Likoma

Yes, good identification on the Azureus. The water I run is around 7.4 with the addition of Epsom salts but not NaCl. Plants seem to be doing alright. The biggest difficulty is mixing species of plants that require higher nitrates(Leafy greens) and those that need less(Chillies).

Thanks for the great feedback. The tanks are all filtered using the Hamburg Matten Filter technique. Very pleased with the clarity and quality of the water. I haven't cleaned a filter in 11months. All this extra free time has allowed me to experiment with the aquaponics. Currently running under artificial lighting. I am about to change of iron roofing for clear sheeting. Next step is to find clear insulation. With winter temperatures of 2degrees overnight its an issue. Yes the plants absorb heaps of nitrates and the Matten filters are doing good job of limiting nitrates. That said I would never forgo water changes. WC Regimes has stayed the same to remove pheromones and keep nitrates as low as possible. I am planning to increase plant load drastically over the next few weeks.

So for sometime now my partner and I have been playing with the idea of incorporating an aqua-ponics scheme that could work within our current hatchery setup. I love the concept that we end up with herbs and vegetables as a by-product of our fishkeeping. It has been a steep learning curve as most new ventures are. I am wrapped with results so far. We are experiencing great growth and massive increase of root mass. This week has been the first opportunity to sample some of the produce. They were some very powerful chillies. A wide shot of one of the aquaponic setups. Basil, lettuce and chillies Root mass being investigated by an Azureus male. Lettuce, perpetual spinach and silverbeet. Plant-lings growing on the Poret foam

Thanks for the advice. I will leave it as is.

It seems being new to planted aquarium I have made a faux pas. The planting medium for the glossostigma is made up of Fluorite and nothing else. It has been mentioned to me that over time due to the high levels of exposure, the fluorite will leach nutrients into the water column. I take it that this could fuel an algae take over. I am thinking of covering the fluorite with fine gravel, trying not to disturb the plants too much. Has anyone had experience with this type of situation. Would the reward to prevent excessive nutrients getting into the water ,out way damaging new plants that are still finding their feet. Thanking you in advance for your help.

Decided to put together a video giving an overview of how it all works. http://youtu.be/jhO5O7v6F7c

Lovely looking specimens.Good body shape. The social structure of such a species is always entertaining. Very entertaining to see two males trying to "out-woo" a female.

This is the update video of our filter experiment, 3 weeks in and going great. Hamburg Matten Filter part 2

Sorry about that. I would like to blame technology, but its good old human error. Problem is rectified Hamburg Matten Filter

Decided to make a short video showing a Hamburg Matten Filter in action. Its our setup of a 700l tank used in our breeding system. We will be running the tank as an experiment with weekly updates of test results and findings. Heaps more information can be found about it on our website Bumblebee Films I hope you enjoy

All good questions. First things first, my motto is get the water quality right and the rest follows. You could probably use less foam but I have quite high stocking densities so don't want to push my luck with the fish health, I'd rather err on the side of caution. Cost does add up, but I have some large pieces left so I am happy to discuss prices if you like, the old economies of scale can kick in. I got a bit stung using a cheaper foam off the net. In my view what happens with the cheaper foam is that the open-cell structure collapses in on itself which inhibits water flow and therefore the good bacteria you are trying to grow can't survive. I found this happened around about 5-6 months. Purely Poret has a life span of 5-10 years which means you wont have to rush out and replace it all the time and you get better bacteria colonies. The Hamburg Matten filter is a great design by the Germans (which by the way are the people who design and manufacture Purely Poret). The beauty about the HM filter is that it is simple to use, cost effective and low maintenance. It sorts out the mechanical filtration (gets the debris out of the water) and the biological filtration (gets the bad stuff you can't see). Google is our friend, if you google Hamburg Matten filter you will get loads of info on it. If you check out this link you will see the first article that got me hooked.. http://www.bumblebeefilms.co.nz/resources/Hamburg%20Mattenfilter.pdf Hope that helps

The big bit of blue foam i swam under was the sponge filter for my 1000lt tanks. The entire system is filtered using purely Poret foam. I have used it before. i tried to locate some once I moved to NZ, only stockist I found was Swiss tropicals in the states. So i tracked down the supplier and bought a bit to stock my fish-room. Have since gotten in more to supply the NZ market. Everything is run of 1 air compressor and a small water pump. 2 x 1000ltr tanks, 3m x .5 x .3 grow tank with the dividers and a 1.2m. A new 2m x ,7 x,7 arrives today.

Yes, the dividers act as the bio and mech filter media, I pump the water from end of the tank using 3m of low ppi piping. Its the most simple and effective system ever. Extremely high stocking densities as is evident.

Good day fellow forum members, I have finally gotten around to putting together a video of my fish room. The fish-room contains only rift valley fish. I have one male Siamese inside the house. I am dreaming of a day when i can create a Betta barracks using dividers as shown in the video, over time i would grow plants that would attach themselves in the Poret foam, I guess java moss and fern, any suggestions? The betta barracks would be filtered using the Hamburg Matten filter system I hope you enjoy http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xzVDQyXqBM0

It certainly seems like it. No i Dont, I used it back home in, when I moved to NZ i tried to order some and it was pretty expensive to get it from Swiss Tropicals. So I bought some from the suppliers and have been waiting 3 months for the cargo ship to arrive. Just a bit excited. Have just finished insulating the garage. I have my filters now its time for the fish room to emerge. Woohoo