Death By Python

[minxfishy]

Doing a normal 50% change on my 400L, finished a quick vac and dug the end of the python into the gravel, that way there is no chance of it moving around or falling out the tank.

Been about 20 minutes as it slowly sucks out the water when my little boy shouts, Mum there's a fish in the sucker!

I quickly go to think one of the tiger barbs has swum up it, expecting to just tip him out again, but no, one of my two 2" firemouths has somehow gotten up it and is half sucked up the tube. So Ive stopped the flow and tipped him out, but he's dead Poor little guy, lord knows how he got up there.

Absolutely gutted, my firemouths are one of my favourite fish, they are so beautiful, now Ive only one left, who will be lonesome without his pal to swim around with.

So, a little warning, even when you think they cant swim up it, they can, keep an eye on your vacs.

 

[Curiosity101]

Aww, that's terrible

I've gotten into the habit of wandering off and leaving the vac to do it's thing. Always have that thought in the back of my head 'what if a fish went up'
But like you I've always secured it in a way that I thought it was impossible any of the fish could get in.

It's a good warning to people!
I'll be watching mine from now on.... *Thinking of my kuhlii loaches*

 

[bagu]

damn, im sorry to hear

my Dwarf puffers want to get sucked up; they swim near it and are like

"ooooo, this looks cool!"

 

[always4lora]

gutted for you python's don't have great suction on them so must of a been an over curious fish.

 

[Davo86]

Sorry to hear that Minx,

I lost a small Clown Loach that way a few weeks ago,

 

[DJ ArKaDaRkA]

sorry to hear this

i managed to do this to 2 of my cories when i was doing a waterchange and watching tv at the same time

 

[JenCliBee]

Sorry to hear about the loss minx , accidents happens to the best of us.

jen

 

[JustKia]

Just after I first made my python (diy version) I managed to suck up 3 danios, who got spat out into the bath (that was probably the best part of 20' of hose they got sucked through), hubby shouts to me "there's a fish in bath, no two, THREE!" of course I told him to pick them up and bring them through quickly. You'd have laughed your socks off watching him trying to work out how to pick up a little sliver of fish without hurting it. Luckily once I got them out of the bath and into the tank they survived, but I did not want to ever deal with that again.

So, for the princely sum of £1.99 I bought one of the nets with wider holes (black, rather than the close weave white ones). Cut the net from the frame and secured it round the end of the python with an elastic band. Now I can just leave it dangling in the tank while it drains knowing that not even the shrimp can disappear up the hose.

Sorry you had this happen minx, but like JenCliBee said, accidents happen to us all

 

[minxfishy]

Still cant work out how he got up there, must have been a suicide mission, firemouth with lemming tendancies

Ive often had fish swim into the end whilst Ive been cleaning, they seem to see it as a challenge, but not once its wedged into the gravel!

Dont like seeing the other one swimming around on his own, he's looking everywhere for his mate

 

[shelaghfishface]

aww bless, sorry hun

 

[keenonfish]

Sorry to hear that, firemouths are stunners too!

One good thing in having an internal Juwel I guess is that I stick the hose in the second heater space to 50% mark and leave without worrying about such things or draining my tank lol (I would do that). When finished I get the other end out the back door straight to sink tap and fill her up

I will have to rethink this when I get an external!

 

[Liam50]

thats a real bummer! out of curiosity how wide is the pipe on a python? cichlids are too curious for their own good in some circumstances.

 

[oliesminis]

i did what justkia did with a net because it still lets the dirt go but my fish cant meet there doom through it

 

[Littlemonkey]

Sorry to hear about your loss, hopefully there will be some kind soul out there who maybe be able to help with a replacement.

 

[minxfishy]

@ Liam50 - The python end is a couple of inch across, unless of course I was to pull the Vac part off, which I dont, but it was dug into the gravel, so only a few mm's would have been accessible at most - strange.

@ Littlemonkey - they arent expensive to replace, but introducing a new one may cause problems if it doesnt get on with my already establish FM. I probably will get another, from the same source I got these are they are just lovely FM's, best colours Ive seen on them.