# First Iwagumi! 56k UPDATE 1/13: Dario Dario!



## rengb6 (Nov 11, 2009)

Tank:2.5 gallon bow-front 
Lighting:27watt home depot light 
Filtration: red sea deco art nano filter 
Heater: Tetra Submersible Heater from doctor foster and smith
Substrate: flourite
Ferts: Excel and flourish whenever I remember to add them
CO2: DIY with 1/4 tsp yeast
Hardscape: granite stone (compliments of 7Matt7)
Flora:Eleocharis parvula and HC 
Fauna:Nothing yet but there will be 2 scarlet badis in there soon and maybe a few shrimp

So this tank has been a work in progress for a few months. It started out simply enough as a betta tank with a coconut cave and then I stumbled upon this site. I've decided to make a journal now that the tank hasn't become a complete flop. So I'll start from the beginning! 


This is the tank 3 days after set up on November 23rd when i finally finished planting all of the HC. 









I covered it to keep the moisture in and sprayed it with some fertz that I already had. 









I submerged the tank on Dec. 11









Here is the tank 8 days later on Dec. 19 










Then we got a huge blizzard on the east coast(20 inches and the most snow I've seen in my 18 years here!) and after some advice from others on the forum I decided to make the tank into an iwagumi. So thanks to 7Matt7 I received some great rocks and went to work! I added the home depot light here and it made a big difference! 

Here it as after getting the rocks its a bit cloudy because I added more flourite. December 29









and here it is January 4th










This is my first try with an iwagumi nano so your advice is much appreciated! Thanks for looking!


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## 7Matt7 (Feb 9, 2008)

I'm glad you like the rocks!  I personally think you've got the placement just right! It's grown in a LOT too. I can't wait to follow it's progress!

Great Job!!!


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## AlexXx (Dec 1, 2009)

where do you guys get these rocks! they look AMAZING!


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## rengb6 (Nov 11, 2009)

7Matt7 I believe collected them around where he lives. I couldn't find any here in MD because of the snow so I posted a thread in the "shop and swap" forum and actually got many responses from kind people willing to sell some extra rocks. It beats buying from stores online and paying a lot for shipping!

And thanks Matt! it took me a little while and I smashed one of the rocks but I'm happy with how it turned out! Maybe ill add some ghost shrimp today...


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## rengb6 (Nov 11, 2009)

I went to house of tropics and picked up some amano shrimp today!!! Amano shrimp are two things BIG and EXPENSIVE! I am sure that I got ripped off because they cost 9.98 EACH!!! I got 4 and that was 42$...but I didn't notice the price until I brought it to the register sooooo I couldn't decide not to buy the poor shrimp. There was a little hitchhiker in my bag but the man spotted it and put the poor little shrimp back. Any that store was amazing. It was my first visit to an aquarium store and this one specialized in salt water tanks. It got me thinking that maybe I will start one this summer! Now back to the shrimp, I believe that I have 2 females and 2 males. If my pictures are clear enough I would appreciate if those experienced with keeping amanos could help me sex them. My camera didn't want to focus on them so I did the best that I could. They settled in well and attacked the algae pellet that I threw in for them. So here are the pictures! I have heard that they are difficult to breed but maybe ill give it a try in a critter keeper that used to house my newts!


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## Dr. Acula (Oct 14, 2009)

I love the House of Tropicals. Their price on shrimp though, as you found out, is a tad high. That's if they have them in stock at all. Freshwater shrimp seem to be the one thing they can't be counted on for. And I saw the ten dollars a shrimp for the amanos. I was surprised, especially considering I had bought them from the same store a few months back for three a piece. Four each for cherries usually too. It would be cheaper to just get them online, but I'm impatient and pay for the convenience.

The tank looks great though. Growth is looking good, and I much prefer those rocks to the little hut. Nice and green, I like it.


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## rengb6 (Nov 11, 2009)

It was definitely a beautiful store! We were greeted by the biggest fish I have ever seen anywhere (minus the Baltimore aquarium) the thing was bigger than a basketball! I was impressed mostly, as I said, with their saltwater selection. I wish that I had gone a few months earlier like you and gotten them cheaper, I will never buy shrimp from them again thats for sure. But like you I prefer to pay for the convenience and also I wanted a small number of shrimp and most people on here sell 20+ and with shipping and everything it comes up to the same price. Hopefully they will live to the summer and I can concentrate on breeding them...thats if the scarlet badis that I am getting dont eat the poor shrimp although I bet the females are bigger than the scarlet badis will be. 

