Joe

What species? Pics please My sister just got her horse today, which is on a 1 year lease from a friend

Love the male agassizii !drool: Wow that's going to look amazing :happy2:

Thinking like that, you won't be able to add any fish or plants to you tank in case they are contaimated :roll: Everything you put in your tank brings in different bacteria or algae to some extent. You just keep an eye on the tank after adding something new, and treat the water if anything goes wrong. If you are really worried then you can quarintine it. I have added plants collected from rivers to my tank before without any problems - I just make sure I clean it well first and give it a good wash. No problems at all

Why aren't you adding it to your tank? It is a brilliant aquarium plant! Mine did really well until the algae got it :facepalm:

Wow nice work! Looking forward to the tank photos

Lost for words... !drool:

Wow I love the last one !drool: Stunning! Where did you get it from? I assume it would of cost a bomb being F1? Those albino ones are freaky... I have never liked albino fish - they just don't look right :dunno:

Awesome growth !drool: I love the jungle look :thup:

Gorgeous !drool:

Haha that's from the ghost chips ad :slfg: Cool :thup: I like ghost chips.

The ATI unit would be good if that's what you want to do; it would be far too bright for a cichlid tank, but you can dim it and only put a couple of tubes in. Then when you are ready for a marine tank you will just need to put more tubes in it

Hello and welcome I think some small catfish, a pair of Apistogramma and a school of cardinal tetras would look nice Tiger barbs can be quite aggressive from what I've read, and also aren't particulary colourful either. Cardinal tetras are peaceful and also look gorgeous, and you don't see any ugly mutations at the shops either, just the natural coloured fish I definately recommend Apistogramma, they are so cool and full of character and are easy and fun to look after :happy2: Wild kribensis (Pelvicachromis taeniatus) are also another option, which are also beautiful and are much more different to the normal kribs, if you are looking for something more unusual.

What on earth's a yowzer? :dunno:

I assume Ymir wants then to grow corals. The GLO ones would be OK for a small tank, but if it is a bigger tank, then you'd have to buy heaps of them, it would look ugly, and there would be heaps of power cords everywhere as the GLO ones only take two tubes per unit, and you need much more light to grow corals than a couple of GLO units. Also you can't control the Hagen GLO's or fully or dim them.

Wow that is gorgeous You have obviously put some thought into this tank, because it looks exactly like the biotope those fish live in :thup:

Yep you can get ATI fixtures in NZ. There's two types, both of which are available in dimmable or non dimmable models - Sunpower and Powermodule. Not sure if you can get both in NZ though. I've only seen the Powermodule on one site. The Sunpower has less cooling fans than the Powermodule, and is built slightly differently. IMO the Powermodule is the better of the two. The dimmable modules are compatible with GHL ProfiLux controllers and a few other different controllers. Also I wouldn't buy them in NZ, they're pretty expensive here! It would probably work out cheaper to buy from overseas, and although shipping would cost a bomb it would still be cheaper than buying in NZ. Have a look on the net if you want to read reviews and discussions about these lights. Apparently they are really well-made, and you can buy replaceable parts if something goes wrong. From what I've read these are the best T5HO fixtures on the market and are real value for money Here's the link to the Powermodules; http://www.reefsmart.co.nz/lighting/powermodule-t5-high-output-fixture.html

Wow the zoas are amazing !drool: I don't know why but I seem to have a fascination with zoas :dunno: Maybe because they look cool, sort of like paecock feathers when the polyps are open? I really want a reef tank, but the equipment is just far too expensive

Yep So you can use JBL Florapol and maybe some laterite, and just mix it with the peat moss. The Hauraki Gold stuff is what I use, and it's really good. You can get it from Mitre 10, and it has no additives. Also you don't need to pick out the little twigs and stuff in it - just use it stright out of the bag I use peat moss and JBL balls with a top layer of sand in my pots and the plants do really well, although growth is restricted because they are confined to the pots.

No you do not wash the peat moss, just mix it with clay and wet it and put it on the bottom and cover it with sand. Also if you microwave it then it would probably catch fire. It won't have any beasties in it, and just make sure that you get the stuff with no added mould or fertilisers.

Be careful with the beach sand as it may have bits of shells in it, and also wash it thoroughly to remove the salt. I would also recommend some sort of nutritious substrate underneath the sand or gravel, like peat moss and clay or laterite. You could also just use JBL balls and replace them when they have been used.

Yes 1000x600x500mm is ideal for your first tank :thup: Brilliant for a reef build - you could fit tonnes of stuff in there :bounce: And it isn't so large that it will be unmanageable for a beginner like yourself. When I eventually get my first reef tank I don't want to excede 300L since it would be my first tank. I would rather start with one or two small to medium tanks and then work my way up. That way I can get the hang of it first before I start investing in huge tanks and lots of equipment Check out this thread for inspiration - this guy's tank is even smaller than yours and look at all the cool corals he has in it! http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=96169 And this guy has a beautiful tank too. He has mainly SPS corals and uses AI Sol Blue LED modules http://www.youtube.com/user/whatafather/videos Another great thread, using Maxspect LED lighting http://reefcentral.tv/forums/showthread.php?t=1929512&s=ea1cb4e11471470870edb97d359b2fa6&

Beautiful tank !drool:

Get an Eheim Jager heater. They cost a bit but as far as I know they are the best quality heater in NZ. I would be nervous buying a $17.00 heater and putting it in a tank. If it's such a low price then there must be something dodgy about it...

Wow the moss and Bolbitis are spectacular !drool: And the water is so clear and they're no algae Well done, you've done a brilliant job of this :happy1: