Water Changes

[Aquarist]

Kind of afraid of feeding him one of those, I don't feel comfortable taking the pincers off and I'm afraid that without taking them off the Fiddler will hurt the GSP immensely..

[Aquarist]

Is it safe to feed him one with the pincers still on?

[Pufferpunk]

Females have 2 little claws.

[Aquarist]

Do males have any?... Not sure how safe this is.

[I.Puff.Too]

female fiddlers I leave the claws on...male fiddlers i take off the big claw...thats just what I do

[sevenyearnight]

Your mama is awesome.
I have been giving Balki redworms from the bait cooler in Wal-mart, and the occasional live cricket. He seems to really enjoy that they attempt to swim away. Next time I'm in the woods, I'm going to try to find some rolly pollies.

[Pufferpunk]

Only males have the one big claw.

[geronimo69]

I just want to make a few comments on the original post here...

I have 9 running tanks. 150, 75, 55, 55, 50, 3 x 20, and a 10. I do 50% water changes once a week (except my marine tank, it's about 20% every 3 or 4 days).

Instead of having 1 "water change day" I split it up. I keep a logbook so that I don't miss any. I'll do the 150 Monday, 75 and a 55 Tuesday, etc. I write down the change (50%) and also what cleaning I did, such as vacuuming the left side of the tank or cleaning a certain fliter. I find it easier spending a half hour to hour a day in my fishroom, instead of 4 straight hours on a single day. Also, regardless of my stock for freshwater (Fahaka, Severum, T-barbs, Bichirs, Syno, Crayfish, ABN, even snails) they all receive the 50% a week treatment.

My second comment has to do with test kits. You don't NEED them. You can easily bring your water to your LFS to get it tested (maybe have a test or 2 on hand for emergencies, even tho I'm not sure what kind of situation would really need a quick test insterad of water change). Once your tanks are fully established and your routine is set, you'll see they just collect dust. (as are my ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, PH and iron tests are doing right now lol).

[hadla]

They do not require the frequent testing of "young" tanks - those less than a year or two old. Once a tank stabilizes, checking periodically is all that is really needed. mature fish grow slowly, but they do continue growing, so we have to make sure the water quality is staying up.

this is interesting... so how often should i check my 20 gallon? its been running for at least 3 years

[RTR]

Experienced hobbyists tend to develop a practiced "eye". If they really pay any attention to their tanks, they can tell something is off - behavior, color, activity, appetite, something seems "off". That for calls for a full parameter check for me - and FWIIW, also done by me using my own tests. My testing is done by me and is far more reproducible and reliable than the staff at the LFS*, where different folks do the tests and may or may not do so reproducibly or accurately. My test are quite reproducible. I would not do without my own kits. If you follow the instructions, so will yousr be accurate. compared to the initial investment and operating \costs of tanks, tests are cheap. As for what a set of test can do that a water change cannot and does not do - it can and does tell you whether or not your water changes are doing what you think they are doing. If the are doing so, you can predict what your parameters will be before and after a change. If they are not, you need to revise your partial schedule and/or volume exchanged. IF they are not sufficient, your parameters will drift farther and farther from what you think they should be and are trying to maintain. If you cannot do that and must trust to the LFS staff ( I trust the LFS staff not at all), it does mean that you do not really know what is going on your tank. Personally I do not and will not operate that way.

LFS staff: Why would you trust anyone who knows less about maintaining fish than you do? These are not science lab staff whose results are checked regularly Most LFS staff are poorly paid part-timers who know little and understand less about the basics of keeping captive livestock healthy and active for many years. Yes, I am a snob about underpaid LFS staff and even most owners. The average person on this site knows more than 9o% of such folks.

[hadla]

Experienced hobbyists tend to develop a practiced "eye". If they really pay any attention to their tanks, they can tell something is off - behavior, color, activity, appetite, something seems "off". That for calls for a full parameter check for me - and FWIIW, also done by me using my own tests. My testing is done by me and is far more reproducible and reliable than the staff at the LFS*, where different folks do the tests and may or may not do so reproducibly or accurately. My test are quite reproducible. I would not do without my own kits. If you follow the instructions, so will yousr be accurate. compared to the initial investment and operating \costs of tanks, tests are cheap. As for what a set of test can do that a water change cannot and does not do - it can and does tell you whether or not your water changes are doing what you think they are doing. If the are doing so, you can predict what your parameters will be before and after a change. If they are not, you need to revise your partial schedule and/or volume exchanged. IF they are not sufficient, your parameters will drift farther and farther from what you think they should be and are trying to maintain. If you cannot do that and must trust to the LFS staff ( I trust the LFS staff not at all), it does mean that you do not really know what is going on your tank. Personally I do not and will not operate that way.

thanks, i figured just keep up with 50% water changes weekly and if i notice figgy or the gobies acting strangely, then do a test.

LFS staff: Why would you trust anyone who knows less about maintaining fish than you do? These are not science lab staff whose results are checked regularly Most LFS staff are poorly paid part-timers who know little and understand less about the basics of keeping captive livestock healthy and active for many years. Yes, I am a snob about underpaid LFS staff and even most owners. The average person on this site knows more than 9o% of such folks.

lol, yeah, luckily the people at aqua life are very knowledgeable and will listen to what you say.

[geronimo69]

Experienced hobbyists tend to develop a practiced "eye". If they really pay any attention to their tanks, they can tell something is off - behavior, color, activity, appetite, something seems "off". That for calls for a full parameter check for me - and FWIIW, also done by me using my own tests. My testing is done by me and is far more reproducible and reliable than the staff at the LFS*, where different folks do the tests and may or may not do so reproducibly or accurately. My test are quite reproducible. I would not do without my own kits. If you follow the instructions, so will yousr be accurate. compared to the initial investment and operating \costs of tanks, tests are cheap. As for what a set of test can do that a water change cannot and does not do - it can and does tell you whether or not your water changes are doing what you think they are doing. If the are doing so, you can predict what your parameters will be before and after a change. If they are not, you need to revise your partial schedule and/or volume exchanged. IF they are not sufficient, your parameters will drift farther and farther from what you think they should be and are trying to maintain. If you cannot do that and must trust to the LFS staff ( I trust the LFS staff not at all), it does mean that you do not really know what is going on your tank. Personally I do not and will not operate that way.

LFS staff: Why would you trust anyone who knows less about maintaining fish than you do? These are not science lab staff whose results are checked regularly Most LFS staff are poorly paid part-timers who know little and understand less about the basics of keeping captive livestock healthy and active for many years. Yes, I am a snob about underpaid LFS staff and even most owners. The average person on this site knows more than 9o% of such folks.

I was the one that said to get your water tested by an LFS, but I totally agree with RTR... lol.