Thanks for the compliments! I'm happier with the scape now instead of the hut. 



Dr. Acula said:


> I love the House of Tropicals. Their price on shrimp though, as you found out, is a tad high. That's if they have them in stock at all. Freshwater shrimp seem to be the one thing they can't be counted on for. And I saw the ten dollars a shrimp for the amanos. I was surprised, especially considering I had bought them from the same store a few months back for three a piece. Four each for cherries usually too. It would be cheaper to just get them online, but I'm impatient and pay for the convenience.
> 
> The tank looks great though. Growth is looking good, and I much prefer those rocks to the little hut. Nice and green, I like it.


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## rengb6 (Nov 11, 2009)

I am thinking that I would have preferred red cherry shrimp maybe I will go to the shop and swap section and trade these guys for 4 cherries instead. Anyone have tips on shipping shrimp?


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## DarrylR (Oct 9, 2007)

rengb6 said:


> I am thinking that I would have preferred red cherry shrimp maybe I will go to the shop and swap section and trade these guys for 4 cherries instead. Anyone have tips on shipping shrimp?


Purchase kordon breather bags, via aquabid or kensfish or anyone else.
About a cup of water, add in a drop of prime, and a few sprigs of any moss for the shrimp to hang onto.
USPS boxes are free just pay shipping.
Cushion with newspaper, packaging peanuts, also a Styrofoam box if needed, as well as a heat pack.


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## rengb6 (Nov 11, 2009)

DarrylR said:


> Purchase kordon breather bags, via aquabid or kensfish or anyone else.
> About a cup of water, add in a drop of prime, and a few sprigs of any moss for the shrimp to hang onto.
> USPS boxes are free just pay shipping.
> Cushion with newspaper, packaging peanuts, also a Styrofoam box if needed, as well as a heat pack.


Thank you! that was very detailed!


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## Dragon.Tale (May 19, 2007)

Yikes!!! Near $10 for one Amano? Sorry, I can't help to chime in. If you are anywhere near Gaithersburg or in Montgomery County, go to Tropical Fish World at 16529 S Frederick Ave. The shrimps are 4 for $5. I got 8 a while ago and all are doing well and growing. Went back last week to get a couple more and found out they're still at the same price.

BTW, if anyone happens to be in the area, could you recommend a few LFS? Using Google Map, I could only find 3 around here. Tropical is a great store but I want to visit more!


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## rengb6 (Nov 11, 2009)

I ended up returning them. The lady gave me some trouble so she called the manager and after he checked out the shrimp to make sure they were all healthy and in fact Amano shrimp he asked me how much they were at other stores and he allowed me to return them! House of tropicals is a great aquarium store but the price of the shrimp was way to high! I would love some suggestions for fish stores in the area as well since that one was 40 minutes away!


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## Chafire (Jan 6, 2010)

HC looks like its coming along nicely, tried to grow it once and failed. Think when the weather becomes warmer I'll order it again and see if I have better luck. Tank looks great with the rocks too!


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## Nue (Dec 27, 2009)

That is a lot of amano. I bought mine for 2$ 
Also Nice start!


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## rengb6 (Nov 11, 2009)

Thanks Chafire! So far so good with the HC although my ex-amano shrimp uprooted some! Good luck with your future try, I'll be sure to take a look if you post a journal! 

Nue the amano were insanely priced! I didn't look at the price and just assumed the wouldn't come to more than 20$...WRONG! I'll wait awhile before buying more shrimp. 2$ seems a lot more reasonable than 10$. Thanks for the compliment!


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## JennaH (Sep 28, 2009)

If you're looking to get shrimp that will breed cherries will be your best bet.i believe amano larvae need brakish water to survive. the tank looks great! the foreground is filling in quickly


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## rengb6 (Nov 11, 2009)

Thanks! I'm so excited that the plants are working out and growing quickly. And yes I discovered that amano fry needed brackish water to develop AFTER I bought them. So much for my research! I'll get cherries eventually so my scarlet badis (that will arrive tomorrow!!!!!) can feed on the fry.


