# Any Tropical Fish Keepers



## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

Hi i have been keeping tropical fish on and off for years, i have 2 tanks at the mo one is a 2ft community tank and the other is just a baby hexagon tank that gets used as a hospital/ nursery tank and currently has some neon glow lites and a couple of babies (either mollies or swordtails) in it. yesterday my dh bought me a big 190 litre corner tank which when it arrives i am going to have as a mbuna cichlid tank. i'm sooooo excited as i love these fish 

anyway i would love to hear from fellow fish lovers   and any tips from experienced cichlid keepers very welcome

pam xx


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)




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## larkles (Jun 29, 2005)

Hi Pam

I keep tropical fish, had them for years. Recently bought some Golden Snails for the tank, they're lovely and clean everything up. We started with 1 and decided to get 2 more to keep the other one company-now they're breeding like hell, we actually can see them doing it    they lay their eggs on the top of the tank above water level, have had 2 hatch outs, now theres another pile of eggs.. 

Sorry but havent owned Cichilids but they are beautiful fish, am sure they will delight-lovely colours

Jen
xx


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

Hi Jen, so pleased i'm not the only one 

How often do you do water chages as i have just bought a product (can't remember its name) that says if added weekly you don't need to change the water for up to 6 months, i usally change 25 % every other week and i'm quite sceptical about this. My dh's work colleague recommended it and he says as long as your amonia and nitrate levels remain at zero then there is no need to change the water, what do you think ??

pam xx


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

P.s what fish have you got ?

i have got....

2 congo tetras
1 clown Pleco
2 neon tetras (was 6)
1 pearl gourami
1 pepered corydora
2 chocolate mollies
2 sword tails
1 clown loach
5 glowlight tetras

pam xx


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## Blue Lobster Keeper (Nov 21, 2005)

_*Hello there !

We used to have 4 tropical fish tanks, but have managed to go down to 3 now, as our flat is tiny .

2 are tropical community tanks & one has 2 super cute ickle South American Puffers - my faves . We used to have a Blue Lobster (see my avatar ), but he got too big & fiesty for our Juwel 125, so I had to sell him on Ebay - was sooooooooooo upet to see him go as he was abso amazing to watch . We also had a pair of Orange Parrot Fish, which were very comical to keep indeedy, but they outgrew the tank & became aggresive too sadly .

It amazes me that local fish shops are willing to sell you expensive fish with no regard to asking what size & style set up we have & not telling us how big the fish actually grow to & their aggresiveness.

When we bought the Juwel 125 off Ebay about 3 years ago, the tank came with a breeding pair of Convict Cichlids - they were really beutifull, but kept breeding & became really aggresive, even eating their own fry . Was a magical experience watching them spawn & care for their fry tho . I have read that all Cichlids become very aggressive when mating  We ended selling them too. sadly .

If you are interested, I have made a webpage of our fishies with a short story & many pics - mainly of the Convicts - there are 2 great pics of the femal Convict with her tiny fry (pics 15 & 16 ) & a pic of the female guarding her eggs in pic 10:

http://www.damnation24-7.co.uk/hurrikane/fish/index.html

We are now just keeping peacefull community fish, all apart from my partners Angel Fish .

I visit a really good fish forum - I can let you know the addy for it if you want to PM me . Its really friendly & informative - I have made a few good friends .*_


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## larkles (Jun 29, 2005)

Hi Pam,

Ahh Clown Loach-we had one for nearly 6 years, loved him so much, unfortunately the cat sitter decided to clean our tank whilst we were on holiday   and he died    

We now have 7 gold tetras, 6 of the blue/red tetras, 2 old fish that we've had for years-don't know their name but one is goldish colour and other grey both have very long "whiskers" and some other smallish ones

Re cleaning out fishtank: 

We have a 4 x 2 tank, we clean it out about approx 4 times a year, this is a full tank clean, with new plants etc. We find the natural algae in the tank is healthy, gets out of hand if the light is left on too much

Blue Lobster Keeper

Wow that lobster sure would be wonderful to look at in a tank-awesome

Larkles


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## Jayne (Jan 26, 2003)

I have tropical fish and used to have huge tanks years ago.  Only have a small one now, which is community and currently has some neon tetras, a siamese fighter (love them  ), and some zebra loaches, which were only put in to clean up all the damned snails that got introduced by accident on some live plants.  Fine job they've done of it to   Afraid I'm not much of a snail lover in tanks unless it's a single, pretty shelled one.  

On the cleaning side of things, I tend to do a sand clean (with a sucky up type cleaner) every couple of months and a water change of about 20% every few weeks.  Change filter media every 3 or 4 months (but obviously not all of it in one go).  Find this keeps a nice balance for the healthy bacteria to survive in, and the fish seem to stay healthy.  Saying that, I did have an outbreak of disease a while ago, not really sure what it was, but the fish kept coming out in sores, which was a bit of a nightmare to get rid of, and did wipe out a lot of my fish in a short period.  Just as I thought it had cleared, I'd add more stock and they'd die again.  So had to leave it for a good few months with just a couple of fish in there (didn't want to keep adding for them just to suffer and die  ) and thankfully in the past 4 months there's been no deaths at all and I'm fully stocked up again   

Would love to get a bigger tank/more tanks, but just don't have the time these days for the maintenance, so will stick with the small one for now  

Jayne x


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## larkles (Jun 29, 2005)

Hi all  

See Pam-there are other Fish lovers at last! 

My total dream for a fish tank has always been to have one built into a dividing wall-for example-creating a kitchen/breakfast room which we are planning to do when funds are higher-with the fish tank in the breakfast bar area dividing the room-would love it so much-dream on  

Jen
x


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

hi girls

Blue Lobster keeper, your pics are great hun, we are very lucky to have a fab aquatic shop not too far from where we live. they specialise in cichlids so hopefully things should be fine

Larkles clown loaches really are gorgeous aren't they, i bet you were non to pleased with your cat sitter though. I love dividing wall tanks if you ever get yours done i'd love to see some pics, sadly the lay out of my house would't permit me to have such a thing  

Jayne, i feel the same way about snails. how come the tanks in the shops that you buy the plants out of never seem to have snails in them ?  but everytime i put a new plant in i seem to get over run with them (not anymore now i got a clown loach). what is the thing you use to clean your sand called ? as i have never had sand in my tanks before only gravel but i have opted for sand in my new tank

i think on the cleaning side every one has their own ways and if my way is working and my fish are happy & healthy i'm just gonna keep at it 

i now have my new juwel trigon 190 corner tank set up and if the water is ok we are planning to add a couple of cichlids next sunday   
i'll have to post some pics when i get them 

pam xx


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## Jayne (Jan 26, 2003)

Pam, the cleaner is just a gravel cleaner, but I use it on the sand   It's the type that you suck the end of the tube to get the water flowing.  The good thing with sand is that the gunk doesn't sink to the bottom, but just tends to sit on top of the sand so is easily syphoned off   Think the bottom feeders like sand as as they can shift it easier when they root around.  

I gave my tank a bit of a spruce up this morning, and it's lovely and sparkly now   It's by a window so does have a tendency to get a bit overgrown with algae on the glass if I don't keep on top of it.  

I'd love to set up a marine aquarium, but don't think at the moment I have the time to do it.  Maybe one day  

Love 
Jayne x


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## Blue Lobster Keeper (Nov 21, 2005)

_*Hello again 

I forgot to mention that I sometimes use a battery powered gravel cleaner made by Hagen - here is a link about the gravel cleaner on their website:

http://www.hagen.com/uk/aquatic/product.cfm?CAT=1&SUBCAT=106&PROD_ID=01110040030101

You can buy them off Ebay or any fishy shop .

When I am doing a water change, I try my best to hoover up all the fish waste - kills 2 birds with one stone, but be carefull not to hoover up any fish doing it that way - we have a Neon that is really inquisitive & sometimes gets sucked up the hose & into the bucket .

Hope that helps  *_


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

Jane we too would love a marine tank but they cost a fortune and also seem to be quite time consuming and time is a luxuary i don't have now little legs is crawling    thats why we have opted for cichlids as they are beautifull bright coloured fish but also not too expensive and very hard fish  

Blue lobster, thanks for that link. i have got a gravel cleaner but it is quite messy to use (or maybe it's just me) so that battery one looks great

pam xx


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

I got 4 cichlids on sunday, they are fantastic so interesting to watch and gorgeous colours. i can't wait to gat some more in a month or so

pam xx


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## Blue Lobster Keeper (Nov 21, 2005)

_*Great news that you have bought 4 Chichlids & you are enjoying them already *_


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

Since last posting on this thread i have bought 12 more ciclids and a common plec also i am now in the process of setting up a marine nano reef my hubby keeps trying to talk me into getting rid of my community tank but he's got no chance 

pam xx


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## Blue Lobster Keeper (Nov 21, 2005)

_*WOW ! 12 more Cichlids  . Your tank must look really beautifull & busy! . Can I ask which tank you have please - our biggest is the Juwel Rio 125 & we are in the middle of changing it to a nice peacefull friendly tank with lot of Guppys & Neons, oh & 2 Bristle Nosed Plecs - the biggerst one is a male & has some serious bristles now .

