ryanjury

The proper fittings are reasonably expensive just go to bunnings and price them, you are after ones with rubber seals and screw threads. If you were drilling the sides you could clamp a board to a table and rest the side of the tank on the board so it is supported on the inside and drill it there? Also should note that anyone reading this who tries to drill their own tanks should first weigh up how what the tank is worth to them.. If it is a big tank or expensive they get the pros to do it it isn't worth the risk, I haven't attempted to drill any of my 10mm tanks because they are worth more and harder for me to DIY a repair on.

Yeah that is something I didn't bother with but it would end up with a much neater finish you are not applying that much downwards pressure to the drill bit so not much chance of breaking the glass but the finish is pretty messy as it breaks through, ideally you would drill pieces of glass before making the tank.

Yeah I found doing it the way I am with the elbows they were prone to leaking so did them on the front for easy access to fix them up when they spring leaks.. You can get proper fittings that actually screw in that are nowhere near as hori as what I have done, outside with a hose should work well, I stopped a few times when drilling my holes in the puddle and felt no heat in it. Also if you plan to do a a few holes then buy a few drill bits these ones are cheap and nasty and only last 10-12 holes before they take ages to gradually grind their way through.

lol I thought it was going to be a disaster when I did it too, but drilled about 25 holes and only had one slight crack from the hole to the top of the tank so it isn't as hard as you think. A 20mm hole would be a bit harder though, starting would be an issue, I would probably be inclined to do it the proper way and drill a pilot hole the same size in timber and somehow clamp that to the tank to aid with starting if I was doing holes that big.

That would be a very good thing to have, I was drilling 16mm holes and using the drill in one hand and a syringe filled with water in the other to keep things cool, when I could I pulled the tanks out and make a puddle of water and just drilled in the middle of that.. Josh I forgot to tell you it takes ages to grind through, don't put too much pressure on or else you will just eat drill bits, chuck on some ear muffs and be patient. Also apply stuff all pressure when you are about to break through otherwise it makes it a bit rough on the way out.

He will be fine, he has had some good instruction.. (I hope someone other than me has given that to him?)

No it wont, 19mm is the internal size of the drain and there is a few more mm in material around the hole.. Buy the fittings first and then measure them and buy the right sized drill bit. Are you planning on using the 19mm elbows and doing a hori job like me? I used the 13mm ones in my tanks because I wasn't planning a high flow rate and then had the 13mm tubing coming down to a 19mm common drain line..

I have 8 in a 170L 4fter so far so good, had 9 but one got smacked up and had to remove it (assume it was a boy) I will try and reintegrate it at some stage. They are only just maturing with the first 2 females starting to show signs of breeding over the weekend so time will tell if it will work out well in the future. I think I might be lucky because I think started off with 3m 2f and then added another 4f, again these are just guesses based on behaviour and venting of young fish which is 50/50 but think I have a good number of females in there to break things up.

It depends if you can isolate the cause and figure out what is causing it and then figure out that furan is the most appropriate treatment..

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/c ... isease.php sorry this is the link..

Don't know if you read this when I posted it last time cliffy but have a good read it goes into treatment with PP and salt also..

I am not an aquascape type person and don't really do planted tanks but I agree with Phoenix on this one I don't like using narrow tanks either I find a few bigger plants or rocks just tend to dominate the tank and go too close to the front, you can make things look alot better with a big more width.

We had a kitten like this too.. We tried everything we could think or had heard of to stop the problem but just ended up really hating the cat and locking it outside, we got a mate to look after it when we went away once and apparently it "ran away".. Sorry I am no help at all but I feel your pain, at least it is summer so easy to dry stuff after you have washed it! lol

Just on the off chance someone is making this trip soon I thought I would post it here I want to get some fish from Wanganui to Auckland I am happy to drive to Hamilton to grab them if someone is only coming that far willing to contribute towards gas or give fish etc if someone can help..

Yeah I would go straight to the boss (providing he isn't in the drinking club too), sounds like the guy is an alcoholic and not the type of person anyone wants to have working for them (obviously without treatment etc), or with them I certainly wouldn't want anyone who had been drinking bourbon to be operating heavy machinery around me.

Yep animals are products on the shelf for chain stores so welfare etc doesn't really come into it in most cases.. There maybe some staff that would advise otherwise but I would suspect they would be at risk of being in trouble for jeopardising sales.

Be careful with cockatoos though they are not called big mouth cichlids for nothing.. A friend of mine had a male get big enough that he actually ate and chocked on his female who was the same age as him so any smaller fish can end up being food..

I use guppies, they can pick off some fry but not that many the parents are usually pretty good at guarding them, sometimes you can add them and once the fish have settled remove them and the fish stay confident..

I didn't try the roofing nails they would look alot tidier but have a far smaller surface area than the bits of wood I was using.. Make sure you drill a hole in the ply before using it otherwise it just splits.

I know I said previously but you seem to be asking the same questions over and over again so I will remind you that you need to stick some ply or something under the head of each nail so the poly doesn't just pull straight off it.

You could probably get away with untreated wood but it would be worth getting treated for at least the lower pieces in case you have a big spill and water gets inbehind. If you plan to remove the poly I would fasten it as I have suggested already, if it is going to be there forever and you aren't going to want to pull it down then no more nails or silicone it up. Remeber that silcone is a sealant not a glue.

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/phpBB/view ... 11#1545011 I stuck this up with R32GOTMLK's permission, looks like the verdict is hybrid.. I was really waiting for someone like fogelhund to reply, he is one of the most experienced guys over there so looks like unfortunately they are not pure

I can also loan you a tank out west if you need it and possibly help repair yours.

Yeah top 3 look like females to me too.

Hi Kerryn glad you could introduce yourself finally I am sorry that I didn't get a chance to come in and say sorry before I left town, but if your ever in Auckland let me know you are welcome to come and say hi. Congrats on the descent sized tank I am sure there will be plenty more to come, and hopefully an african tank in the future!