Jennifer

1:20 dilution with plain (non-detergent) bleach. Leave the plants in for 5 to 15 minutes. Waxy leaf plants like anubias can withstand longer durations whereas mosses really only can handle a minute. Most of the common plants can handle a good 10 minutes but the leaves of congo fern are more tender and crispy so I would only leave them in for 2 to 5 minutes.

Thank you! Just pull it gently out and carefully put it in a takeaway food container filled with tank water. It should be absolutely fine and if it doesn't do well, it will always regenerate.

Hands down Siamese algae eaters are one of the best algae eaters around. The others like otos, BNs, CAE etc, are cute but they don't eat near as much algae. So it comes down to how much algae you need eaten. Yes SAE can grow quite large but many shops are happy to swap them out as they get to large. HTH

I'll take some of that affinis! :bounce:

Probably not, but it made my night. 8)

So exactly what I was thinking. I can hear that commercial in my mind. Ch-ch-ch-chia!! LMAO

Maybe he has a fancy dress party to attend tonight after you go to bed.

After discussions with the FNZAS President, we are pleased to be able to offer an open invitation to anyone who would like to attend the annual FNZAS conference in early June. See this thread for more details: viewtopic.php?f=6&t=43931 There are lots of fun activities planned and it is a great chance to catch up with fellow fishkeepers from around the country. You do not have to be a registered member of an affiliated club to attend and you don’t need to register if you would just like to join us for one (or both) of the meals, or the bus trip. Please contact us with any queries. Hope to see you there! Jennifer President Totally Tanked http://www.totallytanked.co.nz

They do have gorgeous eyes. I remember once I went into the clinic very early one morning and looked in a covered cage where two huge yellow eyes from a great horned owl just stared at me as if they saw into my soul. Very chilling. Btw, very dismayed that the DOC person said to feed mince. I can't tell you the number of fully body xrays I have seen of raptors who have been fed only mince and nearly evrey bone in their body is broken from lack of calcium. Would have been better for them to offer you some pinkies or at least tell you about supplementation so that bone had a chance of healing. Hmmm, for that matter I am dismayed that she would suggest a layperson take home and nurse a bird of prey...is it just me or is that not only inhumane, but also irresponsible in terms of imprinting and the potential for human injury? :roll: Maybe it is just me....

I am sure someone with more experience than me will chime in on this but doesn't laminated glass just 'blow' apart when it breaks (making a big mess when filled with water) compared to non-laminated glass which often just cracks and leaks in a big way?

I can't tell anything from the photos (other than that the fish looks unwell) but I would agree with Ryan's estimate. That said...and this is a bit of a stretch...in the second photo the light is shining through the fish and I can almost see what looks like a possible large loop of worm in the intestinal area. Might just be a figment of my imagination but it is cheap and easy to deworm with Aviverm if you want to go that route. As Ryan says, bumps can be caused by many things but those that come up suddenly could be skin infections, abscesses, muscle infections or some parasites. In the absence of diagnostic testing, my rule of thumb is to treat for whatever is likely to kill the fish the quickest. Since you can't really treat for viruses, treat for bacteria and hope that the antibiotic you use will be effective. Furan would be the easiest route but it may not be effective. SMZ TMP (sulfa trimeth) is a good option and is readily available.

Hair algae is hard to get rid of but you are doing the right stuff with water changes and CO2. The blue snails eat it but as you can imagine, they are slow. Do you have more stem plants to put in there? Try floating them - it will block the light to everything underneath and they will suck up excess nutrients. Keep cleaning it off as you see it so it doesn't get out of control.

Blackout is not the safest way to get rid of cyanobacteria. It will slow it down the cyano growth temporarily but it will also release toxins into the water column as the bacteria die. Solving the problem that caused the cyano in the first place is the important part. Increasing water flow is one of the best things you can do. It also helps to increase aeration and CO2. Decrease nutrients (regular water changes and cut right back on food). Keep removing cyano at as you see it, vacuum regularly and remove affected leaves. I personally have eliminated cyano successfully many times with these methods without ever resorting to antibiotics.

I used to buy whole oats and they were called 'oat groats.'

It takes a minimum of two weeks for a tank to get the required bacterial culture in the filter and this is supported first by ammonia and then nitrite build up. This is the cycling process. Only then can you start building up the bioload by gradually adding more fish. If you add too many fish at once, the bacteria in the filter will not be enough to handle the waste and there will be an ammonia spike and then a nitrite spike which can potentially kill the fish. You can speed up the cycling process by adding mature media or seeding your new media with water or substrate from a healthy mature tank.

First thing to consider is toxicity that could be causing inflammation. Did they suddenly start this behaviour or has it been building up over time? What is the pH? Has the pH changed from the expected normal? Done any recent water changes or added anything? Second thing to consider is skin parasites but I wouldn't go there just yet unless you rule out the above.

That plant is perfectly safe for the aquarium.

It is best to just use plain liquid Janola type bleach with no added detergents. It is very inexpensive. Cleaners with bleach can leave residues.

Fish can handle a range of pH values but it is the fluctuations that can cause big problems. Using the pH up and down can cause the pH to 'crash' or fluctuate so much that the fish may be seriously affected. My advice would be to not add any chemicals to the water (other than water conditioner to remove chlorine). The local pet shop should be able to test your water for ammonia and nitrites if you don't have a kit.

Usually a 1:20 dilution is fine but it is not so exact that you need to measure it. Most plants can withstand a much higher concentration of bleach without showing any signs. Mosses are the exception, they will die pretty quickly if left in the bleach for more than a few minutes (but they will grow back quite quickly).

Agree with Ira. You may need a bigger heater but the fish should be able to handle that kind of temperature fluctuation. My biggest concern is when you mentioned "adjusting down' the pH. How did you do that?

If you have already pulled the plant and put it in a bucket, add a good splash of plain bleach. After 15 minutes I guarantee the algae will be dead and the plant can be rinsed and replanted. Btw, those blue mystery snails eat hair algae.

No judgement intended. Pet food labelling legislation is just about criminal IMHO. Don't mind me, I have just been battling that war for too long so it just comes out. :oops:

Jimbos is one of my biggest pet peeves (no pun). It is not a complete food, it is pure muscle (all phosphorus and no calcium) so you would need to add a pure calcium supplement (among other things) to provide a balanced diet. You are right about the whole chick being more nutritious. It has its bones so there is a good calcium phosphorus balance not to mention a better profile of vitamins and minerals with all the organs present as well. You probably couldn't do much better than feeding a cat those chicks. Same goes for any carnivore.

I was hoping someone would!! Figured it might be you too. Love that song, it is one of my faves - I sing it all the time.