Caryl

I should point out that my faulty equipment was not a standard heaterstat immersed in the tank but a heat pad under the tank with only the thermostat in the water.

but will its partner object to it "having a bit on the side"? :lol:

Not me. As said the heater and thermostat have been running fine for over 10 years. Grant has just replaced the thermostat. Luckily I had a spare as they are hard to get these days.

If this is a freshwater tank I would just leave it. Cover the tank with blankets, a duvet or pack it in polystyrene to keep the heat. Unless your house is really cold the tank temp won't alter too much. If you have a fire, keep it going and heat the whole room. The tank temp will match 6 hours won't bother them too much. Do not feed them the day before or during the cut. Do a partial water change after.

Well, I have now found 4 of the 5 rhom barbs a large B/N and 3 hoplos. I have only seen 2 of them since I bought 3 then seemed to have lost one. have only seen 2 but tonight saw all 3 On a sadder note, all my gorgeous male odessas have gone but I have 4 females left. The sole red-eye tetra (a refugee from someone else's tank) is looking a lot perkier and the gouramis are more active and no longer hanging around the surface. I might have to strip the tank though as I am still missing 1 angel and some B/Ns Here is a pic I took earlier this evening, just after the massive water change...

Thanks for the offer of new stock Faran. I will wait and see what's left and keep searching for bodies. The angel was a reasonable size but when it is front on, it is very hard to see! I have a separate tank of 19 golden barbs billaney which I might put outside this summer. Did so last summer and they didn't do nuffin! Once I check what barbs are left (it suddenly occurred to me among the dead are actually my odessas as they look similar to rosys when dead) I will think about what to replace them with. Thanks Tsarmina, will bear that in mind.

You may all have read about my problems when the African tank filter was accidentally unplugged while we were away, well... Went away for the weekend. Came home, fed fish and moticed 1 dead male rosy barb. Didn't seem to have been dead long, still whole, full colours, eyes still intact etc. Couldn't see anything wrong with him but removed him from the tank then went to bed. Today I was very busy and didn't go near the tank until I sat down for a quick lunch before heading to an appointment. Glanced over to the lounge community tank and thought " Funny, why are all those fish at the surface?" Go and check. Uh oh, dead bodies everywhere! Hmm, rest at surface, gasping - lack of oxygen. Why? Check water temperature - it is 34C. Oops. Obviously faulty thermostat on heatpad (which has been running over 10 years without a problem until now). :evil: Unplugged heatpad. Hauled out dead bodies - 2 giant danios, 11 rosy barbs, 1 angel, 1 bristlenose and 1 Chinese algae eater. All the gouramis look happy enough :roll: Then I added an airstone to increase oxygen levels and did a 50% water change to bring the temp down to 27C. Now, I know you are supposed to alter temperatures slowly but in this case it was necessary. Besides, my Africans get big temp fluctuations when I clean out their tank and they love it. Hard to tell what is left as they are all hiding after I rummaged round the heavily planted tank looking for more trapped dead bodies. The rosys were hit hardest as they prefer cooler temps anyway. Sorry Jude, not sure if there are enough left to breed this summer. Will watch over the rest of the day and wait until the survivors venture out to see who is left. Poor fish did not deserve to die like this.

Not all cat doors need magnetic collars 8)

Some people will do anything to save a bit of money magenta

Aquarium Dude, you need to go to Critter Kingdom and ask for TM then bargain direct by the sounds of it It certainly pays to shop around and also check internet deals. We are actually looking at getting a filter in from Australia as it looks like even after freight is added it is still a lot cheaper for the one we want.

Ah but does he also fit through the cat flap? :lol:

Not necessarily. Harlequins are shoaling fish and happier in a group. They might be trying to dominate each other.

I have Jebo 819's on both of mine.

Hi and a late welcome from me too.

Glaziers are a lot cheaper when it comes to making tanks. Of course, you then have to have a stand made, or find something suitable for the tank to sit on (remember they weigh a lot!!). Marines are very expensive to set up and run. They use a lot more power than running tropical tanks. Mostly because they require more equipment and specialised lighting.

Hi and a late welcome from me too (I've been away).

If it is high enough, wedge it under a top brace (if the tank has one) otherwise silicone it to the base and/or back and sides of the tank. You can also silicone or tie it to a good sized piece of perspex or similar then put on the tank base and cover with gravel. The gravel should hold it down.

Hi Cessa. Plenty of angel and fighting fish enthusiasts in here

I too have a heavily planted tank but when I siphon it does not disturb the roots. Indeed, I actually put the whole siphon tube over top of the mini vals with no trouble at all.

You carefully move the siphon around the plants taking care to disturb them as little as possible. You should not have to replant every time you siphon as you should not have uprooted the plant. It pays to not siphon too closely to the plants anyway as they draw the nutrients in through their root system and if you clean too thoroughly directly around a plant you will rob it of nutrients.

At that price, I'd take two!! :lol: Trouble is I can't afford to buy a bigger house to put it in so will have to decline your generous offer :roll:

May we ask what sort of price a tank this size goes for?

The "Crop" tool is very useful

email them to me if you like tankman and I will put them up for you.

Ah I had someone contact me recently about building cylindrical tanks. I will tell her to contact you. Welcome to the fishroom.