Faran

I get charged anywhere between $8 and $12 a tube when I go there. Seems to vary on whether I get a trade discount or not, which in places like that sometimes depends on if the person behind the register knows/likes you. There's one just down the road from me in Upper Hutt, stop in for a cuppa and a nickel tour 8)

Hey bud, have you tried electrical suppliers like Advance Electrical? That's where I get all my bulbs from.

Sorry bro Do you still have the pair left?

That would be me Yes, glosso is a plant from NZ and has become an Amano favourite for years. It's not everywhere, but there's quite a few places you can find it growing in the wild. Best to ask people in your local fish club where to find some near you!

So in this train of logic, you'd want 13000K between the two bulbs to get a 6500K balance. 5500K is pretty close - I currently use 5100K MH bulbs as well. Seem to get more algae growth than 6500K. What colour is your 1000K bulb? Red? I think they're probably both 10000K and possibly have a blurple tone to them when you look at the bulb itself, particularly when just turned on. Go down and get Philips 865 bulbs as replacements for them. They make a more expensive 965 range that runs about three times more expensive than the lower range. I see no difference in them, really.

They're fully adult and 3/4 the size of Starlights (L182) so definitely not that. I was thinking L183 when I mentioned the white ribbon, my mistake. Pretty sure they're L213 or possibly L100 from the vague pics on Planetcatfish.

Ran into one of these on a recent shopping trip. Hollywoods Mt Eden? I believe I have two adult females and looking for a boy. Definitely not L182 as they don't have the white ribbon on the caudal fin. Andrew_W, that isn't your boy, is it?

From my algae references.

Great setup! Good to see people making a special place for them instead of just tossing them in with Malawis I think they filter will do something like 600-800lph so will be HEAPS of current for them - until it gets filled with gunk. Keep cleaning the sponge regularly and you should be sweet!

We look forward to seeing you all again at the normal venue of Maidstone/IHC Centre on Goodshed Road (besides the Yamaha shop) at 7:30pm on Thursday the 10th of May. http://smaps.co.nz/nz/upper+hutt/maidst ... shed+road/ So come along if you haven't been, and meet other like minded people.

I got a funky blue LED ropelight for the new room as "moonlighting". Problem is, I need to reprogram it to kinda tone it down a little. It's almost got that crazy club blacklight feel and neon stuff glows, even on the most mellow "water effect" program running. Will either reprogram or just cover sections of the ropelight with flexible conduit...

Oh, never saw that. No idea on the loss of the second male. He was fine one day and dead the next. No visible signs of damage, disease or infection.

Darn, was it an L205 then? I remember a very similar fish that you had a sole example of... I think it went to CatBrat?

Has anyone seen Garra Rufa in shops in NZ? I've recently seen a "Bumblebee Garra" in several shops with a $40 price tag, but want something a little less "pretty" or exotic patterned - with a lower price tag...

Sup bro! Good finally meeting you earlier this week! I believe Rcon had one about a year ago that he sold as it was a one-off and he was more into breeding than collecting (like most of us). Haven't seen any others and my memory may be a few L numbers off on that one anyways. Closest around would be the L226s.

Importing a prescription medication from overseas is very similar to trying to get any illegal drug (marijuana, P, etc) shipped into NZ according to "the man". I strongly recommend going through your local vet before attempting this. As for wormers, I've used Drontal many times with no ill effects. The thing is, you treat a 20L bucket and "dip" the fish, not the entire tank, and you only do this when the fish refuse to eat. Otherwise, you medicate discus tucker (1/4 pill per 3 blocks of tucker) and feed it to the fish right away as meds have limited lifespans when mixed with food. Sorry for your loss and if I may speak from experience; if you make a mistake with meds, don't pussyfoot the water changes. If I medicate a tank and notice ill effects it's an immediate 50% water change on the entire tank. While running around with buckets of pre-warmed dechlorinated water for a couple hours isn't very fun, it's rewarding to see the fish feeling better and can save heap$$$.

Could be anything as he started off selling them for $30 and soon doubled it and then doubled it again. You may have paid heaps or hardly anything. You really don't wanna know how cheap they are from the exporters!

Well done, should grow in nicely. The sag can stay low or grow tall depending on conditions, so your placement is perfect. :applaude:

K, so I've returned home after nearly 2 weeks and gotten back into the fish room. Happy to say that a pair of large Lionheads have taken residence in a large flower pot on the end of the tank and are defending the area. The male is guarding one third of the tank and the female spends most of her time fanning her lil caudal off with only her head visible through the top entrance of the pot. When feeding, the female came out briefly and I could see a well defined ovipositor. Safe to say I have a breeding pair that are happily going at it. I'm in the mindset to give them their own tank, but really don't want to accidentally split the pair (they pair for life) or disturb them in the middle of things. Problem is, there's a pair of large Leopard Ctenopomas in there that will eat anything smaller than an adult betta. Here's the obligatory pic of momma doing her thing -

K, I'm tired of crushing aquarium med pills that are big enough for a horse with a teaspoon and bowl or sweeping up bits when I get bored and try using a hammer. Does anyone have or recommend a good mortar and pestle which I can easily wash and remove any remnants of meds? Stone - Tough as nails and will hardly wear down and never break - but would I get cross contamination? Expensive. Ceramic/Earthware - Easily cleaned, but are they strong enough? I can easily imagine breaking something like this. Cheapest alternative. Marble - Seems like the right choice to me as it's tough and smooth. Pricey. Wood - Well, if I can carve it, it probably won't stand the test of time. I assume it wouldn't prevent cross contamination any better than stone. So what do you all recommend or have sitting on your shelf at home? I'm not an herbalist or gourmet chef, so it doesn't have to look good as long as it does the part. ...and of course, where to get it

You can - http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/d ... uarium.php - as referred to by.... Tankman? Tanksman? Tank Man? One of the professional acrylic tank makers in Auckland. Look him up if you want to price a custom one. They're not cheap, and neither is the acrylic!

Quick update on these guys. Lost all of the fry and even the new male over the last few months. Will be parting with my 3 females (one MIGHT be a male) to make room for other fishies.

The parents were purchased labeled as hoplogenys, according to caserole. Can be certain that's not a correct ID, either.

Sorry, thought I clarified that. They're definitely not tamboensis. They were bred from imports so this would be something else.

Congrats! Best of luck growing them out and try not to get too addicted. I am