jackp

That's brilliant Caryl!! I have a couple of family members (in one case I should say had), who have suffered from rheumatoid arthritis and know very well how painful it can be and the restrictions it can put on life. It is a hideous thing to have to live with. Despite the fact I've never met you or your husband, reading your post has brought a smile to my face. I hope the improvement continues and consequently you and your husband are able to enjoy all the things you otherwise wouldn't.

Looks to be "Dodgadus Vindaloo"

Awesome to see you back into them mate, love the OBs (still)

Sadly issues like this are not confined to fish. Many people treat pets as possesions rather than a living thing that they have made themselves responsible for. From keeping birds in tiny little cages, to buying dogs and leaving them tied up all the time because they can't be bothered excercising them and don't have a suitable property. It would be nice to think that one day the requirements for animal ownership consisted of more than just having enough money to purchase them. While I suspect the major issue is lack of education/information, there are a lot of cases where it is just selfish and calous behaviour based around the premise that "it's just an animal".

reganis can be pretty savage (i'm pretty sure they're the most aggressive of the julies). I used to have a breeding pair and the female would rip anything apart other than the male. You may have better luck with julidochromis dickfeldi, they tend to be a bit more passive.

that sucks dude, was a good looking fish.

I tried it with a circular saw. Don't recommend the experience

The cheaper models are very hit and miss. Most don't last very long, but work pretty well while they are going. The odd one seems to go forever. The dremels are really good and would be perfect for hobby use. I think you're doing it right by starting with a cheap one and if she really gets into it, upgrade to a better one. They are the sought of thing that often ends up gathering dust, but they can be amazingly handy every now and then.

used to live in wanaka and head over to queenstown for the odd boozy night. so many times the night would start and finish with fergburger. good times

Fergburger in Queenstown has the best burgers in the country

Good on ya dude, though I get the impression that good marks are not unusual for you

I grew up just outside the Rodney boundary and the power used to go out quite a bit. My parents got a backup generator because it got so bad (no aquariums, just didn't like sitting arou d in the dark with no dinner). Look into a UPS

If you're really concerned about it you could get a UPS

Just got told I've got no work for the next 3-4 weeks. That's not going to help with mortgage payments

10 to 20mm poly should be fine (and much cheaper than rubber). you should be able to get a sheet of poly (2.4m x 1.2m) for $10-$20. (I paid $13 a sheet for 20mm at placemakers the last time i got some)

No, he makes 189 not out.

Hell yeah Martin Guptil

Nice touch with the flip down support. Might not hurt to add a few screws to the front of the shelf runners (or even a support underneath). Those look like pretty small screws into mdf.

depending on how uneven the surface is, you may find that mdf will slump to the same shape (particularly if it gets wet). Treated ply would be better. Might even pay to bed down the ply with adhesive so there are no gaps underneath. You can also get a product known as self-leveling compound. you could use this to even out the surface and then just use poly

didn't make it round to see the tropheus unfortunately. turned up at ryans at the prearanged time but it appeared that he had had a late night arranging empty beer bottles around his house, as he was still fast asleep and wouldn't be woken.

I know they were tiny when they came in. Will update tommorow evening (hopefully with photos).

going out to see them. think breeding is still a wee ways off though

there may be an update after this weekend

I have a slightly smaller african tank (4 ft about 320L) which I run 2 cf1200s on and along with weekly water changes (about 30%) it seems to work well. I have coral sand as substrate (got 40kg for $80 off trademe but i think i may have been quite lucky there) and it looks really nice. I would recommend changing from a blue background to black (doesn't show the algae as much). I think your lighting is probably fine if you use a lighter substrate. Definitely build up the hardscape a bit more (looks cool and provides territories for the fish. This is what i've done (not saying it's a benchmark or anything but it shows what the white substrate with dark hardscape looks like and I'm running a similar lighting set up to you)