My Sterba's do this, too. I was lucky enough to catch them mating (a pair in the "T" configuration) and laying eggs. The female held her ventral fins together and 2 or 3 eggs would pop into her clasped fins. Then she'd go find a spot for them and deposit them, usually on the glass, sometim...

I'd heard that HOT tap water looks cloudier than COLD tap water because of metal ions picked up while the water was in the water heater. I add lukewarm, treated tap water during my water changes and I use cold water if the water's going to sit for a couple days. Don't some people use those lead stri...

My favorite newb mistake: buying plants way too big for my tank. I've had these Hygros for a couple months, and they grow much faster than my corymbosa. (LFS sold them as "Giant Hygro"... maybe I should've looked up the definition of "Giant" lol) I've been letting them grow emerg...

I guess I'm not really building a "nano tank" as much as I'm just going to try to grow some plants in a large glass of water, hehe. I was planning on not using a filter of any kind. I guess I'll be lucky to get anything to grow. I seem to remember some pics (maybe from our gallery) of some...

Maybe it's just because I have only had really ultra fast growing stem plants so far.... I considered the hygros to be kinda slow. Alright.... so I have no patience :roll: Downoi and blyxa japonica sound pretty good and appeal to me. I'd thought about putting in a sprig of Rotala, just never thought...

Just looking for general comments and experiences from you guys that have planted very small aquariums. What plants have worked and not worked? How do you deliver CO2 to such a small setup? Do you bother? I was thinking of trying Hemianthus callrichitoides and a stem of myriophyllum or a small bit o...

Those are nice lights for the price. I have several. For a while I was worried I just found bargain-priced garbage. That's usually the case when I find a "steal." The unit should arrive this week; I'll let y'all know how it goes. That's a heck of a price if they're bright enough for aquar...

There is also something known as Schultz Aquasoil you may be able to pick up at a Lowes or Home Depot, it is not black or dark gray but more of a natural color. I tried out the Schulz stuff (if that's what I think it is, I need to check the bag, I may have thrown it out). Think they called it "...

Merrifield Garden Center has "Organic Sphagnum Peat Moss" sold in cubic foot parcels. Lots more than you need, but it's cheap.

I was going to build my own small fixture for a tiny planted betta bowl. It's only about half a gallon. (BTW, glass ice buckets make nice big betta bowls.) Now I'm betting a halogen would just cook the fish, and the spectrum seems a bit more red-biased than is ideal. I played with a halogen utility ...