Nicolette

touche

yeah that too... good idea me love fishy

what did you end up doing Smidey? I think I may have the same prob with some neons...

Loving this thread...Thankyou all so much for the lessons... Mine?... 1. Check breeding tank very carefully for eggs before doing a water change. Then check again just to be sure. 2. Never let children buy a couple of little fish for the community tank with their non aquarium addicted parent. 3. Catching fish with 2 nets is WAY easier and less stressfull on the fish than using one net. (Lost 2 fish before I figured this one out) 4. Ph kits may only measure up to 7.4ph but tap water can be a lot higher than that.

Just checking in again. I now have another 2 neons with a white spot on their mouths and one of them has a ragged tail still. been treating for 6 days with melafix and so far no change. Getting a bit worried about the little guys, wondering if I have a parasite problem going on. I was hoping to get some clown loaches this weekend but think I will put it off till I know what is going on with the neons. Any ideas anyone????

My 55lt tank seems to sit at 7.4 ph (or higher, my test kit doesn't go above 7.4) I have driftwood in there and some plants but no shells or terracotta etc and my water supply is normally 7.2ph. I have just started doing water changes with rain water to try and get it lower but am currently dosing tank with melafix after 4 of my neons got nipped so cant do another water change till sunday. So what could be causing the ph to rise again? The fish seem ok.. not great but ok. my neons are showing a bit of strain I think. but SAE are good as is catfish and glowlights and babies.

Ians right.. it does begin.. my baby glow lights beat the odds and 2 survived without any care/feeding/help from me so I just HAD to get a breeding tank to see if I could breed the spawning parents myself. I got sucked in. They wont go near each other in the breeding tank....yet I feel a need to fill it with something... and so it continues... Good luck with the ammonia.

ok will do... everyone is looking perky thismorning so heres hoping.

There are a 4 or 5 others in the tank who have ragged fins at present hence why I am treating the whole tank with melafix. I had put 2 albino buenos aires tetras in the tank on tuesday and they got a bit nippy I think, and got a few bites in on the neons before I put them in the breeding tank. At least that is what I am hoping happened. So everyone in the tank is looking healthy but for a few nipped fins. Oh and a spawning glowlight.

Dont know what happened but I started treating with melafix and noticed after a few days that his fins were looking ragged and he was nose down swimming, struggling to stay below the surface. Isolated him into a floating trap and continued to treat with melafix and gave him a cooked pea for the suspected swim bladder problem. He lasted about 24hrs after the move to the trap and then died thismorning. I am about to do another 30% water change as its been 5 days since the last one and I am wondering if there is anything else I should do to prevent anyone else getting sick.

may I ask why you used standard bulbs rather than the long skinny ones?

I have emailed the president of the St Auckland club and am waiting for a reply. I have had a couple of people pm me expressing interest in attending meetings in this area. Anyone else interested? The more of us involved the better the experience for all the the more opportunities to share our knowledge with one another. Looking forward to hearing from you all.

That looks awesome. Yes please lots of pics if you prefer just pm me and I will give you my email address and you can send them to me directly. Thanks.

I am not too worried about the bulb side of things its more the hood and setting that seems to be so expensive.

don't know if this works or not but I was told if you boil driftwood in a bit pot for a while and repeat a couple of times it waterlogs it so it sinks? I am enjoying looking at all the pics and looking forward to seeing some fish in those tanks soon?

I am looking for a cheap way to light my tanks. Both are planted. no hoods just glass tops. I have been looking at http://www.lightingplus.co.nz/afawcs0114218/ID=3385/SID=233731673/productdetails.html would or could that work? What else would I need to do to ready it for my tanks I am willing to make my own if it turns out to be cheaper. I had thought of making one around 4ft long as they are horrendously expensive to buy. Or if anyone has any other diy ideas or whatever please let me know..

sweet, done. Thanks.

what anti fungal med? any advice?

One of my neon tetras has a white spot on his mouth. None anywhere else and it doesn't seem to be bothering him at all. Looks like a tiny cotton ball? About less than 1mm in size.. Any ideas anyone? I tried searching the net but no pics that were clear enough to provide any help. tank has just finished cycling and had a 20% water change yesterday.

err...what is bbs? I have Novo Tom Artema powder for them.. http://www.jbl.de/factmanager/frame_page.php?action=show&PageMode=2&IdType=2&Id=38 LFS said this was the stuff to use. I am going to set the fry up in an established breeding tank I have, to grow up for a while before I put them back in the community tank.

oh really?! are catfish a threat to them...he is only 3cm long my catfish

wow 4 weeks.. they certainly must be hardy fish to have survived in that invironment. What about the SAE... Do they eat small fry? (yes i know its a daft question as they are algae eaters but I gotta ask) Thanks again all for your help.

lol...I dont think so. The tank was newly established 6 weeks ago. I have just finished cycling.

Here is a photo of the wee guys... size is deceptive but around 6 to 10mm long... Anyone want to guess how old they are? This is the trap in the tank... and the tank.. I really need to figure out how to take better photos of the tank...lol

Good luck with the blue rams. I have managed to get the little critters into a breeding trap thats floating in the tank as we speak. My 12yr old and 9yr old would not have gone to sleep had I not made sure they were safe...lol