Jennifer

Even better if you know the right people (or have a good relationship with your LFS). 8)

In a high tech tank, that lotus should grow fast enough that you can prune off the tallest half dozen leaves every week, at least. Pruning it will keep it bushy too. You can rub off some of the algae, but the leaves could already be damaged if the light has been blocked or if you are rough when rubbing the leaves, it depends on the plant but usually it is best to remove affected leaves especially when you have invasive algae like staghorn. Hardy plants like anubias can be bleached but invasive algaes will penetrate the leaves.

Yeah, I tried all the powerheads and a small canister but I decided I needed more mechanical filtration. Plus, I got a really good deal. 8)

Nah, no need to over engineer what is just a simple concept. :smln: I like the flexibility with being able to move the hose around the yard to water the plants. More sustainable and not going into the already taxed Chch sewage system!

I like the external because the tank is in my lounge and I want it to be quiet and with minimal humidity. For larger tanks I use sumps because it is easier to move large amounts of water but planted tanks have their own issues. I am using an FX5 on a 6ft high tech planted tank now and am just about to add a second one because there are too many dead spaces in water circulation (preventing good flow of nutrients around the plants - an FX5 full of media does not have the water turnover that it would if it was empty - also, plants not only block the filter with mulm but they also interfere with the flow of water around the tank). The increased surface area from a sump will only slightly affect CO2 levels, but if your weir is especially turbulent you will get significant loss from that. Combine that with 5-15% loss from most airline tubing and your CO2 efficiency is probably decreased about 35-40% so you would need to have your CO2 gas flow rate up to reach optimal levels in the tank and that would mean refilling the cylinder more frequently (probably every 3-4 months for a 5lb cylinder with that size tank). Not impossible though, there are usually solutions to any problem.

Cold water tap>hose>tank>overflow>hose>lawn :cofn:

+1 I have some growing very well under 11w/6 hr photoperiod, 1x weekly dosing with ferts and 2x weekly Excel. It is one of the more sensitive plants for nutrient deficiency. For that reason it is a great bellwether for planted tanks. The more light a plant gets, the more CO2 and ferts it needs. In low light (or with a short photoperiod), plants will grow slower than in high light, and they will also be less likely to develop nutrient deficiency.

I, for one, am no expert! I have just made a LOT of mistakes over the years and fortunately have learned from some of them (and researched a lot in the process). :cofn: A gradual water change is fine. I usually turn off the CO2 during the change since it will be washed away (and tap water has a high amount of dissolved CO2 anyway so the plants will happily pearl). Just dose as normal after the change. One of the biggest mistakes made when setting up a new planted tank is not adding enough plant biomass. You might consider adding some fast growing floating plants, these will help to keep balance until your lower plants really gain a foothold. I promise you, you will not regret it (unless you use duckweed ).

Doing a water change helps to 're-set' the system so that it doesn't get out of balance. I actually turn on the autochanger on my big tank so that it gets a full turnover over the course of the day and it makes a big difference for my setup compared to just a 50% water change. With a high-tech tank you may eventually find that you need to separate out the NPK so next time think about not mixing the KN03 and KH2P04 in the same bottle so that you can more easily increase one or the other as needed based on what you are seeing: If you see: green spot algae - add more phosphate green dust/fuzz/hair - cut back light, add more nutrients, usually micros and/or nitrate (there are lots of different types so you need to experiment with whatever works) black beard - add more CO2/increase the flow of CO2 staghorn - ensure even levels of CO2/check that there are no ammonia spikes algae bloom (green water) - ensure even levels of CO2/check that there are no ammonia spikes, make sure photoperiods are not excessive, avoid direct sunlight yellowing tips and edges of leaves - add more potassium holes in the leaves - add more trace old yellow leaves - add more nitrogen or magnesium

Tonight's meeting is at Erica's. See the link here: http://www.fnzas.org.nz/fishroom/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=52284

:rotf: You guys are all fantastic. Bishop, that Fox image is priceless. :gigl:

Ahh, cute pic of the shellie! :gigl:

Did you get my email yesterday? I attached a bunch of pics.

Phosphate is a macronutrient and you can get it in dry powder from a hydroponics place or liquid preparation from the LFS (Seachem Phosphate for instance). It is a myth that phosphates cause algae. Plants need phosphate to grow well. Overfeeding (excess high protein fish food) also releases phosphate in the water. The tank with duckweed has two things going for it which can be helping to prevent algae, firstly, the duckweed will be blocking some of the light to the tank below. Also, the fast growing duckweed will be utilising nutrients in the water so the algae cannot - that is the objective with planted tanks, to get the plants growing well so that they outcompete the algae.

