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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

Water Colour!

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14 Jan 2010 00:10 #1 by siamesefighter (Andrew Watters)
Yesterday i was going threw the fourm and i noticed alot about what type of sceneary looks best and also in a book i got 500 ways to be a better tropical fishkeeper( which a friend recomends as he calls it the bible). after taking a eye to bog wood in some tanks i decided to go out and invest in a peace, I brought it home. washed it down and cleaned it off.. I then removed the oriments that i had in it before. I then proceeded to clean the entire tank and all the artifical plants. i put the bog wood in, but after a while i noticed the colour of the water went a little greenish. darkish dull i do not know how to describe. i decided to go ahead with a 20% water change, which i cleaned with the gravel pump cleaner. i replaced the water with fresh water to the same temp and added the water treatment. waited then replaced the water i took out. but the water colour is still the same. PLEASE ADVISE!
Thanks Andy!

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14 Jan 2010 00:23 #2 by PAULHARTE25 (PAUL HARTE)
probably just thee bogwood leeching colour,it can turn the water brown or yellow,i normally leave bogwood soaking in a bucket of water for at least a week,even two,i normally change the water everyday but i dont know if thats necessary,its no harm to the fish,some people like the effect of the yellowish water,i personally didn't but a lot of people do

paul

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14 Jan 2010 00:30 #3 by Viperbot (Jason Hughes)
Hi,

Totally agree with Paul there. Most likely the bogwood is leeching tannins into your water which can leave it looking like strong tea after a while. It wont harm your fish and it totally natural, in fact it is what gives rivers like the Rio Negro and sections of the Amazon their dark colour. Just give it a good soak and it should be fine.


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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14 Jan 2010 00:39 - 14 Jan 2010 00:40 #4 by siamesefighter (Andrew Watters)
So if i take it out instantly and soak it in a bucket for a few weeks and change the water daily will that do the job? after that adding it will it have any affect on the water again? and what will i do now with the water colour in the tank will that go back to its orignal clear colour or will it be stained for now on in?
Thanks lads
Andy
Last edit: 14 Jan 2010 00:40 by siamesefighter (Andrew Watters).

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14 Jan 2010 00:57 #5 by PAULHARTE25 (PAUL HARTE)
the clear water will come back eventually with regular water changes,i made the same mistake with my first piece of bogwood,i never took it out,just kept up my weekly 20% water changes and it didn't take too long to clear up

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14 Jan 2010 01:00 #6 by siamesefighter (Andrew Watters)
And how long do you reckon it would take to clear up? or shuold i just take it out now or is it too late?

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14 Jan 2010 01:25 #7 by PAULHARTE25 (PAUL HARTE)
i cant remember exactly,took a few weeks,3-4,maybe a little more

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14 Jan 2010 12:16 #8 by siamesefighter (Andrew Watters)
thanks lads, ive decided to leave it in. the water will gradually return back to its orignal state but in the process benifical bacteria will form on the peace so all is well once more:D regular water cheaks and maintainance will do the job just nicely!

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14 Jan 2010 15:04 #9 by Markku (Markku)
Replied by Markku (Markku) on topic Re:Water Colour!
In future try to ensure there is nothing present that may affect your aquariums health, (we never actually know what bogwood rock or other decoration types have been left lying in at some point, unless you see it in a healthy tank, from a trusted friend n so on) before putting it in there. Porous rocks n such should be cleaned n scrubbed with water never detergents and blaked to kill anything on/in it, always try to add inert materials unless you want to raise or lower a specific water property with decor.

I have bogwood blackwood and driftwood and never got green water, may hbe dried out algae in the wood from previous use or storage.

Scrubing the surface and soak till it sinks, kind of soak 2 hours scrub soak 2 hours scrum process for 8 hours, if you use a slightly abrasive pad to scrub the wood to give it a surface plecos and other fish appreciate as they get some ruffage and bits of algae growing to pick at as some pieces can be very smooth and hard tho they will still get what they need either way. This also gets rid of most of the heavy leechage, a word even?:) prior to putting in the tank and reduces soak time by a lot, may be an idea if you are unsure to bake it a little to. Many have got caught out assuming something was fine and ending up with a problem or worse.
But what do i know lol, I'm nautically paranoid.


