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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

pH dropped

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08 Oct 2007 09:50 #1 by Maggie (Maggie Jardine)
Howdy guys, need some ideas?!?! My 60 litre trop tank is set up since March cycled since May and homes 6 Green Tiger Barbs, a Bala shark, 3 Ammano shrimp and an albino cory. I had a Spootted Green Puffer until last week when it stopped eating and died after three days. It had been thriving up till then on krill, snails, and brine shrimp. I tested the water at the time and got the following levels: NH3-0, NO2-0, NO3-

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08 Oct 2007 11:11 #2 by essjay (S Jackson)
Replied by essjay (S Jackson) on topic Re:pH dropped
As far as I'm aware those puffers need brackish water (I could be wrong) which would not suit your other fish at all. I'm guessing that there was no salt added to the tank and that might have been what killed it. (or it could be something completely different). From what I remember these fish start out maybe as fresh water fish but as they grow they need more and more marine conditions.

I've also read that the recommended tank size for the puffer is 200L so that may have had an effect also as they can grow to about 20cm.

I can see problems down the line for your Bala Shark unless you get a bigger tank. Those guys need around a 6 foot (500L+) tank and they get very big!

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08 Oct 2007 11:42 #3 by Maggie (Maggie Jardine)
Yep, I'm afraid I got bum info at the LFS about the Puffer and should have researched before I bought. I am setting up a 180 or 200 before the end of the year and will move the GTB's and Bala. I was really wondering more about the pH? Do I need to take any action? The GTB's have lost colour and are not eating as well...

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08 Oct 2007 11:45 #4 by Maggie (Maggie Jardine)
Sorry, half my post was missing...The pH was 7.6 since cycling and has dropped to 7.2 since last week. Could this have killed the Puffer? Other levels: NH3-0, NO2-0, NO3-

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08 Oct 2007 12:53 #5 by essjay (S Jackson)
Replied by essjay (S Jackson) on topic Re:pH dropped
I don't think a 0.4 drop in ph could kill the puffer.

If anything I'd say it could be the lack of salt in the water but I'm not sure would this kill the fish so suddenly.

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08 Oct 2007 14:06 #6 by Didihno (Didihno)
Replied by Didihno (Didihno) on topic Re:pH dropped
That 60l tank is full with the 6 barbs and the shrimp IMO!!
For that size tank I'd change the lot and get a nice shoal of smaller fish, like neons or the like.
When I started back I had 6 Tigers in a 60l with a few others and they were just never happy.
Very picky with the other fish due to no space in the tank.

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08 Oct 2007 16:43 #7 by Anthony (Anthony)
Replied by Anthony (Anthony) on topic Re:pH dropped
Maggie.
That is a big drop for any fish to take. If it was a pH rise of the same value it would be very little.
Is your nitrates causing the pH to drop. A small bt of Bread soda will raise the kh and the pH and stop it from crashing so quick in future.

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09 Oct 2007 09:16 #8 by Maggie (Maggie Jardine)
Sorry my posts keep losing some info!! NO3 is just above zero and has been for 7 weeks. The kH has lowered slightly just before that but back to a steady 5 for about 2 months. pH is the only level to change drastically.

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09 Oct 2007 14:48 #9 by KenS (Ken Simpson)
Replied by KenS (Ken Simpson) on topic Re:pH dropped
I wouldn't say the pH change is drastic. That change over a few hours wouldn't be significant and fish could experience that and more moving from an LFS to your tank. It's possible that your pH out of the tap has changed recently. Have you checked it? Best to leave the water stand for 24 hours to get a true reading as you don't always get an accurate reading straight out of the tap.

The puffer was definitely a no no for your tank. They require at least 200 litres, close to marine water in terms of salinity and are very aggressive. They are best kept to a species tank. They also require a very mature tank or can suffer. I guess the lack of all these contributed to your puffer's demise.

Regards,

Ken.

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