Ishkabod

Glad to hear the good news. I have Petricolas in my cichlid tank too but i find that the big common plecco still gets enough food especially if i make sure the petricolas eat during regular feeding time with the other fish aka waaaayyyyy over feed before lights out so there are pockets of leftover food for the plecco and petricolas to gobble up. The tank is an 80 gallon with a similar set up but with the sand the food eventally gets gobbled up and doesn't end up as extra waste. My common plecco loves his algae wafers and will eat the pellets if he can get them but the petricolas don't bother with the wafers unless they haven't eaten that day so the only thing i can think of to do would have been to get some of the larger NLS pellets(sinking)so that the petricolas wouldn't bother with them and the pleccos would have a meal. Gotta love those Wild caught plecco's I got an adonis plecco. Have a great day L

The API Freshwater Master test kit is probably the best route to go. Allot of people use test strips but know they can be inaccurate so have the liquid for a backup and to occasionally double check to make sure the strips are continueing to do their job accurately. Good on you for checking in the fist place though and for asking for help. Many don't and fish die. Anyway As they stated before me some of the reasons there could be a spike and to do a water change Here is what i'd suggest on top of that if you can. 1. Double check with a liquid test kit asap 2. Get some Stability to bolster the bacteria in the tank. 3. Read up on the nitrogen cycle to get a basic idea of what the heck that gunk in the filter actually does. Good Luck and i wish i could help on the scratched fish and bubble eye but the best thing i can reccomend is Quarentene them if you can. L Here is a really in depth link on many FAQ's and another that is the specific one for the Nitrogen Cycle. It can get really techy but continue reading and you'll get a good understanding of the cycle even if you didn't get half of the techy stuff. It really isn't as bad as i make it sound so just read the second link through and you won't be sorry. Terse map of the Aquaria FAQ'sNitrogen Cycle

The API Freshwater Master test kit is probably the best route to go. Allot of people use test strips but know they can be inaccurate so have the liquid for a backup and to occasionally double check to make sure the strips are continueing to do their job accurately. Good on you for checking in the fist place though and for asking for help. Many don't and fish die. Anyway As they stated before me some of the reasons there could be a spike and to do a water change Here is what i'd suggest on top of that if you can. 1. Double check with a liquid test kit asap 2. Get some Stability to bolster the bacteria in the tank. 3. Read up on the nitrogen cycle to get a basic idea of what the heck that gunk in the filter actually does. Good Luck and i wish i could help on the scratched fish and bubble eye but the best thing i can reccomend is Quarentene them if you can. L Here is a really in depth link on many FAQ's and another that is the specific one for the Nitrogen Cycle. It can get really techy but continue reading and you'll get a good understanding of the cycle even if you didn't get half of the techy stuff. It really isn't as bad as i make it sound so just read the second link through and you won't be sorry. Terse map of the Aquaria FAQ'sNitrogen Cycle

Check out my journal too it has the link to the thread about siliconeing and i'm sure i added to it a list of things NOT to do when siliconeing a tank. For the larger tanks i'd suggest keeping a section of removed silicone from the one of the sides and bottom to use as a reference for the size of the new silicone and start with a small bead of silicone in all the joints smotheing it down with the handy reusable amazing red and black silicone tool that i know you can get at home depot if not other places as well. Be sure to get even the residual silicone on the surface of the glass that the razors don't easily remove the first time. It's hard to see without a reflection of light off it. I think that's it. Good luck L

