Search results for query: *

I have German Blue Rams and shrimp. From what I have found so far if the shrimp have somewhere to hide they do ok. Introducing them into the tank was the tricky part as the Rams thought they were food, but as you are going the other way around you should be alright. If they are larger shrimp...

:thumbdown: :( Co2 dumped on me yesterday (Friday), fine thing to come home from work to. Quite a few fatalities as a consequence. It is very disheartening, makes me feel I am really getting nowhere with this. What is extremely annoying is that I did a check on the cylinder the day before...

Apologies Mortis for the diversion from your topic, I just wish to touch on a point Clive made. Clive this is one of the aspects of Co2 that I have difficulty in following. How is it that you would know if you require Co2 to be in the yellow? (this is of course if you are using a 4dkh...

Re: Saintly's 'savannah dreaming' @ 6 weeks Have to agree with Peter, you make it look a doddle. Wonderful looking scape Mark, you should be well pleased :thumbup: cheers, tel

Cheers Luis, thanks for the kind comment :thumbup: cheers, tel

One of my Pearls, awesome fish and loads of character. cheers,tel

Just some photography practice, which I wanted to share Had a go a some close stuff, Tried a lighting setup on the tank, still battling a little with reflections :crazy: cheers, tel

I am out :( my foreground won't be ready and I am very not good at planting/plant choice, so the rest looks scrappy. Probably a tad ambitious on my part anyway cheers, tel

Re: 238l rescape PICS ADDED NOW! Fantastic looking scape Chilled, great stuff :thumbup: Fingers crossed for you to get your brace issue sorted smartish cheers, tel

Just in case you may be wondering why my posting seems a little nonsensical / or incomplete, most times is that it is being done at about half six - seven in the morning before I rush out the door for work. :| Back to the vermiculite, Clive I kind of get what you wrote with the regards to the...

Thanks, Clive, Darrel, Locally, inexpensive (being the key word) options are starting to run a little thin, due to the quantities needed mail order is not going to happen as the rates make it too expensive. I did have a look at bentonite, I think it is used in cat litter. Again, though there...

Cheers thanks mate :thumbup: Still not convinced I am running correct Co2 levels so will be looking into that next week sometime. Couple of odd runners here and there beginning to show with the hairgrass, so that is a positive. tel

Oh just a lazy grand, I'll just whip that out from the shoebox under the bed :lol: :lol: :lol: Well the akadama has fallen through as the place isn't carrying it anymore. So options, Kanuma I haven't read a great deal of but will do so later. Vermiculite, but the CEC may not be as good...

Re: My first Layout 20/4/2010 Headed off for some plants and to increase/replace my fish stocks. Another 4 x Pearl Gouramis, 4 xOttos, 4 X SA Algae Eaters were added Plants Cryptocoryne Parva Cryptocoryne Balansae Cryptocoryne Walkeri Echinodorus Ozelot Echinodorus Osiris I was still...

Re: My first Layout Through discussion with Clive in the recommended ppm thread I upped my dosing of micros. I did go against Clive's suggestion :shh: with regards to dumping the Chelated iron altogether, but, only because my Amazon was showing yellowing in the leaves :) 14/4/2010 Chelated...

Re: My first Layout 4/4/2010 Amazon Sword bravely fighting back, Staurogenye barely almost on its last gasp I had been dosing fairly lean and so upped my dosing to, KNO3 44.19 ppm per week PO4 15.09 ppm per week MG 3.31 ppm per week Chelated mix 1/2 teaspoon x 3 times per week Chelated...

Re: My first Layout One of the biggest issues I had with the first layout was height. I knew essentially I would be facing the same problem, so I looked to find a way around it. Research informed me of "egg crate", more research informed me there was sweet bugger all chance of finding any...

Re: My first Layout Ok, well I have had a bit of a torrid time of it all really. Most of my fish died, plants, not to mention the layout. To take it back to where it last was (February), things were going ok. I had added some fish, 4 Pearl Gouramis, 3 Ottos, 4 SA algae eaters, 10 neon tetras...

Re: My first Layout Hey Everyone, I have been debating for a while about when to do an update on this and was going to wait for a little longer, but then that would be really defeating the purpose of a journal so here we go.

:jawdrop, :shock: Well then, first on the list then is a bulk purchase of two minute noodles, looks like I am going to be very poor for a while :lol:

Thanks Clive, They were very much an afterthought but that is good to know. I priced the akadama today, if I buy three bags it is $35 au a bag, so will think six bags should be enough, just need to confirm the price, and then how long for them to get it in. Other options are eco complete live...

