×
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

Care while on holidays?

More
13 Jul 2010 15:34 #1 by roealdo (j)
I'm going on holidays ina couple of weeks for about 10 days.

I have some one to feed to fish but in terms of water quality what can I do?

Please Log in to join the conversation.

More
13 Jul 2010 15:48 #2 by pkearney (Phil Kearney)
do a water change before you go on holiday.the fish will be ok. make sure whoever is feeding the fish knows exactly how much to feed otherwise dont feed at all till you come home.
phil

Please Log in to join the conversation.

More
13 Jul 2010 15:51 #3 by dyco619 (steve carmody)
i would say if you do a water change before you go and clean your filter it should be fine until you come back,
how often do you usually do water changes?
you should be ok, unless you have fry that need daily changes

Please Log in to join the conversation.

More
13 Jul 2010 15:52 #4 by roealdo (j)
dont feed for 10 days?

Please Log in to join the conversation.

More
13 Jul 2010 15:53 #5 by DJK (David Kinsella)
What I normally do just before I go is to do a water change so It'll cover me for that period or thereabouts.
Also do some filter maintenance/cleaning to make sure your filter does not clog while you're away.
As regards feeding I normally instruct the person to give a little less food from what I would normally give because people with little or no experience tend to overfeed. As long as they get a little every day they should be alright.


Dave

Please Log in to join the conversation.

  • wolfsburg (wolfsburg)
  • wolfsburg (wolfsburg)'s Avatar
  • Visitor
  • Visitor
13 Jul 2010 17:21 #6 by wolfsburg (wolfsburg)
Replied by wolfsburg (wolfsburg) on topic Re:Care while on holidays?
Re feeding:
You can buy little zip-lock bags or jars. Put a day's (or portion) of food into each container and label them Monday through to Sunday (or whatever days you will be away). That way you can control exactly what gets fed and how much and eliminates the risk of the person minding the fish upending a full jar of food into the tank!

Please Log in to join the conversation.

More
13 Jul 2010 17:22 #7 by Pat (Pat Coogan)
Hi.
I normally do a water change and set out portions for my Father in law to feed every second day.
I have discus and dwarf cichlids and have never had an issue. I am normally away for 2 weeks at a time.
Just ensure that the lights are set on a timer and make sure that you tape a note to the light switch labeled do not touch.
Pat

Please Log in to join the conversation.

  • stretnik (stretnik)
  • stretnik (stretnik)'s Avatar
  • Visitor
  • Visitor
13 Jul 2010 17:37 #8 by stretnik (stretnik)
Replied by stretnik (stretnik) on topic Re:Care while on holidays?
I always pop a piece of Polyfilter into the external Filter, do your water change as normal even if it's before time due, tell the person feeding them to skip every second day and stick to normal amounts on each day, add a pump and Airstone or a smaller internal with some filter pads or wool or whatever from the main Filter to take over should your main one fail.

Kev.

Please Log in to join the conversation.

More
13 Jul 2010 18:10 #9 by Fishowner (Gavin fishowner)
Id also recommend you do a quick checklist for the person to look at each day when they are feeding the fish.
Ie: check that filter is running,that the heater / temperature appears to be ok.
Then its down to just making sure they know what to do if there is a dead fish etc..
Ive a checklist done for my gf's sister who minds my fish when Im away,and Id a few issues when I was away,but the checklist covered it all off and she was fine out.(she removed the dead fish and netted the fry and removed some shrimp to another tank,was very impressed with her abilities given that she knew nothing about fish!).

If you have someone nearby that could also be used in an emergency then perhaps keep their number handy.
(you mightn't always want them to have to visit to do the feeding etc,so emergency number if the need arises).

Keep the checklist simple,easy to understand and dont over inform the person feeding the fish or they will freak out if they think that something is wrong with the tank!
Gavin

Please Log in to join the conversation.

