Retirement and forum shutdown (17 Jan 2022)
Hi,
John Howell who has managed the forum for years is getting on and wishes to retire from the role of managing it.
Over the years, he has managed the forum through good days and bad days and he has always been fair.
He has managed to bring his passion for fish keeping to the forum and keep it going for so long.
I wish to thank John for his hard work in keeping the forum going.
With John wishing to "retire" from the role of managing the forum and the forum receiving very little traffic, I think we must agree that forum has come to a natural conclusion and it's time to put it to rest.
I am proposing that the forum be made read-only from March 2022 onwards and that no new users or content be created. The website is still registered for several more years, so the content will still be accessible but no new topics or replies will be allowed.
If there is interest from the ITFS or other fish keeping clubs, we may redirect traffic to them or to a Facebook group but will not actively manage it.
I'd like to thank everyone over the years who helped with forum, posted a reply, started a new topic, ask a question and helped a newbie in fish keeping. And thank you to the sponsors who helped us along the away. Hopefully it made the hobby stronger.
I'd especially like to thank John Howell and Valerie Rousseau for all of their contributions, without them the forum would have never been has successful.
Thank you
Darragh Sherwin
How much do you spend a year?
- stretnik (stretnik)
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Kev.
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- joey (joe watson)
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very hard to calculate, always picking something up here and there. total i spent on everything fishy runs well over 3k in the last 2 yrs
wow i've even shocked myself with that, and i wonder why i still drive a 00....
Location: Portlaoise, Midlands
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- JohnH (John)
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I would suspect you might have the same, or similar, answer Kev?
John
Location:
N. Tipp
We're just two lost souls swimming in a fish bowl - year after year.
ITFS member.
It's a long way to Tipperary.
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- igmillichip (ian millichip)
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And would hate to say....especially as some might say 'public sector?....overpaid'.

My amphibian and reptile bill is pretty high....I know that as, even though I breed a lot of my own food, I still have a regular food bill that covers buying in 2 or 3 shops per week.
I now have 18 fish tanks running (plus two biggies and a few smaller ones to have suitable stands built). I tend to do a weekly shop covering at least 3 shops more than the reptile stuff, so the bill is splintered.
My car is a faithful but now tatty 1997 thing.....guess why?
Ian
Irish Tropical Fish Society (ITFS) Member.
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- Viperbot (Jason Hughes)
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Jay
Location: Finglas, North Dublin.
Life
may not be the party we hoped for, but while we
are here we might as well dance.
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- michaelangello (Michael)
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- stretnik (stretnik)
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- roealdo (j)
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In the last year I will have bought 3 tanks, many many fish, filters, lights, food and other bits and pieces and I reckon I'd be hitting the €2.5k-€3k mark
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- michaelangello (Michael)
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Id say on a weekly average of about 20quid, then extra at the end of the month for carbon etc, by the end of 2 months re-stocking additives would cost a fair bit too.
Taking all this into account bar lecky costs id say in and around €300 every 2 months??? So I have my big tank running about 6 months so around €900 so far in running costs.
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- stretnik (stretnik)
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- Ma (mm mm)
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Without about 5-6K, including equipment heaters ect food and bits n bobs, have had 16 different tanks both large and small this last year.
Mark
Location D.11
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- joey (joe watson)
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Location: Portlaoise, Midlands
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- Gavin (Gavin)
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dont make me come over there.
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- fishmad1234 (Craig Coyle)
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at the end of the day it becomes nite
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- andrewo (andrew)
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On a more serious note i suppose its more if you have just set up tank/tanks but amount shld be steady after a while when you are no longer buying equipment/etc and just food for fishes and filter/water maintenance.
I will go calculate and be back...if i dont pass out:laugh:
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i don't think i want to know, sometimes i think it's an obsession


i'm not complaining, it's a great learning experience and i've met some really nice and interesting characters along the way and all the different species of fish are an unending source of amazement...

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- Jim (Jim Lawlor)
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I bought 2 new ones with cabinets, but quickly realised that if I kept going like that it would be the price of a car by year end - Second hand is yer only man!
Still - worth every penny
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- Frontosa (Tim kruger)
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Regards,Tim
Midlands - in the heart of Ireland.
Keeping and breeding : Frontosa Blue Zaires , Synodontis Petricola , Tropheus Red Rainbow (Kasanga) , Tropheus Moliro . Regulary fry for sale.
Community tank with P.Kribensis and different livebearers.
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- Pat (Pat Coogan)
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I get softened water in work for my water changes FOC and heat it with water from home boiled in the kettle.
Did my change on Saturday last as usuall. Tuesday came homne and 4 wild caught rams were dead. Next day 2 corydoras 2 cockatoids and a swordtail were dead. Couldnt understand till I had a long soak in the bath and got a strong smell from the water of Fluoride. Chlorine parameters were fine all others normal. So now my annual cost is gonna go up when I replace what I lost and am going to start buying water.
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