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I have heard that some fish can suck the slime coats of other fish which isn't very good for the fish being sucked on! I'm not sure if sharks have this tendency though. Hopefully someone more experienced will come along and drop in their 2p on the subject. Aylana

Gravel vacuums work great if you use them regularly to clean your tank. If you have loads of gunk from not cleaning for ages like I did after I cycled with fishfood, then it won't seem to help much just using the gravel vac once. But if you use if regularly for water changes ie once a week...

I'm guessing that since it will be your first time with fish and your mum wants to see if you can take care of it first a big tank will be out of the question, in which case a betta will be your best shot. You can get some beautiful bettas and you can keep them in reasonably small tanks (I...

jacblades I think that is a great idea! I say go for it, I'm sure if it isn't legal there will be an easy way to make it legal, for example offering to email some silly thing to anyone who bids so it is actually classed as an auction where you can buy something. Aylana

Thanks to those who replied. The heater which I was told was a 200 watt it turns out after research (it didn't come with a box or leaflet) is only a 50 watt :grr: Plus my boyfriend told me yesterday that while I was out and he had the gas fire on the temp in the tank went up to 28 C and the...

I am so glad I found this thread, I have been having major problems with temperature fluctuations in my tank. I got up this morning and found that my tank temp had dropped by 2 degrees overnight, my poor fish must have been shivering! I have a heater which is 200 watts I think and the tank is...

Thanks wilder, a useful article. My rasbora still has his little white lump on his mouth but he is eating as greedily as ever and playing in the filter flow with the others. I'm still wondering what could have caused the ammonia spike though, I think it might be the plant as one of the large...

Forgot to say, My tank was fully cycled two weeks ago and I continued adding ammonia until I got the fish 4 days ago. They all seem ok, even the one with the fungus, eating fine etc. Aylana

I think one of my new rasboras has mouth fungus. He has a white round fluffy thing on his bottom lip. I noticed it this morning, it definately wasn't there last night as I was taking pictures and you can't see it on any of the photos. As soon as I noticed I did some quick research and then...

Thanks guys. Yup, the addiction has begun and I am already planning on asking for a bigger tank next christmas! I would love a massive tank with about 20 Rasboras in it, but I might have to wait a few years for that one! Thanks MXPX4318, you have some beautiful fish there! I think it is more...

Yep I just have the 3 but don't worry tomorrow I am getting another 3 to add to their little group. They are very beautiful fish. Wilder - Thanks for the info, I thought they looked a bit more orange when I got them home than the pictures I had seen previously. Yes they have that orange line...

Don't know much about Oscars but congratulations and I'm glad he is moving now. :D Aylana

I had a green algae bloom in the late stages of my fishless cycling. I think that and bacterial blooms are quite common. I simply covered the tank with a blanket for 3 days to keep out the light and the algae died off. My plants came out of it fine, they can do without light longer than algae...

Here is another one, their colours dont show as well on here as they really are which is a shame cos they are really vibrant, but here they are again.

Hi all, I got my first fish a few days ago and this is the first decent picture of them I have managed to get. Say hi to big and small (medium is hiding).

I would say you could keep a few guppies in that tank, but what would be the point? They would be unhappy in such a small environment and would probably have a short life span as I would imagine it would be difficult to keep your water paramenters stable in a small tank with so many fish in...

I say go for some harlequin rasboras! I got some the other day and they are so much fun and great schoolers. Beautiful fishes. :wub: Aylana

Thanks guys, it is so nice to have people here who understand my new infatuation! Clutterydrawer - I am planning on getting a bristlenose plec and maybe a couple of sparkling gouramis, although the gouramis could change as there are so many gorgeous fish out there! Carnasie - Thanks for the...

My tank is approx 18 uk gallons and I fishless cycled. Aylana

Thanks guys! Yep I have to keep dragging myself away from the tank to get food etc, they are so great! They are currently exploring the bottom of the tank and looking dubiously at the bogwood. I've been trying to take pictures but it is so hard! I've got about 20 photos of blurs!!! At...

