HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: biow@cs.umd.edu (chris biow)
Newsgroups: rec.aquaria
Subject: Re: Glass Fiber Noodles ?
Date: 31 Aug 92 13:37:14 GMT
Organization: U of Maryland, Dept. of Computer Science, Coll. Pk., MD 20742

In article <JARTSU.92Aug31141411@vipunen.hut.fi> Jari.Lehto@hut.fi writes:

>With a good FW setup you can almost reach the state where water
>cahnges become unneccessary. Before using Siporax I had to change one
>fifth of the water twice a month to keep Nitrates low. After breaking
>in with Siporax I have changed the water only once per few months. I
>could completely stop changing water, all values stay well within
>limits, no matter how long I leave the tank alone. I only add some
>water to compensate evaporation and some Sodiumbicarbonate to maintain
>desired hardness. Nitrates stay on 0.

>But remember, my tank is very densely planted, and plants make the
>bio-action much more stabile.

I'm having much the same experience with my heavily planted 55g. My
Eheim is filled with Eheim's overpriced PVC Easter basket grass, followed
by their overpriced lava, followed by cheap filter floss (order in 
direction of flow). My nitrates are steady at 10ppm, despite a fairly
heavy fish load and heavy feeding--I want my discus to grow as much as 
possible. The only water changes I will do are to keep hardness from 
increasing too much.

However, I don't attribute this action to anaerobic bacteria. I 
suspect it is due to direct metabolism of nitrates by my fast
growing (there's a technical term for you) plants, including 
water sprite, hygrophilia, ludwigia, and bacopa, under CO2 
injection.

On the other hand, there are deep crevices in the lava, so 
maybe there are some anaerobic bugs in it.
 
Newsgroups: rec.aquaria,alt.aquaria
From: howardr@col.hp.com (Howard Rebel)
Subject: Re: Cannister Filter Question ?????????????????
Date: Tue, 1 Sep 1992 16:14:02 GMT
Organization: HP Colorado Springs Division

Others may disagree but I think there is only one right way, and it
applies to all correctly designed filtration system.  That is not to
say that other methods will not work, some will but in a less efficient
manner.

The mech filter must come first as it protects both the bio and the
chemical (carbon in this case) filters.

The bio filter should come after the mech but prior to the chem filter.

The chem filter must be last.

If the chem filter comes prior to or after a non existent or undersized
bio filter then then chem filter will take on the function of a bio filter.
The bacteria present in bio filters will coat the chem filter particles
and render them useless as a chem filter.

I hope this is of help to you.

In article <1992Sep1.130448.15610@wam.umd.edu> faith@wam.umd.edu (Jay) writes:
>I know this question was asked once before but I didn't see anything posted
>about it.  I am in the process of moving my tank and I have a fluval 403.
>What is the best way to put the media in?
>
>            #1               #2              #3
>
>           FOAM            CARBON
>          CARBON            FOAM         (your way)
>        PRE-FILTER       PRE-FILTER 
>
>Thanks,  Jay
>


-- 
Howard Rebel hpcsos.col.hp.com 

Newsgroups: rec.aquaria
From: ron@minnow.sp.unisys.com (Ron Burns)
Subject: [M] Live Rock and White scum
Keywords: live rock mail order
Reply-To: ron@minnow.UUCP (Ron Burns)
Organization: Unisys Corporation
Date: Tue, 25 Aug 1992 16:03:28 GMT

Several people seem to have mentioned a white, mold-like scum coating
in their tanks soon after adding live rock.  Anyone care to try to explain 
this?

-- 
Ron Burns              
Unisys Corporation                                      ...!rosevax!minnow!ron
Phone:(612)635-6927                           minnow%ron@rosevax.rosemount.com
From: johanb@echo.philips.nl (Johan Slob)
Newsgroups: rec.aquaria
Subject: Octopus
Date: 2 Sep 92 12:30:28 GMT
Organization: Digital Equipment Corporation, E.C.H.O. development department
X-Newsreader: Tin 1.1 PL4


Does anyone know anything about keeping an octopus in an 
aquarium?

  - size, temperature of aquarium
  - best sort of Octopus
  - recommended literature

All information is appreciated.
Johan
Newsgroups: rec.aquaria,alt.aquaria
From: wissler@stsci.edu (Steven Wissler,G12,4899,ADD.1-29-91)
Subject: Re: [M][R] Improving Captive Reef Base Rock
Originator: wissler@homer.stsci.edu
Organization: Space Telescope Science Institute
Distribution: usa
Date: Wed, 2 Sep 1992 13:40:14 GMT

	I have also put some "dead" rock in my reef tank as part of the
base rock in hopes of it becoming "live rock". Since live rock may at
	sometime become harder to get, I hope this technique can be used
	to reduce the amount of "live" rock taken from the ocean. So far
	the "dead" picies have are gathering quite an assortment of
algae, green and coraline, various worms and other things I haven't
	been able to identify yet. 

						Steve Wissler
						wissler@stsci.edu
From: booth@hplvec.LVLD.HP.COM (George Booth)
Date: Mon, 31 Aug 1992 20:52:19 GMT
Subject: Re: (FW) on UGFs and plants
Organization: Hewlett-Packard Co., Loveland, CO
Newsgroups: rec.aquaria

In alt.aquaria, mstephens.520@postman.gsfc.nasa.gov (mark stephens) writes:

    Now if George fires back that is UGF plant tank has nitrates
    higher than 50 ppm, we can scratch number 2!

                   mark

The highest it has been lately is 35 ppm.  It's now down in the 10's.

Keep in mind that we have 2 UGF tanks - the 85 g is CO2 injected and
supports all the lush plant growth anyone could hope for.  The 55 g
is not CO2 injected and shows a little plant growth, but not very much. 
If it weren't for the excellent growth in the 85, I would probably 
subscribe to the aquarium myth of "plants don't like UGF".  I agree 
with Mark - people with UGFs are usually beginners and don't have 
good plant growth because of other factors - poor lighting, poor
plant nutrition and/or poor choice of plants for their conditions. 

What is surprising is that the 55 g tank has the best Cryptocoryne growth
of all the tanks. 

We "refurbished" the 55 this weekend and have replanted most of the 
crypts.  We tossed a large bunch of Myriophyllum ("ambulia") that grew
OK but tended to collect smear algae.  Some Echinodorus cordifolia was
tossed - it didn't grow.  Three of four E. bleheri were tossed - they
seem to have suffered Pleco damage.  A giant Java Fern was tossed - 
Pleco damage and algae.  Four large clumps of Anubias nana were also
tossed. 

After removing all the plants, the gravel was *very* thoroughly vacuumed - 
this tank gets the short end of the stick, maintenance-wise and the gravel
was very crudded up.  After cleaning, we added a bunch of petrified wood 
for decoration and replanted the crypts - C. willisii, C. wendtii and 
C. affinis. 

All the crypts had very long roots - 8-12" in a few cases.  We decided
to plant just crypts to see if they would continue to grow well in
this tank (especially after the "brutal" cleaning).  Also, a recent
article in _The_Aquatic_Gardener_ suggested that crypts and Anubias
don't "get along well" together.  We'll see. 

------
George
Newsgroups: rec.aquaria
From: lenny@bmerh187.BNR.CA (Len DePalma)
Subject: Re: Gallons (was: Re: [F] Setup for plants
Reply-To: lenny@x400gate.bnr.ca
Organization: BNR Ottawa, Fiber Systems Development
Date: Mon, 31 Aug 92 16:44:27 GMT


In article <1992Aug27.174709.5955@relay.nswc.navy.mil>,
whiles@nswc.navy.mil (William Scott Hiles x1568) writes:
|> NO!  If you read this group and want the information, translate.  Gees...
|> how arrogant can you get!

Coming from an American, that really hurts!   :)

Seriously though, as one who has experienced both (I was in junior high
school when Canada switched from English to Metric), I fail to see why
the aquaria industry still clings to the older system.  Since so much of
what it does involves ratios and concentrations... all of which are SO
much easier to calculate with a decimal based system.  

|>                           Regardless of what you may want people to
|> say or write, the products sold in the US still bear the size in gallons.
|> This is true of not only the stuff made in the US, but also stuff imported
|> in.

Wow, I'm surprised... honest, I thought it was just coincidence that
stuff targetted for the US market would be in US gallons?  :)

Speaking of arrogance, why is there both a US and English gallon?
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
INTERNET: lenny@bnr.ca                 Any opinions expressed are mine.

"You get the most noise from the emptiest barrels."  (Burton Cummings)
From: infante@acpub.duke.edu (Andrew  Infante)
Newsgroups: rec.aquaria
Subject: Re: Goldfish sick: Help
Date: 28 Aug 92 17:01:17 GMT
Organization: Duke University; Durham, N.C.

In article <1992Aug28.150645.2470@fs7.ece.cmu.edu> rajesh@maruti.ece.cmu.edu (Rajesh H. Zele) writes:
>I have a tiny goldfish about 1.5' long. I got him just last week,
          ^^^^                ^^^^>
>Please help.....
>
>Rajesh


Wow, what do consider to be a *big* goldfish!?

;-)

later.

andy
Newsgroups: rec.aquaria
From: dhiggs@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu (General Protection Fault)
Subject: Re: Question about Frogs in FW Tank
Organization: is the refuge of the unimaginative!
Date: Mon, 31 Aug 1992 14:10:46 GMT


In article <67287@hydra.gatech.EDU> gt0963d@prism.gatech.EDU (Deeptendu Majumde
r) writes:
+I was at a local Aquarium store today and saw this FW
+tank with little frogs slip sliding around the tank floor.
+My question is can these frogs survive under water for
+extended period of time ? I am used to seeing frogs that
+stay near the edge of ponds and marshes, leading an
+amphibian lifestyle. The guy, i was talking to, said that
+these frogs come up to the surface every now and then.
+So, is it normal to have these frogs sitting at the
+bottom of your FW tank ? or do you need special tanks ?
+
+many thanks
+d.

Yes, it's normal.  Yes, they do come up to breath.  CAUTION: most frogs are 
escape artists!!!  They can get out, hop across the room, dry out, and die (in 
that order usually).  Seal the top or your tank if you're going to have these!

Keith.
-- 
D.K.Higgs  DATA+@osu.edu  a.k.a  dhiggs@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu _____   __o
Ohio State University Libraries, Acquisitions Department      -------    -\<,
Continuation Acquisition Division                              ------ ( )/ ( )
~~(614)292-6314~~~~~~fax(614)292-2015~~~~~~~~~~\_________/~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
From: storm@atlantis.CS.ORST.EDU (Mutant Wierdness)
Newsgroups: rec.aquaria
Subject: Re: Question about Frogs in FW Tank
Date: 31 Aug 92 23:19:54 GMT
Organization: Computer Science Outreach Services - Oregon State University

mojo@reed.edu (adrenochrome) writes:


>As regards African dwarf frogs: I've read in at least one place that they
>will, if contented, poke their heads out of the water and make what one
>presumes are little contented-frog sounds.  Does this actually happen?
>Mine seem happy enough, but I've yet to hear a peep out of them after
>several months.
 I have had 2 afr. frogs.... never heard anything from them. 

 On a sorrow note. My latest frog died the same day as my pleco*. I had just
 tested the water... and it was fine... I have had the frog and pleco* for 
 over 5 months. They were just fine the other day and all of a sudden, dead.
 I have done nothing different to my 10gal FW tank. just water changes every 2-3 weeks. Anyone have any ideas? My other fish seem just fine. I do understand
 that the frog had a toxic slimecoat. Could it be possible that my pleco* was
 just crusing around sucking on rocks and mistakenly sucked on the frog? If
 this was the case, why would the frog die? anyways... thanks for an possible
 i deas...

-- 
_______________________________________________________________________________
# storm@atlantis.cs.orst.edu                                                  #
# storm@jacobs.cs.orst.edu               Disclaimer: I will deny everything   #
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Newsgroups: rec.aquaria
From: cliff@watson.ibm.com (cliff)
Subject: Rena 101 Air Pump
Date: Fri, 28 Aug 1992 15:21:41 GMT
Disclaimer: This posting represents the poster's views, not necessarily those of IBM
Organization: A

1. Anyone ever hear of a Rena 101 air pump?  Mine's quite noisy.

2. Any reason do put an airstone on the tube for the UGF?  I find I get
a better flow rate with no airstone?

Thanks
Newsgroups: rec.aquaria
From: annied@athena.mit.edu (Anne Dudfield)
Subject: need fish ideas
Organization: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Date: Thu, 27 Aug 1992 21:05:42 GMT

Hi!  I recently started a 10 gallon tank, and I've had 5 tiger barbs living in it
for over a month, and they're all healthy and happy.  I think it's time to get
some more fish, and I need suggestions as to what kind to get.  Any ideas?

Also, how important is an air pump?  The pet store person didn't recommend one,
and my fish have been doing fine without it.

Anne
From: plee@panix.com (John Lee)
Newsgroups: rec.aquaria
Subject: [fresh] weird fish symptom
Date: 29 Aug 92 23:50:39 GMT
Organization: PANIX Public Access Unix & Internet, NYC

Hi,

	I have been following this group for a while, but this is my
first post.

	I noticed that the fish in my tank has been dying in the same 
manner.  First, they start to swim at an angle.  Then they either float with 
the head showing on the water or they would be laying on the gravel.  Next
thing would happen is they would be floundering.  Struggling very hard to 
swim straght or swim at all.  A day later, the fish would be dead.  One 
strange thing is that the body would sizzle when it is lift out of water. 
It takes about two weeks from its first symptom to the untimely demise.

	Another thing I noticed is that the water is always acidic even
though I change the water twice a week.

	Can anybody explain this?

JPHL
Newsgroups: rec.aquaria
From: jimh@ultra.com (Jim Hurley)
Subject: Live food query
Organization: Ultra Network Technologies
Date: Tue, 25 Aug 92 20:01:31 GMT

Many books say that some fish will only eat live food, or that
they will not subsist on a diet of flake food.

Why is this so? I can understand that a fish will instinctively
know which food is good for them, and that live wriggling things
attract attention. But if a fish is hungry, and the flake food
had all the right ingredients, why won't they eat? Most fish
have a sense of smell, and flake food has products made
from their usual diet.

Is it because in the wild, a non-moving critter is dead,
and dead food may be bad for them, harboring disease organism?
In this case it is a survival instinct, but still I would
eat bad food if I were hungry enough...

I guess some fish can learn to recognize flake food as food,
even if they are accustomed to only live food.

These are very general questions, I know, I just want to start a
little discussion.
-- 
Jim Hurley --> jimh@ultra.com  ...!ames!ultra!jimh  (408) 922-0100
Ultra Network Technologies / 101 Daggett Drive / San Jose CA 95134
Newsgroups: rec.aquaria
From: howardr@col.hp.com (Howard Rebel)
Subject: Re: Speak for yourself (Was: Serpae Tetra beating goldfish)
Date: Wed, 2 Sep 1992 22:27:46 GMT
Organization: HP Colorado Springs Division

In article <Btyy36.8GB@acsu.buffalo.edu> caross@acsu.buffalo.edu (Christian Ross) writes:
>I'm sorry, but I am sure there are also a large number of "die hards" who
>agree with the poster who termed fancy goldfish "unnatural".

	I was a bit uneasy about the word "unnatural" so I checked
	Webster on it. The #1 definition of unnatural is "Against 
	natural law, esp. abnormal or unusual."  Much of what we
	keep we keep because it is abnormal (irregular) or unusual.
	The neon tetras because they are brite, the sailfin molly
	because we of the irregular dorsal.

	As to being against natural law remember that fancy goldfish
	do not have altered genes, just recessive ones that show.

>You are absolutely correct, they are no more unnatural than any domesticated,
>selectively bread animal like dogs, cats, horses, etc... 

	Check.

>but how long would
>any of them survive in their natural environment. Fancy fan-tailed goldfish
>wouldn't last 10 minutes in their native waters, they've been bred to be
>pretty, but slow and shiny.

	Which has little to do with anything.
	A dairy cow would not last 10 minutes in a wolf pack?
	How long would a domesticated turkey last anywhere?
	So what is your point?
	Why should goldfish have to survive in natural waters?
	They have been domesticated for over a thousand years.
	

>Just try and pass off bubble-eyed goldfish as a natural adaptation to their
>environment.

	I have no intent to and can see no advantage in doing so.

>I find the fish that look "real" far more beautiful from an
>aesthetic viewpoint than any selectively bred showcase fish. So I'll
>stick with my corydoras and tetras.

	No one is asking you to betray you interests, only that you
	allow others theirs.

>I am not ignorant. I just don't like silly looking fish. And I'm not trying
>to lump you with the people who paint fish. I don't have any problem with
>breeding fish so that you find them aesthetic, but, I'm not going to
>buy them.

	I do not think that there are many aquarium fish which are
	not breed for aesthetics.

	Unless the fish you have in your tank were wild caught it is
	quite possible that an ancestor was selected by a breeder because 
	it was a prime example of the type as viewed by THAT breeder.  
	It may even be of a type created by a breeder.
	If you got your fish from a pet shop there is a chance that it
	was raised in pool filled with steriods and drugs.  The food
	you are feeding it may make a claim regarding its abilty to
	bring out the color in a fish etc..... real natural .....

	While as you pointed out your are not ignorant in the general sense
	of the word I think that you (and a few die-hards) should 
	reconsider the bad rap they give fancy goldfish on an ongoing basis.

	Note that I did not bad mouth the less domesticated fish or the
	people that keep them.

