Caryl

Looks good BikBok but what does it mean? :-?

I would think a comment of "typical beginner's tank" would more refer to types of fish, and numbers of each, rather than stocking levels and not meant unkindly at all. I remember when we first started and we would go to the shop and pick that one and that one and ohhh that one! with little thought to what went with what and overall aesthetics etc. As we learned more our tanks evolved and the inhabitants were matched more selectively. I am not a fan of the "so many cms of fish per litre" as there are too many other factors to affect the answer. Tank size, individual fish size, filtration and regular maintenance all have an effect.

Welcome back and good luck starting up the tanks again.

It all depends on where you live. We don't have all added to our water here either. Alanmin can tell you all about chlorine and chloramines. I think we don't have chloramines added to water in NZ but they occur naturally? :-? I know Aucklanders who don't use additives and are breeding many fish quite happily. If your tank is properly set up and maintained you do not need to add products to reduce ammonia either. I have never added any chemicals to my tanks and never lost a fish as a result. I will always remember a conference I attended, many years ago, in Auckland where a well known local goldfish breeder was setting up display tanks in the main hall. He had acrylic tanks and was filling them up with water from the fire hose. The smell of chlorine was very strong. He then dropped his huge and fancy goldfish right in! When I asked if he had added anything to neutralise the chlorine he said no, because the fish were used to it and it didn't bother them, so why add costly chemicals when they weren't needed?

That is what the Dr and I have been discussing as we wondering ourselves!

You can give me mine at the exec meeting zev

Personally I think it better to find the cause and fix that rather than throw chemicals into the tank :-?

Please remember this is a thread for putting faces to names, not to boast one's drinking antics.

But does it cover replacing the electronic stuff too?

It is times like this that make us wonder why we keep fish! :-? We had a 250L crack overnight and we got up to water heading up the hallway. It had already totally soaked the pure wool carpet in the 4m x 7m lounge and covered the vinyl in the dining room and kitchen. We discovered it as it was about to soak into the hall carpet :roll: Luckily we already had another tank set up and cycling as we were about to transfer the fish to their new home anyway :bounce: This is when you need to check your insurance cover! Many only cover water damage if the water has come from what they call a normal household supply - eg burst pipe or cylinder or tap issues. They will not cover water damage from a cracked tank. Our original policy we actually asked if it covered fish tanks and they said yes. They were right, they replaced the cracked tank but would not cover the cost of lifting, drying, then relaying the carpet. Our fault for not questioning further. We now have a premier policy which definitely covers the damage caused as a result of a leaking tank as well as tank replacement. 8)

I have my sim but haven't got around to activating it yet. It will go into my current phone, I didn't buy a 2degree one.

Didn't have either in my day. You could have a scan but they didn't give you a copy.

Defrost before dropping them in?

But you would still have to get a dish outside or a UHF aerial outside for the terrestrial service then the cable to get it inside. In the case of the dish, they are not the simplest thing in the world to line up either. Hard to advise without actually seeing it all (Grant sets up Freeview satellite, we don't have the terrestrial service down here). The hardest part is getting the cable inside from the outside antenna. As your landlord won't let you drill holes you have a problem :roll:

Can you get Prime where you are? A cheap option, if you can't, for $145 Prime will arrange to have a Sye dish installed along with a receiver that will get Prime and the freeview stations off the satellite. This is only available if Prime is not already available in your area. This would give you 1, 2, 3, C4, 6, 7 Maori TV etc. Unless you know what you are doing, they are not easy to set up correctly.

Can you marine keepers out there tell me if any type of boxfish are kept in NZ aquariums? I have an article in mind but how I write it depends on whether it will just be a general interest about a fish or more detailed with how to keep them in aquaria. I don't need more information on them, just whether they are kept in home aquaria here. Thanks PS. If anyone wants to send me any sort of marine based article it will be gratefully received!

I used to think I had missed out on a fun experience but, having heard a number of horror stories, am glad I never experienced flatting or flatmates! :roll:

I, for one, didn't see the yellow text at all! :oops:

It also depends if the sun lights the tank a little more than usual (a bit like seeing the dust on the windows on sunny days) at times. As you age your eyesight worsens so particles become less of a problem

It is a gorgeous pond!

If you can see stuff in the water then you may need more, or different, filtration or a more frequent maintenance regimen. Not all filters are good at getting rid of floating particles. Those with bigger, messier, fish are more likely to have this problem.

One of those fish was very noisy! :lol: (or was it a problem with the filter?)

No idea. I would also be concerned about a long finned betta not getting enough food before the faster, short finned leopards got to it.

If indeed you do mean the P. caudomaculatus leopardfish then I would not put them together. Leopardfish are cold water species and the Bettas are tropical.