Apistogramma "maciliensis" (A. sp "Rio Mamore") and other questions

[benetay]

Blackwater doesn't lower the pH by a lot. Maybe by 0.1 or so. On the other hand, i tried using tetra's blackwater and it lowers the pH by 0.1 but increase conductivity by 20 units. In the end i gave up using blackwater. Try ada soil & sera super peat to lower the pH.

water quality is the utmost concern for apisto.

Cheers!

[Don90]

Hmm....but my tank is already filled with water, so wouldn't the ADA soil cloud the water and affect the inhabitants in the tank?

Anyway, I don't understand this part

"increase conductivity by 20 units"

What does the 20 units refer to?

thanks

[benetay]

Thats why prior to new addition of apisto we will need to plan ahead of what is going to be done. Planning for the acquisitions of new apisto 1-2 weeks before can allow us plenty of time to do what is needed before they arrive.

What i'm trying to get across is in future, get the tank ready before the fishes arrives. By doing so, your casualty rate will be reduced dramatically instead of putting yourself in a perilous situation. I'm sure you will be more happy seeing them alive

Conductivity is measure by microsimens normal tap water got a rough estimate of 90 microsimens and an additional 20 microsimens if you add in blackwater extract and so on. The more chemicals you put into the water will generally increase the conductivity of the water.

Some apisto need 30 microsimens water in order to spawn. This can be achieve by running RO or Ion Exchanger units.

There have been a thread on water management on conductivity. I'm sure you will be able to find and extract the information.

Cheers!

[doppelbanddwarf]

Benetay is right there. If you're setting up a new tank in the future I would advise you to get a pack of ADA Africana as substrate. You can spread a thin layer over the bottom of the tank if you are not having rooted plants. This will provide a darker environment for the Apistos. Also you can have some floating plants to reduce the brightness so that the Apistos feel more at home.

[Quixotic]

Well, we can attach a proper name for this fish now. A. sp. "Rio Mamore" or "Mamore" has been described and now known as A. erythrura.

The paper can be downloaded here, http://globiz.sachsen.de/snsd/publik.../04_Staeck.pdf

[illumnae]

Thanks for the update Quixotic gonna have to get used to the new name!

[ADA SG]

Hmm....but my tank is already filled with water, so wouldn't the ADA soil cloud the water and affect the inhabitants in the tank?

Clouding by the loose particles in the bag of soil will only occur if you POUR the soil directly into the tank "violent".

What can be done is to scoop the soil using a container or tau hway container and then put the whole container into the water, and then pour onto the gravel. This way, you do not create any major cloudiness.

And as long as your filter is well-cycled with rich amount of colonising bacteria, the cloudiness of the tank has no major harm to the inhabitants. The bacteria will clear up the floating micro-organisms which are the main contributor to the cloudy water when using a new bag of soil.