I was needing something else to add to the aquarium these days, so I though I would head out and see about picking up some schooling fish. I was thinking neon tetras since they are pretty colorful.

At PetSmart the guy I talked to mentioned that they just got their neon tetra shipment and he was still seeing a big die off. It was likely that some or all the fish I bought wouldn’t make it.

Instead I got directed toward the Black Neon Tetra tank.

I watched them a few minutes and decided to get a group of five for the tank. So far I really like them. They mainly stick together, are a little smaller than the rest of the fish, but are just as active. In the store I couldn’t see it, but in my tank I see that they are a really cool silver color, with a blue and a black stripe down their sides.

Today I got out to PetSmart and picked out a couple more fish. I got a Sunburst Wag Platy, and a Red Long Fin Tetra. I’m still trying to get the crayfish too. Those are going to be awesome.

Tonight, for the first time since setting it up, I cleaned my new tank.

My new gravel siphon is awesome and did an excellent job. Strong sucking power meant none of the crud got backwashed into the tank. Of course, the bigger tank means more water to remove and to more water to add back. I didn’t let the water sit overnight to off-gas like I usually do. Just to do the 30% flush I needed three buckets of water. I did add some dechlorinator though. I’ll see how this water change goes, and if nothing disastrous happens, I’ll likely do the same procedure next time.

Last weekend I had a few minutes to spare, so my daughter and I headed out to Petsmart to get some new fish for the tank. Unfortunately the big Platy I had that had grown from a baby had just died. I was hoping to get some friends for him, but ended up getting a replacement.

Before visiting the store I had two Albino Cory’s, two Leopard Danio’s, and a Tequila Sunrise Guppy. I ended up buying two more fancy Guppies, and two Sunburst Platy’s. The guppies are a beautiful blue color, with bright red tails. The Platy’s are a softer orange, with a black spot on the tail, but one of them didn’t make the transition. In total I now have 8 fish in my 30 gallon tank.

The extra fish in the tank make a huge difference. The whole tank seems much more alive and full of movement. It is awesome having the bigger tank.

Now, to get those crayfish from my co-worker!

I finally got my new tank all set up and my fish moved in. Way back at Christmas my family got me a new 30 gallon tank setup. It has been sitting in my bedroom until very recently.

Right after Christmas I got a stand, but it took until March for me to get around to setting it up. Then, while assembling the stand I had a few issues and had to wait for replacement parts. It took a couple weeks but I got them, and the tank stand got assembled.

Sometime soon after I got the supplies I needed. New gravel, new decorations, and a new gravel siphon.

Then we had to figure out where to put it. The wall we chose had out furnace thermostat on it, so we waited for the appointment with the electrician, and got him to move it. That was last week.

Monday night I got the tank centred on the wall, cleaned the gravel, set up the filter, and the heater, and plugged it all in. I definitely need more decorations, but what I have is a good start. I let everything settle for 24 hours, then, last night I moved two of my six fish in. These were my test subjects. Since they made it through the night, I moved the rest of my fish in this morning.

Once everything has stabilized I can start thinking about more fish. I am thinking maybe more guppies, or maybe a few neon tetra’s. A small school of fish would look pretty cool. A Molly might be a good fit as well. I read somewhere that a Dwarf Gourami might be a good fit.

One thing I am really looking forward too is the crayfish. A coworker has a bunch of them that have been breeding in his tank. He has offered any amount to anyone who wants them since he has too many. Apparently they look something like this.

Approximately two weeks ago, my big Platy died. I think it was most likely old age. I had it for quite a while. The rest of the tank is doing well though. The baby Platy is growing like crazy. He no longer hangs out in the weeds, but swims with the rest of the fish. It even feeds on the flake food when I drop it in. The Danio’s and the Guppy still do their thing, and the Cory’s still feed on the shrimp pellets.

The snail is still my favorite part of the tank. I love watching it motor around the tank and am constantly being surprised at the distances it travels between commercial breaks.

The increased sunlight of summertime brings increased algae growth so I have been cleaning the tank a little more often and a little more thoroughly.

Sprout has started helping me feed the fish too. He likes to give the Cory’s their pellet and can just reach above the rim of the thank to drop it in the water. In the next few months I will see if he wants to drop in the flake food too. I may not have to feed them all the time if my helper works out 🙂