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Author Topic: My 55g All Male Peacock build  (Read 19613 times)

Offline linuxrulesusa

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Re: My 55g All Male Peacock build
« Reply #15 on: October 11, 2012, 09:14:14 AM »
Tetra SafeStart worked the best for me starting out earlier this year, but you have to do it with fish, and it does spike a bit as far as the levels, so some people don't like that. 
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Offline Steve

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Re: My 55g All Male Peacock build
« Reply #16 on: October 11, 2012, 07:53:56 PM »
Today is Day 8 of the fishless cycle. Ammonia is still at 2ppm...but I did see a reading of .25ppm Nitrites today this, so I'm thinking the bacteria process is starting to get underway!
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Better to have a short life full of what you like doing, than a long life spent in a miserable way.

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Offline Shea

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Re: My 55g All Male Peacock build
« Reply #17 on: October 12, 2012, 01:00:07 PM »
This is INCREDIBLY beautiful! A work of art!
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Offline Steve

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Re: My 55g All Male Peacock build
« Reply #18 on: October 15, 2012, 11:53:05 AM »
Well while I'm cycling I decided to play around with a little detail item I have had in mind. I've been wanting to do some sort of a fish skeleton on the front/middle of the access door on the canopy but all I could find were either decals *yuck* or real fish skeletons which were not the "mean" looking fish skeleton I had in mind. So I decided since I had some time, I'd make my own.

Started out with free hand drawing a basic idea of what I wanted on some thin foam as a template...



Then cut it out with a razor....



Then transfered that over to some 1/4" styro, shaped it with some sandpaper, added some teeth and first coat of base color. It will all be painted with a bone/cream color once the rest is cut out and shaped...

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Better to have a short life full of what you like doing, than a long life spent in a miserable way.

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Offline Steve

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Re: My 55g All Male Peacock build
« Reply #19 on: October 29, 2012, 12:32:38 PM »
Good news! I think my fishless cycle is done after only 25 days! I have been checking water parameters and doing small water changes daily and 2ppm dosed ammonia is converting in 24hrs, nitrites spiked and finally came down to zero, and nitrates where also now zero. I just redosed lat night just to make sure it all comes back down to zero this evening and if so then I will probably be ordering the Peacocks this week 8)
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Better to have a short life full of what you like doing, than a long life spent in a miserable way.

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Offline Steve

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Re: My 55g All Male Peacock build
« Reply #20 on: November 03, 2012, 10:33:58 PM »
Well I have been conversing with Billy at Cichlid Express back and forth all week getting the stock list finalized. This is the final stock list ...

Red Shoulder: 2.5"
Lemon Jake:   2.5"
German Red:  2.5"
Red top Lwanda:         3"   
Benga Sunshine 3"
Ethelwynnae      2"
Albino Red Diamond 3"
OB Peacock          2.5"
Syno Hybrids        2"+ 
Nagra Flametail 2.5"

Fish are being next day aired on Monday and I will have them Tuesday. I have to say dealing with Billy was a super easy experience and I will for sure be calling Billy back in a month when my other 55 is ready to stock.

Added a few more accent pieces to the tank so wanted to share some final pics before it is stocked with some finned critters in a few days





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Better to have a short life full of what you like doing, than a long life spent in a miserable way.

-Alan Watts

Offline Steve

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Re: My 55g All Male Peacock build
« Reply #21 on: November 06, 2012, 03:00:47 PM »
I've got fish! 8) 8) They came about 2 hours ago. Everyone was alive and are doing extremely well. No one is hiding at all and I even put a tiny pinch of food in just to se if they would eat and every one of them grabbed the pellets right away. I'm leaving the light off most of the day but later tonight or tomorrow I will get some pics of them once I turn the light on.
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Better to have a short life full of what you like doing, than a long life spent in a miserable way.

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Offline Steve

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Re: My 55g All Male Peacock build
« Reply #22 on: November 06, 2012, 08:03:46 PM »
Some of them are starting to get nice colors already and some haven't started showing colors yet. The sizes range from 2.5"-3" all males

You can see some of them are just starting to get colors and some are still too young to have colors just yet but it won't take very long.

Stock list is as follows..
Red Shoulder
Lemon Jake   
German Red 
Lwanda       
Benga Sunshine
Ethelwynnae   
Alb. Red Diamond
OB Peacock
Usisya 
Ngara Flametail     
Pair of Syno Hybrids

























Someone else likes the fish as well lol....


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Better to have a short life full of what you like doing, than a long life spent in a miserable way.

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Offline Frontboy7

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Re: My 55g All Male Peacock build
« Reply #23 on: November 06, 2012, 08:08:52 PM »
Looks great Steve!  I lol'd at the last pic with the cat.  He/she has some new play mates.
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Offline Steve

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Re: My 55g All Male Peacock build
« Reply #24 on: November 06, 2012, 08:13:33 PM »
It's hilarious watching her sit there and just stare for ever at the tank. She's been in the room watching them every since they came ;D
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Better to have a short life full of what you like doing, than a long life spent in a miserable way.

-Alan Watts

Offline Ron

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Re: My 55g All Male Peacock build
« Reply #25 on: November 13, 2012, 12:15:29 PM »
Congrats on the new fish!
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Offline Super Turtleman

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Re: My 55g All Male Peacock build
« Reply #26 on: December 01, 2012, 10:53:00 AM »
WOW! Great build and should be a nice tank once the fish mature and color up. Excellent!
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Offline mandalawi

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Re: My 55g All Male Peacock build
« Reply #27 on: December 02, 2012, 10:55:01 AM »
 Awesome build, Love the wood working you did, and nice choice on the stock. Looks great.
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Offline Helloitsme

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Re: My 55g All Male Peacock build
« Reply #28 on: December 02, 2012, 08:24:52 PM »
pm'd
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Offline Steve

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Re: My 55g All Male Peacock build
« Reply #29 on: January 08, 2013, 12:25:37 AM »
Now that this tank has been up and stocked for about 2-3 months now and has become well established I thought I'd post a few updated pics. The Peacocks are really starting to show some good colors now, still some that aren't yet but they are the smaller ones and the Ngara Flametail which are usually slower to color up anyway. The Diatoms problem I had at the start is slowly giving way to a nice healthy green on the background and rocks and not on the glass hardly at all which I really like since it gives it a much more natural look I think. Water quality is the best of any of my tanks with the two Rena filters going (Xp3 & Xp4). I usually do a 30% PWC every 3 days but even if I miss it and wait a week Nitrates still never get over 10'ish ppm. This tank hasn't given me any problems at all so far which I am happy to say.

Anyway here are some current pics...(please excuse some light reflection from Christmas lights in a few pics)











Steve
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Better to have a short life full of what you like doing, than a long life spent in a miserable way.

-Alan Watts
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