Aaah! Thanks everybody! I'll hop to it as soon as!

I'm a man with a plan now.. :)

Can it be done?

See my mate has one which is getting too big for it's tank and a tank upgrade isn't really an option so she's asked if I can put it in my pond tho I'm not sure if it's a good idea or not. tho I imagine with the weather being as good as it is at the moment, would this be the best time to try it?

I have two koi and some goldfish (plus some tadpoles and two frogs) already in there.

Just wondering if anyone can enlighten me as to why my external filter seems to constantly have air in it. It's a fluval power filter 205 (external). I wonder if the seal has gone on in it, maybe it's needing replaced but the thing is there's no sign of water leaking out or anything it's just every time I seem to clear the air out of it (by gentle rocking every now and again) a couple of days later it's just as bad.
Think I need an upgrade or somethin.. Was lookin at Eheim filters. Are they any good?

Thanks for readin.

I do have a garage actually. And a shed funnily enough. Though my garage has a power supply so that may well be the best option. Current pond temperature at 4pm today is 12C and inside it's 24C quite a difference eh? I've opened a window in the room where the fish are to try and drop the temperature in preparation.

I've been using a treatment called Omnipur which is a broad range treatment for fungus slime and velvet sort of diseases and a dose of Melafix every day. The week long treatment is almost up and I'm pleased to say it seems to have worked well and I'm due to stop treatment tomorrow or the next day.

Just checked the weather forecast, today it's supposedly 14C outside despite the dull weather and rain but on Saturday it's due to lower to 13C and Sunday 11C tho it's going to be partly Sunny.. I'll pick up some wheatgerm and pomd salt tomorrow when I finish work. I do have rock salt which I have used in my tropical tank before. Rock salt cos it doesn't contain the nasty anti caking agents, would that be an idea? Maybe I'll just go with the pond salt rather than cut corners.

One more thing, why may I ask should I raise the pumps? to a higher level? I gather it will give more space near the bottom of the pond no? I'll do it anyway. Is it normal in some cases to switch of pumps and filters during the winter time? i'd prefer to leave mine on cos it keeps the surface moving. I have a surface heater but I don't want to use it unless it's absolutely essential. Also would a water change be in order? my pond is quite dirty I think I noticed this when I took out some water to hold the fish for treatment. My Uncle has a pondvac which I can borrow.

Sorry about the essay but thanks for the feedback. :)

I was hoping nobody would say that, though it does certainly seem like the most logical of logical ideas however. I do appreciate the feedback, and I thank you for it.

They are currently in a 50 Litre storage box, I'm beginning to think about getting my hands on a tank which may be roughly the same capacity if I'm to keep them indoors til next year as they aren't all that big yet. It's really now a question of space.

If it wasn't for the silver sharks and the gourami in my tropical tank it'd be easy to put them in there.

I'm still open to suggestion tho i'm beginning to think I may be best to keep them indoors. Need to see if I can get my hands on second hand tank I think.

Thanks everybody!

Hi, Just wondering what I should do next with regard to my koi.

The Story so far...

A few days ago I noticed that two of the koi in my pond (I only have two amongst 4 goldfish) were showing signs of fungus and body ulcers. I have since removed them from the pond and am currently treating them indoors in a vat using Omnipur and Melafix which seems to be working a treat. I also have a filter running and aeriation. I was advised to isolate the fish as the disease only seems to be affecting the two koi and not to mention the dip in temperature (I live in Central Scotland, brrrrr...)which would hinder the effectivness of the treatment. So they are inside at the moment. They still have another three days to go before I'm due to release them back into the pond but I am concerned that the drop in temperature will upset them and the fact that the pond hasn't been treated, the disease may come back?
Would it be a good idea to clean out my filters and/or do a partial water change this late in the season prior to releasing the koi? I was considering moving my fish into the garage for the final couple of days of treatment too, would this be a good idea?

Thanks for readin!

Looks fantastic! The lunar system sounds really interesting, what is it composed of? I've only ever heard about halide lamps, are they for coral and plant growth? I probably sound like a total amateur here but I find that with no matter how much experience you have you just keep on learning..

I take it the fans you talk about are for water circulation around the tank? I wonder if I should invest in one instead of using a small internal filter along side the the external one for that purpose.

I'd love to get into Marine and Nano Reefs etc but they always seemed like a lot of (rewarding no less) work. Having enough problems with my tropical set up at the minute. :(

Your tank really is fine looking, good luck with the rest of it. I look forward to seeing more photos.

Hey everybody..

I've never had so little luck with fish than what i've had with pictus Catfish... I've tried to keep these wonderful fish in my tank(s) on four seperate occasions over the space of acout ten years and I'm really just about ready to give up.. (again) I really don't know what i'm doing wrong but every time I get a pair one dies after a few days then the other dies shortly after. I have a 130L (approx) tank measuring four feet in length and "about" a foot high and wide. I have plants and bogwood so plenty hiding space. Running a fluval 205 external filter (plus a wee internal filter for the sake of circulation on the other side) I do relatively regualr water changes every couple of weeks. My tank contains two silver sharks, a clown plec and a three spot gourami who all seem fine and have been for the past year or two.

Just carried out the usual water tests and results are as follows:

pH: 6.0

Ammonia: 0 (tho the test does look slightly above the scale so there may well be a trace but not enough to actually reach the initial 0.25 mg/L

Nitrite: 0

Nitrate: 20

I don't know about water hardness but I believe the water in my area is as really soft. I live in Scotland about 20 miles out of Glasgow so the water is generally soft everywhere. (funny how tea tastes better down south tho)

I did try feeding them bloodworm and even catfish pellets but they didn't seem interested in either. The thing that really gets to me is the fact that i've tried keeping these fish so many times bought from different shops on different occassions and a lot of the time under different tank set ups (tropical still) and each time i've never had any joy. It's just werid and frustrating. Anyway, thanks for reading!

Thanks everybody!! Sorry it's taken me aaages to get back in touch, even if anyone else comes back to visit this thread.. I haven't seen much of my frog/toad but a few months ago he was SOOO vocal it was quite amazing.. So the next day I constructed a sort of ledge that should allow him to get in and out with more ease.. I've not seen him around much as of late but here's hoping he returns..

I'd love to invite some newts into my pond too though I think it'd be nothing short of a mircale if they managed to find their way in since my garden is sort of stepped and fenced etc i'm surprised even the frog managed it.. We'll see though..

I dunno what it is but I think it's been resident in my pond since last year... Maybe it just comes and goes, I don't know but I'm happy for it to be there as long as it doesn't have any ill effect on my fish.


Does anyone know if by changing water or using dechlorinator in the water when refilling harm or negatively affect frogs/toads? I do notice the little amphibian from time to time, maybe two - three times in the past couple of years and providing it wont have any major affect on my fish, I'm happy for it to stay.

I also found eggs which (definitely not frog spawn) like snail eggs are white little dots surrounded by a viscous jelly like substance (getting a bit like Alien ressurection here) but bigger than the snail eggs I sometimes get in my tropical tank. I have had what I believe to be common horned snails in my pond and I've just passed these eggs off as being snails staging a comeback but now I'm not so sure.

Any ideas?