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If you don't have many, stick your paw in and pick them out... easiest way. I have 2 snails in my tank, stoaways from some plants... they do no harm, so I don't fuss about them much.

Hanging from the bottom? If so, it's probably poo.

Probably shouldn't have started with Tetras, they're pretty sensitive to water changes. Chances are you'll lose a few of them before the cycle is over. Guppies are a bit dodgy these days from my LFS, they seem to be dying for no reason. I hope you got a good batch.

Reverse Osmosis units purify water. You can hook them up to your tap and they'll filter out all the crap that's in the drinking water (including salt, which will leave you with very soft water). They're mostly used for people who have marine aquariums (marine salt is added afterwards to create...

I think a Ghost Shrimp needs around 24/25 C to survive... so no-go on the coldwater I'm afraid.

I have a BiOrb... went through the normal spikes when I set it up the first time. However, it's never spiked since, even after adding more fish. Ammonia and Nitrite have been solid 0 since the cycle ended. Don't get any bottom feeders for your algae, not in a BiOrb. The stones in the bottom...

I recently introduced 2 Ghost Shrimp into my tank to clear up a bit of Algae I had growing around the bubble tube, but they've eaten it all now, and I'm worried incase they have nothing to eat and starve. Is there any way I can boost the algae growth in my tank, so that they have a constant...

If you keep everything as natural as possible, there's less to go wrong. Best not to tamper with things like that. The best idea I can think of is to seak an alternative water source, like bottled water or transporting it from a tap that has safer water.

Hagen / Nutrafin. That's what I use. Some people don't like them though, because if the test reads 0, nothing happens to the water (it stays clear), which means you can't tell if you do something wrong. Other test kits change even if the reading is 0, so you know you've done it right. I've...

If you have Ammonia present in the tap water, treating it with regular water treatment chemicals won't remove it (they usually only remove Chloramine and Chlorine... unless it specifically states that it removes ammonia too). That's probably the cause of the ammonia level, you keep introducing...

I'd suggest a tapwater check. Trace amounts of ammonia are tolerable for fish, but like someone here said, trace amounts of Carbon Monoxide are tolerable for humans, but you still wouldn't like to live in a house that has it. You can use chemicals to remove Ammonia from the water, but I'd...

Why's it brown?

I just noticed today a bunch of weird orangy-brown dots all over the top part of the inside of my bubble tube, and I havn't a clue what they are. Interestingly, I found one of my Danios had died also, so I'm wondering if they're related. They look similar to a picture I saw in another thread...

Fish aren't cold blooded, they're poikilothermal. Which means their body temperature is soleley dependent on the temperature of their surroundings. They cannot produce heat for themselfs, but do rely on heat to live (unlike cold blooded animals which can live in cold conditions). Fish require...

Ammonia is 0 which is good, means the first half of your bacteria are established. Give it time, eventually the Nitrites will drop too... can take a while for the bacteria to kick in effectively. As for the PH of your water... that's risking Alkaline burns on sensitive fish. I suggest using...

One of my Cardinals had Paralysis in half of it's body and couldn't swim earlier this week, could only move it's head. I caught him, put him in a bit of toilet roll and drove the blunt end of a knife into his head. Death was instant. If you don't want to watch your fish's death but want a...

Does anyone know the effect of loud noises on fish? I ask because I have a rather beefy soundsystem in the same room as my fish, and when I play music the SubWoofer makes a hell of a vibration on the ground. The fishtank is on the opposite side of the room, and is elevated above the ground...

I use Nutrafin Kits. Ammonia, PH, Nitrite, Nitrate and water hardness vary in price between £5 and £8 per kit, and last for about 70-80 tests. I think there's a few more too. If you look around, there should be a "starter kit" by the same people, in it you get all the testing kits you need to...

I have plastic plants in my aquarium because it's easier... but they keep unanchoring themselfs and floating up to the top of the tank, which is getting very annoying. The bottom gravel in my BiOrb is big chunky stuff, so I can't fill the little "tray" with it, at the bottom of the plant... and...