Looks like you have hair algae and green spot algae on the glass. There are many many different types of hair algae. It is caused by an equally large number of factors. In general, increasing carbon/CO2 and helps. You will need to remove the affected leaves. It might be good to do a black out alternating 3 days of black out, 3 days of light. That will harass the algae and it won't be able to tolerate it like the plants can. Then have a look at your lighting. Intense lighting or long photoperiods will only increase the chances of algae. The green spot algae is due to lack of phosphate. You won't be able to get rid of it without scraping it off the glass but you can stop it growing by adding appropriate levels of phosphate.

Sorry, perhaps I should clarify, the snails weren't swallowing the fish whole, they were sitting on top of the fish clearly eating. The rescued fish were clearly stressed at being suffocated and one had a wound on its head where the snail had been nibbling.

Today you will have seen a number of changes implemented with the web upgrade. A lot has happened since the executive meeting last November when we decided to upgrade the site. Since then, many a holiday, weekend and long night have been spent over all the little details. As a small non-profit organisation we simply would not have been able to finance such an upgrade without the help of numerous volunteers. I would like to personally thank each and every member who has joined and renewed membership to affiliated clubs this year, your membership fees have really made a difference and have allowed us to continue hosting this site. Development of the site involved a significant effort and I would like to thank Flatfish and Supasi for adding content to the plant and fish databases; thanks to the executives committee members and delegates who took time out to test the site last week to help work out the kinks. Also deserving of significant appreciation is John, our tech support for the really hairy stuff. But above all, I would like everyone to join me in thanking Diane and Warren for their hours and hours of time designing and developing the site and upgrading the forums. I am sure we will all be enjoying their efforts in the months and years to come. In the new site you will see two new areas of note, the first is the new opportunity for associate membership. This is to allow people to become affiliated members without having to join a club. For more information, see: http://www.fnzas.org.nz/?page_id=40 The Christchurch quake has had a devastating effect on hobbyists in the area. As a result, the FNZAS has inititated a quake relief fund to help quake-affected Christchurch members get back in the hobby. If each one of us donates just a few dollars, we can really make a difference. Please help if you can: http://www.fnzas.org.nz/?p=1304 The upgrade is mostly complete and will be a work in progress as we add more features including a members only area. Your patience and understanding is much appreciated as we get this underway.

Yes, mystery snails can eat fish. I saved two full grown shellies that were standing their ground and were getting engulfed by the snails.

Kelvin ratings for designer lights are a marketing ploy although wavelength does matter when you have salt water since the ionic properties of the salt absorbs the radiation of low energy spectrums (toward the red end of the spectrum). That is why blue wavelengths are used since they are high energy and thus have better photon flux/light penetration of the saltwater. Freshwater does not absorb the wavelength radiation as much, so both high and low energy light spectrums can be used to grow plants. It doesn't matter what wavelength you choose, the plants will adapt either with clorophyl or any of the axillary pigments. Light spectrum is a minor factor compared to all the other factors contributing to growth and there is plenty of evidence out there to prove that. Your light spectrum will not make your plants go red nor will yellow and green spectrum prevent your plants from growing. The plain and simple truth is that you can pick the colour of lights that you like, it will not make a darn bit of difference either way once that plants have adjusted. What will make a difference is the photon flux/lux/PAR/light penetration. Smaller tubes have a smaller light emitting surface and will always be less effective than larger tubes. The 'watts per gallon' was derived for T12 tubes as a way to estimate the penetration of light and there have been some recent investigations as to how those factors compare with T8 and T5 lights and lighting calculators are being discussed as a way to help take away some of the guess work. The best way to be certain is to use a PAR meter to measure the penetration of photons in your tank but if you don't have one available, you can only guess. In short, there are a few good rules for plant growth: 1. Buy whatever tube spectrum you like 2. Buy the longest light fittings you can for your tank 3. Use the lowest amount of light that will grow your plants 4. Measure the light penetration if you can, and if you can't, start with watts per gallon and work up slowly

I only met Eddie once, but it was apparent he enjoyed being part of the fish keeping community. My condolences go out to his friends and family. I will be going to the funeral, anyone who wants to join me, is more than welcome.

Well done Dan.

Last week Joe sent me an email with a photo of the 'cool moss' that he had identified as Fissidens berteroi. Well done with the identification Joe.

Good one! I really like the layout. I also like that you have the fish in good sized groups with multiple fish of the same species. Those species will be happier in larger groups of similar fish. Well done. Welcome to the forums.

I use an old EFT POS card too, and only scrape downward toward the sand (not back up again). It works a treat and no scratches.