Fish Lovers 2.0

[Turtle-Power]

Hi! I was originally going to go with gravel for my dream tank, but then looked at the fish i want and saw that violet gobies need a sand substrate due to feeding because they syphon through sand. is there anyone i can pm for detailed instructions on how to set one up? i'm trying to explore my options and would very much like to learn ^^.

They also need brackish conditions and i have never tried marine or semi-marine tanks, and would therefore need some help, although i have read on some fish sites that Violet gobies can live in freshwater.

Some things i would like answered about it...

- How do i set the sand substrate up?
- Are partial water changes the same?
-----------------------------------------------
- Will i need the marine light for brackish?
- What extra equipment would i need for brackish?
- How do i acclimate from fresh to brackish?
- Marine salt or Aquarium salt?
- What plants go good in this type of tank?

Also

-Is it possible to keep Violet gobies in freshwater

----------------------------------------------------

The petstore has theirs in a goldfish tank with black moors and it worries me a little bit because they are tropical fish. He seems like he's trying to "itch" himself on their bubblers...


I have a lot of experience with freshwater fish, and may or may not wanna take it to the next level without going to marine because it costs too much for start-up upkeep AND the fish. I wouldn't be able to vacation at all with them either.

~Thanks for any and all responses or help

~~Turtle
(i may have another name change, though)

[Grimace]

[quote="Turtle-Power"]Hi! I was originally going to go with gravel for my dream tank, but then looked at the fish i want and saw that violet gobies need a sand substrate due to feeding because they syphon through sand. is there anyone i can pm for detailed instructions on how to set one up? i'm trying to explore my options and would very much like to learn ^^.

They also need brackish conditions and i have never tried marine or semi-marine tanks, and would therefore need some help, although i have read on some fish sites that Violet gobies can live in freshwater.

Some things i would like answered about it...

- How do i set the sand substrate up?
- Are partial water changes the same?
-----------------------------------------------
- Will i need the marine light for brackish?
- What extra equipment would i need for brackish?
- How do i acclimate from fresh to brackish?
- Marine salt or Aquarium salt?
- What plants go good in this type of tank?

Also

-Is it possible to keep Violet gobies in freshwater

----------------------------------------------------

The petstore has theirs in a goldfish tank with black moors and it worries me a little bit because they are tropical fish. He seems like he's trying to "itch" himself on their bubblers.../quote]

Yeah, violet gobies need sand, and you want to use the finest/softest sand you can find for them. They also get bigger than stores probably will tell you.

- How do i set the sand substrate up?
I'd do like two inches deep, preferably the sugar fine sand, just make sure it cant get into the filter. You can keep them alive on gravel, but they are much happier on sand.
- Are partial water changes the same?
With sand? yeah, except you just kind of suck out the waste off the top of the sand. its easier than gravel. Gotta account for salt levels too.
-----------------------------------------------
- Will i need the marine light for brackish?
No, you don't even need those for saltwater if you're just keeping fish.
- What extra equipment would i need for brackish?
A hydrometer, thats about it.
- How do i acclimate from fresh to brackish?
Over a few weeks/months you gradually up the salt levels.
- Marine salt or Aquarium salt?
Marine salt. Aquarium salt doesn't do anything as far as making a tank brackish/saltwater
- What plants go good in this type of tank?
None. There are very very very few plants that can survive in the salinity violet gobies need, and a violet would uproot them anyway. (High end brackish is best, some people keep them full saltwater)

No, they can't really be kept in freshwater. You'll just end up with a fish slowly slowly dying from organ failure and/or awful skin conditions.

Also keep in mind how big they get.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8l9H4FZ9aQA

[scythe.]

Hey, I've been thinking of aquascaping my 20 gal, has anyone here done so before? I have the idea in my head, but how would I go about it?

[.:FarmGirlAtHeart:.]

So, the baby guppies are getting huge! Everybody is doing great, and I haven't loss anybody. The new batch was Idris' babies. Clara should be having her babies soon. The older batch of guppies are 3 weeks old, and they are starting to get little black spots on their heads. I'm pretty sure I have two females and one male.

[PeachFuzz]

So, the baby guppies are getting huge! Everybody is doing great, and I haven't loss anybody. The new batch was Idris' babies. Clara should be having her babies soon. The older batch of guppies are 3 weeks old, and they are starting to get little black spots on their heads. I'm pretty sure I have two females and one male.

That's wonderful!

Speaking of breeding guppies...
How many tanks of how many gallons do I need to breed guppies? I want to get one pair ^.^

[.muse.]

