Sunbird73

mmm eel poo ..... tasty

Thanks for that P44 - I did suspect as much! I have the white one and the powerglo in it now.

Thanks for that Sophia, I will plant it and see how it goes. Got given a tiny bit of xmas moss too :bounce: yay for kind TM traders

Not sure if this should be in technical or plants..... I have a secondhand 2x 24watt t5HO on a 76LX 40WX 43 H (around 33G) tank that came with 2 coral tubes (one is white the other is purple/blue). I have replaced one of the tubes with a powerglo, but can't afford to replace the other just yet. Can I grow plants with one of the tubes being a coral light? Which tube (blue or coral white?) would be best? (keeping in mind the blue one makes the fish look awesome ) Have some ambulia, rotala rotundifolia (sp?) that I want to put in it - any other ideas for easy plants (that are easy to get too)? Do I have enough light to make the rotundifolia grow anything but green? (ie. do I have enough W per gallon even if I change out both bulbs to powerglos?)

This thread is making me hungry... whats the name of the great thai place and where? mmmm thai food

Amazing what they can do surgically, but it also serves to highlight how absolutely incredible eyes are and irises (irissess? iri? ) are just fascinating windows to the soul

In mammals it is the iris that contracts to enlarge the size of the pupil also. The pupil is just a hole... the iris is the muscle. I found this Interesting!

Noooo :lol:

That is hilarious, the mind boggles at what you look like now :lol: - that can scare small children (well I am assuming she is small and not another teenager LOL)

What is the male/female ratio on fnzas? It seems like it is male dominated - just wondering why? Or is it just males prefer to come on a forum to talk about their setups more than women? Is it because of all the equipment etc associated with fishkeeping maybe .... Or are there more lurkers than I realise perhaps?

um... no. Tho I changed decorations entirely and scrubbed the tank out and rinsed with the hose outside numerous times. Probly from the filter tho, perhaps was not so scrupulus with that as didn't want to have the tank cycle again....

I took all my plants out, dipped them in bleach, changed gravel over to new gravel (not because of snails just wanted prettier gravel ), cleaned everything etc. 10 days on just had to pick a snail out this morning resilient little buggars

Tank is up to 22 degrees now fish are happy and fwimming awound (according to my 3yo fish checker) *phew*

ok, will do nothing and twiddle my fingers nervously while it heats up. Tho I did find this: which made me feel a bit better!! Love my pandys

Well, just randomly decided to test some water chemistry to fill some time in, and noticed the water in my 54L tank was vy cold. Checked the plugs and sure enough it had been switched off somehow So, have switched it back on again - temp says 18 degrees (it was 23.5 yesterday morning) Have some panda cories & guppies in the tank. Do I just let it warm up slowly just with the heater? Or shall I change a bucket of water with 22 degree water now? Don't like them being cold but don't want to shock them too much by warming up too quickly. Guppies swimming around as usual and ate their dinner, but pandas are hiding at the back, and hard to see them. What to do?? Am worried about the panda's especially, they are favourites here! (tho I read they prefer colder water so might be able to handle it?? cross fingers - tho 18 degrees might be pushing it )

OK, for me there is an element of trust with external filters ... Can I trust that a cheaper filter wont have a failure at some point in the tubing/connections/seals that results in a tank emptied all over my floor? Cheaper plastic may degrade and become brittle quicker than more expensive brands. I guess it goes for internals with me too - my mother gave me her unbranded (cheap) internal filter that was several years old, had not been used for a couple years that I put on a guppy fry tank earlier this year. I also floated a polystyrene float to hatch brine shrimp - and my 10 yr old came out of going to see the babies and said "mum I didn't know that polystyrene gave you electric shocks?" Luckily he had only touched the slightly wet poly and not put his hand into the tank because on closer inspection, the wiring from the filter (which had been inspected only a week or so before when I first used it) had cracked and exposed the wires. So for me now, I am prepared to pay more for a perceived increase in safety - with both the electrical housing and also for the hopefully reduced risk of leakage with more expensive brands. Altho, I must say, I am on the fence about aqua one - fairly reputable mid-range $$ brand? I still think I would rather wait and get an eheim/fluval....

I wouldn't have a problem with you selling fry from free fish, or cuttings of gifted plants - if you want to put the time and effort into growing up something nicely so it reproduces - feeding and caring for baby fish / maintaining great plants - then you deserve to get any money you can for what you have made. I wouldn't sell the parent plant/fish if I got them for free - would give them away, but would have no problem with progeny being sold. (tho I would likely offer the original gifter some babies/ cuttings as well for free) Also if somebody (especially someone who may be short on cash or limited resources, ie. young people) is needing something I had an excess of then I would definitely be giving some away. So, a little bit of both is good.

went and had another look - you are right, it looks full black but on close inspection has a slight purple sheen to it.

HUGS Hope whatever it is you can find a way to fix it.

Wow that is a crap year Barrie. Last year I lost 3 friends all in their 30's, I know what you mean about being glad to see the end of the year. I think the silver lining is that your daughter, her husband and her son and unborn baby are all alive and well, cos at the end of the day everything else is just stuff and money - give them all a big hug! They sound very lucky indeed. You can definitely look at things two ways, and I say they had an amazing dose of luck this morning. Big hugs tho, I hope life becomes less stressful very soon for you!

hiya - I did the same thing as you about six months ago now, it was a crash course in cycling a tank. :oops: It might pay to take a little sample of water (10-20ml) into your local fish shop and get it tested for ammonia and nitrites while the tank is new and still cycling (they do this for free). I did this instead of shelling out for the tests to begin with (they are around $20-25 each). I took a sample in every few days, and did daily water changes if it showed any signs of ammonia. Once I got zero readings I didn't bother testing, but did make sure that I did regular water changes and watched for any signs of distress. I boil the jug and add it to the nearly full bucket of cold tap water, then add the dechlorinator. I check the temp by dipping my hand in the bucket, then into the tank its going into (highly scientific LOL). I don't bother with checking pH much at all. I use boiled water because my husband thinks there could be copper issues from the hot tap (copper pipes etc) - we are also not allowed to drink the hot tap water for this reason.... So nobody has had issues using the water straight from the hot tap?? - this would be a lot easier when changing the 126L tank for sure!

I saw some small full blacks and half blacks at HFF albany the other day.

I am reading with interest as I would like some one day - but are you talking about agassizi or cacatuoides? As they can both be called double red can't they?

620T is quite tall and narrow? Maybe an airstone wouldn't go amiss? What is your ammonia level? ammonia is more toxic at higher ph. I would do a reasonable water change just in case. Other thought is (and there are many more experience than I ) is that if they are zebras then I think they are pretty aggressive? Maybe they are beating up the yellows? good luck!