Fish Tank and Fish

Tropical Fish and Tank

I now have a 190ltr, bow front, black tropical fish tank. Sand substrate, plants and wood.

190ltr Bow Front

I love my tank, but one thing I do not love and would not get again is the brand of tank I have which I was talked into getting by my local pest/fish shop, who stocked this brand. Fish R fun.

Now, after having it for one year, only being able to get the replacement filter media and bulbs from him (or over the net) I wish I had just got a juwel like I was going to in the first place. One of the doors has broken (I have two young daughters), one of the bulbs blows every few months, the glass scratches super easy and it has its own filtration system built in which from the picture you can see at the rear right the suction tube which takes the water up and into the 4 stage box filter which is located in the rear top of the tank out of the water under a removal lid.

Now for space saving this appeared great, but when I had it up and running it just could not pump the water back out the other side, rear left, with any great power and didn't create much current or disturbance to the water or surface. I battled with this for weeks as my fish kept going to the surface for air. The outlet for the water from the filter only drops into the water two inches so basically the water comes out and creates next to no flow or air.

I ended up combating it by putting an air pump in which you can see front left rising from the rocks.

So I am now waiting a few months and then will be doing the dreaded switch again to another tank. I would strongly advise against getting anything fish R fun if anyone has considered it. I have read so many bad reports on their stuff, made in Asia I believe, since I have had this tank. Id be interested to know if anyone else has had one of these tanks and what they thought?

As far as fish go, I have a lovely set up and community of angel fish, rosey barbs, rams, silver sharks, gourami's, dwarf and pearl as well as plecos, sucking loaches, corys, flying foxes, torpedo barbs and banjo catfish and two silver dollars.

Blue and German Rams, Flying Foxes and Torpedo Barb

I feed them on dried tetra fish flakes, blood work, brine shrimp, catfish pellets, and frozen peas defrosted with the shells removed, which they love!

I have stopped keeping live bearing fish such as swordtail's as the guilt was to much if they had them in the tank before I had got them into the breeding tank lol.

Thanks for reading

My Tropical fish

I have been trying for months to be there at the right moment when one of my female swordtails was ready to give birth, and last night that happened.

I now have 33 baby orange swordtails, they are lovely, very large eyes.

I already have 17 guppy babies.

Also on thursday gone I went and added two sucking loaches to my tank and two paradise fish. I am now however more then ever having urges to up upsize my tank, I have 130litres at the moment, if only I had the room and time I would love to spend all my time with my fish...maybe this is the career path I should have chosen.

Whats id really like is baby neon tetras but I am told this is a difficult task as they scatter their eggs, how would I know when they were ready to do that, I dont know?

I also need to find out if all fish cycle through pregnancies at the same rate?

Darren
My area of Knowledge