Matt

Hi everyone, Thanks for the replies. Dawn, I did the first dose at 1 capful per 40 litres on a Saturday and then dosed 1 capful every day for the rest of the week, and then I dosed two capfuls on the following Saturday and that is when I lost 6 of my fish. I suspected it might be the Flourish Excel so I went back to dosing one capful a day but continued to lose fish. I am using Blue Circle Water Ager to treat my water as I have done for over 10 years with no troubles, maybe this is reacting with the Flourish Excel? I occasionally use Stress Coat as well but haven't in the last few months as I ran out. I am adding no other chemicals to the tank apart from Flourish 1-2 mls twice a week and Flourish Excel 1 Capful every second day (stopped now), and treating the tap water with water ager at the recommended dose of one drop per litre plus an extra couple of drops just in case . Cheers, Matt

Congratulations Stu. Are you selling any Male Cockatoo Cichlids? Cheers, Matt

Tap water with water ager added.

Hi Hummingbird, Thanks for your reply. I do feed bloodworms occassionally and also Live Mosquito Larvae but I have been feeding these for a good six months with no problems. I stopped feeding both a couple of weeks ago after the loses as I thought it might be the Mosquito Larvae, but I am still losing fish. I seem to lose fish after a water change and adding fertiliser so I was thinking it is either the fertiliser, the water or my water conditioner, but I use the same water and conditioner on my tank with baby bristlenose with no problems :-? . The Flourish Excel is the only thing that I have changed from my regular routine and that is when I began having problems and this is the only tank I use it on which leads me to believe that it may be the cause of my problems. Do you dose your Flourish and Flourish Excel at the same time? What rate are you dosing at? Thanks for your help, Matt

Thanks Alan, I do wish I had just put up with the BBA. I really hate losing fish. The funny thing is that the BBA hasn't actually gone, it started to disappear when I was dosing daily but has since gone back to normal. To make matters worse I came in to work on Monday to find that the cleaners had knocked over my DIY CO2 at some stage over the weekend and filled the tank with sugar and yeast :evil: :evil: . I am still trying to get it all out of the tank even after 3 50% water changes and vacuuming the film off everything, I think I am going to have to completely drain the tank. I lost a few plants but at least my Female Cockatoo Cichlids survived though It doesn't rains it pours

This article should help: http://www.aquatic-gardeners.org/cyprinid.html Cheers, Matt

Hi All, I am experiencing unexplained deaths in my established 250l planted tank over the last month and it all seems to have started when I began using flourish excel to get rid of BBA. Previously I had just been using Flourish and Flourish Iron and had no problems. Tank before using Excel 2 Keyhole Cichlids 4 Blue Rams 7 Rummy Nose 2 Jullii & 2 Schwartzi Corydoras Breeding Pair of Bristlenose Catfish (babies in a separate tank) 2 Black Phantom Tetras Fluval 404 and Aquaclear 150 filter with protein skimmer attachment. Temp was 27 and PH was 6 due to peat filtering, all fish happy and healthy and breeding. I purchased 9 baby angelfish and 4 Adult Congo Tetras at the same time as I started dosing Flourish Excel. As per the LFS ‘s instructions I dosed Flourish Excel at the normal rate every second day for a week and then started double dosing a week later. The next day after double dosing I woke up to 2 angelfish, 2 rummy nose, 1 blue ram and a black phantom dead. I did two 25% water changes of the next couple of days and then began dosing flourish excel at 1 capful/5 ml every second day. Over the next couple of weeks I lost my male Bristlenose, 1 Black Phantom, 1 Rummy Nose, 3 Angelfish and 1 Blue Ram. The fish didn’t appear to have anything wrong with them, no missing scales or red gills etc just upside down and dead. I tested for ammonia after each fish loss and all tests came up with none showing. I also did a 25% water change each time. Two days ago I did another 25% water change and added Flourish and Flourish Excel and the next day I found another Angelfish upside down in the plants but still marginally alive and yesterday another Rummy Nose dead upside down in the plants. Fish left as at 12/4/05 4 Congo Tetras spawning daily 4 Angelfish 4 Rummy Nose 4 Corydoras Female Bristlenose 2 Keyhole Cichlids 2 Blue Rams Temp 27 ph 6.5 due to more frequent water changes. I know that 9 Angels and 4 Congos is a lot to add at once, but my Girlfriend really wanted the Angel’s and I wasn’t leaving without the Congo’s. The guy at the LFS reckoned I could easily add more but I didn’t think that was very good advice so I didn’t follow it. I reduced feeding and did extra water changes to compensate plus the tank is very heavily planted and never showed ammonia the whole time. Has anyone else had a similar experience with Flourish Excel, could it be due to my low PH or dosing both Flourish and Flourish Excel?? I am discontinuing using Flourish Excel and will just use flourish for now. My plants have been growing really well and the water is crystal clear. Any ideas?? I searched the net and found others have had similar experiences. http://fins.actwin.com/aquatic-plants/m ... 00076.html http://richpoorman.com/aquaria/maintank/weblog/ http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/discusfaqs.htm

