ckmullin

I don't keep platys so cannot comment on specific needs of the species, however I would suggest a 'hospital tank' for new arrivals. A couple good weeks in that tank and you'll see exactly what they have or what they do not have! I really had wished I a had done that a little while back as I ended up getting planaria in a similar situation as yourself! GRRRR lol (long since dead tho...WOOHOOO)

That is very fair. I'd be among the first with my wallet.

Welcome to Alberta Aquatics. You'll find some great people as well as some great info. Please post about your own experiences as I'm sure many would like to give it a read! In an apt?! Just curious, who pays for the electricty you or them? If them, you have a free ticket!!

Scratch them of course silly! Oh, thought you said itch. Easier than typing a bunch of stuff. Treating Ich As long as the Ich parasite is protected inside its cyst, it is virtually impossible to get to - the levels of medication that would be necessary to affect the parasite inside the cyst would kill the fish as well. This is why we must focus on the free-swimming tomite stage when the parasite is much more vulnerable. Bring up the water temperature to 85-88 degrees F (if you think you fish can handle it). As mentioned above, Ich can attach itself to the gills of fish and make it hard for them to breathe. It is therefore a good idea to increase aeration in the aquarium to keep the levels of oxygen really high. Adding more aeration is especially important if you increase the water temperature since cool water holds more oxygen than warmer water. Add roughly one teaspoon of salt per gallon of water. (You can adjust this amount depending on how salt tolerant you fish are.) Carry out a series of water changes and clean all the gravel. Changing around 50% of the water once a day is recommended. Continue the treatment for at least one week, since you can only kill the free-swimming Ich parasites. The speed of the life cycle is temperature dependant (it will for instance take three days at 80 degrees F) and continuing treatment for an entire week is recommended to be on the safe side. If this is not enough to combat the Ich outbreak, you need to visit your local fish store and pick up some anti-Ich medication. Unfortunately, the Ich parasites seem to become more and more resilient towards treatment each year. Lazy aquarists and pet shop keepers are often tempted to constantly use medications to fend off disease, instead of devoting themselves to frequent water changes etcetera, and this makes it easy for resistant strains of parasites and bacteria to develop. http://www.aquaticcommunity.com/disease/ich.php

Yip, democracy where everybody can give their opinion, mine too! That is why I created this topic to see if other formats have been tried in the past and whether something different might be tried in the future. If my topic creates discussion, then I've done my job to get people talking...the good, the bad, and the not very pretty. Others have commented and consider myself a facilitator, take that for what you will. I'm actually proud of my topic for what discussion it has created, however on the same coin it is rather unfortunate that a simple question of "Always an auction format?" can have people so polarized, so defensive and so worried. Change can be a very hard thing for some. Some will fight to the tooth to prevent and only point out negatives, while some see a possibility for improvement and will embrace the idea of change to see if actually there might be a better way. I would have to say other 'gatherings' should be sought out, tables have proven to be quite lucrative for other clubs and societies. It cannot be said not for the CAS because I was told it was never tried. If someone can honestly can say that, I'd have to say your crystal ball is bigger than my crystal ball! I'm kind of surprised opponents cannot see value of this idea and what it can do for the CAS at the smallest level. From what has been posted in my topic, it seems wildfire apparent that the big $ sign is the sole reason that this club/society exists. I say this because that is what is being posted here and what any non-partisan person would say upon reading this topics contents. Every single argument against any sort of change has to do with $. I painfully understand that the almighty buck is what drives things. No worries it drives my car too. I do understand that $ is needed! I actually did think the mandate of a club or society would be to promote the hobby (business for some), promote/help/aid the study of (insert particular hobby genre here), get the word out to non-members that the club or society exists and what it can offer members in a productive social environment, helping people to have a free flow of information and finally to promote itself so that it does grow and stay relevant. Any club or society that i've been a member of has had this as a mandate. How this is starting to appear is that an old boys club wants to run things rather than the Board of Directors. I think I might actually attend that CAS meeting not to ask about the auction format but rather to have the societies mandate be read to me because I really don't want to be right! Ultimately in my mind it comes down to one thing. "we tried to improve, whether we succeed for fail, we can say we did try" =============================================================================== I'd have to give the mods a tap to make sure this topic stays on track and people respect each other and opinions.

I do guarantee no volenteers will be had when people I know I'm not going to be presenting anything...so if people care about the topic that was started, I leave it to them.

It is my understanding that at least one board member from Calgary Aquarium Society is a member here. Since this website is a sponsor of that society and since this part of AA is in regards to CAS, I'd expect on some level these topics to be monitored. I would at least assume that, in practice, no idea. You had brought another idea out of my skull. Sellers of plants perhaps can do little info sheets on the plants they sell. It would not need to be a huge writeup but perhaps the basic 'best suited for' conditions along with the scale of beginner, intermediate or advanced. That info could even just be written on the plastic bags. Perhaps with something like this in place it would have helped with those 2 purchases and again perhaps helped you purchase other plants!

Yip. These ideas are what I was thinking as well. I would have attended myself but could not stay until the end, so I decided just not to go. I'm sure i'm not the only one. A 2 part event would I believe have more of a dynamic relationship amongst the people than just a sit down aucttion.. With tables at least for part of the time, there is more of a 'meet and greet', talking sort of atmosphere than a hush auction. I've been the the Calgary Rock and Gem show a while and always impressed by their format. (more of a table event)

sure thing! I'll make a post about it in the dyi.

