Caryl

I have not bred them myself but my trusty book says they need a tank of 200 litre capacity with compact bunches of plants. It suggests a labyrinth of wavy nylon mesh (although leaving a free swimming area) to stop the parents eating most of the eggs (the eggs float for a time in open water before they find a firm object they can attach to). The fish breed in a shoal with a few more males than females. Water temp: 24C pH: 7.0 - 7.5 1 Tbs salt for every 50 litres of water. Good luck

Just a thought while on the topic of filters. It is a good idea to have a small canister filter tucked away in your main tank somewhere then, if you have to set up another tank in a hurry, (for whatever reason) you have a filter already up and running and full of beneficial bacteria ready to put in it.

I personally have never had trouble with under gravel filters. Especially if you have a good thickness of gravel on top ie. 5cm at least. Again, not so good with the bigger fishes. There is always the thought that if you plant well, stock lightly, and do regular water changes, you could get away with no filtration at all

I am sure any outlet could get Aquaclears as they are still available as far as I know. I have two of them lying around somewhere in two different sizes. They have worked well for years and were easy to clean. They work well but not with bigger fish, like goldfish, because the sponges clog up really fast (every couple of days). They can be awkward depending on your lid and the position of the tank. If you have fish that jump, they have a tendency to leap out the gap you have to leave for the filter to hang in, and the water to flow through. If I remember correctly, I got one of my Aquaclears from the pet shop in New Brighton (it was on special at a price we could not resist). Don't know if the shop is still there though.

since when have strawberries been blue?

...and do they wish to affiliate with the FNZAS?

This is quite possibly the cause of your fish's troubles Ira. If you are going to make caves from your rocks you must make sure they are on solid footing or, as you have found, the fish dig in the substrate and dislodge the rocks.

Hi Nico, Boy, between Nico and Ira I am starting to feel very sorry for the guppies Mind you, Grant and I are known as the guppy killers as they are one fish we have never managed to keep alive!

Glass tanks can have all sorts of different hoods on them. They can just have sheets of glass across the top, metal lids, plastic or wooden lids. You have to be careful with wood as it warps easily. Our 4ft tank has a large sheet of glass covering 3/4 of the top with a strip of glass about 2" wide siliconed along the front. This means we only have to lift the strip of glass to access the tank for feeding. (I must confess here that we currently have a 2" gap as the silicone gave way ages ago and before I got around to reattaching it, I broke the strip of glass ) On top of the glass lid I have a couple of fluorescent lights just sitting on top with reflectors. There is then a large wooden lid covering all. This is because my tank is built into a huge rimu wall unit covering the end wall of our lounge. It is floor to ceiling and 12ft wide. Have a look at my photo album (under FNZAS Clubs - conference photos) as there is a pic of me kneeling beside it somewhere there (under tank parade 2002 if I remember correctly). Some of our members make cheap lids using a sheet of glass and sitting a piece of guttering (you know, that Marley fancy stuff) on top. You can sit a small fluorescent under those and cap the ends, with a gap made for the power cord. They use those little fluorescents that look like 4 prongs folded over. These do not give off much heat. You can line the guttering with tinfoil to reflect the light more. The guttering can be picked up free if you sidle up to a builder on a job site as they often have small offcuts of the stuff. If you have a standard sized tank, lids can be bought from a retailer. Metal lids can be made by engineering firms.

FYI Bill, I have a book here called A Manual of Aquarium Plants by Shirley Aquatics Ltd. Monkspath, Shirley, Solihull, England. Copyrighted 21st Feb. 1964. It describes Aponogeton fenestralis as "a fabulous lace leaf plant from Madagascar". It lists 10 different Aponogetons but the Madagascariensis is not one of them so I think the chances of it being the same plant with a different name are quite high eh?

Get thee to the next Upper Hutt club meeting Ira Perhaps if you ask one of the members to go and have a look at your set-up they might see something that you have overlooked, or not realised was a contributing factor. At the least they can help make sure you have everything right before starting next time. This is what clubs are for. You said the centre of your plants were not getting enough light. Did you actually have any lighting on the tank itself or was it just natural daylight? I can't see any mention of lighting in the earlier posts. At least you should have a good idea now of what NOT to do next time. Good luck!

Killies don't appear in shops very often. I suppose this is because many are annuals so quite old by the time the importers manage to get them through quarantine! Contact Andrew in the NZKA. Aphyosemion scheeli would be good to start with. They are a very pretty fish. Killies would be good because you want something a little different and, as you say, they are not seen very often in shops but a number of them are not difficult to breed. You will also get a lot of advice from NZKA members.

If you want something a bit out of the ordinary, it won't be easy to breed. That's what makes them a bit out of the ordinary. Have you ever tried leopardfish, Phalloceros caudomaculatus? They are a cold water fish and very pretty. There's always the platies. Try breeding a specific colour line. Are you wanting to keep them with the remaining guppies or start afresh? Ask Andrew about suitable killifish species.

If the fish had been chased, or startled, and it tried to get through a too-small space between rocks, that would cause lots of small wounds. More likely than a direct attack from another fish.

Definitely sounds like secondary infections from wounds. How did she get the wounds? That is what you need to look at next.

A man I know who has kept fish for more years than he cares to remember once told me he never adds warm water to his tropical tanks, always cold from the tap. He reckons that in the wild fish float on the surface, where it's warm, then dive to the bottom when danger threatens, and the water temperature at the bottom is a lot colder than the top. I am like Andrew, I add a little warm and use the finger test, but this is for my benefit, not the fishes, as I pour the water into the tank by tipping it over my hand so it does not disturb the bottom. Pouring warm water on your hand is a lot nicer than cold!

The photos on that sfbaaps site are beautiful David. There are certainly some wonderful fish and plants to see. Check it out!

I wonder if the fertiliser in the dirt added to the problem? The plants rotting in the middle certainly would have.

"This is the way many a 2nd tank is acquired... " and the 3rd, and the 4th, and...

Did you just have the plants sitting in pots?

The wisteria will be Hygrophila difformis. I am not too good in the litre department. Is 100L a standard 2ft x 1ft x 1ft tank? (I guess I should say 60cm x 30cm x 30cm). If so, isn't a 404 too much filtration? Don't know whether it would have anything to do with your problems if it is though My first thought was something having died under a undergravel filter but since you don't have one - or substrate - that stuffs up that idea! What have you got in the filter chambers?

The plant will be Hygrophila polysperma I think you mean. This is a good fast growing plant to put into a newly setup tank. I can't find the following information anywhere so forgive me if I am asking you to repeat anything but what size is the tank and what (if any) filtration is being used?

Hi Nix I sent an article to Cees (webmaster) on setting up a tropical aquarium. A very simple basic guide. He promises to add it to the articles section as soon as possible (another reminder here Cees! ). Get dark gravel. The fish feel more secure and their colours show up more. Light gravel washes the colour out of them. White gravel is for marines. You should not have to condition your water with anything. If chlorine is added to the water in your area, letting it stand overnight is enough as the chlorine will dissipate and be gone by morning. Check out the clubs list (click on the fnzas.org is here logo at the top of the page) for the nearest club to you. If you join a club first, they will help you set up your aquarium right the first time (and probably help you with a few fish or plants too). Most clubs also have their own libraries so you can read up on aquarium requirements. Good luck. Remember, don't rush the process, or things will go wrong.

Oh Rob, you were told to check first because you couldn't change it!! Men!

I know you asked Warren Bill but I have a photo of the label below his tank It says; 2400L x 820W x 650H (mm) Volume: 1200L