Flumpweesel

Lovely article. Mystery snails have only just started reappearing in UK as they are banned in the EU for causing big problems in the Spanish sewer systems. I like seeing bladder snails in the tank never ventured into actually keeping snails. Tried some very large ramhorns with my goldfish once but that was just expensive food in the end. Maybe I'll give neurite a go one day. If I'm getting a snail it's got to eat algae or I'll just feel cheated.

A good mum should never have favourites but if I was starting again I would struggle not to get. Pygmy corys they are always up to something can't have up many of those Long tailed cherry barbs again super active. Garra ruffa I love how they interact with each other.

Ok I'm far to impressed by the fact you get buckets with the tank but it does the idea that water changes will be a thing from the get go which is important for first timers I was also impressed it included a heater which is uncommon in these all in ones and I liked how tidy it all was in the tank. I have a fluval chi all in one and I just replaced their filter material with my own foam but only after the one it came with had been in dry storage for a few years and had got a bit grotty. For a tiny tank it cycles really quickly and is a really stress free so I would expect the accent to perform well draining the water through the filter seems like a great idea to the extra force will be like shaking the media without splashing everywhere.

If your in the northwest UK there is a slightly odd tank seller on Facebook market place that might be useful to you. DM me if you want more details.

Moss is one of those things that looks great in other people's tank but I've never got the hang of it. It just becomes an expensive greeny brown mess to fish out.

I'd take my aquarium water to fish store and ask them to test it (or see if there test gave the same results as yours). Are you doing a fish in cycle, ghost feeding or using ammonia to cycle, the first stages can take awhile

Congrats, I tried hillstream loaches with my goldfish and it didn't work out. But I had comets and they liked to take the loaches off the glass didn't eat them just liked to play with them. Looks like you've got it sorted though.

I sometimes don't like my SAE's but that normally only when they have had a rampage and knocked everything over or grazed on all my poor corys eggs before I've had chance to harvest them. The rest of the time they are ok. I'm not fond of the look of platys and Molly's . The fear of the population explosion is enough to keep me away from live bearers in general and I have had actual nightmares about African dwarf frogs.

@KittenFishMom sorry to hear about your mum, do allow the hospice to take the pressure off you a little so you can spend this precious time together. Don't forget how to smile or laugh no matter how hard things feel it will help you both. Take care.

I'm not an Otto expert and I can't give advice on the meds because I don't have access to them. But to me it doesn't look like fin rot as there is no angry red sore looking line to the tail that i would expect to see. It looks a bit more like general damage although who in the tank now that would cause that I don't know. My Otto's where everywhere when I first added them then pretty invisible most days. I have plenty of algae at the back and sides of the tank though so they are behind the plants most of the time. Sorry about Nimbus and the struggle you are having. I wonder if the assassin snails get a bit greedy after lights out Hopefully keeping the water in good order the tails will grow back. I've read plenty of tips on here about how to ensure Ottos have food from growing algae on pebbles on a window sill to add to the tank or faking it with rapashy. Got my fingers crossed that this turns around for you soon though

Sometimes listen to their live streams and occasionally wonder if live streaming is good for their marriage. I do enjoy how enthusiastic they are.

I enjoy the longer format talk driven formats as I mainly listen while working so can't watch (occasionally glances aside).

The more we buy on line from Amazon ect effects directly the chance of LFS remaining profitable in our area's and once they are gone they are very unlikely to return. I am very lucky I have a lot of good LFS close to me, seems almost a standard for me that garden centres will have an aquarium department and a cafe so make for quite a nice trip out. I only buy online in an emergency or for items I know they won't stock ( impellers and O rings). The internet is squeezing all the retail stores especially now when you price check in the store. Isn't an extra couple of quid worth it for having the store in the first place. All the shops are struggling at the moment I hope we find a way of thinking differently about shopping before its to late. The hobby isn't dying probably more people than ever keeping fish and certainly far more species are available but it is changing and we will have to adapt as it does. The increasing costs of shipping and stock will probably mean less choice in stores as the best way for them to save is to reduce number of lines held sadly this then drives us back to on-line shopping. I am planning a trip to a store this weekend to restock fish food and I will no doubt put money into the cafe and as it is spring the garden centre to.

Forgive the rubbish screen print best I can do on my phone but this is how mine connects up.

That's a happiness box.

If you don't fancy or have the space for a sump I would expect you just connect to a canister filter my fluval tank has very a very similar pipe system inside the tank and the canister connects below ( or it would but I have a low tank ). Obviously there are some advantages to a sump just throwing in an option

Nothing else here, I hanker after other pets (dogs and birds mainly) but I don't have the lifestyle they need. Growing up I was very lucky and lived in the countryside so I had a menagerie. Dogs, cats, rabbits, guineapigs, a budgie, geese, a terrapin, a donkey and of course fish. So maybe I've had my quota.

Congratulations.

I quite like this one https://www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/ I don't subscribe but I do like a magazine when traveling they have a lot of online stuff to

Check you out with the posh name for dragon stone (I had to look it up). Give it a wash to get dust and shop germs off it and should be good to go

I had some random fish deaths nothing as catastrophic as yours just a few unexplained deaths of seemingly healthy fish however I did discover my heater was cracked and there was a fair amount of charge leakage so do double check all equipment is operating correctly. Leakage can be felt as a weird tingle when you're close to it.

1) 2 a 230l (60 US Gal) and little betta tank that was supposed to shrimp tank but I got carried away in LFS. 2) once in big tank sometimes twice on the little tank 3) rarely - no need with my community they all seem to do well each feed. 4) I normally (but not always) have a few different foods on the go and feed whatever I fancy from the selection and occasionally they get frozen or live foods. No pattern to it just whatever I feel like. Normally one sinking one floaty one each feed.

So I always pick up something when I'm at the shore to decorate my house, garden or home with. But I had to let this one go, time to start keeping a saw in the car boot. I did pick up a couple of nice pebbles though so not all bad.

Works fine in my set up, I believe Otto's can be tricky to get onto bought food so do let some algae grow to help them settle in I have 6 Otto's, about 8 corys and 5 pygmy corys in my community tank

Split the males and females and at least stop the population explosion continuing.