Caryl

I have fully cycled a filter on my 4ft tank, housing 30 - 40 Odessas plus I don't know how many Ancistrus, for a lad setting up a 3ft. He has had his tank running a while, checking the temperature is correct and stable, and planted it 2 or 3 weeks ago. He is ready to add fish at the weekend but I will be away and can't guarantee Grant will be available when he wants to pick up his filter. Would it be OK to add some fish (at this point he plans 8 danios) on Sunday but not add the filter until Tuesday? I can't see the waste from them building up much between Sunday and Tuesday when the fully cycled filter will be added. Once he has the filter on it he can then add more fish.

All right you lot, back to the original question - are tattooed fish legal in NZ? If you do not know the answer to this then please refrain from commenting in this thread.

They are good live fish food.

This thread was started by Godly3vil and as he has been contributing to the change in topic there has been no need to split the thread. I have been searching but can find no mention of them being legal or otherwise in NZ but suspect they have not been brought in because they know many would kick up a stink about it.

It is difficult if the room temp is high. Frozen bottles of water (I used to use 3L juice containers as they take longer to defrost) or Slikka pads work well. You could also try putting polystyrene around the tank if you are not home during the day. Aim a fan to blow across the water surface Turn any lighting off.

That tank is really not big enough for schooling fish larger than neons.

These comets aren't in the 50L tank you were asking for are they?

What about a gold bristlenose?

1cm should be thick enough. Try whiteware outlets as fridges and freezers come packed with poly sheets.

What sized heater do you have and how insulated is the room? You may need a larger heaterstat depending on how cold your room gets.

Access to a quarantine facility and lots of money ;-)

Pick the plantlets off the leaves before they float free. The three SanityChelle mentioned are the ones I know too. Java, like many plants, grows differently according to conditions and lighting so two plants from the same parent can look a lot different in different tanks.

Pull them away before they clog the filter, grow them to a reasonable size then sell them.

You are welcome to email pics to me and I will post them on your behalf.

If I remember correctly (it has been a while since I cleaned mine out) most of mine, if not all, have a fine sponge filter. I removed the carbon, never use it, and filled all the trays with ceramic noodles with the top trays having coarser sponges. When I clean the filter out I rotate the trays (the one on the bottom goes to the top) so the noodles get to live in different levels over time. If I find the time (and my husband to help) I might pull mine apart so I can see what is where, and take photos.

This same post is in the Wanted section, with replies there, so I am locking this one.

I still do not understand what you are trying to say,or wanting to do. Either a tank is cold water or it is tropical. Each requires different fish and plants. There is no such thing as either cold water guppies or cold water platies.

If you are going to ignore all the excellent knowledge offered so far then I would not want to recommend any other species to you as they would be condemned to a certain death. What on Earth is a "mock tropical"?

Have you been in touch with anyone in the Dunedin Aquarium & Pond Society?

I would expect any glazier could provide whatever you needed.

Add your location to your profile and someone nearby may offer you some plant. Java can have their roots jammed into a split in the wood, either a natural split or cut one with a sharp knife.

I always removed the carbon filters and never used them. Have more space for noodles ;-)

It is fun to suck them up with a turkey baster then squirt them into the tank

When I was using AquaClear filters (same sort of thing as the Clearview) I would remove all except the sponge and add some ceramic noodles.

They will provide them with everything they need but some ask would you want to eat the same thing day after day? There is nothing wrong with what you are feeding though. The occasional live food will be wolfed down. Stock troughs and stagnant water are great places to find daphnia and mosquito larvae as well as all sorts of tasty (to fish) wee critters.