Re: Your opinion

["William Vannerson" <William_Vannerson@ama-assn.org>]

>>Hey is Vannerson still on this list?  Ask him, he doesn't drink as much as I do.

What??  What time is it???  I'm still a bit blurry eyed from staying up way too late watching CNN & MSNBC trying to keep up with the play-by-play of our electoral process.  Fascinating no matter which side of the fence you sit.  So my favorite drink this morning (Thursday) is java, and lots of it.

As far as water goes, I don't mess with mine.  I have a home water softener that keeps my pH around 7.0 with moderate to soft hardness.  I haven't measured it lately and my memory isn't working yet (were's that coffee???), so I don't recall the actual measurements.  I use a python hose from the bathroom sink across the hall to do my water changes directly into the tanks (a couple of 30 gallons).  I do stash a bunch of gallon jugs that I allow to sit under the bathroom vanity to change water in the 2.5 gallon Killie critter keepers I may have set up on the table.

I have kept Rams, Borelli, Kribs & Butterfly Rams using this method.  All did well but only the Kribs spawned.  So if you keep Apistos to look at, I suspect you'll be fine.  If you want them to breed, then you may have to play with your water.

If you are not ready to set up a systematic water process for all of your tanks, be it an RO unit or a Rubbermaid can for rainwater, peat water, whatever, you can implement a breeding water process when you want to induce spawning.

Most Apistos will spawn in 10 gallon tanks.  So it's not too difficult to decide that "I want to spawn my Rams now" and set up a breeding tank specifically for them to spawn in.  Set it up as you normally would do with your normal water.  Then gradually drop the pH to the desired level as you do your water changes.  The actual drop or change can help induce the breeding trigger as well.  Many species of fish use environmental triggers from seasonal changes to time their spawning.

You can drop the pH by adding distilled water or peat extract water.  You can even make soft, acidic water from oak leaves, which a prevalent this time of year.  If you have oak leaves, consider scattering them on the bottom of your breeding tank.  The fish like the cover it provide, much like they find in their native environment, plus it will drop the pH as the tannins and such leach from leaves.

Monitor the water closely.  You will need to do a little extra work to maintain a consistent pH.  As the leaves and/or fish waste accumulate in the tank, the pH will drop.  Don't let it drop to far too fast.  Small, frequent water changes will keep the pH more constant in the tank.  Infrequent, larger volume changes will result in greater pH swings, which may be stressful on the fish.

If the fish spawn, gradually let the pH raise in the tank to your normal supply levels.  That way you can acclimate the fish and fry back to your normal maintenance level pH.  Once they're at that level, you can go back to your normal water change method without having to mess with chemistry lessons.

As I stated earlier, I haven't had mud experience in breeding.  I'm basically repeating here what I've remembered from other threads and reading.  I have used this basic system on a smaller scale for Killies, so in principal it works.  I'm sure others will jump in to add to or correct my comments.

Now where is that coffee???

Bill Vannerson
McHenry, IL
http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/william_vannerson



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