jvision

12 hrs on planted tanks. non-planted are on for 14 hrs.

The fish will orientate themselves to the direction the light is coming. I had a planted Apisto tank that only used natural sunlight. The plants grew very well, but the fish swam a bit sideways b/c the light always came in on an angle. This happens in my planted tank now. It gets about 1hr of sunlight through a side window. The fish will be upright all morning, then when the sun hits them, they turn on an angle, so that the light is shining directly on the top of them. Once the sun passes, they are vertical again! Oh, and to answer your question, you shouldn't have a problem. If you keep up the WCs you should be OK. You'll likely see some algae growth where the sun does shine, but if you keep up regular tank maintenance, you shouldn't see too much of a problem, IME.

It sounds to me like there is something wrong with his swim bladder. Unfortunately, I've never encountered the problem, so I don't know how to treat it.

From what I've read, the eggs can be pretty easy to hatch artificially. When the parents spawn again, take whatever they spawned on and put it in a different tank/container - a 5 gal will be more than big enough. Put an airstone right next to the eggs to help keep them clear of debris. You could even add something to keep fungus at bay - I don't remember what a good one is at the moment... for some reason I'm thinking Malachit Green, but I don't know if it's sold anymore. I've never had to hatch artificially, but used to spend a lot of time online w. ppl who did all the time w. angels, rams and discus.

I have one of those small Sera set-ups - 15oz. A tank lasts about 45 days or so, bubbled at about 2/sec on my 55gal.

Andrew, you'll be fine with what you have. Swords aren't really high-light plants - but they'll eat it up if they have CO2 and ferts! You've got mainly root-feeders (except Java Fern), so stick in some slow-release fert-spikes or clay balls under the plants, and they'll be mucho happy! Then just leave 'em be. At about the 6-8 month mark you'll look in your tank and marvel at how much they're all taking off!

OK Boy! Now Roll Over!! Shake a fin! Jump!! -roll-

I thought I saw someone on this forum post pics of their Yellow Labs that looked like the fish in question. It would have been about 3-4 weeks ago. Maybe search through the Af. Cichlid picks, or maybe Buy & Sell. If I remember correctly, the pics were posted by someone who's not on the forum very often - number of posts was below 20, I think. Of course, I could be totally out to lunch! :well:

HOSS, I think she's talking about little critters living in her SW tank.... this page seems to be dedicated to land crabs. Though, I guess there may be similarities.

Just when I thought my crypts were doing well.....one of them is melting again!! I have no doubt that some day this thing will grow well but for now it is back to struggling again. It is a cryptocoryne Wendti "Tropica". Crypts are a bit fussy. Whenever there is any kind of change in their water parameters - temp, pH, CO2, etc. - they melt. But they always seem to come back. My best suggestion is to just clip/pull off the melting leaves, and let them be. Try not to disturb them for a while. Once their roots get established they're a bit more hardy.

I've used Seachem's Acid Buffer in the past with great success. They even have a chart on the container to help you buffer to the desired pH.

If you start with larger plants, the depth will be great, and you don't need the extra light. However, if you're looking for anything to grow in the foreground, you'll need something like PCs or MH to get all the way to the bottom. I have a 55 gal with lights that are 18" from the bottom of the tank. Just over 2 wpg T6 lighting, and it didn't cut it for Glosso. Works just enough for E. tenellus, if it's not being shadowed by the Tiger Val &/or Crypt. balansae. I'd definitely prefer something a bit brighter - I'm thinking 2 x 96W PC will be my upgrade.

I vote for option 1!

I totally concur. Definitely stay away from ANY liquid ferts for terrestrial plants! I have used other plant spikes, but, if it ever gets desturbed you're going to see algae. Make sure your spikes are burried as deep as possible, and I wouldn't use them unless I had over 2" of substrate (gravel or Flourite).

Sera has a line of Vitamins in tablet form. I've used them over the years. I've only seen Sera-brand products at a few LFSs - I've never seen it at places that sell pet stuff, only fish stuff.

I use the EI method - exactly how it's listed in Milan's post. For TE, I prefer Tropica Master Grow, but will use Seachem Flourish Trace as a 2nd choice.

I'd say there are about 4 other fish, besides the dominant one, that get really dark and jostle around with each other, and sometimes shimmy for one of the larger light ones. Is there a good chance that these are males, too? There are 3 or 4 that are lighter and 'quieter' than most of the other ones - would these be females? Or, is it all a crap-shoot?

I cut out one of the little black screen pieces, and just stick the end of the airline in the intake.

OK, so the dominant male is easy - he's about 4" now, and get's pretty dark when displaying/defending territory. Most of the 'females' are pretty light. There are some other smaller 'males' that get pretty rambunctious and colorful, so I guess that's where I'll start. Venting.... not a clue how to "do it properly". If we're looking for breeding tubes, then I'm guessing it's like any other cichlid - male is thinner and pointed, female wider and rounded?

If you're looking for a good, cheap source for lava rock, head to Home Depot or Canadian Tire, and pick up a bag of BBQ bricks. Make sure it's the kind that is just lava rock, not the little brickettes soaked in lighter fluid. :boom:

Lots of plants is a good start - that's why things are stable. For fertilization read the pinned thread - there are a few ways to go about it. I prefer the Estimative Index (EI) b/c I don't really want to be testing all the time. I dose every day, but then to a big (50%+) WC each week. Sounds like you're off to a good start! :thumbs:

If you're going to do a planted section to remove nitrates, go terrestrial. Buy a Peace Lily or two, maybe a couple Pothos or Phylodendron. Just put their roots in the water, and you'll never see nitrates again! The nice thing about terrestrials is that they don't near as much light as aquatic plants.

I currently have 11 Melanochromis cyaneorhabdos, and I'd like to back it down to around 6. Of course, the ideal would be to have just 2m & 4f. However, sexing them seems to be difficult. I think males are darker, and have a dark bar along their bellies, but I'm not totally sure. Would like some help from the more experienced. Thanks!

Trios, or pairs??? Hmm.... Well, when they're happy, they like to breed. So, if you have a trio, you'll have 2 females guarding at any given time! I once read from a guy on the Apisto List (if you're interested, mailing list info is at The Krib), that he kept something like 30 A. cackatuoides in a 50 gal. He says it's how they occur in nature b/c when they're caught in the wild, they're always caught in large groups. Food for thought.

If you're going to find an Apisto in Edmonton, it's going to be a Cackatoo - they are by far the most common. Try Family Pet in Sherwood Park. BAs has had a couple of Apisto species (cacatuoides, panduro, borelli). I was going to pick up a pair of borelli for my 10 gal, but all of their fins were clamped, so I decided not to buy. I think your best bet would be Family Pet in SP - give them a call - they always have something from SA there. Frank, the owner, is a big discus guy, so there's always something that'll live w. them.