Speaking of breeding guppies...
How many tanks of how many gallons do I need to breed guppies? I want to get one pair ^.^

Normally I recommend two females per male. I've seen situations where it's just a single male and a single female, and the male harasses the female to death, since he wants to continuously breed, and she's obviously not wanting to if she's already with babies. Having multiple females per males divides his attention so he's not harassing one too much.

That and it reduces the risk that your female will reject the male. I've got a female in my tank who has rejected every male I've put in the tank. She even killed off two that tried mating with her that she didn't like. So I've always kept a ratio of two or three girls for every boy with all my live bearers.

[PeachFuzz]

But after she has the babies aren't you supposed to remove the female and put her in a separate tank from the male?

[.muse.]

But after she has the babies aren't you supposed to remove the female and put her in a separate tank from the male?

I just leave the babies in the breeder box I have until they are big enough to put back into the main tank. Guppies will eat their own when they are still small enough. I don't do a separate tank for them, the breeder box I have is pretty good size and hangs up in the corner of the tank. But if you're doing smaller tanks then I'd say get at least a ten gallon for the babies to grow up in.

[Turtle-Power]

Hi! I was originally going to go with gravel for my dream tank, but then looked at the fish i want and saw that violet gobies need a sand substrate due to feeding because they syphon through sand. is there anyone i can pm for detailed instructions on how to set one up? i'm trying to explore my options and would very much like to learn ^^.

They also need brackish conditions and i have never tried marine or semi-marine tanks, and would therefore need some help, although i have read on some fish sites that Violet gobies can live in freshwater.

Some things i would like answered about it...

- How do i set the sand substrate up?
- Are partial water changes the same?
-----------------------------------------------
- Will i need the marine light for brackish?
- What extra equipment would i need for brackish?
- How do i acclimate from fresh to brackish?
- Marine salt or Aquarium salt?
- What plants go good in this type of tank?

Also

-Is it possible to keep Violet gobies in freshwater

----------------------------------------------------

The petstore has theirs in a goldfish tank with black moors and it worries me a little bit because they are tropical fish. He seems like he's trying to "itch" himself on their bubblers...

Yeah, violet gobies need sand, and you want to use the finest/softest sand you can find for them. They also get bigger than stores probably will tell you.

- How do i set the sand substrate up?
I'd do like two inches deep, preferably the sugar fine sand, just make sure it cant get into the filter. You can keep them alive on gravel, but they are much happier on sand.
- Are partial water changes the same?
With sand? yeah, except you just kind of suck out the waste off the top of the sand. its easier than gravel. Gotta account for salt levels too.
-----------------------------------------------
- Will i need the marine light for brackish?
No, you don't even need those for saltwater if you're just keeping fish.
- What extra equipment would i need for brackish?
A hydrometer, thats about it.
- How do i acclimate from fresh to brackish?
Over a few weeks/months you gradually up the salt levels.
- Marine salt or Aquarium salt?
Marine salt. Aquarium salt doesn't do anything as far as making a tank brackish/saltwater
- What plants go good in this type of tank?
None. There are very very very few plants that can survive in the salinity violet gobies need, and a violet would uproot them anyway. (High end brackish is best, some people keep them full saltwater)

No, they can't really be kept in freshwater. You'll just end up with a fish slowly slowly dying from organ failure and/or awful skin conditions.

Also keep in mind how big they get.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8l9H4FZ9aQA

I'm wondering, did i mess up the fish name? The fish you showed me kinda looks like the one at the pet store, but the eyes facial expression and color are different.

They are sold as dragon fish so i searched for that and got things like they are also called violet gobies and stuff.

I can describe him as being slender and small tiny beady eyes. he is like a dark greyish with lots of green and red luminescence almost and his scales or armour (not sure which) are like dragon plates or dragonfly, more like with how the colors are reflective almost. he has large gills, but really doesn't look like the fish in that video.

I would just like o clarify that we are talking about the same fish.

Like this (These aren't my pictures, but they are meant to help clarify the fish)

http://i183.photobucket.com/albums/x124 ... ing001.jpg
http://www.tropicalfishfinder.co.uk/dbi ... nnetii_2(1).jpg

Also, thinking about doing a seperate Kritter keeper (at least five gal...) for a Freshwater Goby again. I'm pretty sure i can now tell the difference from the ones that do really well in fresh water from the ones that need brackish.

[Dappled Sapphire]

Yep if you watch her video she posted 2 years before the one Grimace posted, one of the shots almost looks exactly like the first photo you showed
http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ahp2ajKpynI

So that's how big they can get in 2 years and I'm sure they continue growing their whole life
Would you be able to get a tank large enough?