Hi, I'm not an expert but I think if it froths up at all then you can't use it for cycling. I began cycling with fish food but the smell of the rotting food took over my living room, so in the end I advertised on the buy sell and swap part of the forums for any Ammonia that anyone had left over...

I got got my first ever fish home about an hour and a quarter ago. I got 3 Harlequin Rasboras (don't worry I wil be getting more during the week so they have plenty of friends) and just wanted to say how fab they are and how pleased I am! I have acclimated them to the tank and now they are...

Snails. Approximately 7 of them (that I can see so far), they are barely more than a millimeter across apart from one which is about 6mm and seems to be racing around the glass in my tank like he is on speed. I'm assuming they have hitch hiked in on one of my plants. I have nothing against...

Congrats on your new fish! My cycle has just finished and it is such a relief to have the waiting over with isnt' it! I hope all goes well with the fish in the future. :D Aylana

Thanks Giz, it is nice to know the history behind the pancake rabbit, he is a talented bunny! I am giving my tank a few days to make sure it is definately cycled and isn't going to do any weird things before I get any fish, so today I am going to go and watch fish at a fish shop! Actually I...

Thanks guys! My tank was totally green for several days as well. It eventually went away after I covered my tank with a blanket and kept the light off for 3 days. The algae went away and my plants came out of the experience just fine. Or you could just use one of those products designed to...

Wheeeeee!!! Just wanted to officially celebrate that my tank seems to now be cycled! Ammonia and Nitrite are finally at 0 and nitrate is at 40. Phew. My ph is 7.1 which seems pretty good to me. I will do a couple of large water changes as I have been cycling with fish food so my tank is...

lol, the text says the same as in my signature ie: I have no idea what you are talking about so here is a bunny with a pancake on its head. Its just a random thing I stumbled across and found amusing, I'm sure the rabbit doesn't mind too much! :D I wish I could watch fish at work, it...

My cat sits and stares at my fish tank for ages as well. The only problem is there are no fish in it yet, I am still cycling! I worry about that cat. :/ Aylana

I am currently fishless cycling as well, both my nitrite and nitrate recently plummeted just before I had an algae bloom. They came back up once I had covered the tank with a blanket for 3 days to kill off the algae and the cycle has proceeded normally since then. Hope this helps Good luck...

Thanks for the advice, you are a star. I will bear in mind that I will need to upgrade in the future. Aylana

I have been given a secondhand old fluval 2 filter. It didn't come with any instructions so I just want to double check that it is ok. When you open it up inside it has a large cylidrical kind of mesh thing. I assume that is for mechanical filtration. But that is all it has inside, it has...

Ah, good luck with your exams then! If I had my way I would have a fish tank in every room of the house! For now though I am just concentrating on getting things ready for my first fish and keeping them alive!! I'm doing shedloads of research cos I am scared I will get things wrong! Aylana

I say harlequins cos I think they are gorgeous!!! Aylana

Not sure what colour I'm getting yet I want to have a good look at them in the LFS and see which ones appeal to me when I see them face to face. I'd like one that looks like its got a bit of character and preferably a male with lots of bristles! I will definately be getting another couple of...

Thanks for the advice guys. Now I just have to wait for the tank to cycle, which seems to take forever when you are itching to buy fish! Aylana

Ok, the tank I have ended up with is somewhat smaller than I had thought. It is 15 uk gallons and 18 us gallons. So I have had to rethink my original stocking plan. So now I am thinking 5 harlequin rasboras and 1 bristlenose plec. How does this sound? Am I pushing it? I have a really...

Thanks fishman I will look for that universal kit. I haven't kept fish before but have been reading about cycling and asking advice here about stocking my tank. It nice to see so many people trying to keep newbies like me on the right track. If only all LFS were as helpful as the people here...