Hi All, Jumping a couple of steps ahead, given the nature of this project , low tech, few water changes, would that rule out keeping fish such as Discus. I have never had discus, but I have read and been told that water quality is the paramount to keeping them successfully. cheers, tel

Thanks Paul, and also apologies. I have been meaning to get back to you for a couple of days, but my head has been a little all over the shop. With Elatine Gratioloides I have read several threads wherein it was used as a foreground carpeting plant, that said I can't remember the specific...

Cheers Brenmuk, I did have a read and I don't think soil is the way to go, reason being, as the author in the link stated, problems with hydrogen sulfide, also the link to the Walstad method recommends letting the soil sit for several weeks. As this tank is in a retail store I won't be allowed...

Thanks for your thoughts Brenmuk I agree, with this it is going to have to be a one shot deal, it has to be right the first time otherwise it will revert back to large fish and plastic plants. That's the reason why I struggle with substrates, as there are so many people using various products...

Oops, it wasn't a good morning for me, :? :sick: Thanks for for the break down Clive, osmocote and peat, should be readily available at one the major hardware outlets. I will hunt around for some Bonsai specialists and see what I can come up with for clay. I assume these are to be layered...

Tank looks amazing George, and that is a crackin' image :thumbup: cheers tel

Well done everyone, it looked good and presented very well :thumbup: cheers tel

Ok, so how this came about. Several of the stores have tanks like these. All them house fish and fish alone, plastic plants and some wood maybe a few rocks. Fish tend to be natives, Australian estuary perch, eel tail cats, saratoga, barramundi, ie fish you can put on a plate. The caretakers ...

A shot of the tank in question

Sorry Clive I made an error with my decimal points, so I have ammended the dimensions to the correct ones.... I will have a look at the thread when I get home from work. Also try and get a phot of the current tank, albeit just an iphone shot. cheers, tel

Lighting sorted, 8 x 21W t5 units which can be linked together for about $200au

Hi All, I really need some help on a massive tank project. This tank is at work so a couple of things. a: no co2, will be running as the business won't pay for it b: plants need to be such that they don't require a lot of maintenence with regards to trimmimg. c: water changes I would like to...

Nice work Simon, it must be gratifying to finally see some plants in after so much work. Hope it continues to go well for you :thumbup: cheers, tel

The tanks looks great and the vid was cool George. Some good information too on your cleaning regime, it is interesting to hear what others do. It would be nice to one day achieve similar results in such a time frame. I have a question about water and clarity, how much of the "gin clear"...

Thanks for the kind comments guys, much appreciated, the tank is however a long way from being good, (personally that is) :thumbup: cheers, tel

Only place it could fit :shifty: cheers, tel

Hi All Needing firstly to confirm that this plant is indeed Elatine Gratioloides. It was harvested from a local area nearby, so have I made a mistake with my id. http://img693.imageshack.us/img693/624/dsc7844.jpg Secondly if the id is correct I am having issues with the plant and carpeting...

Thanks Clive, and I appreciate the passing score albeit a tad generous. I must say it is a wee bit disconcerting exposing to a forum how little I know like this, but it has helped so that can only be good. cheers, tel :thumbup:

A quarter to seven in the morning and I am taking an exam :shock: I know that I could nip over to James' site as he has a page on algae/plant issues. But without doing so and trying to work off what I have read( don't make me sit in the corner if I do badly), so, With this I would say there...

Sorry Clive, I am struggling a bit with EI and dosing at the moment. The only thing I think I have learned from the reading and the comments from people like yourself is "dose till you get a result" be that a positive or negative result is irrelevant just a result, from there act. As such I...

For me each aspect brings it's own challenges. The initial layout I find particualrly enjoyable as I am trying to get an image in my head into a real environment. With this also goes the evolution in that what one has in mind may change and naturally develop of it's own accord. Which reminds me...

Thanks Clive, I just need to have a bit of time to formulate a response which should be later today. It is almost there but a little muddled up in my head at the moment. cheers tel

Thanks for the response Clive, The reason for both Chelated mixes stems from when I first began delving into EI. I wasn't sure which one I needed or whether I needed both, so opted for both to be on the safe side. Effectively I could combine them in the one container, correct ? With double...

Following on, in a way... What about increasing dosing amounts on micronutrients. Currently I am dosing a half teaspoon of chelated mix and a half teaspoon of chelated iron mix three times a week on a 400 litre tank. Is there dangers by increasing dosing amounts to fish/plants? cheers tel

Hey Garuf, I'd go with your instinct of no. Moving in itself is a pain, let alone having to strip down large tanks. cheers tel

I am on 10.5 and maps is ok for me ...

Hi Chris, It has been in 12 days. Tank Size: Inchs: 48 x 24 x 24 Cm: 121 x 60 x 60 Gallons: 119 Litres: 453 With regards to giving it a trim, I was under the impression that it could not be trimmed, one piece of information said it could potentially kill the plant, another said yes trim it...