Good luck

Mark <<Newbie

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14 Jan 2010 19:19 #10 by Katherine (Katarzyna Glebocka)
I did exactly the same with my yati wood. The shop assistant didn't tell me I shouldn't have put it into the tank immediately. I was advised on the forum to change the filter media from sponge one to carbon and I did it. At the beginning I though I would die as black ash went out of the filter and water was so dark I couldn't see the background but I decided to overcome it. Next day water started to be a little bit clearer and currently (it's 3rd day) it's clear with beautiful yellowish shade. It looks even more natural. My guppy-babies seemed not to pay attention to the water colour changes.
On Saturday/Sunday I'm going to change 50 % of water. By the way when should I replace carbon for sponge in my filter?

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14 Jan 2010 19:35 #11 by cardinal (Lar Savage)
Hi Katherine
Have you taken all of the sponge out of your filter....?

lar

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14 Jan 2010 22:06 - 14 Jan 2010 22:11 #12 by stretnik (stretnik)
Replied by stretnik (stretnik) on topic Re:Water Colour!
Hi there,

There are two things you need to consider, one is that after a while a newly cycled tank has what is called a Bacterial bloom, it happens when the pollutants in your tank reach a level where there are equal amounts of pollutant ( Food ) and Bacteria which eat the food, there is normally a decline in both after this period. It normally drops away when both are in harmony and the water clears. It's difficult to gauge the problem without pictures or Video.

Where Tannin leaching is involved, this is a normal process where the Tannin stains the water and will continue to do so for a very long time becoming weaker and weaker over time. You can remove this by putting activated charcoal, after rinsing the charcoal dust that accumulates during shipping from it, into a cannister Filter, internally or externally, it doesn't matter which. When you remove the Charcoal, the colour will return as the bogwood will pretty much always leach Tannin to some degree.

Tannin is no danger in a Tank and is deemed beneficial in breeding softwater species.

If the colour is because of suspended particles, you may need to use a fine poly wool in the Filter. If you can turn off the filter for a while, check to see if the substance settles on Plants or decorations, if it does it is more likely to be dust material from substrate.

Sorry for the long winded Essay but as I said, pics or vid would help a lot.

Kev.
Last edit: 14 Jan 2010 22:11 by stretnik (stretnik).

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14 Jan 2010 23:07 #13 by Katherine (Katarzyna Glebocka)
cardinal wrote:

Hi Katherine
Have you taken all of the sponge out of your filter....?

lar


Hi Lar,

Yes, I have. Probably I shouldn't.:S

Kate

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15 Jan 2010 14:11 #14 by cardinal (Lar Savage)
well I'd recommend you cut the sponge in half and put half into your filter alongside your carbon....this allows bacteria to grow in the sponge ....without the bacteria....your tank could experience fish deaths ect....then when the water is clear...just take out the carbon and put the other half of your sponge back into the filter

Lar
PS...never wash your sponges under the tap as tap water will kill the bacteria in the sponge, always use water from the tank

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15 Jan 2010 21:03 #15 by Katherine (Katarzyna Glebocka)
It seems I am just starting to face problems... Too much dirt on the ground that I haven't noticed before and some fungi-like spots on some guppies. I'll wait till morning to be sure if it's fungi or white spots - cannot distinguish at the moment. Probably it's the result of lack of sponge in the filter and overfeeding. I am changing 50% of water and washing all gravel and ornaments in the morning and I'm going to buy any anti-fungi treatment. Have to order vacuum cleaner immediately. Maybe I'll buy some vitamins to give them later.

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15 Jan 2010 21:41 #16 by stretnik (stretnik)
Replied by stretnik (stretnik) on topic Re:Water Colour!
Hi Katherine,


1st, take a breath and take things one at a time, your fish are ok re vitamins etc, they , the Guppies that is, are hardy Fish, they get enough of them from their food, start from the beginning and leave your money in your pockets.

Do what the Guys before have suggested re your Sponges etc, do weekly small water changes, make sure your fish have eaten their food in five minutes, if they have not eaten it all you have given too much, more Fish die through over feeding. Too much food in the tank turns to fungus which looks ugly but it's the Nitrates that result from it's decay that cause problems.

