jim r

:cofn: &c:ry :dunno: Maybe I can borrow your's Zev when I get to conference ( may be a good way to keep me quiet).

:cofn:

I mix silica sand with beach sand and I think it looks fantastic in all my tanks.

That looks like indian fern to me (emersed ) It normally grows like a weed but needs lots of light and best floating

Are you sure the chrysler is in there ? Did you actually manage to find it after the " :rotf: clean up :rotf: " Show them the picture from the clean up post. :gigl:

I once had a Jim's mowing. ( it is not for everyone) Be careful and get financial advice before buying and be aware of the royalties, they are not cheap and have to be paid whether you make any money or not. The guaranteed income promised is not quite what it seems as you have to take whatever work they throw at you in order to qualify. Also the cost of buying the "run" is worked out by the amount of "mows" you do fortnightly but a lot of people postpone and have it cut every 3 or 4 weeks which gives a false set of figures. BE CAREFUL.

:thup: thanks Caryl :thup:

My twopenneth! I thought the reason for having the filter below tank level was in case of pump failure?

I would not mess around with discus tank water they will do just fine in tap water. The only thing I add to my tanks is bogwood which helps keep ph right side of 7. Discus have been known to breed in water with a Ph above 7. Kh is a constant battle and I do not know how to increase it without increasing the Ph. Maybe someone else has a better answer.

Low kh is pretty much the norm in NZ. I keep discus and the kh in Taupo was 1-3, here in Invercargill it is about the same.The only place I found a high reading was the molly pools in Tokaanu. From memory I think it was double figures.

toilet/water/shower shouldn't be a problem but remember we poms like to whinge :gigl:

You are more than welcome in Invercargill if you get this far and I am sure we can arrange some sort of accomodation as long as you are not too picky :slfg: I also think what you are doing is a fantastic idea, good luck.

I do my water changes in this manner and after a week the temp is ideal for pumping straight into tanks.

JOE!!!!!!!!!!! I can get you sillica sand for $5, 20Kg not sure how much for courier as yet but will look into it if you wish. ( It needs to be washed and you loose 50%)

They were carried as is along with the rest of the furniture the company was United Carriers. ( they were excellent ) :thup:

I had 5 big tanks and 5 medium tanks delivered from Taupo to Invercargill ( 4000L+ ) without any problems or complaints from the carrier company.

I have dwarf sag growing pretty good in my Frontosa tank.

The only plants I can think of are anything above the digging line. They do not usually eat them they mostly just dig. However remember the PH for Africans is 8+.

Silica sand is really really cheap to buy but attracts algae, there is a company in Dunedin that sells black sand ( I think I can obtain name ) but I personally find mixing beach sand with sillica sand works for me.

I use a portable heatpump set at 30degrees also heaters as a backup in my discus tanks.

I used to keep firemouths and they are beautifull fish. Very hardy and easy to breed, however a bit like kribs when breeding. Fantastic parents the only downside I found was that they are prolific diggers.

Thanks, I will try that with mine but I am still curious as to why only females show symptoms and die. :dunno:

My males are mostly seperated when young and it is only females that die.

I still have the same problem and have tried several meds. One other symptom of mine is that they flash soon after feeding and again it is only the females. I have tried different foods without success. :dunno:

How do you know the discus are stunted? I was referring to the whole set up as being worth $500 regardless of the fact that the tank is too small.