my new baby BRB won't drink from the fish water

Deft-Tech · 09-14-13, 12:15 AM

i got my BRB a few days ago, as soon as he got in the tank he went over to the water where i have fish in and started to drink, i've noticed the past two days he refuses to drink from that water and only from a bowl i left out for him...any particular reason why he won't drink from the huge "lake" of water and wants to drink from the lil bowl i left for him?

is it because the water from the fish isn't established yet and maybe the ammonia, nitrites, nitrates are driving him away?

formica · 09-14-13, 04:00 AM

a large area of water, is more likley to contain predators, than a small bowl of water, sounds like he is choosing the safest spot

got pics? I'm intrigued by your setup - big fan of paludariums myself, have one maturing nicely here, although its not got any animals in it

Starbuck · 09-14-13, 09:03 AM

what kind of fish do you have in it?

Deft-Tech · 09-14-13, 11:47 AM

i have little community fish guppies, cory catfish, ghost shrimp and neon tetras, nothing big or agressive.

formica · 09-14-13, 11:56 AM

how big is that tank? you should have no more than 1inch of fish per gallon of water - it should also be established before putting the fish in, the filter itself will take a month to become fully bioactive - i like what you are trying to do, but it needs a bit more thought and planning if you want it to be successful, it is quite likley that the water is becoming fouled, amonia will engulf the entire enclosure if arnt careful, and it'll affect your brb aswell

snakeman879 · 09-14-13, 12:02 PM

Verry good idea I like it as above needs more thaught and time well done for the set up tho looks nice

Deft-Tech · 09-14-13, 12:03 PM

yeah i bought some stuff to help cycle the water better yesterday, i know how an unestablished tank will affect fish, never thought about it affecting the snake. I'll hold off on getting more fish until the water is established and the ammonia/nitrite/nitrate levels balance out. thanks for the advice

the tanks dimesions are 36Lx24Hx18W I'm assuming there's around 10-14 gallons of water in the tank, seeing how it's difficult to measure with the rocks displacing the water

formica · 09-14-13, 12:14 PM

the rocks will take up virtually all the space, or at least should be considered to be doing so, its always the assumption I have made when setting up paludariums, and i've never had amonia/nitrite/ph problems, I'd be surprised if there is more than 6-7 gallons in there

one way to help deal with build up is Duck Weed, it floats on the surface, grows very very fast, and will help to remove excess organic chemicals - it can however be a total pain in the backside, so dont use it if you want to add other water plants, but it is very good at cleaning the water

Deft-Tech · 09-14-13, 12:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by formica

the rocks will take up virtually all the space, or at least should be considered to be doing so, its always the assumption I have made when setting up paludariums, and i've never had amonia/nitrite/ph problems, I'd be surprised if there is more than 6-7 gallons in there

congratulations, neither have i until now, i somewhat rushed the fish process, because it was small cheap fish, not really concerned about losing a few guppies. i've had many fish prior with no issues, African Cichlids and such with no issues, i know what needs to be done. i only brought my original question up because i'm unfamiliar with snakes and their response to unestablished water, but you've answered my question quite well. thank you