I agree. Allthough mixing meds in my fairly inexpeerienced opinion unless you really know what you are doing is a no no but you could e-mail the manufacturer and see what they say. I'm thinking that maybe the source of the problem is PH swings/ high PH which caused stresss/ammonia problems. I don't see how your tap water at 7.6 and tank water at 8+ is possible without doseing with something but then again i'm no expert(if you figure it out let me know the secret as i have africans). One thing i know for sure is that PH swings can kill fish so a really large water (50%+) change is not a good idea unless you use something to get the PH of the water close to what it was before if but a little lower. If you do use meds then I highly suggest that you monitor your Nitrates and Ammonia levils durring and after treatment. Source of high ph.... Marble,Limestone or other rockwork............... Maybe double check what you have in there. If not rockwork it could be the substrate as there are some specific ones that are labeled for Cichlids but more specificly for African cichlids for which the PH differences are immence. Add some tannin releaseing driftwood maybe. Good luck L P.S. If you are useing test strips then your second purchace after meds is a LIQUID HIGH range PH test kit and a seachem ammonia alert.

The clocest thing acceptable to porn on this site is fish spawning and that is how it will stay thanks to the SUPER Admin. Thankfully i avoided this Pm. I really dislike the people or companies who do this kind of thing as it has ruined a number of good sites for many people including my own Yahoo group.

I don't know. I plan to go to the sale and i wouldn't mind picking up anything anyone would like as long as i got the money for it ahead of time. I'll know by the thursday Prior to the day if i can actulally make it or not. Thanks for the link. L

I'm sorry to hear that. I don't know if you got the flyer but Big Al's has a HUGE boxingday sale going on. 75 gallon LESS THAN 100$. You might just be in time for another boxing day deal. I'd drain that tank of yours half way or more if possible (based on fish load and size) to try and keep that crack from becoming worse before you get the new tank. If you can get it light enough there are these plastic disks you can buy at Home Depot and they work Wonders for moving heavy objects aka the fridge(on my own). and my 30 gallon tank and stand with some water in the bottom and the entire 80 gallon setup minus water. They are worth the 10 bucks and more. Good luck L

wowzers Thanks for the announcement

methinks she has ONE supplier and they had prior to the new law only stocked and provided Hikari and non Seachem. If you can get her to start selling NLS it should be easy to get with the contacts on this forum IF she is agreeable. She and her staff need to be given a breif tutorial (30 secs or so) in order to sell it properly. 3 facts. More expensive BUT you will use allot less because the fish absorb more of the food due to the high quality ingredients and that results in less fish waste and less freqent water changes and tank cleaning and in the end you'll end up saving money and having much healthier fish. Also the forum was warned about the new laws back in July but you might have missed the posting so if you want more info on that you can check the archives. Good luck L

I've heard of people who have stopped alltogether giving away or selling anything online because of repeted no shows and others backing out at the last minute for no given reason. This is a good rule. I've waited for hours for someone to pick something up that i was giving away and they didn't showup and didn't PM or anything to explain why. I've been hesitant to offer again and i'm sure if it were to happen again i'd report it because i don't think i could live with the resentment towards the person and the increased reluctance to offer again that might just prevent me from offering. I've deleted all but one their PMs and have deliberately forgotten who it was because other than this instance the member is a nice person from what i can remember or else i wouldn't have offered it to them in the first place. Merry christmas and thank you jason for the clarification. L

13watts means only how much electricity is used. In terms of the amount of light that is produced a 13 watt is about the same as a 60 watt bulb. Speaking from someone who has used CFL bulbs for years DON"T CHEAP OUT. you'll regret it because with cheaper bulbs the light will gradulally diminish and you can't tell until you change the bulb. I have a office desk lamp on my 15 gallon with a small 14Watt CFL and it's more than enough light for my plants. It seems to be the only tank that i can actually get plants to grow in. Good luck L

THANKS EVERYONE Thank you Crystal I really really really like the little guys Thanks again Lisa Here is a link to the profile my Snail

I thought so... Now i need a picture.... they do have the same shell shape as the apple snail. They are brown and dark brown stripped. They tend to eat their own eggs so unless there is allot of breeding going on all at once the chances of babies are slim to none. Not to mention pleccos seem to love to gobble them up too. I'm working on a picture now but camera problems as usual are causing an issue. I'll get one posted asap. Thanks again L

You might want to add tank water to the rubber maids along with new water to reduce the possibility of shock

