Dustin's Blog

Read Time: 5 mins “Can I have a planted tank without special lights, fertilizers, or a CO2 system?” This is a question everyone in the freshwater aquarium hobby has asked at some point, and we have good news: the answer is a resounding yes. If you want beautiful aquatic plants without feeling like you have to sell a kidney to afford tech to keep them alive, we've got you.   This is the first of a two part series on which aquarium plants are right for you based on how much maintenance they need. In this post, we'll list out some...

6 Tips and Tricks for Aquarium Conventions, Aquarium Clubs, and Other Aquarium Communities Read Time: 5 minutes   At this point, the stare aquarium hobbyists get after talking about their tanks with non-fishtank folks has to be universal. “You mean you don't keep your goldfish in a bowl?” “...you spent HOW much on a piece of driftwood?” “Why is there a 125 gallon where the couch used to be?” “No, you can't spend this year's grocery budget on a single fish 'because it would look cool in the living room.'” We don't need that kind of negative energy around here....

Read Time: 4 minutes One of the funniest comment threads I've ever read came from a guy who said, "Everyone has a ratio of swimming water to urine they're comfortable with." The immediate reaction to his post was a unanimous "Absolutely not." Then he explained it further: if someone pees in your hot tub, you’re climbing out and pissed off (Or, pissed on, maybe). On the flip side, we all know people and marine life urinate in the ocean. But no one goes running for the shore even knowing that. So the guy made the claim again, this time to...

Read Time: 4.5 minutes Killer Plants for Killer Fish: How to Have a Planted Tank with Goldfish, Cichlids, Silver Dollar Fish, etc. Some fish roll out of bed, look in the mirror, and say a daily affirmation: “Today, I will cause problems on purpose.”  I’d never had a love-hate relationship with a fish before until I watched my friend’s cichlid tank when she was out of town. Watching an aquarium for someone usually means taking care of things while the owner is away, but this felt more like getting free tickets to a demolition derby and being told two seconds...

Read Time: 7 mins Bettas are one of the most popular aquarium fish out there. Unfortunately, they’re also one of the most notoriously badly kept aquarium fish out there. These myths are part of the reason for that. Welcome to Mythbusters: Dustin’s Fishtanks Edition (For a quick reference for best betta parameters, scroll to the bottom).  Myth #1: Bettas Like Tiny Tanks/Cups Verdict: Absolutely not.  Starting off with the biggest (or, maybe the smallest) myth, we’ve all seen the wall of betta cups. At best, they look bored. More often, it’s outright depressing. The reason they’re kept in cups is...