Hey Everyone, I am struggling/battling with lighting at the moment. Some days I think yep should have plenty and other days I think I am under, so needing a little advice I have maintained an eight hour period and opted not to increase the time as I am figuring light has more to do with...

Thanks Mark, The scissors feel really good, very sturdy and quite balanced. I thought that with the length they might feel a bit front end heavy, instead they sit quite nice. The tweezers are quite light which I am not sure whether that is good or bad, with delicate work the lightness may...

Old thread I know, and not really on topic, but I just received my first aquascaping tools and had to share the news. For some reason I just really liked this brand and had to get them, :crazy: (probably). cheers ,tel

I will bare it when I get home from work as i can only iPhone at the min. thanks by the way

Damaged goods is always a pain David, but hey look at it as a blessing in disguise. It will give you ample opportunity to work on your hardscape and have that drawing start to become a reality. cheers, tel

Re: My venture into my new 760 ltr aquariam. Unbeleivable :jawdrop . Simon you are going to need a week off to give your brain a rest just from doing all the mechanics. I really hope this becomes a success for you, given the amount of effort you have put into your project, top stuff...

Just read through the thread James, I can only echo what others have said. Glad that you let it evolve further it really has taken on a character all of its own. Well done superb imagination and effort :clap: cheers :thumbup: tel

Second that on the pearling in the video Andy, that looked awesome. A really impressive scape, :thumbup: cheers, tel

Re: Saintly's 'savannah dreaming' Fantastic looking scape Mark. The plant layout looks great, look forward to seeing it in a few weeks, but with not the full EI and a higher light will that make it much of a slow grower? Also a wee favour, I am interested to see how the flow works, water...

So far David the experience has been good, that said, it has only been running four days :lol: . My reason for getting it was also due to others opinions (Andyh :thumbup: ). The pip I gather that just a stopper if you take off the tubing. With regard to securing, I did have a leak initially...

As mentioned earlier I have only just started dosing, as in two days ago :lol: . But from everything I have read and from what I can understand, Nutrients/dry ferts do not cause algae. My aim is to follow what Tom and I think also Clive has suggested, that being, go high and work back over a...

Methinks I shall amp up the PO4, thanks Clive, Tom :thumbup: cheers, tel

:wave: this would be me Targeting Perch on soft plastics Bouldering in New Zealand Bouldering Grampians Australia cheers all, terry

Sorry LD, minor hijack. Clive did I read correctly about dosing higher than 3ppm of phosphate ? Cheers tel

Couldn't say about NutriCalc LD, I did try a link that George had on a thread, but I don't think it was Mac compatible or it was a pay for software, anyway it was something that I could not view it. For dosing I am using James' Calc as I found it easy to understand . cheers, tel

Hey LD, Clive's article, http://www.ukaps.org/EI.htm, lists Ei to be Nitrate (NO3) 20ppm per week Potassium (K) 30ppm per week Phosphate (PO4) 3ppm per week Magnesium (Mg) 10ppm per week Iron (Fe) 0.5ppm per week Which from my understanding is what is regarded as the maxium uptake of...

Not me, as I had only finished setting it up a few hour earlier :D

Empty but clean :D :lol:

Well that all makes sense, it was just something I didn't recall reading before. I did notice the inlets/outlets, wondering though George, whether you think there would be any merit in extending the outlet so it goes further down into the tank finishing about the same height as your diffuser...

Looks great George, :thumbup: Can I ask you why two Co2 bottles though? Also your lighting is that two tubes only for 8 hours? With the moss and future plans, possibly just small patches here and there to break up the wood, or some hanging/draping moss, kind of idyllic willow-esque feel, ...

I think it is Nuphar japonica. Not that I am a plant expert, I google and I get lucky sometimes :wink: cheers tel

Hi Ben , Others may be able to provide more specific advice but link can at least give you an inidcator http://aqadvisor.com/ If you want a quick run down on how it works before checking it out you could have look at the thread below viewtopic.php?f=9&t=10010 cheers

Hi Tom , Thats a really nice scape :thumbup: and whilst you might not like the hygrophila compact from a design aspect, it does look quite striking. Is the compact specific to that particular genus (is that the right term) or will other types of hygrophila respond the same way when trimmed as...