Great news that youare going to set up a nano reef - there are some really funky marine fishies about !. My Sis has a big marine tank that she set up, but when she moves into her new house that is being built now, she is going to have a biiiiiiiiiig marine tank set in a wall - can't wait to see it .*_


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## wendy.h (Jul 27, 2004)

we keep tropical fish. have 3 tanks. the biggest at moment being juwel vision 260, which has home made cabinet with a smaller tank fitted into it. this is big communtiy tank. the smaller tank for now has 2 firemouths and 2 bristlenose. the other tank we have currently houses a lone gourami, an albino bristlenose and some threadfin rainbows


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## larkles (Jun 29, 2005)

Ooh so glad this thread is up again    have just purchased new tank, dh then designed coral reef effect and at present have 3 chilids, 2 parrott fish and a plecko, just starting to build it up slowly, I uploaded a picture on my gallery if you want a peek   

Larkles
x


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## Anthony Reid (Jan 1, 2002)

We have a small tank 2ftx 2ft x 7" with 10 Platy's, 1 Bristlenose(hes lovely - but aggressive) and 2 Kuhli loach

Its really hard to control the water levels and clarity though and I feel its over populated with platys 

Years ago when Mel and I first got together we had a nice four foot tank which was great - never ever had a problem with with it. It was easy to keep clean and looked beautiful. In the end we moved out and gave it to her Brother. He has since disposed of it 

Since getting this tank about a year ago we have had a nightmare with it every week.  It has an internal top load filter and up until recently I had another internal filter/pump in there too.

It really would be nice to have a large corner tank , although realistically I don't know when we will be able to afford one.

I can see me having to buy a small tank, cycle it and use it temporarily while I clean out our main tank.


Tony
x

ps - If anyone wants any platys then they can have up to 10 for free


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## Spaykay (Nov 29, 2006)

Hey there

Larkles - your tank is beauutiful. Mine is 100 litres and gets scummy so quickly. How often do you clean? We've got no fancy rocks and stuff coz they go green   any advice. I have 2 angel fish, 1 disc, 4 orange small ones that look like big neons and 2 gurami - not sure of all the technical names  

Kay xxx


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## Blue Lobster Keeper (Nov 21, 2005)

_*Hello there Fish Fiends .

Wendy.h - I love Firemouths, so majestic looking & beautifill . We had a breeding pair, but like our breeding pair of Convict Cichlids & 2 bright orange funky Parrot Fish, they got very agressive when they were brooding/caring for their fry . Would love a bigger tank than the Rio 125, but sadly we have 3 tanks already & abso no more room for any more in our tiny flat .

As mentioned below, we have a Fluval Uno which is a community tank with Rummy Nosed Tetras, Lampeyes, Candy Loach, tiny frog & a few Amino Shrimp (great as a clean up crew/algae munchers)  & a biggish Bristlenose too . We also have an AquaOne, AquaStart 320 tank with a S. American Puffer, 2 Julli Cats & 2 Amino Shrimp . The Puffer is my fave, is soooooooooooooooo cute & is such a character , but she refuses to eat her cockles out of their shells so poor Neal has to trim her teeth once a month with nail clippers . The poor little thing puffs up & chatters whilst its being done, but needs must.

Larkles - Really lovely looking tank .

Tony - Sorry to hear you are having probs with your tank . We have a Fluval Uno, roughly the same sort of size as yours & since fitting an external pump have never had any probs  - you might have to modify the tank top tho, which can be a pain ............. The make of external we have is a Fluval 104 & it doesn't need cleaning as often as an internal & has much better filtration . Maybe you could look on Ebay for a 2nd hand one or even a new one, some of our local fish shops have good offers on them too . Wondering how often you do water changes & how much each time ?? You could also maybe buy about 6 Amino Shrimps as they are great for munching all the algae & they don't count as stock in the tank . Just wondering if your tank is positioned infront or facing a window, as our Aquastart one is & we have terrible probs with algae . We would be interested in rehoming your Platys if poss, but we live in NW London .

Spaykay - Your tank sounds really lovely . We would love to own a Discus or 2 as they are such really beautifull, gorgeous fish (I think thats what you mean when you say disk ??), but I have heard that they like really top quality water. Maybe you could buy some RO (reverse Osmosis) water ?? I know our local Maidenhead Aquatics sell it by the water butt, but it can get expensive , or you could invest in your own RO unit but they are expensive & waste quite alot of water . Also wondering if you have an external filter like I mentioned to Tony above - much easier to clean out & don't need to be cleans as often . Also wondering how often you do water changes & how much ??

Here is a link to pics of our Convict Cichlids that we used to own in our Juwel Rio 125- there are a few pics of the female with her tiny eggs (pic 10) & fry too (pics 15, 16 & 22) & a few pics of our Firemouths towards the end :

http://www.damnation24-7.co.uk/hurrikane/fish/index.html

I belong to a really great, friendly fish forum called Fish Crazy - I have learnt soooooooooooooo much from being a member this last few years & no question is too embarrasing/silly.*_


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## wendy.h (Jul 27, 2004)

heres some pics of our fish from over the last few years:

Mr G - dwarf gourami









discus:









metae cory:









pentazona barb









malaysian trumpet snail









ram:









high fin pepper cory









Mr C - apistogramma cacatoides









and heres our 3 tanks. the smaller one is upstairs now and biggest one has been changed round alot


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## Anthony Reid (Jan 1, 2002)

Blue Lobster Keeper said:


> _*Hello there Fish Fiends .
> Tony - Sorry to hear you are having probs with your tank . We have a Fluval Uno, roughly the same sort of size as yours & since fitting an external pump have never had any probs  - you might have to modify the tank top tho, which can be a pain ............. The make of external we have is a Fluval 104 & it doesn't need cleaning as often as an internal & has much better filtration . Maybe you could look on Ebay for a 2nd hand one or even a new one, some of our local fish shops have good offers on them too . Wondering how often you do water changes & how much each time ?? You could also maybe buy about 6 Amino Shrimps as they are great for munching all the algae & they don't count as stock in the tank . Just wondering if your tank is positioned infront or facing a window, as our Aquastart one is & we have terrible probs with algae . We would be interested in rehoming your Platys if poss, but we live in NW London .
> *__*
> *_


_*

I've really been tempted by eheims external pump/filter - but my desire to buy a 3ft/4ft corner tank is putting that off 

Lately I am having to do 30% changes every couple of weeks  which isn't helping amonia levels. Oh and the tank isnt in direct sunlight - although its always warm in our house and the tank is always in the top part of the range (23/24)

Went to an aquatic centre today and was looking at some tanks. The shop owner mentioned that active carbon isn't of any use and I should change over to sponge based filtration.

He is also after my bristlenose and wants to swap for a young sexed pair. Hmmm....

I'll take your advice and pickup some shrimp during the week 

Thanks,
Tony
x*_


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## Spaykay (Nov 29, 2006)

oooooo, noooooo lost my long post!!!!

In quick  - Blue Lobster Keeper, yes it's a discus, ornage and although shy is fine. I have an exterior filter with carbon anad sponge but need to change it more often.

Many people use sand instead of gravel It looks really pretty, do you clean it the same? Is it a mix? HOw do you keep the rocks clean? By taking them out and scrubbing them?

Kay xxx


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## Blue Lobster Keeper (Nov 21, 2005)

_*Morning fish lovers - hope you had a lovely weekend .

Wendy.H - absolutely fab pics of some beautiful fish, esp love the apistogramma cacatoides . Am I guessing right that it is a Cichlid ?? Never seen one is a fish shop before, but would love to get one . Will go & do a Google for it right now .......... Lovely Discus too & I really like Corys, they are soooooooo cute & mischiveious - well our 2 are . Really like the layout of the smaller tank under the big tank - simple, but pretty & I would love to have such a big tank like yours ............ oh the posibilities .

Tony - The fish forum I frequent are always having heated disgussions about which external filter is best, the Fluvals or the Eheims . I think its all down to personal preff really & as we have a Fluval I recommended that one . We try to do water changes every week to try & keep on top of all the levels . Maybe you could do more water changes - maybe small ones every day until your levels are down ??.

I have tried a few of those water treatment products like API Nitra-Zorb in our external filter, but I think you can put the 'pillow' in an internal, & they work well but you have to recharge them in salt water or they get saturated with the thing you are trying to remove - if that makes sence   ................. API also make Ammo-Lock, but we have never used it before - its the 4th item down on this page :

http://www.aquatics-online.co.uk/catalogue/aquarium-pharmaceuticals-api-.asp

I think that carbon is only usefull if you need to remove medications from your tank water ..............

Spaykay - Just wondering if you have ceramics in your external filter ?? Ours has both sponges & ceramic bits in, but no carbon & lots of space for other treatment pillows or filter wool to polish the water .

All our tanks have been converted to just sand . Have to be carefull to 'move' the sand around every now & again tho as have heard that air pockets develop & they aren't good, but not sure why , but we aggitate the sand when cleaning it with our battery powered hoover when cleaning . We also suck up the poop & crud with the hose when we do water changes - very easy & no need to remove plants & ornaments really . The fishy poop tends to stay on the top of the sand instead of getting in the nooks & crannies of gravel & is much easier to remove .

Rock & ornament wise, we remove everything a few times a year & give them a good scrub with green coarse scrubbies - not an easy task with our big tank tho  as we have recently put a huge 2 part broken ship wreck in it (sounds tacky, but it looks brill) & don't think we can remove that, but we have an army of very busy Amino Shrimps & 2 Bristlenose Plecs that work hard to clean the tank .*_


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## Spaykay (Nov 29, 2006)

Thanks for that, may get some nice rocks then. Unforrtunatley here in Spain the pet shops are really tacky and not very nice   Will look around though. I'm slowly training DH to be the tank cleaner. Our problems come in the summer when the heat gets to 40 degrees and above outside and starts evaporating the water and heating it up, even the tropical fish start to sweat!!! 

