Recent content by TheManichaean

I agree that it was the stress, and more buckets would have been the best course. That would mitigate any possible contaminated bucket scenarios, and separating out the species would doubtless help. Thank you :) Happily all the little beasties seem fine now, a week later. Tough little...

Thanks--I used existing tank water to fill the bucket, so the temp & chemical balance would be identical to the tank. Agitation could definitely be the issue, maybe 3 hours with so many fish was just too much in a 5 gallon. I'm thinking that I should have at least used multiple buckets for...

Part 1: Last night, I knew my Hillstream Loach had died. I held him in my hands, rigid and unmoving. My wife and I just moved the tank to our new home, and he seemed to have died from the trauma. We'd raised the little guy over two years from the size of a tack's head to just shy of a silver...

Thanks for the help. I think you're right about trading out the loach. I'll be sad to see the big guy go, but those Congos are really cute.

I recently added new fish to my tank, 6 1.5" Australian Rainbowfish and 6 1" Congo Tetras. Now, frustratingly, something in the tank is eating the Congo Tetras. They just disappear completely, no remains at all, every couple days. I never see any aggression in the daytime, so I'm betting...

Definitely a possibility--I'll add the old cave next to the new one and let him decide. Thanks!

Hi all, I've got a nocturnal loach (Botia family, but not ID'd any further than that) who has almost doubled in size from 3" to 6" since I bought him. He's outgrown his original shelter and needs to wriggle like a maniac to fit himself in. I removed the original shelter and replaced it with...

My long finned barbs do something similar-- their color deepens to crimson and they begin to chase each other around in circles. Thankfully, they've never hurt each other.

Hi all, The nitrate levels keep rising past 80ppm in my 4 month old tank, and I'm looking for some advice on keeping the levels lower (20-30ppm). I recently added a brighter light, which is my main suspect, but I'd appreciate any input. More details below: When originally cycling the tank...

Great, thanks.

Happy New Year all! The top of my aquarium is now very well sealed off--my fish would have to pull some "Escape From Alcatraz" moves to get out now. I've had glass covers for the top all along, but I recently added plastic strips in between my HOB equipment to seal off that area now too...

Jdrumstick, it's paradoxical that you're bright enough to have done your "fair research" on planaria and yet consciously choose to massively overstock your tank. You need to either admit that you are overloading the tank and fix it or continue to overstock and deal with the sad results. Just...

Shannon, Don't worry too much, you're doing a good job. We just need more info so that we can help you. (sorry if I'm repeating previous posters' questions) 1. What type of fish? What size are they? 2. What are your exact test values? (ammonia, nitrites, nitrates, temp, pH) 3. What type...

Spectacular!

Excellent, thanks.