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I would suggest running the fountain as much as possible to ensure there's plenty of oxygen in the water. Maybe they could put it on a timer to run it for a few hours every day if they don't want it running constantly? One of my concerns would be that if the algae is such a problem this early in the season, then later in summer it might become a really nasty mess. Better to address all the issues now and see if it can be kept looking nice instead of turning into something they will be disappointed with later (and needs much more work to correct it later). It depends how much use the private road gets. Any oil, coolant, tyre rubber, etc will have to go somewhere so it may just end up in the pond unless the water gets filtered through some other system before it gets to the pond. NB: I'm talking about a 'natural' system such as reeds, grasses etc rather than an actual 'filter' being installed. Is the road sealed or gravel? A sealed road will have more rapid runoff and is more likely to have petroleum products run off into the pond. Runoff from a dirt/gravel road is slower but will carry more sediment that can block things up. By 'nutrient' I was thinking of the nutrient running off from the surrounding land, rather than from feeding the fish. In the photo it looks like the lawn comes right down to the edge of the pond - I was thinking it might help to have a slightly more planted buffer zone around it. Doesn't have to be all around the pond, but just on the slope that would carry most of the run-off from the farms or any compost bins or vege patches or anything else that might be up-stream from the pond. Also I was thinking that the pond might be sheltered from the wind, which would minimise the ripples on the surface which is where most oxygen exchange comes from. It's a bit of a balance between planting on the margins of the water to absorb nutrients while still allowing enough breeze to come through the planting to ripple the surface.

In my (fairly limited) experience, all kinds of danios seem to be quite happy in a mixed school. When I have had several different kinds in a tank, they all just intermingle and don't seem to prefer to school with others of the same type. Personally I like to have more than one of any type of fish, just for aesthetic reasons. I would suggest getting another one or more kyathits, and also just generally boosting your school size to get a good effect (both visually and socially).

When I bought my 4-foot tank off an online auction, it came with two pacus (and a bunch of other inappropriately large fish). I sold most of the other fish but had to end up giving the pacus away because nobody wanted them. It's really hard to get rid of them once they've out-grown your average living-room tank. People have these wonderful ideas that they will keep large fish without any idea what's really involved. We can only be glad when people come in here and ask first, instead of just going out and buying them.

IMO all those fish will be fine with a pH of 6.0 - don't do anything to change the pH and the fish will live in there quite happily. Just make sure when you are introducing new fish that you acclimatise them slowly. If they are coming from a tank with a higher pH they will need time to adapt to the lower pH in your tank. (I had a sad experience that taught me this lesson )

I believe I got my BBA on plants bought from a pet shop. When i moved in May I took the opportunity to break down the tank and boil, bleach and scrub everything in an attempt to get rid of the BBA but it reappeared almost immediately. I never see it on fast-growing plants but I threw out all my anubias when I moved because they were covered in the stuff.

Looks like a classic case of too much nutrient + not enough oxygen and/or surface movement. For the nutrient problem, you could try to a) stop nutrients reaching the pond b) absorb/remove them once they get there. You might try planting some nutrient-loving marginal plants on the side of the pond where the run-off is arriving in the water. There are some beautiful bog plants around that will offer shelter for fish, frogs and birds as well as helping with the nutrient problem. You could also implement some kind of swale system to slow down the water entering the pond. I've seen people put a row of straw bales uphill from ponds to work in a similar way to a filter in a tank. Oxygen exchange might be a little more difficult if the pond is in a sheltered area. I'm assuming there's no way to run a little pump/fountain/water feature to keep the surface moving?

Suction off as much as you can, and rub it off the wood with your hands. Cyano usually comes away very easily and doesn't need much scrubbing. Any that is left floating in the water can be syphoned or netted out, or dealt with by your filter. Just make sure the filter doesn't get to clogged up with it, and that it's not just left to decompose. If you're addressing any basic imbalances in the water hopefully they cyano won't return. Good luck.

This part of the question may not be relevant if you aren't going to get the bigger tank, but it is an interesting one nevertheless. Of course, there is no easy answer to it, but here are some things to consider: - Put a heavy tank close to a load-bearing wall. The floor will be well attached to the wall at this point, so it's one of the strongest spots. External walls are load-bearing, as are some internal walls. - Get under the house and take a look at the sub-floor (joists etc.). Assuming the underfloor is structurally sound (solid foundations, no borer...), position your tank above a joist. - Spread the weight of the tank as evenly as possible over the floor. If the stand has legs, consider putting a board of some sort under the legs so all the weight is not in one place. Run the board across the floorboards so as many floorboards as possible are sharing the weight of the tank. - Solid wood floors are great. If you were in a newer house (or the tank was in an add-on part of the house) you might find you have particle board under carpet. Water spillage on particle board can be disastrous if it's left to soak in, so particle board floors require a lot more care when positioning a tank.

:lol: :lol: :lol:

The tank and all responsibility for it belongs to me. I spend my own money and don't have to explain it to my partner, which is great! (He also has an expensive hobby so it works the other way too.) The only thing he comments on is how much time I spend on the interweb talking about fish, looking at fish-related products and dreaming about my 'perfect' tank. He laughs at me for that, but in a kind way. He does enjoy watching the fish, he knows some of their names and asks after their health, which I find very endearing. He also buys me Animates gift vouchers on special occasions - good boy!