Thanks Darrel :thumbup: , I have looked at a few DIY threads floating around the various forums, as always though, some conflict as to which method is best. cheers and thanks tel

In something of a similar situation to what Jarthel was. No supplier of a 4dkh here in Australia( that I can find ), so wondering whether it is recommended to make your own, or is there too many factors that could result in things going dire. would appreciate some help on this, cheers thanks tel

George Farmer Nick16 Tonser Samc Stuworrall SteveUK aaronnorth Krish's Bettas Jase luke James Marshall Gill AdAndrews AndyH Chilled Paul.in.kendal Garuf, should my tank ever arrive ghostsword (Luis E.) LondonDragon (if ready in time) tel (also if ready in time)

Hehe well I didn't mean you would come last, but you did say you don't want to come last :) Your tanks are great so no need to worry Andy. I on the other hand have made a right balls up of mine and pretty much gone about everything backwards. So if I managed to put something together for...

Is it ok if an aussie tips his his hat into the ring with you UK lot? I understand I will be cutting it fine to have something ready, but working hard toward it. Besides Andyh won't have to worry about coming last then :wink:

Re: My first Layout :oops: :?

I'll echo LondonDragon, good luck with the HC. It is a bit of a squeeze in the your cabinet there Steve, no issues with overheating, filter power cables etc ?

Hey peti44, really like these two images, you tank looks cool, nice job :thumbup: cheers

Re: Saintly's 120cm latest scape Very interesting read Mark, and kudos on the live view technique an extremely clever idea. The closing of one eye mentioned earlier. Not sure of the validity, but I was always told that as we see three dimensional, closing one eye flattens the perspective...

Great stuff Andy, it is quite an amazing transformation in such a short period. :thumbup: there must be something new for you almost everyday,oh and digging the gouramis :wink: cheers

Cheers Chris and thanks to you also with the help on the needle valve tel

Cheers, thanks Paul, and also many thanks for your help on working through this with me. :thumbup: cheers tel

There we have it, just the bottle to go :D cheers

http://www.swelluk.com/aquarium/aquariu ... o-496.html One of those would be good, and at least we are thinking along the same lines, this is what I am looking at getting, which will do the same job

Sorry Paul my fault for the poor explanation. The housing of the solenoid is ok and will need to be rotated so that aspect is under control. It is actually the barb on the solenoid hitting the back wall of the needle valve after just one turn. I did think of just cutting it off, however the...

Thanks again Paul, I appreciate your time. :thumbup: I remember that thread and have gone over it again to refresh the details. I have had a small experiment and tried to attach the needle valve to the solenoid ( ended up getting an aqua medic) (sorry for the large images) The "nipple" you...

Thanks Paul, I have taken your advice and bought the drop checker you provided a link to, added a bubble counter as well http://cgi.ebay.com.au/Bubble-Counter-A ... 5202wt_941 So now it is just a 4dkh solution. Well, there you have it, time flies, in the short space of a month all the bits and...

Hi all just a quick question with regards to drop checkers. Is there any advantage over the Cal aqua double checker to the Dennerle Crystal line. The price I can get either at is comparable with less than ten dollars (au) difference between them. cheers

If you are running a journal, that would make your tank ineligible, correct?

Well done Andy :thumbup:

Maybe in the archives this is exists and I did a quick search to check but couldn't find anything. So again on my hunting around for cool community fish I found this site which provides a calculator for fish stocking levels. One of the interesting things is that it gives, what I think, is a...

After hunting around for Co2 tubing, Tygon was a name that kept cropping up as being very good. I am not sure what is considered expensive in the UK, but one aquarium retailer here in Australia was selling it for $25Au per meter (thats not cheap) Well I stumbled onto a supplier in the UK and...

Given that my experience is limited, this is just my opinion. My thinking is that there is going to be a reduction in the filter outlet when running an inline diffuser. So by running two inline diffusers you would be doubling the reduction of your flow, as the water needs to pass through two...

Thanks Paul, but yes already bought the reg, the one pictured couple of posts up. One of the main factors concerning me with buying a reg from the US or UK, was any differences relating to the thread size/pattern. I figure at the end of the day the solenoid can always run inline if need be, so...

One more piece taken care of, inline diffuser, bought and waiting for shipping Biggest problem I am having is finding a solenoid and the check valve locally. With regards to the solenoid is there anything in particular I should be noting or are they all very much the same? cheers

:thumbup: Thanks Chris, and yes it does. I spent a long time on google, with everything from drawing to schematic and came up with zilch. Much appreciated cheers.

Well slowly making ground on Co2(I think). First the regulator, I bought this today from a local place here in Melbourne along with a needle valve. Both the Regulator and the needle valve came to $109AU, which I thought was pretty good considering I have seen the same regulators listed up to...

Re: Ad's Low tech-ish 54l ahh,I was googling the plants and thought the leaf patterns were similar

Re: Ad's Low tech-ish 54l Ad, is your foreground a mix of rotala rotundifolia, e.tenellus & p.helferi? It will be great to see that blend once they have grown in 8)