I picked up some snails at the frag fest this summer. They are very nearly identical in everything to the zebra snails at Big Al's in edmonton BUT the lines aren't jagged but straight. I took one to the ACE meeting and the best i could get was a general ID of a Nerite snail. I can't remember what the lady that sold them to me called them. She told me they were similar to the ones at Big Als. I really really LOVE these snails as they are EVERYTHING i wanted in a snail. Eggs are easy to see and remove if you want to cut down on the population. They seem to like to lay them on the glass of the tank. The snails burrow into the sand so it keeps it airated so i don't have to worry as much about stirring the sand in my new 80 Gallon tank. Any help with Identifying these snails is appreciated. If only there was a database with Picture ID. Thanks L

Well we know for a fact that it affects us but it'd be really interesting if it might actually affect aggression and breeding in other types of fish. Hmmm experiments anyone??? L

Just thought i'd let everyone know since there was interest in watching the video. Have a great day L

I went to Rona and brought the old ballast with me and they had a replacement for it. I think it cost $4 or something like that and it came in a 2 pack. Just be sure to match the specs from the old one to the new one or it won't work. Good luck L

That's Great News. Thanks for sharing L

I had 2 other pleccos in with the clown plecco and with the cammo rocks the clown plecco didn't even have any fin nips unlike the LF AB BN plecco and the common plecco. I only ever saw them go after the little clown when he went after food in the main feeding area. I'm fairly sure that if you find rocks that are a near match like i did then you will have little to worry about. Your best bet is in a tank with bigger cichlids and a number of too small for them hidy holes. Nothing is a sure fire garuntee but the things i mentioned will make the odds of survival allot higher. Good luck with whatever you choose to do L

I cannot believe the finally smartend up. I'll still try my darndest to get to the sponcer store Natures Corner, but it's nice to know that if a disaster happens or if i'm refering the brand to someone at.... well i can always direct them to somewhere close by and then get them to Natures corner for the better prices once they have fallen in love with it like i have. Thanks for the good news. L

If you are going to the ACE meeting on tuesday i have a couple replacement shafts sitting around i can bring if you would like. Personally I'd buy a TOPFIN filter over an aquaclear for 3 BIG reasons. 1. Topfin has a lifetime warrenty and if you bring it in to any Petsmart they will replace it no mater how old it is. 2. It has a high back so no worries about the filter overflowing like i have had the aquaclear do to me more than three times in a couple of different ways. 3. COST :thumbs: Just my opinion Good luck. L

Give the little guy his own camoflage and the cichlids will more than likely leave him alone and he'll go and eat at night so some algae wafers after the lights are off are a good idea. I had a clown plecco in my over crowded 30 gallon and he did fine because the rock substrait was black and brown stripped rocks and there was a piece of driftwood. Don't worry too much about the driftwood messing with PH if you have some crushed coral or some kind of buffer rock inside. If you were in edmonton i wouldn't mind giving you a handfull of those rocks for his hiding pleasure but as it is you aren't so maybe you can find some there. If you come to edmonton in the near future and still want some then give me a shout in a PM. As my insane Female betta can tell you the Africans don't seek out others in the tank but instead only bite and nip at fish that get too close to "food" areas or Hidy holes they have staked out or are breeding competition. I hope you have good luck. Have a great day L

Well I have one and i hardly use it. I always have enough tanks sitting around for a QT tank to be set up so i don't have to worry about disease from new fish but that being said... If you have the cash to throw away it's a nice little addition for extra security Just like having Tylenol and Medicated Ointment in the house for yourself. I have a very small one that is perfect for QT tanks. I don't think you need to have one going all the time in any freshwater tank unless it has diseased fish and or new fish. I got mine at the Auction so i paid a whopping 20-30$ it was soo long ago i can't remember anymore but for the price and the peace of mind i don't regret it. It's a security Blanket device for freshwater keepers. Hope this might help