On Tue, 08 May 2007 13:32:06 GMT, wrote:

nitrates are normal? really?

Well, that's what the guy at Big Al's said. Should I get my own test
kit and do it myself? Might he just have been referring to ammonia or
pH when he said "the water's normal"?

usually algae responds to nitrates, altho, if the fish
are spawning this can spike ammonia and you might not catch it.

Fish are not spawning.

I am pretty surprised with that fish load and infrequent water changes that your
nitrates are low , at or lower than 20 ppm.

Do I have too many fish? I knew it was close, but I could send a
couple to Big Al's.

if you have gravel on the bottom, this could be fueling a problem.

I do have gravel, but keep it very clean.

floating;
http://weloveteaching.com/puregold/d...ing%20problems

Thanks, I'll go read that in a moment.

it this cannot be resolved the fish will end up upside down permanently
get your temp up to 78oF

ok, but I thought GF were cold water fish?

soak the food for an hour before feeding, and only a mouthful per fish. overfeeding
and compaction/rotting is the major cause of floating. in a pond these fish spend
all day hunting for itty bitty things to eat.

ok. Would it be better to feed them tiny amounts several times a day?

get some freeze dried krill and daphnia to feed them.

I have some, but had kind of been using it for "treats".

GF are not really herbivores,
they digest protein and fats and stuff that lives in the water. never feed food with
corn or other carbohydrates in the first 3 ingredients.

I'll go read labels.

fish are very efficient at converting food to muscle. they just dont need that much
food, especially not at one time. Ingrid

Thanks for your help Ingrid.

Dana