More
13 Jul 2010 20:53 #10 by aoife (aoife tansey)
You could also pick up one up those containers for separating out tablets with the day of the week on top. Put the amount of fish food to be given into each section, that way no chance of over feeding

Please Log in to join the conversation.

More
04 Aug 2010 18:37 #11 by roealdo (j)
looks like i'm in trouble. 4 died and looks like one is on the way out.

did a 50% water change when I got home but not sure if thats enough

Please Log in to join the conversation.

More
04 Aug 2010 18:45 - 04 Aug 2010 18:46 #12 by dyco619 (steve carmody)
that sounds like a real disaster, sorry to hear that.
how long were you gone for?
did you test your water when you got back?
Last edit: 04 Aug 2010 18:46 by dyco619 (steve carmody).

Please Log in to join the conversation.

More
04 Aug 2010 18:49 #13 by roealdo (j)
I tested the water when I got back and seemed fine. I reckon it could have been bloat. I've fed them since I got back and they dont seem to be heating.

One lad who is just about gone seems he has a big belly. The ones I came back to were decomposed a bit so I couldnt really tell what happened.

Please Log in to join the conversation.

More
04 Aug 2010 18:53 - 04 Aug 2010 18:54 #14 by dar (darren curry)
it's enough it's all you can do for now, you could do some small 10% ones over the next few days

Check out the angling section, it is fantastic
Last edit: 04 Aug 2010 18:54 by dar (darren curry).

Please Log in to join the conversation.

More
04 Aug 2010 18:59 #15 by roealdo (j)
the water seemed ok. I have an api water test kit with test tubes. The water looked off when I got home but I put that it down to the dead fish that weren't taken out.

Please Log in to join the conversation.

More
04 Aug 2010 20:46 #16 by roealdo (j)
just after feeding them. One appear to be feeding.

One lads sucks it in and then spits it out. The rest do nothing

Please Log in to join the conversation.

More
04 Aug 2010 20:57 #17 by dar (darren curry)
they might have munched on the other 4, but it could be down to stress due to poor water conditions just keep an eye, would tonic salts and feeding of some veg sort out the stomach issues? it will do more good than harm so it's worth a bash

Check out the angling section, it is fantastic

Please Log in to join the conversation.

More
04 Aug 2010 20:59 #18 by roealdo (j)
i found 3 of the 5 that went tits up. 2 are unaccounted for

what veg should I feed them?

Please Log in to join the conversation.

More
04 Aug 2010 21:01 #19 by roealdo (j)
actually 4 of the 5

Please Log in to join the conversation.

More
04 Aug 2010 21:13 #20 by dar (darren curry)
fresh brocolli and peas par boiled, de-shell the peas and smash them up

Check out the angling section, it is fantastic

Please Log in to join the conversation.

More
04 Aug 2010 21:15 #21 by roealdo (j)
only have frozen stuff. Is it worth thawing it out?

Please Log in to join the conversation.

More
04 Aug 2010 21:20 #22 by dar (darren curry)
yep im using it right now

Check out the angling section, it is fantastic

Please Log in to join the conversation.

More
04 Aug 2010 21:22 #23 by roealdo (j)
how long should i give it to them

Please Log in to join the conversation.

More
04 Aug 2010 21:31 - 04 Aug 2010 21:34 #24 by dar (darren curry)
if they take it, once a day over the week and keep it up every other day if it suits you, veg is great for the digestive tract and varies their diet

Check out the angling section, it is fantastic
Last edit: 04 Aug 2010 21:34 by dar (darren curry).

Please Log in to join the conversation.

More
08 Aug 2010 19:57 #25 by roealdo (j)
One left. Total disaster. Looks like I'll be starting from scratch again

Please Log in to join the conversation.

More
08 Aug 2010 20:43 #26 by dar (darren curry)
dam it, sorry for your loss mate

Check out the angling section, it is fantastic

Please Log in to join the conversation.

Time to create page: 0.089 seconds
Powered by Kunena Forum