I would plant your main/specimen plants first i.e. Amazon Swords etc and leave plenty of space around them so they get maximum light and room to grow, then start at the back and work your way forward. I wouldn't worry about completely filling every space in the tank with plants at first, let them grow and then see what it looks like, as they will take off with the Co2 and your light levels. Good luck Cheers, Matt

Congratulations Billaney . What filters are you running? I have had two spawnings in my community tank now and have found that a lot of them end up in my Aquaclear 150. I found 15 in there after the second spawning, just as I was about to go away for the weekend it was a mad panic to set up another tank to put them in but they all survived. I found another 10 or so in there over the next week and managed to catch a few as well, so I now have over 30 in a separate tank. Get well soon Cheers, Matt

Here is a detailed article on the identification of the different species that can be mistaken for the SAE. http://www.aquatic-gardeners.org/cyprinid.html Cheers, Matt

I use Aqualog to keep tabs of my maintenance, it is simple to use, free with no ads and you can set up as many tanks as you like. I have mine run when my computer starts so I get maintenance reminders every morning. http://www.joejaworski.com/aqualog/ Cheers, Matt

Thanks Snowman for the info, I have BBA in my main tank have had for a good six months since I stopped Co2 injection. My two SAE jumped out of the tank a month ago (left the lid off for one day) and it has got really bad. I got sick of it last week and so went and bought some flourish excel and am currently trialling that, fingers crossed. I have patches of it on my substrate as well and it is completely covering a couple of pieces of driftwood, not an attractive sight . If you think BBA is bad, I have Blue-Green Algae aka Cynobacteria in 3 of my 4 tanks and that is a nightmare, completely covers the leaves and if some of your plants are touching the surface it will also start covering that. I have managed to control it but not get rid of it, I am currently trying to source some Erythromycin to kill it once and for all :evil: . Cheers, Matt

Sorry for my lack of knowledege but what are GBA, BGA and GBN? Cheers, Matt

I just left mine with the parents in my community tank and I now have about 15 2cm baby bristlenoses. The male guarded the eggs the whole time, and is now sitting on another clutch 2 months later. Be careful that they can't get into your filter intake once they hatch, I lost a couple to my aquaclear 150 and only just saved another two from going down the drain while cleaning it . Cheers, Matt

I have a 60l bin under the house which I have some driftwood water logging in, it also has quite a few mosquito larvae in it which my fish absolutely love. I just go out with my fish net a couple of times a week scoop as many as I can catch, and dip the net in the tank and the fish go nuts. A little tip that I learnt the hard way - if you are going to do this make sure that you are harvesting the large ones a couple of times a week, otherwise you will have a swarm hanging around the bin waiting for you to catch their babies . Cheers, Matt

Hi Susi, The aquatic potting mix and peat moss are your fertiliser so you won't need laterite, you will need to add a liquid fertiliser once the tank is planted, I use Flourish. Basically you put a 1cm layer of gravel down and then mix the potting mix and peat moss into this, so you will end up with a 2-3cm layer of potting mix, gravel and peat and then add another 4cm of just gravel so that the fertiliser doesn't leach into the water. You will have to be very careful when filling i.e. pour water onto a saucer and not directly onto the gravel otherwise you will get very cloudy water, this is true even if you don't use undergravel fertiliser. I would definitely boil the driftwood from the LFS for 10 minutes just to be sure you don't introduce any nasties. I got my rocks from a river and they are fine, just make sure they aren't limestone or anything that will alter your PH. You can put them in a bucket with some vinegar and if they don't bubble they should be fine, I would boil them as well just to be safe. Good luck. Cheers, Matt

I got my black air line hose from Hollywood Fish Farm in Albany, but I am sure that the other LFS's stock it. What is Peat? Taken from http://www.ravensdown.co.nz/Products/Gr ... hatis.html "Quality spaghnum peat (or peat moss) is a soil conditioner and is one of the best bases for growing media and potting soils. Peat moss is a natural, organic soil conditioner that regulates moisture and air around plant roots for ideal growing conditions. It is made up of dead plant matter that hasn't finished decomposing or rotting because of a lack of oxygen. The lack of oxygen occurs because of waterlogging or horn a flow rate too slow to replace the oxygen used in the decomposing processes." I also use it in my filters to lower the PH as the fish I keep come from the Amazon etc. Here is a good article on a planted tank substrate, the top part explains the effect peat has on your plants and substrate: http://home.infinet.net/teban/how-to.html Cheers, Matt

