks ago. The BBA went away, but several plants started to die. I lost most of my Blyxa on the left side and almost lost my Limno sp 'Mini'. I replanted some Blyxa "twigs" in the same area hoping I can get that spot back in shape. I put the legs back on the light and repositioned it on top of the tank last week. For now, I'm only using 2 of the bulbs (instead of 4) to see if I can keep the BBA from coming back.
I've also been having a major issue with cloudy water for some reason. I'm not sure if the eels are digging around stirring up dust from the substrate or if there is some other underlying issue. I have been dealing with green dust algae for about a month. I stuck to a strict dosing regimen and water change schedule. I finally stopped scraping everything and just let it go to see if it would resolve on its own. Last week I added 8 otos and they have been busy. Tonight was the first night I didn't see any dust algae on the glass. Not sure which of the many things I have tried helped, but I'm glad to see it finally disappearing. Now if I could just get rid of the cloudy water everything would be great.
Here's a few pics I took earlier.
FTS

Top shelf above the cave-crypts are filling in nicely, many are sending out runners with new plants popping up all over the place.

Jumbo Shrimp · 01-20-2010, 08:33 PM

very natural, i like it

Jdinh04 · 01-20-2010, 08:39 PM

Looks nice! What a coincidence that we put both Crypt spiralis dwarf in the same location.

chillplants · 01-20-2010, 08:52 PM

Thanks guys. I thought about putting the spiralis on the top shelf, but figured it would get too big there and disrupt water flow and/or light. I have some other crypts in the back that will eventually get tall, but they are slow growers just like all the other crypts.
I'm happy to report that the cloudy water went away. I ran my diatom filter for an hour 2 days in a row, then did a big water change last weekend. So far the water has stayed crystal clear.

I'm still trying to get the eels to at least take live blackworms from my long tweezers. The skinny one (I really need to come up with a name for him) is getting brave and stays in sight as I come in with worms. He hasn't tried to take them from me, but he does patiently wait for me to drop them real close to his head. Big Worm is still a little skiddish and takes off into the safety of the cave if I get too close.

hydrophyte · 01-20-2010, 10:57 PM

As usual your tank is looking great. I hadn't seen that update from 1-12. If you have a moment some time you oughta snap a few more pictures now that the water has cleared.

I really want to set up a tank with some kind of strange oddball fish--but where would I put it? I saw an African lungfish at the store the other day and it was extremely cool. It was at the second-rate LFS and I hope that the thing will find a good home. I would have scooped it up if I had any way to accommodate it.

chillplants · 01-21-2010, 09:30 PM

New pics by request. The haze is from the lights, not cloudy water-

A couple pics of Skinny hanging out in the moss

A few of the cleaning crew. The otos swim in groups in this tank. I've never seen this in my other tanks, but I guess there aren't any real threats in the other tanks.

Another shot of the upper shelf. I wish I could get a good pic from above the tank but the light reflections always ruin the shot.

chillplants · 01-23-2010, 11:05 AM

I was trying to get some pics last night to show how much the eels have grown. Skinny was an easy target, he's always swimming in the open.

Big Worm was not. You can sort of see his head in this pic.

chillplants · 02-07-2010, 03:25 PM

I was cleaning the tank today and decided to take the opportunity to get an overhead shot of the top shelf of crypts. These plants have been growing slow and steady. As you can see, they are starting to really fill in the upper shelf.

FTS-

AquaZilla · 02-07-2010, 03:39 PM

Geez!! What plant steroids do you feed them?

12-13-2009, 09:08 PM	#101 (permalink)
chillplants Aquatic Plant Enthusiast Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Gainesville, FL Posts: 423	Here is a picture of "the other" eel. He had himself buried in the sand with just his head sticking out. __________________ 125 gal 75 gal eel tank

