My New 1ft Apistogramma Tank!

[derk]

Hi guys, I'm getting very tempted to get my first apisto pair after reading about all your experiences, and also because my friend keeps showing me his apistos..


Anyways, after a botched attempt at starting a nano shrimp tank without aeration/filtration, I decided to change it to a beginner apisto tank!

So just wanted to ask if you guys think it's not too small for a pair or apistos and maybe just 1 oto and a few dither rasboras fishes..

It's a 30cm(L) by 18cm(B) by 24cm(H)

Currently inside there are:
1) sponge filter
2) underwater waterfall (DIY one)
3) java fern
4) blyxa japonica
5) mini moss on DW
6) broken clay pot & rock for shelter
7) 4 stalks of "I don't know what" plant (foreground left)

Attached a pic for reference..

[benetay]

Keep the tank as simple as possible. It's nice to house a pair inside but breeding might be more difficult. Removal of male is needed after they spawn.

Ignore the dithers in the small tank. They don't do much good too. Provide more hiding space. Plants are not a necessity.

[wasabi8888]

Neat looking tank. As benetay said, keep it simple. Plants and DW can be used as hiding places as the female gets more aggressive post spawning. The only plants that i used for a breeding tank will be java fern. Low maintenance.

Don't know why there are so many tubes in the tank?Sponge filter should only have 1 tube.

[derk]

Hi guys, thanks for the inputs!

wasabi) The green tube is for the sponge filter, The clear tube is for the "underwater waterfall" that I made myself out of acrylic bought from art friend..

The yellowing translucent tube is for aeration for my shrimp tank on the left (out of the photo)
And the thicker curved grey tube on the top left of the photo is for my shrimp tank's external canister filter too..

[wasabi8888]

Try to have more hiding places such as taller java fern so that they can block the line of sight of the apistogrammas

[benetay]

Your clay pot is smooth surface? Wasabi is right, break the line of sight as much as possible. Will the apisto get stuck behind the diy waterfall?

[derk]

Here's a video I uploaded onto youtube to demonstrate the underwater waterfall..

YouTube - Aquarium with Underwater Waterfall

[wasabi8888]

Couple of more things.... if you want to breed apistogrammas, they like calm water not much turbulence.

Also, I would stay away from from plants that need maintanence. Once you have fries, you cannot afford to put your hands in and try to trim plants or remove algae because that will scare the parents and may then eat the fries. Just keep to Nanas and Java ferns if you want to breed. If you want to enjoy the color of the apistogrammas, keep the male instead and then the current set up should be OK

[derk]

Wow, thanks for all the information.. guess I still have lots to learn.. anyways, I'm sourcing for a pair or at least a male now.. then will take it from there..

Thanks again!!

[benetay]

Read up more before you make the plunge. There are many questions asked before & answered.

No worries, just ask if you encounter any problems.

[wks]

Hi derk, my opinion is that 1ft tank is way too small for any pair of apistogramma. I have tried with disastrous result: A male Apistogramma macmasteri jumped out of my 1 footer and turned dried fish (after several hours) because there is no way of him escaping from the female's aggression.

You can't tell whether the pair can coexist peacefully even after observing them carefully in fish shop tanks because your tank conditions are different. Please don't repeat my silly mistake.

Get a 2ft tank and put in lots of easy maintenance plants such as java ferns and java moss.

[benetay]

Though it's always ideal to have a larger tank i'm fine with a 1ft tank housing a pair of A.tri. They're by nature smaller than the usual apiso. Try not to house a pair of apisto that might later turn his/her mate into a meal or like what wks mentioned forcing him/her out of the tank.

My suggestion is simple. Try them out, if you're really serious into apisto, house them in a minimum of 1.5ft. 1ft tanks are good for conditioning apisto. I use 1ft tank to house a single female to condition them for breeding.

I'm not sure what's the use of the waterfall, is it a new method to distract the pair? They may get bored of it very quickly.

Let us know the outcome!

[Simon]

My personal experience with 1ft tanks for breeding is although small, you have to watch sign of stress with your fishes. Initial period prior to the release of the pair is important, so is during courtship and spawning, there are also times when the pair doesn't match and it usually lead to fatality. So like the rest suggested, more hiding places is essential element. Dither will just distract the aggressor and put less stress with the weaker of the pair. Do watch for sign of stress, body darking, always at the corner of the tank swimming up and down, a stress-less fish should be a free wandering fish without those signs I mentioned.

dido to the line of sight especially during spawning, when the female felt threaten she will eat up her own eggs or frys and find another place to spawn in private

[derk]

Thanks guys for the advice really hope to be able to successfully breed the pair of Ap. caca i'm getting.

Is it important to provide the female with multiple spawning locations? Or is just one pot enough?

If i used a taller java fern, would it help to provide more hiding places? Wouldnt the male apisto just swim around it and find the female ayway?

[wasabi8888]

Not necessary to provide multiple spawning locations. One pot is good.

Taller java fern is better. Just remember the concept of "line of sight". As long as the male is visually blocked from the female, he will not chase her. Of course, there will be occasions when he wants to purposely look for her.

I learnt from a forummer once, to pack the tank with plants so that the fishes can hide. Great advice. The tendency for a fish to jump out of the tank when it's being chased is rather high.