Pet Forum / Aquaria / Freshwater / June 2005

I bought three Ottos a few days ago and they don't seem to be doing much for
the Algae. They either stick to the glass (not moving) or sit on top of the
Pagoda. Most days it's difficult to see them, ay least two out of the three
are hiding.

Phosphate levels off the charts, pH 7.2, ammonia 0, nitrite 0. 75g
community tank with cichlids, barbs, tetras, various plants. Green
algae bloom, green stuff on substrate - is it bacteria? Algae hair
growth. This tank has been setup for one year.

No sure if anyone can help me with this but I have an Eheim 2231.  Am
trying to keep my plants as healthy as possible and  am wondering if
one model up is better.
2231     up to 35 gallons     127g/h

My tap water tests at 7.0, should I continue adding baking soda or just
change water twice as often to control high nitrites/nitrates in my bedroom
tank (small, 15 gallon tank)? See my other post about how I think I might be
experiencing ots/ph crash but I have caught it in time. ...

So like the subject says, I've recently gotten a new pile of money and
I've been thinking it would be great to combine my tanks into one
bigger tank.
I'm wondering if anyone could tell me what a good minimum size would

My ph and gh, kh of my bedroom tank tends to drop even with all of the sea
shells I have in it. I have been treating the water with baking soda for the
last few days after testing the ph and it being at about 6.0, and that was
after the tell tale sign what with the female fancy ...

Just wanted to share with everyone the sheer joy of my Clowns
tonight....I've been keeping a strict light out policy during the day to
reduce tank temps (it's done wonders with the algae - good side-effect). I
turn the lights on around 30 minutes before feed-time and then leave them ...

I live on the very southern end of Miami Beach, Florida, in an area that
is called, "South Beach".  Here I can purchase bait shrimp real cheap,
like $2.45 for a good-sized bag of frozen shrimp.  What I want to know,
is there any kind of draw back to feeding my seven tanks of fish ...

I have a medium sized tank which is very underloaded with just three
fish. It's been running like this for about a month now and everything
seems to have settled down and got comfortable. I started out with a
really cheap internal filter that blew lots of bubbles but didn't seem

I'm the one with a fish who is a bully -- forces all the other fish
in the tank into a corner like a sheep dog.  The "sheep" fish can
hardly move without being chased.
I went to my LFS and asked the guy if he'd be willing to take my

What would be the way to add plants to an already cycled tank with fish and
live plants?
Thanks

Also posted to the UK group. Apologies for anyone reading twice.
After two power outages of about 3/4 and 1 hour, of my three tanks the
smallest (Juwel Rekord 60 with plants and 12 Platys) reads perfect water
quality.

I always feel sad if I lose a fish.  My reasoning is that I made a
commitment to these guys that I will take care of them as best as I
possibly can so they can have a safe home and a reasonably long life
-- much as for a cat or a dog.

I must be a "Neanderthal" fish guy because I am losing a battle of
string and black algae.
Recently posted about my problem and thought I had it licked.
Extra water changes, more light for plants (18" - 56 watt canopy), and

One of my 10 cichlids is a bully.  What can I do about this bully?
He has claimed three quarters of the tank for himself.  He keeps
chasing the others -- herds 'em like a sheep dog so they can't
hardly turn around.  Generally everyone gets to eat, but that's all.