Hi Susi, I have just done the same thing with one of my tanks about two weeks ago. I completely cleaned out the tank, changed the gravel, fertiliser and design, painted the back black and replanted, I was lucky that I had given the fish away before Christmas so I could take my time. If you are going to change the gravel I would definitely recommend using an undergravel fertiliser. I have used a mix of aquatic potting mix and peat moss in two of my tanks and am getting really good growth, plus you can pick up both from a garden centre for about $15 and have plenty left over. My method is: put a 1 cm layer of gravel down and then add 1 cm potting mix and a few handfuls of peat moss and mix in and then add about another 4 cm of gravel on top and you shouldn't have any problems with it leaching and clouding your water. You can make it deeper at the back so it slopes from back to front, this will give you a nice deep substrate for your plants and all the leftover food etc will accumulate at the front for easy siphoning. To paint the back black I used Blackboard paint in a spray can from Mitre 10 about $10 (thanks Kim for this tip), I did one coat and then let it dry for an hour and then relocated the tank. I would also recommend getting black airline tubing as the white tubing sticks out like dog's whatsits after doing this :lol: . I use DIY Co2 on my systems and it works well. I hope this helps. Cheers, Matt

Hi Jammos, Just my two cents and a possible workaround. Is it possible for you to remove the water and all your fish to a large bucket or chilly bin, clean and dry the area, use the sealant, allow it to skin (5-10 minutes) and then replace the water and fish? Cheers, Matt

I got a pleasant surprise this morning as I was leaving for work, 3 bristlenose babies about 15 mm long on the front glass of my 250 litre community tank . I introduced my female into the tank on the 21st of January and could see the male inside his driftwood cave fanning something a few days later, but never saw any eggs. I am guessing that they are about a week old. Does anyone know how big bristlenose spawns are normally? Both parents are full grown. At this stage I am going to leave them in there, as it would be an absolute mission to try and catch them. The only fish that could fit them in their mouth are the Keyhole's. The other inhabitants of the tank are: 7 Rummy Nose Tetras, 2 Black Phantom, 2 Schwartz and 2 Julii Corys, 2 Siamese Algae Eaters and 2 Keyholes. Pic of one of the babies here: http://www.geocities.com/i_lovebeer/Bab ... 3-2-05.JPG This is the tank: http://www.geocities.com/i_lovebeer/MainTank2-2-05.JPG the piece of driftwood on the right is hollow which is where they spawned. I suppose I should check my Fluval 404 filter for more when I get home tonight. Cheers, Matt

I did this about a year ago, I had removed my DIY co2 bottle one night and was going to replace it the next morning, which seemed like a good idea at the time. I was awoken to what sounded like a water fall in the next room - being the outlet of my Fluval 404 above water, it took me a few minutes to wake up and work out what it was, at which point I flew out of bed and ran into the lounge squelching water underneath my feet as I ran . The airline hose was sitting in the intake to an Aquaclear 150, about 6 inches below the water line, so the water had to siphon against the flow of the filter, up 6-8 inches of tank wall, over the edge, and then onto the brand new carpet isn't gravity wonderful! It drained about 60 litres in total which soaked the entire 5 sq m of carpet in the lounge, the water I had to replace at 3 am. It was lucky I had a dehumidifier handy, which I set to max power and went back to bed. I vacuumed the carpet using a wet and dry vac the next morning and left the dehumidifier running for a week to get the rest of the dampness out. The hardest part was not letting the landlord, who lives up stairs, find out especially when the dehumidifier sent the power bill soaring :lol: .

Welcome Morf, I am impressed with the photo's of your Rummy Noses, I tried for about 10 minutes last night and couldn't get anything more than a red and silver blur . I think someone has laced my fishfood with speed, they just won't stay still for a split second :lol: . Cheers, Matt

IMO a bristlenose will probably grow too big for that size tank and they produce a lot of waste for their size. I would go with two Otocinclus (info here: http://www.otocinclus.com/ ) instead. I am rather conservative with my stocking levels as I would rather have fewer but healthier fish. Cheers, Matt

You will probably find that your system wasn't 100% airtight, CO2 is very good at escaping through the tiniest air leak. Use some silicon sealant on the inside and outside of your bottle cap where the airline hose comes out and try it again. It could also be your yeast, it needs to be kept in the fridge. I am using a 2 litre coke bottle with 2 cups of sugar, 1/2 a teaspoon of edmonds surebake yeast kept in the fridge and a pinch of baking soda, filled with water to the top of the coke label. My method is as follows: I quarter fill the bottle with luke-warm water add one cup of sugar and quarter of a teaspoon of yeast and then shake vigourously (whilst covering the bottle opening of course ), then add more luke-warm water to an inch below the top of the label and add the second cup of sugar, quarter teaspoon of yeast and a pinch of baking soda and top up the water if I need to and shake vigorously again. I then screw the lid on tight, attach it to my aquaclear 150 filter intake and it starts bubbling in a few hours depending on room temperature. I normally get two weeks out of a bottle and it has worked every time (touch wood ). I hope this helps, don't give up on the CO2. Cheers, Matt

An undergravel heating coil will also promote growth if your budget allows. I got one for $150 from Jansen's and I have given up on Ambulia because I was sick of pruning it every week . Cheers, Matt