-- 
Howard Rebel hpcsos.col.hp.com
From: richmond@flipper (Stupendous Man)
Newsgroups: rec.aquaria
Subject: Thoughts while disassembling my aquaria
Date: 28 Aug 1992 01:31:59 GMT
Organization: Astro Dept., U.C. Berkeley
Distribution: world
NNTP-Posting-Host: flipper.berkeley.edu

  I took down my two tanks this week because I'm moving to New
Jersey (good bye, Bay Area water :-() and I noticed a few things
that I thought I'd mention.

  My 10-gallon guppy tank had a UGF which had been in action for over
two years.  I had good luck with plants in that tank, despite the
oft-heard claim that a UGF is death to plants.  An Amazon sword, which
was still potted in its original container, had spread roots over half the 
tank, and some little grassy stuff had covered more than half the 
bottom.  The Anarchis, of course, had put down roots as well as
covering the surface.  So I guess it is POSSIBLE for plants to
thrive even if a UGF is working.

  However, I dreaded cleaning the filter plate, after hearing the
horror stories of the muck and stinking ooze that awaited me.
Well, after I dug down through the gravel to the plate, there
was a slight muddy smell, but that was it.  When I lifted up 
the plates, I found them to be clean as a whistle, top and bottom.
So, like, what's the deal?  I'm not complaining, and the fish
surely didn't complain, so the filter must have been working.
Wierd.  Maybe the vacuuming every week or two was enough ...
my technique is to slurp up water in pulses, getting the detritus
to go up to the hose but allowing the sand to settle back.
I guess it worked.

  My other tank, with only a thin 1-inch scattering of gravel and
no UGF, also had some healthy root systems.  The sword plant in
it was still in its pot, but I had removed the crypt and placed it
"naked" into the gravel as best I could.  It did pretty well.
I add about 1/32 of a teaspoon of citric acid to the two gallons 
of water I add whenever I make a change, and the plants seem to like
it.

  Finally - of the five otocincli I started out with a year ago,
only ONE survived to end; I had one in the 10-gallon, who disappeared
after about ten months (I found no trace when cleaning the tank),
and four in the 29-gallon.  I had noticed that there seemed to be 
only three after a while, then two, and was wondering if they
teleported back to their home world after getting homesick :-)
But I found the body of one in the big tank as I cleaned it out,
so either they just waste away and rot quickly, or this one's
communicator wasn't working.

  Anyway, I hope to set up a South American tank with more plants,
a school of neons and a pair of kribs when I get settled.  Is 
there a group in the Princeton area that I might join?


-- 
--
"Haven't you got better things to do        Michael Richmond
 with your time than grope a cat?"          richmond@bkyast.berkeley.edu
Xref: sparky rec.aquaria:6963 alt.aquaria:4815
From: oleg@Veritas.COM (Oleg Kiselev)
Newsgroups: rec.aquaria,alt.aquaria
Subject: Re: Suggestions for a Long, Short Tank
Date: 1 Sep 92 04:16:37 GMT
Reply-To: oleg@veritas.com (Oleg Kiselev)
Organization: Palo Alto Killifish Loft
X-Disclaimer: I speak for myself only unless explicitly indicated otherwise

cburns@ucs.indiana.edu (chris burns) writes:
>Yes, White Clouds are cold water fish, but they do just fine at tropical
>temperatures (eg. 80F).  Not only do they do fine, they spawn at high temps

They don't look as brightly coloured or live nearly as long as when they
are kept cooler.  Of course, if you do things right and they breed, the
shorter life span should be irrelevant.
-- 
"Republicans understand the importance of bondage between a mother and 
child." -- Dan Quayle
 
Oleg Kiselev                                             oleg@veritas.com
From: booth@hplvec.LVLD.HP.COM (George Booth)
Date: Tue, 1 Sep 1992 18:51:59 GMT
Subject: Re: Gallons (was: Re: [F] Setup for plants and fish)
Organization: Hewlett-Packard Co., Loveland, CO
Newsgroups: rec.aquaria

In rec.aquaria, lenny@bmerh187.BNR.CA (Len DePalma) writes:


    Why waste your time with that pathetic system, haven't you heard,
    metric's the word!  Do us all (it's universal outside of the US and
    Britain, isn't it?) a favour and use LITRES instead.
                          ^^^^^^         ^^^^^^

Geez, do *us* a favor and learn to spell :-)

I use the US gallon which is 3.7853 liters.  An Imperial gallon is
4.546 liters, so a US gallon is 0.833 Imperial gallons.  Jeez, that's
exactly 5/6!  How unique; wonder how that came about?  Probably just
another plot of the Great Satan oil companies...

-------
George
Newsgroups: rec.aquaria,alt.aquaria