01-12-2010, 10:41 PM	#102 (permalink)
chillplants Aquatic Plant Enthusiast Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Gainesville, FL Posts: 423	Time for an update- Both eels are still alive and well. I bought some live blackworms tonight as a special treat. Big Worm came out and almost took the worms from the tweezers before I had a chance to drop them. That got me curious to see if I can coax them to eat from my hand sometime in the future. I finally gave up on the glosso and pulled it out. No matter what I did, it always grew straight up instead of sideways. The E. tennellus 'micro' is growing like crazy. I have found several runners that go up under the cave and pop out on the other side. I doesn't seem to mind the darkness under there. I raised the light several inches to try and clear some BBA several weeks ago. The BBA went away, but several plants started to die. I lost most of my Blyxa on the left side and almost lost my Limno sp 'Mini'. I replanted some Blyxa "twigs" in the same area hoping I can get that spot back in shape. I put the legs back on the light and repositioned it on top of the tank last week. For now, I'm only using 2 of the bulbs (instead of 4) to see if I can keep the BBA from coming back. I've also been having a major issue with cloudy water for some reason. I'm not sure if the eels are digging around stirring up dust from the substrate or if there is some other underlying issue. I have been dealing with green dust algae for about a month. I stuck to a strict dosing regimen and water change schedule. I finally stopped scraping everything and just let it go to see if it would resolve on its own. Last week I added 8 otos and they have been busy. Tonight was the first night I didn't see any dust algae on the glass. Not sure which of the many things I have tried helped, but I'm glad to see it finally disappearing. Now if I could just get rid of the cloudy water everything would be great. Here's a few pics I took earlier. FTS Top shelf above the cave-crypts are filling in nicely, many are sending out runners with new plants popping up all over the place. __________________ 125 gal 75 gal eel tank

01-20-2010, 08:33 PM	#103 (permalink)
Jumbo Shrimp Planted Tank Guru Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Punta Gorda, Florida Posts: 260	very natural, i like it __________________ 17 GLA 60L Planted Shrimp 17 GLA 60L Reef 5.5 LED Pico Reef

01-20-2010, 08:39 PM	#104 (permalink)
Jdinh04 Moderator Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Okemos, MI Posts: 268	Looks nice! What a coincidence that we put both Crypt spiralis dwarf in the same location. __________________ AquaScapist.com Planted Aquarium Blog & Resource

01-20-2010, 08:52 PM	#105 (permalink)
chillplants Aquatic Plant Enthusiast Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Gainesville, FL Posts: 423	Thanks guys. I thought about putting the spiralis on the top shelf, but figured it would get too big there and disrupt water flow and/or light. I have some other crypts in the back that will eventually get tall, but they are slow growers just like all the other crypts. I'm happy to report that the cloudy water went away. I ran my diatom filter for an hour 2 days in a row, then did a big water change last weekend. So far the water has stayed crystal clear. I'm still trying to get the eels to at least take live blackworms from my long tweezers. The skinny one (I really need to come up with a name for him) is getting brave and stays in sight as I come in with worms. He hasn't tried to take them from me, but he does patiently wait for me to drop them real close to his head. Big Worm is still a little skiddish and takes off into the safety of the cave if I get too close. __________________ 125 gal 75 gal eel tank Last edited by chillplants; 01-20-2010 at 08:56 PM.

01-20-2010, 10:57 PM	#106 (permalink)
hydrophyte Planted Tank Guru Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Madison, WI Posts: 448	As usual your tank is looking great. I hadn't seen that update from 1-12. If you have a moment some time you oughta snap a few more pictures now that the water has cleared. I really want to set up a tank with some kind of strange oddball fish--but where would I put it? I saw an African lungfish at the store the other day and it was extremely cool. It was at the second-rate LFS and I hope that the thing will find a good home. I would have scooped it up if I had any way to accommodate it. __________________ Hydrophyte

01-21-2010, 09:30 PM	#107 (permalink)
chillplants Aquatic Plant Enthusiast Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Gainesville, FL Posts: 423	New pics by request. The haze is from the lights, not cloudy water- A couple pics of Skinny hanging out in the moss A few of the cleaning crew. The otos swim in groups in this tank. I've never seen this in my other tanks, but I guess there aren't any real threats in the other tanks. Another shot of the upper shelf. I wish I could get a good pic from above the tank but the light reflections always ruin the shot. __________________ 125 gal 75 gal eel tank

01-23-2010, 11:05 AM	#108 (permalink)
chillplants Aquatic Plant Enthusiast Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Gainesville, FL Posts: 423	I was trying to get some pics last night to show how much the eels have grown. Skinny was an easy target, he's always swimming in the open. Big Worm was not. You can sort of see his head in this pic. __________________ 125 gal 75 gal eel tank

02-07-2010, 03:25 PM	#109 (permalink)
chillplants Aquatic Plant Enthusiast Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Gainesville, FL Posts: 423	I was cleaning the tank today and decided to take the opportunity to get an overhead shot of the top shelf of crypts. These plants have been growing slow and steady. As you can see, they are starting to really fill in the upper shelf. FTS- __________________ 125 gal 75 gal eel tank

02-07-2010, 03:39 PM	#110 (permalink)
AquaZilla Administrator Join Date: Feb 2009 Posts: 2,736	*Geez!! What plant steroids do you feed them?* __________________ The Planted Aquarium Blog

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