As the topic says I'm interested in prices for a Fluval 406 here in Alberta. ty for the view.

what I do works 100% because i've been there done that. if someone wants to know my method at this time, they need to ask me nicely. -ham- (facetious is as facetious gets)

Are the gatherings always of auction format? Have tables ever been setup? (plunk down your $ and grab your stuff) If so, has that worked or no? If it has not been done, perhaps give that a try.

A little sprinkle around the edge? Or, do you make a nice bed all the way around the tank - maybe plant some pansies and tulips? ya know im sure getting a poop load of smart alec comments...enough so that i feel like just del this damn account and taking off. oh yes. you got me 100% i sprinkle on the outside of the tank to grow pansies and tulips! I never thought i was so much of a mirror.

since that is your want...don't throw it in the filter but do it outside of your tank.

Like throwing the dice to see what you'll get by chance? How about giving a shot with aquatic plants! I've had this fun little site bookmarked and thought it's time to share. I didn't find it on a search of AA. This database is given in two flavors, one alphabetical and the other a good dice game. Put in the conditions you want and see what it spits out. Not the largest database of plants but good nonetheless. main: http://plants.indoaquascape.com roll the dice: http://plants.indoaq...ant&task=search alphabetical: http://plants.indoaq...plant&task=view enjoy

blackwater liquid extracts can also be used. You don't get the fine particulate mess as you will get with peat...no matter how well you filter it. trust me!

don't forget to look @ what has caused this and fix...if not, more than likely it will come back

I don't have that filter...so not sure the size. What was the diameter across for the pad?

Grab some quilt batting from a fabric shop. Get a huge bag for $10 and will last many filter changes...It's not some super fine floss but it's not as open as burlap either. Someone had once said fabric store floss was not hermetically factory sealed and cannot be trusted...however for as long as I've been using it, i've never had a problem. I've put my foot down long ago to stop paying those high prices for a perfectly pre-measured block of floss in a neat plastic bag. Take a look at that option too, can save even more.

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I have in more than once capacity and can offer help or advice. What do you want to accomplish?

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if anything left take a pic

if you have not had success to remove them perhaps something like prazi or something with fenbendazole.

Okie dokie. I've used this method for a while without any problems. No clogging, nothing leaking, no tubing breakage or any problem. If you decide to do this build, I hope you have the same positive experience. Materials used in the build: bottle cap -> got from a 2L Dr. Pepper bottle (da best carbonated drink in da world!) use what you will double nipple adapter -> found at your lfs co2 tubing -> enough for your total build -> i've used co2 tubing as i've found it will not dry out/become brittle/crack as soon as standard air tubing extra thick tubing -> a few inches Lepages 'Flexible Plastic' -> http://www.lepagepro...il.aspx?pid=130 high temp hot glue stick one small ziptie 200 grit sandpaper or equivalent (nail file etc) drill bit -> for my bottle cap hole I used a 11/64 bit, you might need different depending on your own adapter 1. Rough up the bottle cap both inside and out where the adapter needs to be placed. Make sure it's rough and the shiny plastic has a matte finish. If there is one of those plastic washers inside the cap remove that and garbage. 2. Measure your own adapter and decide what drill bit size you need. I needed 11/64. 3. You have two good options. One to drill and one to use heat and melt the cap. I suggest to use heat and melt the cap as it will leave a raised edge of plastic that will help aid holding of the adapter. To melt, just torch the opposite end of the drill bit and slowly press into the cap on a flat surface. Face the cap so that the logo/top is up and the open threaded end is down...just how it sits on a bottle. It might need a couple attempts with different bottle caps to get the hole diameter SNUG for the adapter the first time you do this. 4. Test fit the adapter once again. When the adapter is finally inserted, leave the main adapter body on the outside part of the cap so that just one nipple is inside the bottle cap. Once its snug and will fit properly, remove and dab the Lepages around the adapter and reinsert. Make sure there is a continuous bead of glue around the adapter on both sides of the cap, in and out. If there isn't a continuous bead make sure there is! Tonnes is not needed as this is only to make a seal not for the support to hold it in place. Let dry. 5. Grab that high temp glue stick/gun and make a large bead around the adapter so that it covers well. If it the glue starts to drip, do more slowly or in layers. You can also wet your finger and press into place. The glue is very hot so do watch. Do this to both the inside and outside of the bottle cap. Let cool and add another layer if needed. This glue is the support for the build, so make sure you use enough. 6. For final assembly slide the co2 tubing over the outside nipple and ziptie tight. Next slide the heavier tubing over the ziptie and adapter. The heavier tubing is to prevent kinks/bending of the co2 tubing which can happen against the adapter. If for some reason your build does clog in the future, just cut the ziptie remove the tubing and just clear the adapter with a piece of wire. No loss of tubing from cuts. Type of adapter used: Outside of bottle cap assembly: Inside of bottle cap assembly: Disclaimers: 1) not the most pretty but I wasn't going for the beauty pageant crown 2) crappy pics but does show final product If you don't like this more typical bottle cap extraction method, stay tuned for a decent non gravity dyi shrimp extractor designed by yours truly!