FWIW, HFF (my LFS) sells SAEs as BLFFs! Translation: For what it's worth, Hollywood Fish Farm sells Siamese Algae Eaters as Black Line Flying Foxes. I just thought I would reiterate that fact here, as there has been a lot of discussion about SAEs being an excellent solution to Black Beard Algae (BBA). There are also other algae-eating fish that look similar but won't eat BBA. The fish in stock at HFF are indeed Crossocheilus Siamensis so I have bought a couple and they are now acclimatising before I let them loose in my tank. I certainly hope they live up to their reputation as tireless BBA-munchers because I'm sick of the stuff! :roll:

Oooh I LOVE Turkish Van cats.... what characters! Oops sorry to take the thread off-topic :oops:

I second the "talk to the landlord" advice. Also just general responsible fish-keeping practices - keep the tank covered to keep the humidity inside the tank instead of in the wallpaper! Make sure the floor is strong enough to hold the weight of the tank (put the big ones near a structural wall). I had one landlord who specified that I could only keep "one small fish tank" on the lease agreement. At the time I only had one tank that was about 900 mm long. He was happy with that, although non-fishkeepers often have a very different idea about "small" for a fish tank.

Yeah one of those rubbery things in the shower is an excellent idea. I have a friend who works in accident prevention and she has some really really sad stories about the consequences of people slipping in the shower Baths with a shower over them are especially bad because you have to take such a big step to get over the side of the bath. You can also buy non-slip adhesive stuff to stick permanently on the bottom of your bath if you prefer it to a rubber mat. Also Caper you might consider getting a grab-rail for beside your bath so you can hold on when getting in and out. Caper, I'm glad to hear you got off so lightly. Your friend did the right thing by not picking you up so please give him a pat on the back! Everybody else - be careful out there!

Hi Brooke, what part of NZ do you live in? Sorry I can't help with advice for Patch or Mr Fish, but I just wanted to say good on you for giving it a go. Too many people treat fish as some kind of decorative object instead of a living animal, so these two are lucky to find someone who cares.

You're right - the bond is not held by the renting agent, it is held by Tenancy Services. But if your bond is still being held against your old tenancy (because the old landlord has not signed it off) then it is not available to be used for the new tenancy. The tenant therefore has a period of time when they have to cover both bonds. When that period of time stretches to two months (as in Aaron's case) without reason, then it is putting an unfair financial strain on the tenant.

Oh that's a terrible way to start the day! Please let us know if there is anything we can do to help - even though most of us are a long way from you. For now all I can offer is sympathy.

Agreed, Barrie. By the time the girls are teens and stealing horses, you almost start to despair that it's too late. If their parents didn't have the parenting skills to teach them right from wrong when they were young, what hope is there that they will be able to sort them out now? I also hear what Alan was saying earlier about it not being all the parents' fault and it's true we don't know the full story, but chances are the parents are too scared now to do anything to discipline the kids. It will just be a matter of luck if these girls turn out ok in the end.

Possibly Snowballs isn't helping the situation by not responding to Rufus when he starts making a fuss. Being deaf, Snowballs wouldn't be able to pick up on some of the early auditory cues that Rufus is sending him before things get out of hand. I can't offer a solution to this... it sounds like Rufus might need a one-cat family for him to feel happy. Definitely try getting Snowballs fixed and see if that improves matters, but you might need to consider rehoming him if Rufus is too miserable.

Call the tenancy people and give them the full story. I think you have waited plenty long enough already. We had a similar problem with our old landlords when we moved - we couldn't pay the bond on the new place until they had signed off from the old place. The new landlords were extremely patient but it became very embarrassing for us because we had no way of paying the new bond until the old one was refunded. In this case you would only be able to claim interest if you were paying interest on your loan, which sounds like it isn't the case. You just need your bond refund ASAP. Good luck

1) That is a stunning flower 2) You must have a brilliant camera in your mobile phone 3) I do believe you have created yourself a new avatar

My mother smacked us kids A LOT and called it "discipline." Unfortunately the rate of smacking had very little relationship to the behaviour of the kids, and had a lot to do with how well mum was coping (or not) with other aspects of her life. If finances were tight, or she was stressed or tired, we would get a smack no matter how hard we tried to be good. Discipline is about clear boundaries that are consistently enforced so kids know where they stand. Random smacking depending on the mood of the parent is not about discipline, it is about bullying someone who is much smaller than you because you know you can hurt them and make them cry. I don't know if you would classify that as abuse, but I would say it's pretty nasty, and should not be encouraged by a civilised society.

Depends if it has got totally dried out and died off. I would put it in a bucket and rinse it thoroughly first, and maybe leave it to soak for a couple of days to make sure it's not going to melt down completely. If it's still green and still holds together it should be fine.

Hmmm... I wouldn't be worrying about pH as much as contaminants. Would you be willing to drink the water 20m from your back door? Are you confident the sand is free from industrial and agricultural run-off? Test the pH as advised above. When you have rinsed the sand thoroughly, drink about a litre of the rinsing water. If you haven't died or contracted a serious illness in a couple of days, put the sand in your tank.

Pics, zabman! This thread is useless without pics! Congrats by the way