I use Stress-Coat too, can Aloe be harmful to the fish? I thought it was good for them?

I currently have 6 Zebra Danios in a tank which has just finished cycling and is ready for some more fish. I was thinking about introducing some Male Guppies (maybe 2) into the tank for a bit of colour, however, I'm worried incase they're intimidated by the larger shoal of Danios. How do I...

I dunno about that. If you want to humanely kill a fish, don't pussyfoot about it. Place the fish on a hard surface, like a chopping board, and sever the head with a clean blow from a sharp knife. The fish will die instantly (don't worry if it keeps moving afterwards, it's just a relfex, the...

Like tstenback said, it could just the the flakes making the water go cloudy. Make sure you get non-cloudy types. If it's not that, it's a bacteria bloom, but again, like tstenback said, without the readings you can't tell.

Most products have measurements in both Litres and Gallons, if you aren't sure which type of gallon it's referring to, use litres instead. If it's a UK or European company making the product (check the information on the back, there should be an address of the HQ), it's almost always UK Gallons...

I usually put the Dechlorinater in and let it sit overnight, then do it in the morning. You can put it straight in if you like, but it's better to let the water settle first. For a start, if your tapwater is anything like mine, it'll be ice cold which will freak your fish out. Secondly, you...

Snap a picture of the little blighter and attach it, I'm sure someone will ID him for you.

Like with Bottom Feeders, the Cermic Media used in a BiOrb is not suitable for Frogs. The rocks are quite sharp and would end up damaging the frog.

A friend of mine has just introduced his first fish into a newly setup aquarium. He's had them in there for about 5 days now, but the Nitrite levels have spiked bigtime. It's a deep purple on the indicator... looks about the 0.3 mark, possibly higher... which I know can be lethal to fish...

I wanted a couple of these some time ago and read up quite a bit on them. Silver Sharks are community fish, so they shouldn't get territorial being the first fish in the tank. IMO, you should get a pair of them, though, not just one. Depends on how big your tank is. Bare in mind that they...

You feeding them flakes? 1 or 2 flakes each, per day is more than enough. If you're using pellets, 3 or 4 is enough. 5 Flakes in the morning when you get up, and another 5 before you go to bed is pleanty for the whole tank. Overfeeding will mean more waste, and your newly-established...

Doing a quick search on your filter, it appears the filter you have is suitable for up to a 24 (US) Gallon tank. Your tank is about 30 (US) Gallons. It may be the problem.

As far as I can tell, you're not doing anything wrong. At night, fish will slow down, reduced visibility means a higher chance of bumping into something. What do you mean about the colour loss? Does it come back when you turn the light back on in the morning? If so... that's normal, they...

There's always a chance of anything you put in your tank getting eaten. I don't have one in my tank, but a friend of mine has 6 in his 25 Gal, and they're all still swimming, which is a good sign.

I have a BiOrb... I'd imagine it's quite impossible for a fish to be sucked into the filter, the inlet holes aren't big enough. The thing with the BiOrb is that it's a constantly flowing tank... the bubble tube creates and upward flow in the middle, and a downward flow along the outer edges by...

I'd rather have an expensive healthy fish and good service than a cheap dying one bought from a guy who knows jack. My only advice is to make sure you get a guarantee with your fish, at least 2 days or more. That way if they cough out on you when you get them home, you don't have to fork out...

Amano Shrimp... not exactly a crab, but they're great to watch.

Get an Amano Shrimp or something... they'll eat the algae and leave your other fish alone. Or if you want a cleaning fish... a low-maintenance catfish or something would be a good idea. I hear Striped Corydoras are easy to manage and are very peaceful, they don't grow too huge either, so they...

I'll get out the NPL and take a look. Does the Chronicle do classifieds? I always flick straight to the sports section.

I'm looking into buying a larger tank, maybe 55 Gallon or more... but I don't want to pay loads for it. Does anyone have any suggestions for makes/models of larger tanks that aren't cripplingly expensive?

Go for the Gourami... much more tolerable to water changes than the Neon. Gouramis tend to swim in just about anything, with varying PH levels and varying Temperatures.