Kay xxx


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## Blue Lobster Keeper (Nov 21, 2005)

_*Spaykay - Didn't know that you live in Spain . The weather here gets hot too in the Summer & we float frozen small water bottles in the tanks to try & get the temp down - does help a bit . My partner doesn't really get involved with the tanks apart from moving the dirty weater buckets to the kitchen & bringing the fresh water in , but he loves to sit & watch all the fish lol*_


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

Hiya

great pics looks like you all have some lovely fish   I have got 3 tanks at the moment (+ one in the shed not set up) My cichlid tank is a juwel trigon 190 and it has got 16 various malawi cichlids and a common plec (called the plecosaurus as he's a monster) my community tank is a 2ft x 18in x 18in has got a clown plec (my favourite fish i call him the plec) 2 choc mollies, 2 congo tetra's, 1 neon tetra (the rest have sadly died over a few years) 4 + swordtails (hard to keep count as they keep breeding) a pearl gourami, a peppered corydoras catfish, a clown loach, and 4 glowlight terta's. So as you can see is quite overstocked   My third tank is cycling at the moment and will be my marine nano reef but at the moment it's just a pile of rock covered in various horrid looking algae  

Tony i have to say i'm well jealous of your Kuhli loaches, i had one years ago and i loved it but we had to sell it with the tank and i haven't been able to find any round here since   I'm not sure what the problem could be with your tank, have you got an air stone to help with oxygenating the water ? and do you monitor your water stats ?

Blue lobster keeper you are lucky my dh loves to watch me carrying buckets of dirty and clean water back and forth    i wouldn't mind but it was his idea to get the big cichlid tank  

Kay i've heard of people putting frozen water bottles in their tanks when it get too hot too  

Wendy your tanks look fantastic you have some lovely fish  

hello to everyone else  

I'm going to put some pics of my tanks in the gallery so you can have a look (any advice welcome)

pam xx


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## Blue Lobster Keeper (Nov 21, 2005)

_*Welcome to the fish thread Karen . Your goldfish sounds lovely . 10 years is a loooooooong time to own a fish . The longest time we have owned a fish is coming up to about 4 years now - Carracus our Candy Stripped Loach .

Just wondering if anyone else actually names their fish ?? We have names for some of the main characters  .*_


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

Karen I had a goldfish that lived to be 8 or 9 years old i was   when he died, i called him mr jackson as i was a big jacko fan in my youth   

Blue LK (hope it's ok to shorten your name just yell at me if not) i do have names for some of my fish, like my clown plec i call him 'the plec' and my common plec i call 'the plecosaurus' as he is about 10 inches long and is a right monster, plus i tell my friends children he's one of the last living dinosaurs    also my peppered corydoras is called 'dory' i did have 'cory' too but sadly she died a couple of days after getting her   and thats as many as i have bothered to name  

pam xx


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## Blue Lobster Keeper (Nov 21, 2005)

_*Saphy - Its fine to shorten my name, I'm usually kown as BLK on here .

Karen - Our nawtee black, spooky cat was named Venus before we took him in & rehomed him, but we renamed him Zee Bee after Dr Zoidburg from the Futurama cartoon & my other cute little cat is named Leela after ummmmmmmmmmmm Leela from Futurama . Can't wait til we maybe get another cat so we can call him Bender .

Thank goodness I am not the only one that names her fish  . My ickle S. American Puffer is called Pugly, as in Pig Ugly , our Silver Shark is called Squidgy, as named by Neal , our biggest Bristlenose is called Bronchii, as his bristles look like the little branches in the lungs  , another of our Bristlenoses is called Hooversaurus  & our tiny aquatic frog is known as Box Of Frogs 02, as we used to have 2 but sadly one of them (01) died  & its as mad as a box of frogs .*_


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## Anthony Reid (Jan 1, 2002)

Well Jessisica calls our bristlenose 'Dragon' - but I think he is more like a 'Jeff'.

Gonna buy some shrimp tonight on the way home from work


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## Spaykay (Nov 29, 2006)

Careful with burials in the garden karen. As a child I caringly buried my pet hamster in a box in the garden. During the night a fox had it for his tea  

Kay xxx


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

Karen i don't want to scare you but, i saw a fox jump my 6 foot fence with ease and i'm guessing they can jump higher still if they really want to  

pam xx


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

> fox's are just like dog's really only there hunters cause they live out in the wild strange never heard of that one before ,
> being able to jump a 6 foot fence well definatly not higher than that, that fox that jumped your fence must of been fed anabolic steroids


www3.harrow.gov.uk/council/departments/environment...

on this site it states fences should be over 2 meters (about 6 & 1/2 foot) to keep foxes out so it would appear the fox i saw was not the only one on steroids. Also i would just like to add my dog has jumped my fence too but it did take her a few attempts and it was because i was on the other side and she wanted to get to me 

anyway this has gone way off topic now  , did you find out the average time a goldfish lives for ? i bet it's not as long as your fish, so you must have one happy healthy fish there 

pam xx

/links


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## Blue Lobster Keeper (Nov 21, 2005)

_*Tony - Did you manage to pick up some Amino Shrimp last night ? Hope you didn't end up frying them in butter & garlic & having them for dinner  .

Seriously, you will probably hardly see them for aaaaaages when you first put them in as they are very shy, but the 6 I put in our Fluval are always flying around in their tank in full view now - very entertaining to watch .*_


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## Spaykay (Nov 29, 2006)

Are Amino Shrimps ones that clean up the tank for you? Are the sweet or salt water? 

Kay xxx


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## Blue Lobster Keeper (Nov 21, 2005)

_*Hello there again Spaykay .

Amino shrimps make a great clean up crew & are for freshwater (sweet ?) tanks . They are great for clearing away algae & are fun to watch too .*_


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## Anthony Reid (Jan 1, 2002)

No I didn't get them the shop was closed. But will go down to get them on Saturday.

I was thinking about what you said ref: carbon.... do you think I should remove the active carbon and put sponges in my overhead internal filter?

Tony
x


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## Blue Lobster Keeper (Nov 21, 2005)

_*Tony - What a shame the shop was shut . Hope you can buy some over the weekend . I think you could try removing the carbon & exchange it for sponges, as the sponges will help trap all the crud that comes thru the filter - the more sponges, the better me thinks .*_


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

I use filter wool along side my sponges in my tanks as it takes out all the small particles but you do have to clean it quite regularly other wise it clogs up  

pam xx


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## Blue Lobster Keeper (Nov 21, 2005)

_*I have never used filter wool before, but have heard that it keeps the water crystal clear .*_


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

yes crystal clear water and it's a lot cheaper than buying the fluval or jewel replacement pads  

pam xx


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

Gawwwd i'm so sad, I have just been staring at a pile of live rock in my nano reef. I keep seeing these little worm things but everytime i get up close to get a better look the hide   I think they are bristleworms but i'm not certain. I'm going to try to talk dh into getting a cleaner shrimp or some snails at the weekend then i'll post some pics of it  

pam xx


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## Blue Lobster Keeper (Nov 21, 2005)

*Ohhhhhhhhhh, looking forward to seeing some pics of your nano reef . Are bristleworms bad ?? Nawtee blighters hiding from you everytime you try to see them .*


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

some people say bristleworms are bad but others say they are good   i think as long as you don't have millions of the little bighters then it's ok 

pam xx


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## Blue Lobster Keeper (Nov 21, 2005)

_*Lets hope so . So what other critters have you got in your nano reef at the moment ?*_


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

I haven't seen anything else   and as it's been cycling i haven't added anything yet, i plan to change that tommorow  

pam xx


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## Anthony Reid (Jan 1, 2002)

This morning I've done another 30% change, a hoover and an 80% Algae scrub

In an attempt to clean up as much as possble, I've also removed most of the ornamental stone from the bottom.

I'm now off with a shopping list 

Filter Wool to replace carbon.....  6 Shrimp and and some cucumber/flat lettuce for my bristlenose 

Anyone ever use that Aquarium Sparkle by Bio-clare - its like a white herbal dust that really does have a nice effect on the tank - although I think it takes 24 hours... not minutes like it says on the box.

Tony
x


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

Tony make sure you rinse the filter wool thoroughly before using it   i have never tried aquarium sparkle, is algae a problem in your tank ? if so is it green or brown ? let me know and i'll ask on fish keepers site and they'll tell me how you can sort it  

pam xx


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

I'm back from the aquatic retailer (posh name for fish shop)    and i haven't bought any shrimp snails or crabs instead i bought a strawberry gramma fish and a yellowtail blue damsel   both are gorgeous fish with striking colours the strawberry gramma is a beautiful purple fish and the yellowtail blue damsel is, well   blue with a yellow tail    i will try to get some decent pics tonight as i find it's always better to take pics at night with only the tank lights on  

Tony how did you get on ? any shrimps yet ?

pam xx


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## Anthony Reid (Jan 1, 2002)

I managed to get some shrimp today... about 25 miles from my house 

No where near me had any - but we popped into an aquatic centre on the way home from visiting my grans - and they had 6 left.... so I bought them 

As soon as they were released they started feeding off the algae on my bog wood - so looks like a good move  Two shrimp are smaller and have decided to hide at the top of the tank on the side of the pump.

The platys keep going for their tales - but so  far no injuries... hopefully its just curiosity 

Mel and I have also agreed that we will both buy a decent tank at Christmas instead of buying each other presents... so I am really looking forward to Christmas now 

Tony
x


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## Blue Lobster Keeper (Nov 21, 2005)

_*Tony - great news about finally finding some shrimps - Sounds like they are hard at work already .

Never had any of our fishes bullying our shrimps so far - fingers crossed , but the shrimps are fast movers & can hopefully get away from any trouble .

Bet you are looking forward to Xmas .

Saphy - Your new marine fish sound lsooooooooooo ovely ! Hope they have settled in well .

Went to see my Sister today & had a long look at her big marine tank . Her Peppermint shrimps look fab - always make me laugh watching them be sooooooo busy  & she has a stunning Strawberry Gamma too & also a few other colourful fish, inc 2 small Clown Fish.*_


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

Blimey Karen 43 years    i didn't know they could live that long

I have put some pics of my new fish in the galley if anyone fancies a peek  

pam xx


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## Blue Lobster Keeper (Nov 21, 2005)

_*Hello again Saphy .

Just had a peek at your gallery & there is nowt in there yet ??.

Hope your new beautiful fish have settled in well so far .*_


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

Hi BLK they are in the general gallery not my gallery 

pam xx


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## Blue Lobster Keeper (Nov 21, 2005)

_*Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, OK thanks - will have a nosey at them now if I can find them . The main gallery always confuzzles me   .*_


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## Anthony Reid (Jan 1, 2002)

Lovely pic's Saphy - how many tanks have you got?


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## Blue Lobster Keeper (Nov 21, 2005)

_*Lovely pics indeed Saphy, thanks very much for sharing them .
I have left a few comments .

Tony - how are your shrimps getting on ??*_


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## Anthony Reid (Jan 1, 2002)

Well I am not sure about the shrimps at the moment.

I can still count four - but they all seem to have shed their skins.


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## Blue Lobster Keeper (Nov 21, 2005)

_*I think that is a good sign re them shedding their shells - think it means that the water parameters are spot on for them . I tend to leave the empty shells in the tanks as sometimes they eat them .*_


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

Thanks BLK & Tony that tank is still a work in progress and i plan to put a couple more fish in and some corals   Tony i hope the shrimps have settled in well  

I have got 3 tanks at the moment (well 4 if you count the hospital tank) my dh keeps telling at least one of them has to go  

pam xx

P.s Tony the getting eachother a tank for xmas is a great idea that's just what we did last xmas with our corner tank   even though i end up looking after the fish


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## C0nfused (Apr 13, 2007)

I have an outside pond with four koi and two goldfish. I guess they're not tropical but hey! We've had them since we bought the house and have noticed how much they've grown!


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

Hi C0nfused

i would love a pond eventually, i quite fancy a waterfall too   my neighbour has loads of koi and i couldn't believe how big they grow   they are lovely fish though.

pam xx


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## Blue Lobster Keeper (Nov 21, 2005)

_*Welcome to the fishy thread C0nfused .

My Mum & Stepdad have a pond in their back garden & we just love visiting them & watching it for hours - sooooooooooo relaxing seeing the huge fish swimming around, hearing the frogs ribbit & the waterfall ............... .

My poor Step Dad had a heart attack years ago whilst digging to make the pond bigger , but he is fine now .

Tony - How are your shrimps & water levels going ??

saphy - how are your new marine fish settling in ??

Have a great weekend all . x*_


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## Anthony Reid (Jan 1, 2002)

I've just done some tests... I'm pretty happy with them although Im going to the aquatics centre to see if I can find stuff try and improve them 

Its probably because I changed my water last week and changed my filter - I think I have boo boo'd and started of a fresh cycle 

Nitrate -  80ppm
Amonia, 0.50ppm
Nitrite 0.50ppm
ph 7.0 

Due to a massive snail infestation we removed all our plants - so I am going to get some more in the hope that they  will help reduce the nitrate levels. I might get some nitra zorb also.

I'm gonna also look out for some ammo-carb to help with the amonia.

I dont think the water quality is too bad at the moment , so Im considering introducing a couple of oto's to help with cleaning the glass as It has developed a grime (first stage of algae?) 

The center has a  kick start thing(in what can only be described as a large sample canister) for biological filters - it contains everything for setting up a bio filter - Im wondering has anyone used this stuff? they keep it in a fridge.


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

Tony, it's completely up to you but i wouldn't bother with the nitra zorb i would do 25 % water changes everyother day until the ammo and nitrite comes back to 0  which shouldn't take long as they are low   just my humble opinion   also i wouln't add any fish or plants until your levels are sorted   hope you get it sorted soon 

BLK my new fish have settled in grest now thanks   i'm hoping to talk dh into taking me to the fish shop to get some clean up cew this afternoon but we'll just have to wait and see  

pam xx


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## Anthony Reid (Jan 1, 2002)

Well the thing is - I don't have any plants or gravel at the moment and I have been doing water changes forever 

The plants should help balance the nitrate - so I'll try that but I will take your advice about the nitra-zorb and not bother with it 

I've just read up about Oto's and they are a little hard to get settled - so I'll wait until water levels are perfect before introducing them 

Thanks,
Tony
x


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

OK Tony, i wouldn't think the plants would hurt anything. how long have you had your tank set up ? is it possible you have it overstocked ? I'm racking my brains trying to think what could be causing this and all i can come up with is either your biological cycle isn't complete although the presence of nitrate would suggest it is, or that you are either over stocked or over feeding. maybe try to only feed every other day (if you already don't) see if this helps. sorry not trying to teach you to suck eggs or anything just trying to help  although i am be no means an expert  

pam xx


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## Anthony Reid (Jan 1, 2002)

We have had the tank for about a year - it did get overstocked at one point - but I think its ok at the moment,

Over feeding is probably the cause  I feed every day at the moment, a tablet for the plec every other night and a pinch of flake every night.

Thanks,
Tony
x


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

Tony, i used to be bad at overfeeding my fish   but i got sick of constant water changes so i cut down to everyother day. i do feed them most days now though but i have got used to how much they eat. and touch wood i don't seem to have problems with my water levels anymore. apparently fish can survive for days without food but i could never not feed mine for more than a day  

pam xx


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## Anthony Reid (Jan 1, 2002)

I went to the shop and they convinced me to use a syphon instead of a battery vac - and it has worked wonders today and made it easy to do a 20% water change in the process 

It didn't get everything but what it didn't get I used the battery vac to clean up. I've put some nice brown/cream grit at the bottom and added some plants.

There was some algae left.. the hard spot stuff - so I got a new blade and scraped that off... so the tanks looking pretty clean - although a tiny bit misty, perhaps due to the grit going in.

Due to the test readings this morning - I bought something called BACTINETTES - this is the thing they store in the fridge I mentioned earlier. More info on it here : http://www.soelltec.de/gb/



> Bactinettes
> LIFE IN PEARLS - highly active micro organisms to decompose ammonia, nitrite and nitrate
> fresh pure bacteria cultures for the aquarium filter
> in distinctive portions, according to the size of the aquarium
> ...


It costs £5.50 per dose - but hopefully its worth every penny.

I spent two hours cleaning the tank today - but enjoyed every minute of it.... and I am actually looking forward to testing the water next weekend when everything has settled. I've never looked forward to testing before 

All the shrimp have been out today and even the loach who usually hide under the wood.

Hopefully the tank has turned a corner today 

Hows everyone else doing?

Tony
x


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

great news Tony   i hope that everything settles down nicely now. any chance of some pics ? i'm just soooooo nosey   

pam xx


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## Anthony Reid (Jan 1, 2002)

I'll take some tomorrow when the water clears 

Tony
x


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## Anthony Reid (Jan 1, 2002)

I just upload a pic of the tank.

Apologies for the camera flash.

http://www.fertilityfriends.co.uk/gallery/displayimage.php?album=lastup&cat=0&pos=0


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## Jayne (Jan 26, 2003)

Hi  

Just been having a read through of this thread   Lovely tanks.  I used to have 2 huge tanks years ago, but had to get rid of them when Jack arrived as they were just too much work for me and dh will have nothing to do with them.  Have only got a small tank now and it's low maintenance really, so suits nicely   Did have live plants but like Tony, had a massive snail infestation, so got rid of them.  Was hopelessly trying to pick every snail out of the tank and using snail killer stuff in there.  Try not to use chemicals as much as possible as I think the tank has its own natural cycle and I hate to mess with that.  Ended up seeing sense and going the natural route, buying polka dot loaches which devoured the snails and they are no longer a problem - see the odd teeny one on a very rare occasion!  Am thinking of buying some real plants now to replace the naff plastic ones I currently have in the tank.  My old plants were rooting in lovely as well.  I have a sand base to the tank, which they seemed to really like.  

Not got many fish in there at the moment as the tank went through a bad stage about 8 months or so ago and I had a lot of fish just dying.  It seems stable now and there's been no deaths for about 6 months, so that's good.  I've been loathed to buy anymore fish since, but think I'm going to venture out on Monday and buy a siamese fighter.  At the moment the tank only has 3 neon tetras, 3 polka dot loaches and a red tailed shark (or Sharky as he's affectionately named  ).  Love the shark fish.  He's black with a bright red tail, and about 5 inches long.  

Tried to take some pics, but the shark won't come out, so you can probably just see his tail!  





Tony -  Hopefully you're on top of those tank problems now and tests will come back perfect for you next week   

Think rule of thumb for stocking is an inch of fish (excluding tail and head) per gallon of tank water.  It's not a lot of fish really when you work it out, especially as you should work it on the adult size of a fish.  

I use something called Cycle, which has live bacteria in it, and it sounds a bit like what you're adding to your tank.  Sure to help   

I also have a syphon to get rid of the tank gunk and do the water change at the same time   Never did get on with those battery things    

Jayne x


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## Jayne (Jan 26, 2003)

Couple more pics


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## Anthony Reid (Jan 1, 2002)

Nice pictures Jayne 

If that's the stocking rule then I am over stocked, although I wouldn't say my tank is crowded, just probably needs more water changes 

Like you I found the snails to be a nightmare - although we didn't use snail killer.. we just kept cleaning and removing the eggs over time - which seemed like forever 

Does anyone bother with fish keeping magazines?


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

Hi

Lovely tanks, Tony & Jayne 

Tony i don't bother with magazine but i am a member of http://www.fish-keeper.com/index.php so i get lots of free advice off people who have many years experience keeping fish 

pam xx

/links


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## Spaykay (Nov 29, 2006)

Lovely photos everyone - too embarassed to put mine up, rather green looking  

Kay xxx


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## Anthony Reid (Jan 1, 2002)

Hi Kay,

We had a nightmare with algae.

I found a little sachet which you can put in your filter called GreenX - its about £2.99 and really helps clears the green out over a couple of days.
http://www.aquariumsdelivered.co.uk/catalog/greenx-phosphate-remover-filter-media-p-425.html

Of course a couple of 20% water changes over a few days will help clear it out at the same time.

Hope that helps.


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## Jayne (Jan 26, 2003)

Felt all inspired after reading this thread and went out today and bought 3 more neon tetras (to make the tank total 6) and a golden Siamese Fighter (aptly named Goldie  ).  Pic doesn't do it justice, but it has beautiful coloured fins - got a hint of purple to them, and some deeper red markings too.  Body is a gorgeous gold colour.  That's it now, not adding anything else to the tank.  Did look very longingly at the big tanks in the shop today.  One was about 3 times the size of mine and on offer, as end of line stock, at £108 - normally £320!  Oh, was I tempted.  There was only 2 left (unsurprisingly).  I just about keep on top of this little one though at the moment, so resisted.  Plus didn't really have even £108 to spend, despite the bargain.


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

Jayne what a lovely fish hun, i love them but i have never had any success keeping them.i had 2 or 3 (not together) when i was younger but they always seemed to die.  well done on not buying that bargain, i'm afraid i probably would of been weak and out would of come the credit card    saying that i have had to be stronger since we got our little man  

pam xx


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## Blue Lobster Keeper (Nov 21, 2005)

_*Hello there all .

Tony - I did a bit of research about the Bactinettes a while ago & was going to buy some, but our local Maidenhead Aquatics were selling the same sort of thing, but in tablet form & much cheaper - soz, can't remember the name of it but I'm sure it was made by a big name . We bought a pack of it, but never needed to use it. Has the Bactinettes worked ??

Apparently, if you buy real plants, you can dip them in a very mild bleach solution to kill off any snails/eggs, but they must be washed thoroughly afterwards . Never tried it myself tho, as just can't keep real plants alive .

Lovely pics everyone . Love the male fighter Jayne *_


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## Jayne (Jan 26, 2003)

Saphy, this is the third fighter I've had and the first lived for years (a purple one).  The second died overnight (a red one), and I'm keeping fingers crossed for this one.  Hopefully it will be another keeper   

Jayne x


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

http://www.fish-keeper.com/Forum/index.php?act=attach&type=post&id=3349

http://www.fish-keeper.com/Forum/index.php?act=attach&type=post&id=3350

i just found these pics of how these fish are shipped, no wonder so many die   fingers crossed your little fish survives

pam xx

/links


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## Jayne (Jan 26, 2003)

Can't view those boards without being a member.  

Not sure if I want to know mind, after your


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

D'oh   silly me    i tried to copy and paste the pics but they are too big. i'll have a go at resizing them later

pam xx


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## Anthony Reid (Jan 1, 2002)

Jayne said:


> Can't view those boards without being a member.


Well sign up then ya silly moo


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

> > Quote from: Jayne on Yesterday at 16:42
> > Can't view those boards without being a member.
> 
> 
> Well sign up then ya silly moo


   

pam xx


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## murtle (Feb 13, 2004)

Hey Jayne - have you been to Caerphilly Garden Centre recently - they have recently developed a tropical and marine section called The Big Blue. They have a really good selection and the staff are really helpful - well worth a visit plus they open til 9 on a Thursday evening. I should be on commission  

My DH has a tropical tank whilst I have a tank of red clawed crabs in my study. Though I have been guilty of watching them for too long when I should be working   My crabs love snacking on snails so my DH lobs any he finds in his tank into mine...works out quite well.

When we set up my crab tank, we used some filter medium and water from the other tank to help establish it. I then ran a fishless cycle where you get the ammonia and nitrate levels to peak in order to build up ammonia eating bacteria. At the end of this cycle I spotted 2 baby neon tetras in there   They must have transferred from the other tank. DH always manages to get his fish pregnant - never his wife  - but the gouramis always scoff the babies. These 2 survived really harsh conditions and are now back in the main tank doing really well.

luv'n'hugs
Murtle
xxx


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## Jayne (Jan 26, 2003)

Tony said:


> Jayne said:
> 
> 
> > Can't view those boards without being a member.
> ...


Ya cheeky git!  (see what I have to put up with! ) I did think of that, but was too lazy to bother 

Murtle - Hiya hun  No, not been to Caerphilly for aaaaages, let alone to any garden centres. Will have to go and take a peek. Tend to go to Pugh's in Nantgarw to get my fishies  Jealous of the baby neons. Have always wanted to have baby fish, but it's never happened - or at least not that I've seen. There may have been eggs at times that have been eaten  My uncle has a tank and has always got loads of baby platties - very cute  Ewww to your crab tank. Scared of crabs me. They look too much like spiders!  Was watching some in Pugh's the other day though and they were funny the way they were squaring up to each other and then darting all over the place. Quite entertaining, but afraid I could never do any maintenance on such a tank - far too chicken! 

Love 
Jayne x


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

Dh finally won   i have got rid of one of my tanks today   we are now down to 2 tanks and a hospital tank   dh made me choose between my cichlids and my community tank, the community tank won as they are so peacefull plus there is a variety of fish in there. but i i did pull a crafty one   as the cichlid tank is (or was) a big corner tank i have moved my community fish into it and i'm getting rid of the 2 ft tank instead      i'll try and get some pics later and post them in the gallery   also i am spending the money i got for the cichlids on some new fish tommorow so it isn't all bad  

pam xx


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## Jayne (Jan 26, 2003)

Awww Pam   Naughty hubby    Hope the purchasing of a few new fish helps ease the loss.  Well done on at least keeping the bigger tank x


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## Anthony Reid (Jan 1, 2002)

Blue Lobster Keeper said:


> Tony - I did a bit of research about the Bactinettes a while ago & was going to buy some, but our local Maidenhead Aquatics were selling the same sort of thing, but in tablet form & much cheaper - soz, can't remember the name of it but I'm sure it was made by a big name . We bought a pack of it, but never needed to use it. Has the Bactinettes worked ??


Im not sure if its worked... I did do a test on Saturday and it appears to have dropped the levels - but my nitrate is still high.

I did 20% change and a quick gravel clean on saturday - so will test again tonight


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

any luck Tony ??

well dh did take me to buy some more fish   and i ended up buying 2 bronze cories and 5 neons for the community tank and i bought a cleaner shrimp, 2 turbo snails and 4 blue legged hermit crabs for the marine tank 

pam xx


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## Blue Lobster Keeper (Nov 21, 2005)

_*Just wondering how your tank is going too, Tony.

Sounds like you bought some great critters for your marine tank, Saphy *_


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## Anthony Reid (Jan 1, 2002)

Hi,

Well.... not too bad. My Nitrates are still very high - so I did another 20% change tonight and will have another 20% change on Friday night.

Amonia is still quite low 

Aww. Saphy - I'd love a marine tank - it must look beautiful .

Mel and I went out again at the weekend looking at Tanks and have decided rather than buy a corner tank at christmas - we will get a long tank.

My logic is that if we choose a couple of fish that dont like each other - then they have the ends of the tank to rush too... and in a corner tank its a bit harder for them 

I'm thinking of a vision 450ltr at the moment , which is about 5ft and bowed at the front... although we may change our minds as its a lot of money 

Saphy - where are the pictures you promised


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

Sorry Tony I completley forgot the pics   i'll take some later of both tanks as i find my pics come out better when the room is dark with just the tank lights on  

Have you looked at tanks on ebay ? i wish i had before i bought our corner tank,  you can get some right bargains (i'm a true ebay addict these days)    thats where i bought my marine set up and it was only £125 delivered (brand new) which is cheap for what it is and i have seen the same tank for sale in the shops for £200

pam xx


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

here's the pics as promised   as you will see my marine set up is far from beautiful but as i have only just added some clean up critters it's only to be expected, hopefully eventually i will have a really nice reef set up  

pam xx


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## Anthony Reid (Jan 1, 2002)

They look lovely


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## Anthony Reid (Jan 1, 2002)

Hello fishy people - its all quiet in here... have you fallen in your tanks?


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

yep i've been swimming 

actually i have been meaning to tell you all, my shrimp shed his shell. it was so weird as i looked in the tank and saw the old shell and thought my shrimp had died. i didn't realise they shed everything including legs and stalky things    it just looked like my shrimp only it was lying on its back, it was so cool. but unfortunately it fell to pieces when i took it ou of the water  

pam xx


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## Anthony Reid (Jan 1, 2002)

My shrimp have done that a few times now .... it is creepy at first 

Apparently they eat the shells too.


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## Blue Lobster Keeper (Nov 21, 2005)

_*Hello there !

I am still around, but nowt to report fishy-wise .

How are your levels going Tony ? Have the Bactinettes worked ??

We used to have a Blue Lobster, hence my name , & she used to shed her shell - the first time it happened it freaked us out as we thought she was dead & we had paid quite a bit to buy her . They do indeed like to eat their shells & I've heard its good for them .*_


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## Anthony Reid (Jan 1, 2002)

Well all levels except nitrate are fine... nitrates between 80 and 160,I cant tell which its closer too even though I have bought two different test kits.

20% Water changes every three days don't seem to be bringing down the nitrates so I might resort to using  nitrate treatment - although I'm not sure if its safe to use with the shrimp.

Apart from that the tank looks clear too, probably the clearest its ever been


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## Blue Lobster Keeper (Nov 21, 2005)

_*How odd that your NitrAtes aren't coming down . Not sure if any treatments would harm your shrimps, so can't help on that front either. Glad your water is the clearest its ever been tho.

Just wondering if you have any real plants in your tank as they are supposed to absorb nitrate, I think. Maybe your tank is too overstocked & your filter can't handle the fish load ??. I am hoping that you are rinsing the filter media in old tank water .

Just wondering what test kits you use ? We use the multi test strips made by Eshea - just dip them in the water for a few seconds & then wait one minute for results & match the readings to the clour charts on the tube. To make ours last longer, when we get a new pack, we cut the strips in half .*_


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## Jayne (Jan 26, 2003)

Tony, somtimes if you're using water in the changes that isn't of a good enough quality your nitrate levels will go up.  Your tap water may contain nitrates. So, while changing water, instead of the nitrate level coming down, these levels are going up. It's a pain, but filtering tap water and treating it before putting it in the tank is the best way to ensure water quality. 

The other thing is (and I think this is the most likely problem with your tank) that whilst water changes are effective in keeping nitrate levels under control, they don't actually work if nitrate levels are very high, and then it's all down to having a proper filtering system, and in this case I suspect that you are over stocked your filtering system isn't keeping up    

As Blue Lobster Keeper has also pointed out, it's important to also rinse filter media in old tank water, else you kill off the lovely bacteria from it  

Might be worth having a chat to someone in an aquatic shop to see if they can give you some advice.  Would be a shame for these nitrates to end up getting the better of your fish and you end up losing them  

Glad you're algae free at the mo though   

Jayne x


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## Anthony Reid (Jan 1, 2002)

All my plants are live... but have only just been put in -I had removed them for a number of months due to snail infestations.

I did test the tap water and its not showing any nitrate... and I haven't been rinsing the filter media... as I thought it was rebuilding the bacteria levels after I changed the filter medium a few weeks back - should I be rinsing it regularly then?

I have been rinsing the little ceramic style hula hoop shaped things.

I might drop half the fish off at the aquatics place (although they test the water before taking the fish - catch 22)


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## Jayne (Jan 26, 2003)

Yeah, think you should rinse it regularly as if it gets clogged you get reduced water flow around the tank.  Not sure what, if any, effect that will have on the nitrate levels.  The main thing is that when you do rinse, you rinse in removed tank water so as to keep the good levels of bacteria.  I usually rinse mine whenever I do a water change and sand clean (about once a month).  I also add a capful of Cycle to the tank whenever  I do a water change, just to top up friendly bacteria


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## Anthony Reid (Jan 1, 2002)

Jayne said:


> I also add a capful of Cycle to the tank whenever I do a water change, just to top up friendly bacteria


Ohh... Ive been using yakult


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## Blue Lobster Keeper (Nov 21, 2005)




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## Jayne (Jan 26, 2003)

So predictable   

xx


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## Anthony Reid (Jan 1, 2002)

Well I gave the gravel a good clean today, 20% water change, added salt and a nitrate tonic to reduce the nitrate levels.

Took Jaynes advice and rinsed the filter media in the removed water.

Currently the nitrate test shows a dip - but I'll keep doing change

I didn't get rid of any fish today - I'll probably get round to that tomorrow.

Isn't fish keeping meant to be relaxing? sheessh...


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

Boo Hoo    i found one of my hermit crabs out of it's shell and obviously dead this morning    they are only tiny little things and i think one of my fish has killed it    also the algae in the tank is way out of control i really need some more snails in there  

just got to talk dh round now 

pam xx

P.s in case any of you were wondering a tub of fish flakes goes a very long way when tipped all over the floor by a 15 month old little monster hehehe


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## Anthony Reid (Jan 1, 2002)

Sorry to hear that Saphy 

Tony
x


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

How's your levels now Tony ? did you get rid of any fish ? hope you have got it sorted so you can get back to relaxing and enjoying your tank in your spare time (if you get any)

pam xx


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## larkles (Jun 29, 2005)

Hi Saphy and all

sorry for not posting here, trying to keep up with your posts-exhausting!  

I googled your beautiful strawberry gamma but nothing came up, would love one for our tank, purple and me go great together-healing wise! Are you around London and where did you find that beauty?

If anyone is interested in a fantastic guy that has done our tanks for years, reasonably priced around London areas, let me know and I'll give you his details

Saphy-you made me laugh re the fish flakes over the floor, when we first got a fishtank, our cats used to wait for the fallen flakes and gobble them up, when we fed the fish they used to Meeeeoooowww for their share too! We soon stopped when our vet said too much salt or something like that!

Larkles
xx


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

Hi Larkles

sorry i'm a long way from london, have you tried online to get a strawberry gramma ? i'll warn you now though gramma's are quite agressive and you can't keep more than one gramma in your tank as they will fight. what fish have you got in your tank at the moment ? do you have any pics ? 

pam xx


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## Jayne (Jan 26, 2003)

Gutted about my fish at the moment.  No idea what went wrong, but all of a sudden about 3 days ago, I noticed all of my loaches had developed white spot and are now dead   On top of that, my lovely sharky has been infected and will probably shortly be dead, and my little tetras aren't looking too good with a bit of fin rot going on     Have medicated the tank, etc. and water quality is perfect as far as I can tell.  Not had a death in there for aaages, and I can only think that when I recently added the tetras and the siamese fighter, some white spot was introduced then, or that levels previously in the background in the tank have somehow become stronger.  Oh, I don't know.  I'm not very good when it comes to fish illness, and have  never found any of the medications to work   I suspect it's going to wipe the lot out   My beautiful siamese fighter will prob go to - although so far is still looking okay.  The loaches were looking fab last week too   

Not sure what I'll do if they all go.  May just shut the tank down as it's expensive to keep stocking it only to lose them so rapidly   

Jayne x


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## Blue Lobster Keeper (Nov 21, 2005)

_*Saphy - Sooooooooooooooooo sorry to hear about your poor Hermit Crab & your algae is out of control .

Jayne - Sooooooooooooo sorry too to hear about your White Spot outbreak . Hopefully your Siamese Fighter will be fine. Have heard that Loaches are a bit more suscepticle (sp?) to White Spot, but not sure why .

I have heard that some people run a quarantine tank to make sure new fish don't pass disease onto other fish, if you know what I mean, but we never have space for one & to keep a tank running that is empty until you get new fish seems a bit of a waste . Hope you deceide to keep the tank running   .

Tony - Nitrate dip sounds promising . Hows the levels now ??*_


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

Awwww Jayne thats awfull hun i hope the rest of your fish survive. what have you treat the tank with ? i managed to cure whitespot for the first time ever   by using methlyne blue (sp?)

pam xx


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## C0nfused (Apr 13, 2007)

Just need a little advice, I know its not tropical fish... but hey. We have a pond with four koi and two goldfish (they're not very big). The pond started to smell a bit and so I cleaned it with a net, as I was told to and have cleaned the pump as best as I could and now am running the pump but it still smells. Any ideas what it could be and what I can do to stop it as its really bad now!


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## Jayne (Jan 26, 2003)

Saphy - Oh, that's sad about your hermit crab   Sorry to read that hun.  
Yep, I've added the methlyne blue, but I don't know it's going to work.  All my loaches are dead and my beautiful big black shark fish - the one with the red fins and tail, is also now covered in white spot and I can see it on a few of the tetras too   There's only the shark, the tetras and the siamese fighter in there.  So sad about it.  Poor little fishies  

Blue Lobster Keeper - Yeah, have heard that about the quarantine tank and it definitely makes a lot of sense.  These fish are expensive and it's sad to have this sort of outbreak of disease when it can be prevented really by quarantineing them.  I don't have the space though for another tank so have taken my chances reall (as a lot of us do).  Afraid it's not paying off for me though   Really don't know at the moment what I will do if they all die.  I'm 50/50 about shutting the tank down.  I may just let it run a while empty and see how I feel.  Definitely can't see me just re-stocking in the coming weeks though.  Feel quite emotional about it all really   

Confused - Sorry hun but I have absolutely no idea about pond fish or pond smells, etc.  Hopefully someone else will be able to help though.  If not, maybe have a chat to someone in the aquatic place where you buy your fish and see if they have any suggestions   Good luck with it all. 

Love 
Jayne x


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## Anthony Reid (Jan 1, 2002)

C0nfused said:


> Just need a little advice, I know its not tropical fish... but hey. We have a pond with four koi and two goldfish (they're not very big). The pond started to smell a bit and so I cleaned it with a net, as I was told to and have cleaned the pump as best as I could and now am running the pump but it still smells. Any ideas what it could be and what I can do to stop it as its really bad now!


I had a pond years ago... no Koi though - just goldfish and lots of frogs 

Could you be over feeding?

The only other thing I could think of is that waste food is being trapped in algae at the bottom?


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## Jayne (Jan 26, 2003)

Sharky died this morning, so only 5 neon tetras and the siamese fighter left


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## Anthony Reid (Jan 1, 2002)

I lost both my Kuli loach the weekend too


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

Awwwww so sorry to hear that Jayne & Tony sometimes fish keeping is such a nightmare   isn't it, i find i often have probs when i add new fish maybe quarantine tanks are the way to go   which is ok if you have room for one and don't mind the running costs etc. it would be nice to think the fish had already been in quaratine before purchase though wouldn't it   

pam xx


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## Blue Lobster Keeper (Nov 21, 2005)

_*Soooooooooooooooo sorry to hear about your Shark Jayne & sorry too to hear about your loaches Tony .

I agree with Saphy that you would think that the fish would have been quarantined before going on sale - I have sometimes seen fish shops do this I am happy to say, but the majority don't .*_


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## Jayne (Jan 26, 2003)

Ah, Tony, sorry to hear that, it's horrid isn't it   

Yes, you would think the fish would be quarantined in the shop first as I imagine a lot of us don't have such a tank running at home.  The place I go to is usually very good and it's probably a bit of an unfortunate one off that this has happened.  Never in all my years of keeping fish have I had it happen before, and before the boys I had big tanks for as long as I can remember.  

I think I've a long way to go before my deaths are over as despite treatment, I still think the tank is going to be wiped outl.  I can't see me re-stocking for a good while.  I may leave it up and running empty though until I am ready to try again with it all  

Jayne x


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## Blue Lobster Keeper (Nov 21, 2005)

_*Awwwwwwwwwwwwww, I am sooooooooooooooooooo upset   .

Came home from a hospital check up for Neal yesterday as one of our cats bit him very hard on his left hand - looooooong story , & found my beautiful, funny South American Puffer named Pugly lying upside down on the bottom of the tank, dead .

We had her the longest for about 5 years & everytime I looked at her she would really cheer me up with her non-stop shimmying across the tank & seeing her little ugly face made me laugh too .

Really don't know why she died , had been keeping up with filter cleaning & water changing too. The 2 Corys & 2 Amino Shrimps are doing fine - maybe it was just due to old age . We will try & get another one after September, as thats when we go on holiday for 10 days & every time we go away for longer than a few days we had to take Pugly to out local fish shop to be fed her bloodworms & everyone really loved her & enquired about her . Makes sense to wait until we are back off holiday to get another one, but we will still have to take our tiny frog to the LFS to be looked after whilst away .............

Sorry for the me post . Its just I was soooooooooooooo attached to Pugly & I burst out crying when I found her dead  - amazing how attached we can get to our fishies, or is it just me ??*_


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## Jayne (Jan 26, 2003)

Awwww BLK that's so sad    Sorry you lost your lovely fish    It's true, we do get attached to our fishies, particularly the really individual ones.  In my old tank I had a few that lived to ripe old ages and it was so sad when they did die   Maybe Pugly (cute name) died of old age.  How long do they live for? 

Hope your dh's hand is okay? 

I'm keeping fingers crossed I've managed to erradicate white spot from my tank    My siamese fighter is still alive and looking healthy, and I have 4 neons left, but that's it!  Lost 3 neons, 3 polka dotted loaches and 'sharky'  

Love 
Jayne x


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

BLK i'm sooooo sorry about Pugly hun    

where is everyone ? fallen in their tanks again  eh Tony 

pam xx


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## Jayne (Jan 26, 2003)

Hello   

Not posted as feeling a bit deflated with fish keeping at the moment   That said though, things are looking up as I've not not had a death in the tank now for almost a week, so fingers tightly crossed I've managed to cure the white spot out break. Think sometime this week I will do a water change and general clean up and give the tank a few weeks and then maybe, tentatively add in some new polka dot or zebra loaches.  Still have snails in the tank, so need them to control these.  Also with only 4 neons and the siamese fighter (phew that it survived) the tank needs some bottom feeders anyway.  I think this time when I add the new fish i will treat for white spot preventatively, and hopefully all will be well.  

Love 
Jayne x


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

Hi Jayne, great news that you have cured the white spot. 

You wont believe this but i have only gone and discovered whitespot in my tank  my choc molly has it again   i have cured him once (months ago) and i'm hoping i can cure him again, although i'm not too hopefull as he looks so deflated by it this time   also i have found one of my congo tetras has damaged its mouth some how so i'm not having much luck with my fish at the mo 

pam xx


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

well the white spot seems to have gone without me losing any fish   i'm wondering if i acted a bit hasty and if the white spots on my fish were actually sand   as the fish is fine now and no other fish showed any signs of white spot, i'm sooo   sometimes

i bought some snails for my salty tank off ebay and they all arrived dead   i'm still waiting to hear from the seller but i can feel a monty python sketch coming on  

hope your fish are all doing well  

pam xx


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## Debs (Mar 22, 2002)

Hello  

I cant officially join you yet as im just starting out on this little venture .... and its proving a bit more complicated than I first thought  

Can any of you please give me any advice on looking for tanks, what equipment is best etc.  I cant even think about the fish yet till I find them a home to live in first  

But is there any good sites for buying tanks and equipment?

Im having this for my birthday pressy  

Thanks

Love

Debs xxx


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## Jayne (Jan 26, 2003)

Oh Debs, how exciting    

I just bought all in one type tanks, that came complete with heater, filter, pump, etc.  You can set it all up separately, but afraid I'm not the best person to give advice on that one.  I would recommend going to a good aquatic centre and going from there.  Get some fishy books as well or read up on the internet about the biological filter of an aquarium - very important to have good water quality and not over stock, etc   

What sort of size tank are you looking to get? 

Love 
Jayne x


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

Debs i think the complete set ups are great tanks   Juwel ones seem to be fairly good value. I have got a juwel trigon 190 corner tank and i've had no probs at all with it. Ebay is always good for tanks, if you find one you like but are not sure post a link here and we'll have a look at it for you to make sure you don't get ripped off. Also i would say if you go to an aquatic centre NEVER buy on impulse this is a lesson i have learnt the hard way   sadly so many retailers will tell you anything to make a sale  so i find it's always best to double check. 

good luck

pam xx


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## Debs (Mar 22, 2002)

Thanks girls - appreciate the help  

Im not looking for a huge one jayne - but not a small one either so kind of inbetween I guess.

I cant wait to buy all the bits and pieces to go in it (as well as the fish) like wrecks and caves and all that malarky   

Love

Debs xxx


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## Jayne (Jan 26, 2003)

Have fun Debs   

If you buy bog wood to go in there, get it soaking now!  Think it said on the label to soak for about a week, but mine was in a bucket for about 3 months before it stopped turning the water a yuk shade of rust!    

Oh, and sand is good for the base as opposed to gravel   The bottom feeder fish tend to like it as well and it's good for live plants   I have it in my tank and find it easier to clean as any muck tends to sit on the top as opposed to go down into the gravel gaps, and is easier to suck up then.  If you get a syphon to clean with (as opposed to one of the battery operated cleaning devices) you can suck up the muck and do a water change at the same time   

Remember the tank has to be up and running for a while before you add any fish  

Love 
Jayne x


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

well i am totally



i recieved some replacement snails from the ebay seller and they are all alive, i didn't expect him to just send them out without a bit of a fight. just shows there are some decent sellers on ebay 

pam xx


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## Jayne (Jan 26, 2003)

Fab news Pam      Although why anyone would want to actually add snails to their tank is beyond me!    I buy fish that eat the snails!   

Love 
Jayne x


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

they are marine snails and an important part of the reef aquarium   plus i'm hoping they are going to chomp their way through the algae i have growing. I know what you mean though i have always tried to keep snails out of my tanks   

pam xx


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## Jayne (Jan 26, 2003)

Ahhh I see    Not much of an expert on marine tanks - or snails come to that    Hope they do the trick for you hun


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

awwww poppy is gorgeous Jayne, i'm soooooo jealous i love puppies   but since i already have 2 dogs dh wont let me have anymore 

pam xx


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

very quiet in here  

i went to the fish shop (not the chippy)    to buy food and guess what i bought, food that's all how proud am i, dh was amazed that i didn't come out with a plastic bag with something swimming inside    i was tempted though, maybe next time  

how's all your tanks ??

Debs, did you get a tank ?

Jayne, how's you gorgeous ickle puppy dog doing ?

pam xx


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## Blue Lobster Keeper (Nov 21, 2005)

_*Hello fishy keepers !.

Hope this finds you all well & your fishies too ,

Well done Pam on not buying anymore fish - very difficult, I know .

We have been having a hard time atm what with our Silver Shark bullying/killing off most of our lovely guppies & Neons  . It has always been soo timid & scared of everything in the tank, but somehow it has become the evil fish from hell .

We managed to transfer the 3 remaining guppies out of the big Juwel tank into the Fluval 500, but the damaged one was being picked on by the Amino shrimps, so I had to move them again into the small Aqua One tank.

Sadly, the damaged guppy died soon after being moved & one other one was found dead by the morning , so we only have 1 poor Guppy left & we recently lost a big Julii cat fish from the Aqua One tank too . The water quality is fine in the Aqua & I had cleaned the filter & done a water change 2 days before we moved the remaining Guppies into it & there is only 1 small Julii cat fish & 2 amino shrimps in there now, so not overstocked - must have been the shock of being moved twice in one night  & maybe differing water perameters from the other 2 tanks ...............

Just feel like giving up the 2 tanks & just keeping the Fluval 500 in the lovely black fireplace surround Neal made himself, as it is the only tank that seems to never have any casualties, if you know what I mean ...............*_


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

Awwww BLK i'm so sorry hun, it's strange how everything can be fine then suddenly you lose a few fish   i keep expecting one of my sword tails to die as it doesn't look to good. it is one of my surviving babies too but i think they are too inbred

pam xx


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## Debs (Mar 22, 2002)

Saphy I havent got my tank yet.

I over heard a conversation between my dh and sister and it looks like they have something underway so am frantically trying to find out what they are up to but dropping plenty of hints    

BLK ohh im sad to see you are having problems - sending big fishy   that they all play nicely and dont eat each other  

Love

Debs xxx


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## Debs (Mar 22, 2002)

Im getting my tank next Sunday    for my birthday.  It is a Juwel one and black so going out over the weekend to get all the pretty's for it like bridges, caves etc - obviously cant get fish just yet but its a bit like decorating a room - deciding what to have and where to put it all     Whose the Lawrence Llewelyn Bowen of designing fish tanks?   

Im going to get sand for the bottom Jayne as you suggested and will bore you all with pics as soon as I can   

BLK - hows the fish doing now?

Love

Debs xxx


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

Woo hoo !! great news Debs, it's so much fun setting up a new tank and even more fun when you get to choose the fish    i can't wait to see some pics  

pam xx


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## Jayne (Jan 26, 2003)

Hey Debs   How's the tank going   Looking forward to seeing pics and hearing all about the fish as you start to stock the tank   

Afraid my poor tank is dire at the moment.  Since that white spot outbreak, which seems to be cured, but not until it wiped out all my lovely fish, bar 3 neon tetras, I've not re-stocked it at all.  I don't know, I've just lost the heart for it    Was so upset to have lost so many fish in one hit.  We recently added a new puppy to our household too, so I suppose she's been a big distraction.  I'm keeping the tank running for now for the sake of the 3 little fish left in there, but not sure if I will re-stock or let them live out their lives and then shut it down.  We'll see. 

Have booked a hol to Egypt for Oct 2008, so looking forward to doing a bit of snorkeling over there and seeing all the beautiful fish in their natural environment   

Love 
Jayne x


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## larkles (Jun 29, 2005)

Hi Everyone

Sorry for lack of input here, things always seem to get in the way  

Debs, love new tanks, good luck in filling it up, do you want my wish list?  

Jayne-So sorry to hear of your losses, it's really sad, I would keep the fishtank to let the little ones survive and see what happens, not very helpful, sorry
I can recognise your feeling of seeing the fish in their natural enviroment, I have always believed that

Help needed re Parrot fish/malawis

We have 2 Parrott fish not sure of their sexes-and others in the tank, blue malawi's are the only contest with them!

The Parrott's are digging up the all the sand in heaps and boundries, they have dug down to the glass, what is the point? Are they both male or one each, can someone help me with their habits please? I haven't seen any eggs 

Thanks in advance  

Larkles
x


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

Hi Larkles, my cichlids used to move the sand all over my tank all the time it's just what they do. they get mouthfulls and spit it all over    and parrots are cichlids too so i would say it's perfectly normal 

try joing fishkeepers.com (it's free to join) you'll get lots of advice there from fellow fish keepers   

pam xx


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## Debs (Mar 22, 2002)

Hello  

Well the first tennants have moved in today    I have 4 guppys and next week I will go back and they will test my water to see if ok and hopefully I can move in some neon tetras   and just keep building bit by bit.  Its been lovely tonight just watching them - 2 are bright orange with lots of black on the tail and the other 2 are lighter and only have a little bit of black on their tail.  I will take some snaps and pop them up tomorrow and start boring you all with endless pictures of the additions as and when they get here.    

Jayne - so sorry that its all gone the way it has for you   Hope the remaining fish are doing ok.  Lucky you off to Egypt!

Im going to have a quick mooch round the web link Pam has given - one question for you all though - I have gone for a sand base - any recomendations for what cleaner I should buy?  Watched my sister clean her tank last week but she had gravel and it looked really easy - the man in the shop kept saying that sand was harder to clean .... but I dont care as I love my sand!  

Love

Debs xxx


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## Debs (Mar 22, 2002)

Pam - Ive tried that web address and its taking me to a page for a new domain    Tried .com too and that farms me out to places like amazon - would you check it for me please hun.

Thanks

Love

Debs xxx


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## Jayne (Jan 26, 2003)

Hey Debs, welcome to your new arrivals   I like guppies - very pretty fish   Neons are nice to   I just use a syphon type cleaner for my sand.  I don't disturb the underneath very much as with sand all the yuk tends to sit on the surface (unlike gravel, where it sinks through the gaps).  If youget some bottom feeders (like cat fish) early on they will help keep it clean for you   

Looking forward to seeing the pics  

Love 
Jayne x


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## Debs (Mar 22, 2002)

Here are the new housemates  

Its not complete yet - and it needs a back drop poster as all you can see is my wallpaper


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

the tank looks lovely Debs, sorry to be a geek but those fish are platies not guppies hun  better keep an eye out for babies as they breed like crazy   

pam xx


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## Debs (Mar 22, 2002)

ah what a muppet!

Debs is officially the fishkeepers idiot for this thread   

One isnt eating very much - its one of the smaller ones   Will have to keep an eye on him  

Appleton - best not ask me anything about fish


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## Debs (Mar 22, 2002)

The little one that isnt eating has got worse  

He totally segregates himself from the others, doesnt eat and spends time at the very top of the tank - a couple of times I thought he had died.

This morning I got up and he was up there again - I put the net in just by him and he didnt flinch so I though best get something to put him in.  By the time I got back he was swimming like a mad thing all over the place - its like he is a balloon getting blown in the wind - he cant seem to go where he wants to and then just goes into freefall before hitting the base of the tank before trying to get back to the top again  .

I dont think he will be with us when I get home tonight  

Love

debs xxx


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

Hi Debs, sorry i somehow missed your post about the link  here it is again

http://fish-keeper.net/index.php

hopefully it will work now

as for your fish, it could be that you are having an ammonia spike platies can usually cope with it (which is why they are used to cycle tanks) but the odd one sadly dies. don't worry too much your tank will settle down. try that link and let me know if it works this time  the guys on there are great soooo knowledgeable and helpfull

pam xx


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## Jayne (Jan 26, 2003)

Ha ha - Debs    Lovely platies!    I didn't like to say when you said guppies, but thought it an odd choice in a new tank   Guppies are not very hardy. Platies are a far better choice    I hope the sick one makes it, but as Saphy says, it's normal to lose a few initially and all will settle down in time.  It's sad though when you have a loss   Like your tank decor.  You have very deep sand! Looks nice.  Think mine's about half of that.  

Appleton - Sorry, don't know anything about goldfish!  

Love 
Jayne x


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## Debs (Mar 22, 2002)

Ah the poor mite didnt make it  

One of the others has gone a bit strange - need to keep an eye on him and one of the smaller ones is stalking the other big fish so between them they are keeping me busy!  Mind you looking at my wallpaper is enough to send them mad - they will be glad when I get the backdrop   

Have I got my sand too deep Jayne?  I was trying to make it look like the great barrier reef     Mind you I need a bit more furniture in there to do that  

I do love watching them though - felt a bit guilty as I had fish for tea last night though (not the one that died I hasten to add  )  

Going back on Saturday for another water sample and to see if I can have some more playmates - im sure its guppies this week (but there again   ) - well they are kind of small and have beautiful coloured tails - pink, blue etc.

Hows your fish getting on Jayne.

Pam - thanks for the link - I found it now  


Love

Debs xxx


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## Jayne (Jan 26, 2003)

Debs - Awww, sorry to hear you lost your first fishy.  The first one is always the hardest, but it's always upsetting   You can have your sand as deep as you like hun   Just remember to take into account the tank capacity when adding the fish - the deeper the sand, the less the capacity    I've still got my 3 little neon tetras swimming happily about   Actually, I've not had to bother with them much lately, they are still eating the holiday food I put in there at the begining of August    

Have you got your guppies now? 

Love 
Jayne x


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## saphy75 (Mar 15, 2004)

it's gone very quiet on here   where is everyone ?

i woke up this morning to find my marine tank had leaked a bout 15 litres of water all over my room    luckily i had another tank set up with salt water in ready to do a water change but i now have no skimmer or uv steriliser and the tank has not cycled but i had no choice other than to put the fish in it  

any way enough moaning, how are all your tanks ?

pam xx


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## Jayne (Jan 26, 2003)

Oh no Pam    That's awful!  I do hope the fish will be okay, not to mention your floor! 

Since my disaster with the white spot, I still just have the 3 little neons swimming about. They seem happy enough, so just going to leave it at that for now. Afraid the dog's kinda taken over and I'm enjoying her far more than the fish!  

Love 
Jayne x


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## Debs (Mar 22, 2002)

Well this tropical fish malarky is quite hard    Since I got the tank back in August I have only managed to buy the one lot of fish - 2 of them died and I keep having my water checked as its high in nitrates    have put stress zyme in - changed the water but keep your fingers crossed as the last suggestion the man gave me was to only feed them every other day - so im back there tomorrow to see if the problems gone and if I can give the 2 in there some tank mates  

Pam - have you got your tank sorted now?  I think id have a right stressy if the tank leaked - bad enough there was a powercut in the night this week - first thing I did was go and check them.

Jayne - am glad the 3 little neons are still there - can understand the dog overtaking your affections  

Anyway - have put a couple of pics up so you can see what ive been up to (besides poisoning the fish  )  These 2 seem realy happy though so it cant be that bad (I hope).

Love

Debs xxx


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## Debs (Mar 22, 2002)

Ive got fish!   

Wow they are fantastic to watch - got 4 that I cant remember what they are and 2 black mollys - everyone is playing nicely its just fab. Am getting 2 angel fish and a crab next week 

Just added a couple more pics









Love

Debs xxx


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## murtle (Feb 13, 2004)

Hi Debs,

Love the tank  

I keep crabs and just wanted to give you some advice regarding keeping them. Most crabs need brackish, ie slightly salty water to live in. Most importantly, crabs need access to land otherwise they won't last more than 6 months. They will also try to catch your fish, especially the angel fish. They are also very cunning in finding ways to escape the tank. 

I really would advise against adding a crab to your tank.

Hope you don't mind me butting in

luv'n'hugs
Murtle
xxx


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## Debs (Mar 22, 2002)

Hi Murtle - thanks for the advice    Im new to all this so any advice is greatly appreciated.

Think I will forget the crab - wouldnt want to give it a sad life as it wouldnt get any land.  I never thought of that - just saw this tiny weeny crab running along the bottom of the tank in the shop and thought he looked nice - but id rather he was a happy crab then a sad one  

Thanks again.

Love

Debs xxx


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## Jayne (Jan 26, 2003)

Debs - Your tank is absolutely gorgeous!  I love it!   

Just some little tips from me   Feel free to ignore!   Angel fish can be a more difficult fish to keep. They do best in slightly acidic water (which  most community aquariums aren't), but you can add them of course   They are often peaceful, but can sometimes eat small fish! (big fish eat small fish!). So you may want to do a daily head count    Also, they are aggressive eaters and will eat and eat and eat, even when full, so you need to take care about over feeding and also ensure, other fish in the tank are getting their share.  Also, lots of community fish (not including angel fish here) are happiest kept in shoals of at least 6, so you may want to bear this in mind whilst stocking and take care not to overstock - think general rule of thumb is an inch of fish (excluding head and tail) per gallon of tank water. This is for the adult sized fish, not the little tiddler you buy at the aquatic shop!  

Love 
Jayne x


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