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I'll bare that in mind. I'm swaying towards the idea of preparing the water for the following week during my water change. My theory is I can fill a bucket with rain water after completing a water change, add my alder cones and some Oak leaves and pop an airstone in. This will give the tannins...
I couldn't resist in the end. I spent an hour or so gathering oak leaves and Alder cones. I managed to get a carrier bag full of Oak leaves and about a third of a bag of cones. Thanks for the tip!
I spent my lunch break looking back through Aqualife Leylands recent FB posts. They've had some really nice fish in lately and several are on my wish list! Vaillant's Chocolate Gourami, Dario sp. Myanmar, Psuedomugil luminatus, I could fill my house with tanks of fish from there if I had more time.
Like I said, I expected frogbit to grow, albeit very slowly. I guess I'll look into the fertilisers others mentioned elsewhere.
Fingers crossed you have just a couple of males at most then. It sounds like an excellent combination though.
Sorry, I could have been clearer, the Biotoecus and...
Thanks Darrel,
It's not too far from me at just over an hour away. I've downloaded his app, there are some stunning species including many I've never seen in person in the "sold out" section, hopefully he'll get some back in once I have everything set up!
Thanks Tom,
It looks well worth a...
I assume you don't measure pH electronically then? I've just had a look online and I can find cheap TDS meters including an Amtra model, but no pH meters that seem to be up to standard.
Wow, I'm surprised floating plants wont grow. I intend to grow floating plants because my tanks lights are...
Something to add to the Christmas list I think. I may need a cheaper one in the meantime. Unfortunately I'm aiming to keep my costs down until I finish decorating the house. MacZs suggestion sounded a little more affordable for now :p
I wont be using peat, I've surveyed my local peat bogs and...
Thanks again dw1305, the replies to this post have certainly given me the confidence to go the full RO / Rainwater route. Hopefully I can reach my target pH naturally with Alder cones and leaves. I just need to start collecting them! I don't plan on having aquatic plants with the exception being...
Thanks Bowluvr, I guess I can try them, but it sounds like Oak will be my best option.
I have a few other ideas, I actually have some sort of fig in my garden, it never produces many leaves but I'll be sure to try a few since they're somewhat biotope correct. I'll also beg some palm fronds...
Thank you Ben. I'll be aiming for anything acidic initially, but once I move onto the more demanding blackwater species I'll have to aim lower I guess. What constitutes "a LOT" of humic substances, are we talking large quantities of leaves or the alder cone extract @MacZ mentioned previously...
Looks like I have another thing to spend money on! Do you recommend any particular model of TDS/EC meter?
I assume I should continue to check Nitrates using the drip tests such as that found in the API test kit and do water changes accordingly? Will the TDS also rise between water changes as a...
Thanks dw1305 and MacZ!
There's some useful information in your replies and in those links. Off the top of my head, I have easy access to oak leaves at work, or I can venture out into the countryside around my village and find plenty. I have access to Silver Birch in my garden which I gather...
Hi MacZ, thank you for taking the time to reply!
I plan on setting up at least three large water buts for gardening purposes anyway, there's no reason I can't use them for my aquariums during the winter, so this is good to hear.
If I'm not adding anything to the water, is my only control over...
A slightly related question. I see a lot of recommendations for Alder cones, but never Alder leaves. Is there a specific reason for this? I'd imagine Oak, Beech and Indian Almond leaves last longer but I have access to lots of Alder trees. Collecting the other species would require some garden...
Hello,
I'm preparing to dive back into fishkeeping after a long hiatus. I previously kept a pair of A. macmasteri who showed frequent courtship behaviour but never raised eggs successfully. At the time my tap water contained nitrates of at least 50 ppm and gH was around 15, pH was somewhere in...
I just wanted to thank those who contributed to this thread. I'm currently preparing to dive back into fish keeping after a long hiatus and this time around I hope to truly embrace the black water / softwater species.
All of the information above has been very useful. I have a Chemistry masters...
Where are you based? I've seen this species posted on FB recently by two stores near me here in the UK. Wharf Aquatics in Nottinghamshire and Ferrybridge Aquatics in Yorkshire. They probably still have them available if you're seeking more.
Hello everyone,
I'm hoping to tap into the wealth of knowledge you all have in the near future. I kept a successful and healthy loose biotope based on the Rio Meta system in the past including a stunning pair of Apistogramma macmasteri. I never managed to get the pair to spawn despite both...