Housekeeping and new additions

I don't normally do major aquarium cleanings during the workweek (average time to clean all four tanks: four hours) but since I'm coming off the holidays/midterms crunch there was still a lot to do. The planted tank got a long-overdue filter cleaning, and my bag of Purigen is recharging in its 1:1 bleach and water solution. Predictably now the water flow from the filter is much larger! I also did a major trim - I was getting tired of the layout, some of the plants were outgrowing their spots, etc. For the first time I "mowed" the cardinal plants! Once everything settles in a bit I'll take another photo. I actually removed all but one stem of the Hygrophila difformis - I want the newer stems to fill in the middle instead, and the fast-growing water sprite tends to shade them quite rapidly.

I had ordered and Eheim automatic feeder for the cichlid tank - not sure if I've got it set up quite the way I want it yet, and I need to do some tinkering to make sure food isn't being left on the lip of the tank rim. Of course, now that the fish are being fed every day I'm going to have to be a bit more punctual about their water changes! With the larger tank, it simply takes time, but I think I may do a series of 20-minute WCs bi-weekly for a while. I still have to do the testing, but I suspect nitrates are pretty high in there, and constant feeding is going to mean more nitrate production. I'm also hoping to find some Vallisneria for this tank, since the Amazon sword is not exactly biotope compliant.

In my search of the local chain pet stores, I didn't find any Vals, but I did find what looks like two tiny rusties in the mixed mbuna tank at one shop. They're the perfect size to go in my fry-grow-out tank with the baby acei after they've gone through quarantine. Despite having three of the same chain store in the area, I couldn't find any more than those two! They're on sale for a good price, so I'm hoping to go back and get at least three more at the end of the week when the stores get more livestock delivered. I was also surprised to see them selling fish labeled Cynotilapia afra! If only I didn't already have saulosi, I would have snapped them up right away. But they're blue-barred, and I have enough trouble without courting more by combining two different blue-barred species in the same tank. Some of the afra subgroups are so beautiful... of course, I have substantial doubts as to whether those fish even are afra, since no one at a big box can be trusted to order the right fish from reputable dealers. Oh well. No guarantees on purity when dealing with chain stores, after all. Hopefully I can resist temptation. It would be easier if I could actually get more saulosi locally!