whetu

:oops: Sorry I haven't been around much - been very busy recently. Nice to know I was missed! :lol: Sorry to take this thread off-topic Helen.

Hi Helen, Are you intending to keep just the one clown loach? Have you considered re-homing him so he can live in a group with other clowns, or gatting more clowns to keep him company?

Oooh I'm glad I didn't read this before finding an itty-bitty rainbowfish fry in my tank! I might have worried about his health! As it is he seems to be growing up big and strong so my ignorant parenting can't have done too much harm.

Pedestrians and cyclists cost ACC a lot more when they get hit by cars. Their choice of commuting method must be the most dangerous - they don't even have airbags and side impact beams! So they should be charged the most by ACC.

You hate me?! I ride a 250cc motorbike to work every day - I sold my car so it's my only form of transport. I chose to replace my car with a bike because it is more cost effective, reduces congestion on the roads, and is more environmentally friendly than driving a car. I am a very cautious rider, but unfortunately had an ACC claim within the first six months of owning my bike, after being hit by a car from behind. I stopped at a stop sign and the car behind me drove straight through the sign (and me). OK, I agree I was injured more badly than if I had been driving a car when the other car hit me, but I was much better off (in all my protective gear, which I wear every day) than if I had been a pedestrian or a cyclist. Under the proposed new ACC levies I will be paying something like $500 just for the ACC portion of my bike's registration, plus the rest. It seems to me I am being penalised for the actions of careless car drivers.

:lol: :lol: :lol:

Either of those looks like it would do the job! And great prices! Good sleuthing! :bounce: It's hard to tell for sure without checking how well the legs/uprights are attached to the top, but they both look pretty solid to me. If necessary you could do your own extra bracing pretty easily.

Can you get TV cabinets that re 600mm deep? I have been looking on TM but they all seem to be much narrower than that.

That was my reaction too - that's a pretty spectacular case of white spot you have there.

Aww she's lovely! Not very bright, but she means well.

And they will be looking back at you... "I wonder if our human has recovered from his stress yet?"

Another option would be something like a coffee table - you might find one that's 600 x 600 (or 750 x 750). You would need to make sure the legs were very secure though, and possibly be prepared to add bracing to the legs depending on how they are attached to the top. Or for a taller one you could perhaps use a small dining table and saw off the legs to the right height? But by the time you do that and add bracing you might as well have built one yourself! :lol:

Yes! It's fantastic! Some of the best scripting, acting, storylines, characters etc etc ever on New Zealand television! :bounce: It was very cruel of them to leave it like that though.

LOL yeah, sometimes I forget to use the search function too! :oops: To answer your questions very briefly... Can you put it in your tank? - Yes. Put it in when you are first setting up a planted tank. Need a larger substrate on top? - Yes. You need something to weigh it down like sand or gravel on top. Does it cloud the water? - Only if you stir it up, or if you don't have a thick enough layer of other substrate and your fish can dig it up. If its alright with fish? - Yes. Is it actually any good? - Yes. I used it for about 18 months in a planted tank and it worked very well. When I ended up pulling the tank apart, the plants had certainly spread their roots throughout the Dalton's and seemed to be thriving in it. I don't have it in my tank at the moment (just because I was in a big hurry to set it up again after I moved) but next time I move I definitely plan to use it again.

Hi Skippy, back to your original question - all the fish should be fine. Barbs and their relatives are generally very hardy fish so you shouldn't have any problems with them. Interestingly, cooler water holds more oxygen so they probably haven't suffered any ill effects at all. Do keep an eye on everyone though. Stress is never good for fish (or their human helpers!) so if anyone starts to show unusual behaviour or signs of trouble, do let us know.

Looks interesting. It's a very gentle, family-friendly animated film (I haven't seen it yet but it has been recommended to me by several people). Trailer: http://www.flicks.co.nz/movie/ponyo-gak ... -no-ponyo/ It will have a limited NZ release on October 29 so look out for it!

And I believe a bar in Auckland was selling cocktails with live fish in them. You were meant to swallow the fish whole! They probably got prosecuted on food safety grounds rather than animal cruelty. :roll:

I can't comment on that because I don't know what technical variations would make a difference - like how much silicone they have used, or the height of the tank, etc. But I have definitely seen photos of open top tanks that are big and wide and beautiful!

Just don't get any jumpy fish! Or make sure you have lots of floating plants if you do! I think rimless, open top tanks with plants growing out of them look AMAZING!

Or (for us even older folks): My new 'Mustard Gas' beta. Doesn't he inspire awe in you? I received him today with three 'Half Moon' females.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/ar ... d=10600908

Hmmmm.... I've been looking on TM too, and it's easy to find cabinets that are 600mm wide, but finding one that's 600mm from front to back (as well as being structurally suitable) is much harder! At first I thought one of those low, solid-wood TV stands might work, but they are only 450mm deep.

Hi gem, I'm not a pond-person and I can't identify that specific kind of algae, but I have had to deal with algae in my tank so I can give you some general ideas. I hope someone else will come along and help you with specifics. Algae-removing chemicals may kill off the algae temporarily, but they will never resolve the problem permanently. In fact they might make it worse because the dead algae will rot and cause extra problems in the water! Algae thrives where there is a lot of nutrient in the water, and plenty of sun. Obviously you can't move the pond out of the sun, but is there any way you can stop nutrient running into the water from surrounding land, or plant more marginal plants that are high nitrate users? That will mean there is less goodness in the water for the algae. Is there a compost heap or garden near the pond? Do you put fertilisers on the lawn nearby? Is there anything else that could be leeching nutrients into the water? Also extra water movement may also help, if this is a type of algae that likes still, low-oxygen water. Then there is physical removal - which I would recommend anyway so it doesn't rot and cause more problems. You might need to rake it out of the pond, then take it away from the area and put it on your garden as mulch - to make sure it doesn't rot and release nitrates back into the pond again. The fact that it is seasonal suggests that there is a certain combination of factors that cause the algae bloom - sunshine hours, water temperature, etc. If there was some way to interrupt this cycle you might be able to get on top of the problem permanently. I hope that helps in some way! And I hope someone will be able to give you better advice soon.

Poor Man's Dosing Drops (but poor women are allowed to use them too!)

I agree. 6.2 pH actually isn't bad in itself, it's just the sudden change in pH that can shock the fish and put them under stress. I really must test the pH in my water again but it usually sits down around 6.2 and all my fish seem perfectly healthy and fine in there. (See my signature for the kind of fish I have.) I am also in Auckland and the water comes out of the tap at a much higher pH but as soon as it goes in my tank it ends up back in the low 6s. I would suggest the following when introducing fish to your tank: 1) Make sure you acclimatise them to the new pH as slowly as possible 2) Add as much extra surface agitation as possible to make sure dissolved oxygen levels are high (so the fish won't need to gasp at the surface) 3) Be very patient with the whole process and do any changes very slowly, while trying not to stress! It will all work out well in the end. Oh, and welcome to the forums. It actually sounds like you are off to an excellent start in your fish-keeping career! The fact that you have investigated the issues, you have test kits, are observing the behaviour of your fish, you know about cycling and you are on here discussing it - those are all signs that you will make a great fish-keeper one day!