Disneyworld

Thanks for that Tsar. I don't have loads of fish, but Mystic Vampire has offered to babysit mine when I move - I'm very grateful to her, and will hand over my little charges middle January...

Hi Guys, I moved house last year, and received loads of wonderful support and advice regarding the moving of fish: how to keep the filters going, how to keep everyone alive etc. In the end I simply didn't want to face the stress of keeping fish alive for two weeks in a bucket with a couple of furry cats around, and distributed fish to Billaney and Jude. To be honest, I am sick of moving every one to two years, and have therefore bought my own patch. This means that once I've moved into it I may not have to move again for a whole 10 years :roll: But you've guessed it: that means I still have to move once more in January. Having a mortgage to pay means I can't afford to give my wet pets away and buy new ones after the move, so I would like to ask: does anyone have a spare tank I can rent for two weeks (Wellington/Hutt area), my fish own chequebooks, and are more than happy to pay rental space Fish involved: a couple of platies and their babies, and four of Ira's famous gourami's. Any fish motels out there, please let me know, it would take a load of my overloaded mind

In return for all the wonderful help I receive in this fishroom I am happy to write fishy software for the fishroom in my spare time. I know Pegasus has a beautiful piece of software, but if anyone wants something that cannot be found anywhere contact me, all suggestions welcome

So much for modern technology i.e. the plunger on the Fluval. HAH!! Thank you suphew and wok, I am eternally grateful a complimentary coffee and wine for you if you are in the Belmont region. Ye old siphoning method worked within seconds, and yes, I did still have one of those old fashioned suction balls, no fishy poo for me Don't ask me why I didn't think of it myself, this @#$@ flu obviously eats the brain, flu sufferers beware!

Decided to put carbon back into my filter after all, it can't do any harm, and the fish are still sick (so is the owner, I hate winter). I have done maintenance on my Fluval 304 filter before: sometimes I struggled to get it started again, but today I can't get it going at all :evil: - my patience is wearing thin, has anyone else had this problem with a Fluval? It has a little primer on top of the case, and as long as you keep the "out" pipe above the water level it normally fills the filter with water soon after you use the primer. Yeah I know I've been asking for lots of help lately, maybe that is a sign of the forties coming up :-?

Tested the whole tank, and found water, output, etc, to be all in order. I therefore tend to agree that my fish are not dying because of a lack of carbon *phew*. Thought back to the things that changed prior to my sick fishies, and the only other alternative: I introduced a handful of new platys to the tank. They were the first to die, and I now suspect they brought some disease into the tank. Their symptoms: excessive opening of the gills, i.e. the gills on these platys literally stuck out compared to the other fish (anyone know what this could be caused by?). I don't have a quarantine tank :oops: (short of space up here, folk), and can only hope that the stronger ones survive. Not all fish appear affected, it seems to be killing the smaller ones, but it breaks my little heart. Thanks for the advice, its the first time in about 8 years I have a "sick" tank, one more experience I guess.

Thanks for that guys. I found it a coincidence that this started happening after I removed the charcoal, so I'll trot off to Animates this morning and replace it. They'll probably die because of the charcoal dust this time around, but they're dying anyway. So sorry Ira, I don't normally kill fish for a hobby - so far I've lost one gourami, and one looks ill. Lost a few platties as well, but some of the fish are still very healthy, I guess thats the hardy lot. Will keep you posted as to what happens after I replace the carbon...*sigh*

My fish are dying at a rate of one a day - I have NEVER lost fish at this rate before, and am mortified (yes, Ira, it includes some of your beloved gourami's :-? ) The only change I made: I removed the charcoal from my filter. I have a reasonably large Fluval filter with four canisters containing bricklike white pellets (forgotten their name too). Surely this is enough to keep a tank healthy without charcoal? I'm visiting Animates tomorrow, do I need to put charcoal back into my filter (hate the stuff), or do I need to put more brickets in the filter? Not often I feel lost, but do now :oops:

Shock shock horror, I have discovered algae in my tank which I haven't seen in my 8 years of fishkeeping - related to the new area I moved to? Maybe... Instead of the "normal" green stuff which sticks to the side of your tank this green weirdo thing looks soft, long and stringy, has attached itself to the glass on one side, but floats the other side in the water. It came up very fast, I cleaned the tank only last week, and appears to grow at a monstrous rate. I will remove it tomorrow morning, but what is happening here, anyone know, its all over :evil:

Strange you all mention cats - about half an hour before the quake mine became restless, talking their heads off and running in and out. At first I thought they were playing, but after a while I thought perhaps I should phone Jimmy, and tell him something is up. I was on my way to the phone when the house became all shook up, and yes, angel, it was very interesting, never seen the walls spin while I'm sober

Anyone wanting to see the cracks (the house that is) is welcome, entrance fee is $2 :lol:

Often the person sitting right on top of the quake doesn't feel much, it is us poor sobs who catch the ripples down the road - for me it was the worst quake I have felt since I've been in NZ, but I survived. One week into my new home, and it falls apart :roll: - I would like to add that this house is on stilts, and loves rocking and rolling with quake waves :-? The main thing though, the tank was fine, thats all that matters...

Wall is chipboard (I think, that stuff most NZ homes are made of), are you surprised it cracked :lol:

A large crack developed in my bedroom wall (and yes, that was from the earthquake, for those smarty pants who would think otherwise ), but the tank stood strong. Could I presume that a smaller tank has a better chance of surviving than a big one?

I remember you told me about the L-shaped tank, Jude. Absolutely love it, next time I'm out your way (that is once a month ) I would love to pop around to have a personal look at it. The planting of the tank is inspiring, it has given me some ideas for my own tank which I'll have to set up shortly :roll:

Mystic, I'm thrilled he has a good home too - I got him to clean the tank, and found he was oh so lazy...with his long whiskers and round body he reminded me of some psychotic boyfriend I used to have, hence the ugly bit :lol:

Will keep you in mind next time, sorry fellas

I had a catfish (not sure which type) until Thursday. I thought he had perished, kept a low propfile, but when I cleared the tank he appeared in his full glory, fat as a piglet (so that's where my neons went ) Jude took him, but donated the ugly fellow to the Hutt pet centre in return. He might still be there, worth a try????

I hope to stay in the same area I'm currently in, Joze. This means that the fish won't have to travel too far, that should cut down on their stress levels a bit

Thanks people, that is great advice, I will go with the bucket option :lol: - perhaps i should start a blog to keep you posted on how many fish will eventually survive :-?

Hi All, The time is crawling near that disneyworld has to move again, the current house leaks like a tank :-? - in the past I would take my fish family to the local shop and donate them. As the shops don't appear to pay for fish this became an expensive exercise: give the fish back, mature the tank in your new home, and buy new fish and plants. :roll: Does anyone in the Wellington area have a "fostertank" they can keep fish in for a week? What do other people do when they move house?

I have an 80l tank stocked with some swordtails, mollies, and one lonely guppie. One day the guppie simply disappeared, and I thought he virtually became fish food (gosh, dis, u r sooooo corny!). One month later while cleaning the tank he suddenly appeared from under a rock. Never got to ask him what virtual fish space was like, but he is as healthy as can be...I simply think they are masters of disguise 8)

According to some internet sites my fish might have TB. It sounds crazy, I have been checked for TB upon entering New Zealand, but who is going to check the local guppies I'll be watching them, if they get any worse I will put them out of their misery. Not having much luck with my guppies lately, sorry guys

At least Caryl thought of me My guppies are pampered: they receive proper guppie food, have regular water changes (duh), eat like pigs, but I'll have to watch more closely to see the colour of their faeces, haven't done that yet. Three fish in the tank are affected, almost from one week to the next. Perhaps it is just a bunch of golden oldies in my tank, they simply mimic how I feel :roll: I'll do some internet research on fish diseases (yuk), and let you know the verdict...

Not having much luck with my guppies lately : I purchased a few beautiful, colourful females from the petshop last month, and with the exception of one found them all hollow bellied and hunched back this morning. Could this be a sign of parasites, they really do look unhealthy :-?