It is only complicated if you do not have an electrical background
My husband built ours and has made 3 so far. All are still going well and the oldest would be coming up 10 years old and never had a problem with any of them.
The biggest problem may be finding a thermostat.
Is an overnight temperature of 8C (and the occasional 5 - 6) OK for the barbs or should I wait until it warms up further? Day temperatures are around 24C
I am not sure you can buy large ones but they are easy to make if you know a friendly electrician and can work out the requirements re cable length and ohm resistances. We have heatpads my husband made under our 4ft tanks. The mains flex was attached by the cable supplier and crimped and sealed using heatshrink and glued sleeves for safety.
Will they be in a tank on their own or with other fish? They are monogamous and territorial. 24C, pH7.0 - 7.5.
Egg incubation period 48 hrs. Feed fry newly hatched brine shrimp. The parents will look after them
I have a phone number and street for someone in ChCh called Shawn. I wonder if it is the same guy? It was given to me ages ago by some who knew I was looking for fish breeders.
I am going to have a go at breeding rosy barbs outside in a pond. I bought a 183cm x 38cm kiddie paddling pool from the red shed and filled it with water. 5 hours later it had reached 24C already! Same temp as my tank.
I then gathered a pile of plants from the local waterway running through the public gardens and have anchored them down with rocks.
Next I have to catch the 10 rosy barbs I have swimming about in the 4ft lounge tank. Boy are they zippy!
Sorry I can't help with meds but one of our club members was saying he lost several hundred guppies recently. He said they are in short supply in Australia too as they have been wiped out due to antibiotic resistance. This man has been breeding fish in large quantities for many years and also has an importer's licence so I should think he knows what he is talking about.
I think water based based paints are ok but be wary of oil based. Cover the tank with a blanket and either turn the filter off or have the pump venting into another room if you want to be sure.
I have spray painted the backs and sides of my tanks with no problems.
I have also had the lounge redecorated (paint, wallpaper paste and carpet glue smell) around the fish tanks with no problems from fumes etc.
I don't know that you need water movement but it always looks good to see the plants moving in the current.
10 - 12 hours of light (assuming this is fresh water)
You might be doing the grouper a disservice. After all, the goby may have died first, or been killed by another fish, and the grouper came along later and swallowed the rest! :lol: