geleen

Where can you buy this? thanks John

Just refilled my 10 lbs tank and it measures about 900 lbs is this average or low? I seem to remember 1100 a year ago but as you know I am ancient at least it feels like that today......... J

They manage fine even in PH 7.6 (edmonton) Yours may not be old enough? (They would have to be 6-9 months old) Water changes weekly of 50% a few rocks and you should be ok Using PH down might be tricky and not necessarily constant. Not usually recommended. If you really are serious about the Ph mix in 50 to 75% RO water that would be a lot better, and will also lower the hardness. The fry would do better in that mix. HTH J

J

I am looking for a small, peaceful species that occupies the upper levels and is compatible with peaceful lake Malawi fish; including some 6 inch Synodontis type catfish,blue dolphins,and peacocks. Just want some movement at the top Any suggestions? Thanks John

Sounds like all is well. If you don't have plants then a steady roil at the surface is best for oxygenation. The Xp3 will do great for a light load and fish that are not too messy. I would check it once a month for a while. Unless you have a type of fish that likes or needs a lot of current a powerhead may not be necessary but wont hurt either. J

I want to use a mag drive 1800 for submersed sump use. It uses 135 watts, so not too bad in that department. The head will be 10 feet and I should get about 800 g/hr Does anyone use this pump or have information on durability with continuous use? Any info is appreciated. Thanks John

As mentioned best by themselves. In a 20 all you can handle is a pair with fry; the bioload will be too much to handle as you will soon have 50 fish in there My male will even try to kill the female after the fry are around. J

Every experiment needs a control. Refilling with a bucket or hose? :well: Is it simply cloudy water ? When I fill the coffee pot from the tap it is cloudy for a minute, same filling from a hose into the tank directly is clouds the tank for a bit. (from time to time, not always but right now it is doing that.) The dissolved Co2 would take the slimecoat off the discus when I was using a hose to fill directly from the tap: which was a big concern. When you use a storage container to mix the prime and then pump it in the tank the Co2 has dissipated and the slime coat remains intact. The prime has done its job by then as well. This can happen in Edmonton regularly and I have no idea why, except that the large temperature changes could have something to do with that? I have had 4C coming out of the tap before. After a fair bit of correspondence on various forums (some years ago) Co2 seemed like a likely culpret but then again I solved the problem with a storage barrel, and the coffee tastes fine. J.

Water parameters are currently reading.. 6.6 to 6.8 pH, Ammonia is a 0 now but it was about 1-2.0 earlier, Nitrites are reading 0, and Nitrates look to be about 1.0. I use the Big Al's Multi-Purpose stuff. I have a Eheim 2213, and honestly I don't clean it very often at all. It's in a 55 gallon tank. I think you guys may be right, this is the first time I have used this particular water conditioner, and I don't remember the water going cloudy when I was using different stuff before. Edmonton water will also be cloudy for a minute or less due to disolved Co2 Prime is a very good choice I would clean out the filter without destroying the bacteria (of course) at least every 3 month's. Also a question: edmonton water is usually PH 7.8 what are you doing to lower it? J

Just a thought....Could it be that the system can not handle 2.5 gal/hr? John

You can have some John Central west

About 2-3 month's sound right to 1 " depending on how often you feed. They will out grow the 10 gallon in a few weeks and I would do plenty of water changes in the mean time. Vacuuming the bottom daily is a good idea. I don't understand how you are filtering the water they should have at least a seasoned sponge filter in the tank. You could also try to advertise on kijiji soon as they can go at 1/2 - 3/4 inch. The LFS would not likely pay a lot for them but it is a good place to get rid of them. Good luck John

Cool! Wonder what color the fry would be.....there goes another tank John

Hi Shaune What is the PH ? What is the alkalinity level and how did you measure it? The smell could come from a dirty or partially clogged filter or some area of the substrate; also the substrate could have some pockets of gas in it. Also measure the nitrAtes they can get high without noticing even in the big tank that you have.....there are a lot of fish in it. Hope this helps BTW how are the kids? Greetings John

Thanks for the pics .....remarkable progress. That miracle grow soil seems to work well. How long was the photo period? John

That is....... wow........How about selling some shoes? John

I found the electronic ones with a battery backup to be more accurate. J

hi there

It so much depends on your specific tank. and kind of mbunas....... trail and error...some fishes will destroy all, and others not. I use valisnaria (2 kinds) anubias nana, sagitarius , bolbitis heudeloti, java fern, cryptocoyne wendtii and duckweed with electric yellows a few peacocks and some victorians. While they dig some up, once in a while-when breeding- it works if you secure the roots with some rocks ....well for me this works. I also submerged a smaller (18") potted peace lily which appears to be ok in the last month...but will not last forever, sure looks nice. I guess I got lucky. John

This is so sad. If your tests for ammonia and nitrites are fresh, and are showing 0 ( As you know MUST be 0) this is the most likely cause. You may have to remove the fish, clean the substrate and then using the established filter in addition to seachem stability for 7-10 day's (to make sure.) Several very thorough vacuum sessions with large water changes (treated water of course) may do the trick I would not introduce too many new fish at one time, better over several month's (if possible) to get things re-settled. The 100% water change is not the cause as the beneficial bacteria like to live on a surface; not so much in the water. I have done 100 % water changes many times the fish love it. John

As you know, in order to count the bubbles one forces them to rise through a fluid. Since water evaporates with the co2: oil can be used. J

Thanks Guy's and Doll's The veggie oil looks like it is working just fine J.

Very nice looking stand J