Sorry, I misread that! No, I am not aware of your previous issuesJes wrote:1. I wasn't afraid to ask for the filter goop or gravel out of fear of looking funny. I'm not a shallow person. Rather, because of how important my fish actually are to me, I was fearful of introducing a bacterial infection to them. You're not aware of my previous issue posted in the Health and Treatment section of this forum.
Sorry again, I thought you were talking about dechlorinators (Prime vs. Stress Coat) as that was the only Seachem product you mentioned in the post. But I am also slightly confused now, which API products did you replace with Seachem ones? I can only see mentions of dechlorinators, buffers and test kits above…Jes wrote:2. I'm aware of what the products do to the ammonia. I can read and comprehend what I read very well.
No offence, but I can't read your mind, so please don't take offence at me being thorough: it was not clear from your post whether you had enough aeration and whether you knew about surface movement. It is often the case that if someone is using air pumps on a regular basis for additional aeration, they actually do so because it is *needed*, not *just in case*.Jes wrote:3. I understand how water becomes oxygenated. That's why I don't fill my tank the whole way, so the filter waterfall creates the constant surface movement of water. Also, I have a 3" airstone that creates a lot of surface movement when the bubbles break at the surface. I mentioned the powerhead being used as current (notice the word "current") at the bottom of the tank to prevent having another person tell me that my loaches need a constant current and thinking I wasn't meeting their needs. Clearly, some people do not know how to read carefully on this forum, and quite honestly, it is takes away from the truly helpful responses.
Too many people: from what I have seen, most average fish keepers who run off to work in the morning after testing the water. It's great that you do, but you did ask for ideas and it is a valid one. I think it may still be worth a trying to soak them in soft water, just to be sure there really is no residue being left behind. Otherwise, have you checked the expiry date?Jes wrote:4. Of course I clean the test tubes out immediately after use and thoroughly, I might add. Who wouldn't?
I most definitely did not mean it in the way you read it! Please understand that I try to not assume anything, which is why I try to explain everything because there are a lot of things I take for granted nowadays that someone else might very simply not know about. I also think the benefit to this is that when those who know less than you or I come along and read what we write, they may take something useful away from it. I am glad that you researched before you bought, this is a rarity indeed and says a lot of positive things about you.Jes wrote:Maybe you didn't mean for your responses to be interpreted the way I did. If I was wrong, then please accept my apology. I didn't set up an aquarium before first becoming as knowledgeable as possible about it prior to obtaining direct experience with it. To assume otherwise about me doesn't make any sense.