Nearly every outbreak of disease come from bad water maintenence, if you keep on top of your water quality you are half way there, go slowly and you'll be fine.

Kev.

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15 Jan 2010 22:04 #17 by cardinal (Lar Savage)
Katherine
I'd suggest as kev says
....dont wash ornaments gravel ect in the morning.....
....dont worry about "dirt" or vitamins at the moment
..... replace half of the sponges into the filters
.....Don't[/b] feed for a day or two...the fish will be ok ....don't worry about them..... you will learn that fish are very opportunistic... if they see movement in the room they will
rise looking for food,only feed enough that they will eat in a few mins
......get a gravel cleaner and use it during water changes
Don't put any more fish in for the time being until we sort out your tank
do you have a water test kit...? if not I'd recommend you pick up a master test kit for freshwater .... this will take care of nearly all your needs....you should be able to pick one up in portlaoise for around €30

most importantly....dont worry .......this can all be sorted out .....

Lar

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15 Jan 2010 22:14 #18 by Katherine (Katarzyna Glebocka)
Hi Kev,
I got in to panic. I'll do my best to do everything according to suggestions: 1. I'll replace carbon (water looks nice) for sponge. (Sponge will be additionally washed in tank water.)
2. I'll try to give them less food,
3. change some water in the tank, but not so much as I wanted in the beginning
4. try to clean tank bottom
5. and wait for results.

(I wish my guppies were big enough to add some corries and algae-eaters to the tank)
Thanks,
Katherine

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15 Jan 2010 22:20 #19 by cardinal (Lar Savage)
Katherine....

you will have time to put in lots of fish once we sort out and stabilise your tank.... :) :) :) :)
Lar

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15 Jan 2010 22:23 #20 by stretnik (stretnik)
Replied by stretnik (stretnik) on topic Re:Water Colour!
Totally understandable Katherine. The hard part is seeing other Peoples Tanks that look great and it's only natural to want the same but these guys are Fishkeeping for a long time and unfortunately that's what it takes, time.

As Lar said, we WILL sort this out for you, it isn't unusual, you are only doing what you think is best and being alone so to speak makes it difficult to deal with but don't stress, it's fixable.

Try posting some pics of your setup, it might help. To do this, take your pics with a digital Camera, then upload them to either flikcr or photobucket on the web, then post the address of the pictures on this forum, that way we can go to the website you choose and view your pics.

Kev.

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18 Jan 2010 23:47 #21 by Katherine (Katarzyna Glebocka)
Sorry, I didn't write earlier but my computer was child-occupied all weekend. I did everything according to instructions and now everything seems to be OK - no white places on my fish. I changed the filter media for sponge, changed 20 % of water, added "tap safe" and "stress zyme", "hoovered" gravel (it was really very dirty) and put fish on a diet. I feed them once a day with very limited quantity of food - rest they have to find themselves in the tank. I have some pictures of the tank before water changing and after - will put them on the net this week.

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18 Jan 2010 23:59 #22 by cardinal (Lar Savage)
Hi Katherine
Thats good to hear that.....try and come along to the IMAS meeting on weds night....and we can try to help further.....

Lar

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19 Jan 2010 00:12 - 19 Jan 2010 00:14 #23 by stretnik (stretnik)
Replied by stretnik (stretnik) on topic Re:Water Colour!
See Katherine,

It's like shootin' Fish in a Barrel !:ohmy:
Well done...

Kev.
Last edit: 19 Jan 2010 00:14 by stretnik (stretnik).

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19 Jan 2010 00:15 #24 by Katherine (Katarzyna Glebocka)
Hi, I'm doing my best to find 'a volunteer' :laugh: to give me a lift there as I'm still without a car :( I didn't buy it this weekend...

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19 Jan 2010 00:19 #25 by stretnik (stretnik)
Replied by stretnik (stretnik) on topic Re:Water Colour!
I'll keep it for you as long as you like.
I have a couple of other bits nd bobs for ya too.


Kev.

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19 Jan 2010 00:20 #26 by cardinal (Lar Savage)
Pm sent....

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