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## rengb6 (Nov 11, 2009)

Today I received 3 beautiful tiny scarlet badis from invertz factory and they are perfectly healthy and happy! Two of them stick together always and one is a loner. They have colored up a bit and are exploring and hiding and skittering around the tank all day! I'll post pictures of them later but first I have to get them eating! I tried live food first (mini worms that I got at the pet store) but they try to swim at the surface and when I push them under they die pretty quickly and the dario dario wont touch it when it dies...so I tried fish flakes that i sunk and pushed around the tank and they wont eat that either! But they did try to eat a piece of my HC that had come loose...So I need suggestions on feeding them. I spoke to someone from invertz and they said that the scarlet badis are fed frozen foods. I'll buy some tomorrow but does any one have strategies for feeding these picky fish? If they wont eat the drowning worm why would they eat something frozen? Does anyone with experience with these fish have suggestions? For now they will be fine, I have a planarian problem and they have been picking at something in the water. but I'm worried about what they'll eat when the planarian are gone!


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## thief (Jan 12, 2008)

Well mine have come to like Freeze dried Blood worms. Hope that helps!


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## rengb6 (Nov 11, 2009)

thief said:


> Well mine have come to like Freeze dried Blood worms. Hope that helps!


do you have to move them around the tank? Or do you just leave it at the top and wait for it to sink? Thanks so much for the help!


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## Amazonfish (Oct 20, 2009)

I have 2 dario dario and they are unbelievably picky as well. I've had them for a few months now, and they refuse to touch anything that's not live. I feed them live brine shrimp. I only buy the brine shrimp once every two weeks and I feed it for a week before I throw away the leftovers (I figure there's not much nutrition in it after that). I also have a colony of red cherry shrimp in the tank, and the darios loooove eating baby shrimp, too. I haven't been successful in getting them to eat anything else :icon_conf


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## rengb6 (Nov 11, 2009)

I may need to get some cherry shrimp! thanks!


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## dj2005 (Apr 23, 2009)

The tank just looks better and better with each update. 

One of the reasons why I like to keep RCS and snails is because they are not picky about what they eat, in the slightest sense.


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## rengb6 (Nov 11, 2009)

I should start keeping those!It would greatly reduce my worries for sure. Thanks for the compliment! I'm so happy the tank hasent become a huge flop. Does anyone know if dario dario will eat pond snail babies? Those are very easy to breed!  As for now the little fish are dong great. one is a nice bright red and the other two are slightly less so. They have been hunting all morning and picking at my gravel but they still ignore my attempts at feeding. One pecked at a flake but didn't like it. Does anyone have special techniques for feeding their scarlet badis? Because it seems as though they need the food to fall infront of them for them to eat it.


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## Aqua'd (Dec 20, 2009)

I have actually had luck feeding flake food to mine, it's made with "Real shrimp!". It's a cheap tropical fish flake food, don't remember exactly what, but they chomp it down! I ran out a while ago and i'm just feeding freeze dried bloodworms as well right now. They are a bit more picky with them but they eat em when they float down in front of them.


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## rengb6 (Nov 11, 2009)

Aqua'd said:


> I have actually had luck feeding flake food to mine, it's made with "Real shrimp!". It's a cheap tropical fish flake food, don't remember exactly what, but they chomp it down! I ran out a while ago and i'm just feeding freeze dried bloodworms as well right now. They are a bit more picky with them but they eat em when they float down in front of them.


Do you end up having an accumulation of food at the bottom or do your dario dario pick the food out of the substrate? I might have to get shrimp after all because my dario dario are always moving and im sure they will miss alot of the food I try to give them. I havent attempted feeding today but I do see them pecking at tiny bugs.


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## rengb6 (Nov 11, 2009)

After two weeks I have gotten my dario to eat!!!!! I am so excited as their color is really starting to show now. I fed them frozen blood worms after thawing them in aquarium water and they have been gobbling them up! I added some cherry shrimp (3) and have already found one that was chewed in half. However I found a live one a few days ago when I did a water change. I still haven't posted pics of the dario dario so I will have to get some up. The ones I have though are blurry. I need to learn to take better pictures.


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