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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

Tropical Tank requirements.

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01 Mar 2007 18:25 #1 by scorphonic (Kieran Crosbie Staunton)
Hello everyone. From looking at some of the amazing tanks on show here and the endless types of products out there I'm getting a bit confused.

So far I know that I need a filter (are internal ones better or external?,what external one would you recommend for a Rio 180?), a heater (one or two?, when you say backup, should both be switched on at one time or just keep one in the press when needed?), rocks, pebbles/sand, plants (artificial/real).

Do I need to buy an air pump? Does it attach directly to the Juwel filter? Are they above the gravel in the aquarium or below?

How long does it take for a new tank to be cycled and ready to add in life fish? (excluding the hardy fish required for cycling the tanks nitrogen cycle). What do you find to be the best way to cycle a tank?

Sorry about all the questions, I know that once i understand these that things will quickly slot into place!!

:roll: :wink: :D

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01 Mar 2007 18:59 #2 by Gary.K (Gary.K)
Hi Scorphonic

I am by no meens an expert much more experenced people will probable post, but i have just set up a Rio240. The great thing about these tanks is that they come with all you need except, substrate i used natural gravel, Plants (if you want plants) and fish. if you want to add a extra filter later you can with no grate problems same goes for backup heater,airpump etc.

As for adding fish i ran my tank filled with water and no fish for about a week untill water was clear than added some fish only 4 small guppies then wait a week or so to add more fish but only added them a few at a time and waited approx a week between each new addition.

IMO the most important thing is to make sure you select the correct fish to suit your water supply.

But as i say i am not an expert but have only lost one guppie and one neon

Regards
Gary

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01 Mar 2007 19:06 #3 by serratus (Drew Latimer)
Hi ok first rule in fishkeeping is look after the water and the fish will look after themselves!!!! 99% of the time!!
This is very true, so as imo the juwel filters are not up for the job get an external, they are far superior!!
Also get a testkit, (the insite into your tank!) and a book, best one we sell is "water quality" (speaks for itself!!!) then decide on the size of your tank, this will then decide what you wanna keep, you can buy alot of products for speeding up the "cycle " in your tank (but always test the water!) but firstly decide what size your tank is .......then we can give you advice!!!

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02 Mar 2007 02:27 #4 by apistodiscus (apistodiscus)
Replied by apistodiscus (apistodiscus) on topic Re: Tropical Tank requirements.
Juwel internal filters are OK for most applications. Unless you want to keep Malawis and have to overstock, that is. Let us know what fish you are intending on keeping and how many. It's easier to give guidance once we have that info

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02 Mar 2007 02:41 #5 by essjay (S Jackson)
I think if you are starting off the Juwel filter should be ok. As other people have pointed out, they are not the best, but will do for now. Later on down the line you can add an extra filter if you like.

Some people use two heaters for redundancy, both switched on, with one set 1 degree lower than the other, so that if the main one fails, you will notice a drop (by 1 degree) in temperature straight away. Even though both are switched on, the one set a degree lower will never come on unless needed.

The idea of an air pump is to create water movement on the surface of the water. A lot of people think that the air pump actually oxygenates the water, but it doesn't, its the agitation of the surface of the water that oxygenates it. The air pump doesn't connect to the filter, but usually you run some pipe down to the substrate and add an air stone which would usually site above the gravel/sand.

How long to cycle your tank varies. I've just done a complete cycle from scratch in 8 days. If you are interested you can follow my tanks progress in the tropical freshwater chemistry section of this forum.

For information on the chemistry of your tank, there are some great articles here www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/chemistry_list.php

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02 Mar 2007 15:34 #6 by pjq (pjq)
Replied by pjq (pjq) on topic Re: Tropical Tank requirements.
I started last November and found my LFS very helpful , if you go at a quiet time they will explain the consequences of adding a particular fish that has caught your eye , fin-nippers , plant eaters , whether you need a group or only one. This advice plus a knowledge of cycle will get you started.
However the equipment from the LFS is relatively expensive compared to internet .
pjq

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