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  1. dw1305

    Water Testing Kit

    Hi all, Not that then, it doesn't contain any fixed nitrogen. and is only a "fertiliser" in the loosest of terms. I'll be honest I don't know the actual numbers. At some point I will attempt to quantify that (using the <"Solufeed combination"> above) and either urea (CO(NH2)2) or ammonium...
  2. dw1305

    Water Testing Kit

    Hi all, I can't help with that bit. Which fertiliser is it? cheers Darrel
  3. dw1305

    Water Testing Kit

    Hi all, Perfect, I'm going to tell you that you have more fixed nitrogen then you have measured. Why (and how) can I say this? It is because the plants can't <"lie"> and tells me that fixed nitrogen isn't the <"limiting nutrient"> for plant growth. The <"leaf colour chart"> has to work as a...
  4. dw1305

    Water Testing Kit

    Hi all, The original version of the <"Duckweed Index"> used <"a rooted emergent plant">, because of this access to aerial gases. The reason for a floating plant is purely convenience. They may not be <"quite as good"> as an emergent plant, but they are much more <"plug and play">. cheers Darrel
  5. dw1305

    Water Testing Kit

    Hi all, You may find that test kits are a viable option, purely because you may have a lot more NO3- to measure. You would need to use serial dilution to give you a more accurate reading, basically carry on diluting the water to be tested, and then multiply the value of a colour (that reads in...
  6. dw1305

    Water Testing Kit

    Hi all, You can "dial in" <"leaf colour"> (and growth rate) to any nutrient dosing regime. Like @MacZ says I try and just keep the <"plants in slow growth">, but other people use much heavier nutrient additions. I went away from Common Duckweed (Lemna minor) because it doesn't do well in very...
  7. dw1305

    Water Testing Kit

    Hi all, It was actually the difficulties in nitrate (NO3-) testing that started me down the route to the <"Duckweed Index">. Because all nitrate compounds are soluble, you <"need to reduce the NO3- to nitrite"> (NO2-) and then combine that NO2- with another reagent to produce a coloured...
  8. dw1305

    Water Testing Kit

    Hi all, What the others have said. It really depends how much you want to spend, and semi-titrimetric methods, (drop tests) are generally better than strips, but I wouldn't base decisions based on their results. The only "test kit" I use is conductivity meter, they are plug and play and even...
  9. dw1305

    Intro and 55 Gallon Idea

    Hi all, I just wouldn't fill it all the way up with water. That way you have plenty of room for emergent and/or emersed plants. This is @MacZ's tank <"https://apistogramma.com/forum/threads/food-web-in-a-south-american-biotope-tank.25346/#post-124480"> cheers Darrel
  10. dw1305

    Apistos and Rams

    Hi all, That one. I'm also a <"great moss fan">. What is your water like in terms of hardness (dGH), alkalinity (dKH) and conductivity (micro S. ~"ppm TDS"). If you are located in the UK? and don't know? An approximate location is all I need. The reason I ask is that Vallisneria isn't a <"fan...
  11. dw1305

    maturing an aquarium

    Hi all, What @MacZ says. You might be interested in the <"Duckweed Index">, it is a simple technique for maintaining water quality using a floating plant as both <"nutrient level indicator and nutrient reducer">. Same again, basically "good things come to those who wait". I've just called it...
  12. dw1305

    Keeping an apisto?

    Hi all Unfortunately not in the UK. Cheers Darrel
  13. dw1305

    Sage and waterbarrel worms

    Hi all, Salvia is a huge genus. Your plant looks like Salvia officinalis. Cheers Darrel
  14. dw1305

    Is there any way to determine age?

    Hi all, I'm not a salt fan, I don't think it does anything for fish health and it is absolutely disastrous for your plants. Why would fish that come from soft water, with negligible amounts of sodium (Na+) and chloride (Cl-), benefit from its addition? That is also a huge amount of salt...
  15. dw1305

    Clamped Fins and Tail

    Hi all, The culture method is actually the issue, none of the nitrifying organisms present are likely to be the same ones we find in our tanks. I'd like to think that is why we are all here. In terms of what we know about nitrification, the past is a different country. On UKAPS we have a...
  16. dw1305

    Acclimation

    Hi all, Turn the light off. Pour 3/4 of the water out of the bag (through a net, because accidents can happen), submerge the bag in the tank and let the tank water flow into it. Hopefully after a couple of minutes the fish will make their own way out. If they haven't? After ~ten minutes...
  17. dw1305

    Strawberry Apisto tank set up.

    Hi all, Can we have a picture? It just makes it easier for us to judge if it is a suitable tank set-up. A bigger tank would make life a lot easier. cheers Darrel
  18. dw1305

    New here!

    Hi all, What the others have said really. A filter and some water changes. I like a <"low nutrient, sand substrate">, but then I leave it pretty much undisturbed. Have a look at @apistobob 's web site <"https://dwarfcichlid.com/apistogramma-and-dwarf-cichlid-aquarium-care/"> I've also a great...
  19. dw1305

    Distribution & phylogeny of Apistogramma Species Groups

    Hi all, Dead deciduous leaves and Alder (Alnus ssp.) "cones" <"https://www.aqualog.de/en/blog-en/medicinal-trees-the-common-alder/">. Oak (Quercus spp.) leaves are usually pretty good - <"https://flnps.org/native-plants/quercus-oaks">. I think you should also have Alnus rubra cones...
  20. dw1305

    Distribution & phylogeny of Apistogramma Species Groups

    Hi all, We think some humic, fulvic and tannic substances are important in fish health, particularly for "blackwater" fish, that have evolved in situations with a very low microbial load. They may also help with osmoregulation. There are some papers linked into this thread...
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