BikBok

I took in a water sample form the highest reading tank .. (7.4+) LFS came up with 7.2-7.4 which was closest to the aquamaster reading. so it's obviously the nutrafin solution that is out.

I could probably separate them within the tank. The dwarf gourami is still in the main tank and has perked up since this morning and is now eating. I will see how he goes.

well one of my dwarf gourami managed to wedge himself in a piece of driftwood. There's a small tunnel like cavity. It's a wonder he didn't drown. He had been there all night because when I went to bed I did see him in there but thought he was just hiding out and would come out by himself. My female betta swims in and out of there regularly as it's not a full tunnel just a hole in the wood. Anyway, this morning, With some effort I managed to free him but his head and underbelly is scraped. And dorsal fin looks a bit tatty from where he must have been struggling to free himself. The head is the worst, and is missing a patch of skin. I have male betta in a lightly salted 21L tank and thought the salt would be good for the gourami while he heals . I haven't put him in yet but I suspect they will not get on. Any advice what to do with the gourami ?

interesting , you're getting a similar result.

thanks for the phoenix, I'll check it out tomorrow or maybe wait for the next aqua fun day ;-)

I'll take in a sample tomorrow to an LFS as I'm meeting someone there anyway. I'm sure it's the nutrafin kit that is off, maybe a bad batch. If anything our water supply gives higher pH not lower!

4 drops as per instructions. Expiry date 31/12/2012 , and I opened it this week.

I usually just use a basic aqua master or similar pH test and it's always been pretty accurate and has matched the results when I've taken in a sample to the LFS. Occasionally my pH creeps up to 7.4+ (which is the max reading) so i decided to get a high range test but accidentally got the wide range one from Nutrafin/Hagen. I'm not impressed , I got readings considerably lower than I expected or was getting on the Aqua matser one.. My three readings tonight from 3 different tanks were: AM (aquamaster) NF (Nutrafin) tank 1: AM 7.0 NF 6.0 tank 2: AM 7.4 NF 6.5 tank 3: AM 7.4+ NF 6.5-7 what do you make of this?

sorry I can't help , but when I viewed your link.. I got logged in under my facebook profile.. i didn't know these two sites were connected (photobucket and facebook) I just did all my privacy settings a few days ago but will have to check them again.

i use a dechlorinator.. don't have the room to age water in buckets and it's not the right temp then anyway. So straight out of the tap and then the required amount of dechlorinator. Once a month I add TLC beneficial bacteria as a boost.

my daughter observed that where we dispose the used water is where the grass is greenest and lushest! I feed my potplants with it too.

conditions and practices might be different in NZ

I use the cartridges and replace every 8 weeks but you could just use a wool pad without the carbon if you wanted. I do find the carbon helps to keep the water clear. But the noodles are a must.

this might be helpful... the AR620 manual has diagrams of what goes where http://www.aquaone.co.uk/documents/Aqua ... ew_002.pdf on page 3 it has a list of the codes for the media names , you want 3C for the carbon cartridge then you just go into a petshop and ask for it. The bottom of page 4 shows how it all goes together in the filter

the two aquaone tanks I have (AR850 & AR380) both came with the black sponge you talk about which shouldn't need replacing for a long time - just rinse in emptied tank water when you do the water changes. There is also a wool/carbon cartridge that you buy specifically to fit and it has carbon and a thin layer of wool. .. or you can just buy wool. Underneathe the black sponge there should be space to put ceramic noodles . (important for biological filtration) the cartridge looks like this: http://www.hollywoodfishfarm.co.nz/prod ... hp?id=1714

Get more than one oto, happier in small groups , I'm after a couple more to add to my two but i just need to find the same species.

My jager heater has always been spot on - i'm very impressed after having used the not as accurate aqua ones previously. And I like the calibration dial.

thanks Jenniferh. I have done the disinfection and rinsing and am now running plain water through the tank for a couple of hours and then will drain that , let it air dry just to make extra sure. Then I'll start again , looks like my platy will be having fry in a few days so I'll have something to cycle the tank with again. (I'll only add a couple at a time)

A wet towel is what I was told to do.

wow , I had forgotten what good ol field mushrooms look like!

well I just had another fry die on me., just when I thought I had the all clear. All the fry are in the Q tank thank goodenss but I'm now thinking I might need to euthanise the remainign 9 and disnfect the tank. Whats the best thing to disnfect the tank? plain bleach? - will it eat the rubber heater holders and the impeller material ? (not sure what that is amde of but it feels rubbery)

i just cut the cube into fours with a sharp knife and rewrap in foil. Haven't had any trouble cutting through, maybe yours have a high ice content.

haha Sam - I didn't even see you lol. I actually was sick as a dog (strange saying that) so probably didn't notice much at all today.

thanks for the replies.. that's reassuring. I guess I'm just used to seeing plump guppies and other fish. They came up to eat the dried tubifex so at least they're not too shy to eat. I need to get some more frozen bloodworms as the ones I have are getting a bit old now. It's neat how they use their ventrals like little hands haha. I watched one push the other away with a ventral fin. While they were still in the bag they were lightly banging lips but didn't seem to be fighting .. why would that be?