~ hey ~ i was wondering why my black female molly always swim around right under the filter intake and above the bubble bar? She only comes out when it is time to eat?

What could be causing this?

Thanks!

Its not a good sign, and it could have to do with poor water quality. Buy a test kit.

i am working on it becuase we are in the process of redoing my home!

Thanks!

You should perhaps try and at least buy an Ammonia and Nitrite test. If you buy them seperate, you can get them for $3 - $5 depending on the brand. That would at least let you get ones to test and make sure Ammonia and Nitrite aren't high enough to hurt the fish and then you can go from there.

That's how I had to start with my test kit because of money issues also. LoL I bought a Ph first and then found a small kit for $10 that had Ammonia, Nitrite and a high and low range Ph).

Dean,any time that you can see your fish acting out of sorts,the first place to look is at the water quality.You definately need the test kit.I know it sounds like people are getting on your case,but you really do need it.
If for whatever reasons,you can't come up with a test kit-your only other options are getting your water tested for free at your LFS,or guessing,and at least doing 25% water changes evry week or so. These all seem to be options that you can't seem to do- We can not keep giving advice on the same sort of problems,if nothing is going to change here=

well said.
you talk about getting a new 55g AND another 10gal for a goldie.
if you dont have at least test kits, i would say it would be a very irresponsible idea.
we're not trying to get on your case, but as Devs said, we cant keep repeating the same things to you.

A 55 and two 10 gallons are a ton more work (money too) than just one ten gallon.

I don't know if this is kosher here, but I have some extra test supplies, which I can always replace, so is it o.k to send these to Dean.

I need to get the o.k. from a moderator and from Deans parents. But I would not mind doing this at all.

my mom does not care and that would be great!

If that is okay with the moderators then i would be okay with and it and my mom would be okay with it as well!

Thanks!
This is not a scam right!

No Dean, its not a scam,but I have not heard from anyone higher up like a moderator! So I need to wait until I see what they say!

okay! So what exactly are you sending me? Is it a couple of test strips or is it an actual test kit!

THanks!
I will PM you my info once we hear from them!

Thanks again!

still keeping up on your weekly water changes dean??

Dean, would it not be more polite to say, "if this is O.K. with the group rules, I really appreciate what you are able to send " and not "so what are you sending"?

You have to wait to see if this goes against the group rules and if it does not then I have an unopened Ammonia test strip bottle and a unopened 5 Quick test strip bottle.

thanks! I am sorry! I do water changes like every 2 week! I am not very good with water changes because parents complain about amount of water i use!

Thansk!

Also, Dean, if this is alright and works out you need to talk to both of your parents about it. Even though I'm pretty sure lola isn't a kidnapper or something, your parents will care about giving away your home address to an internet stranger. Again, no offense lola

No offense taken, I bug my 19 yr old son about the info he puts on My Space, so thats why I wanted to make sure this is o.k.

And besides, as I have gotten older, I kind of like fish better then kids anyhow, so I'm sure not going to try to steal any. I can't even get my three to leave home, and my 19 yr old is the youngest. My mom says its my cooking that makes them stay!

But I'm also a care taker personality, so thats why I thought I would donate these test strips to Dean. He seems to have so many problems and these might help. I could always mail them to a helper or mod and they could mail them to Dean if that sounds better!

wow, i just re-read this post. a scam? did i miss something? lola generously offered to send you free testing supplies no strings attached. how could that possibly be construed as a scam?

and just 'a couple of test strips' is a lot more than you've got right now.

tsk tsk dean.

also, 20% of 10 gallons is 2, so i did a little research for ya. leave the water running while you brush your teeth and 2+ gallons has gone down the drain. your parents watch the water bill so closely they notice 4 gallons missing a month? a full bath with rubber ducky is approx 60 gallons. pretend kissy's house is an average household in arizona, in the year 2000 she used approx. 126,632 gallons of water and paid $236.49. she pays an average of .0018 cents for each of those gallons. that means your 2 gallons every 2 weeks would be .0018 * 26 (every other week for a year) would cost .047 cents. so give your mom a penny (1.000 cents), and tell her you can clean your tank every other week for the next 21 years, and she'd still owe you change.

want to do water changes every week? same equation, .0018 * 52 (every week for a year) would cost .094, so that same penny would buy you weekly water changes for the next 10 years. so get out that gravel vac bud.

you know what! I am going to start doing it anyway!

Thanks!
You have a good point!

Thanks!

lol, na dean. i wasn't saying to go against what your mom says, or even to be disrespectful to her about it. i was just giving you the numbers so that you'd know that you really aren't creating that much of a financial burden on your family. sorry, i should've made that clearer.

maybe you could go to your mom and let her know how important it is to you that you take care of your fish the best you can, and it really doesn't cost that much to do something as important as water changes (especially when you've got a fish that is acting out of sorts).

I will bring this thread to the attention of the mods.

thanks! I will ask her about water changers and then i will show her this post!

Thanks!

I dont quite get why she wont allow you water changes on a ten gallon, but wants a 55 gallon soon?

VmLola - you are certainly welcome to send the test kits to Dean, if that is what you wish to do. This generous offer demonstrates to all what sort of caring and wonderful person you are. But Dean, you need to "earn" this care and generosity. The test kits will not go far. They will not solve all your fish problems. You are still going to have to do water changes - regularly and well. We cannot take responsibilty for your tank. That is for you to do. We all love fish so much that we are more than willing to advise and help anyone work through their fish keeping problems. Some people are extraordinarily caring (vmlola) and are even willing to go a step further and give of themselves to others.

Dean, do not waste this gift of friendship. Use the tests well, change your water frequently, and start planning ahead. You are going to need tests again, very soon. You can save towards them. Instead of a can of pop at lunch, put the money in a box and have water. Instead of buying at the cafeteria, take a peanut butter sandwich for a few days. Save the money for your fish.

If you are going to have the enjoyment of lovely fish, you are going to have to take the responsibility to care for those fish. This means that you have to sacrifice a few things, here and there, for that responsibility. It is not much, but it counts.

There will be a great number of situations in life ahead of you much the same way. Nothing is free - nothing comes for nothing. It all requires SOMEONE to work for it. Get your priorities straight and start working towards your goals - fish tests, education, good job, nice car - anything you want. But realize that free gifts are few and far between and must be appreiciated for the love they represent, not viewed as something you "deserve".

:

these tests will not last very long Dean, so as Daryl said, you will need to be thinking about where the money for the next tests are going to come from.

Well Dean, I was waiting to hear from someone who could give the O.K. and daryl seems to have gave that to me. Thanks daryl!

Like daryl says, please save your money and buy a test "kit"! It will last you longer and I think it shows better water chemistry results, but hopefully these test strips will help you get by.

You can email me at loragorn@hotmail.com with your mailing address. You can have your parents do it if they would like.

I will mail these to you on Monday.

Remember Dean, you have a deep interest in your fish, so you have to learn the proper way to care for them. Don't take on more then you can afford to care for. We have all fallen to temptation to buy that "one more" fish, but if you do not have the means to care for it, then do not get more.

All these wonderful "fish" people give you lots of info, Please listen to it.

Dean, i think this is a very good example of earning 'friendship'. vmlola is obviously a very kind and generous person

I hope all this has not embarrassed Dean, as I have not heard from him or his parents through my email since getting the O.K. to send the test strips! Without mailing info, I can not mail these out, and I do not want anyone to think I was not sincere.

Hope we did not frighten him off with stressing to him to take care of his fish!

I'm sure that Dean is fine.As harsh as we seem to sound at times,he's been around long enough to know that we care enough to continue helping him.
As Carol said though,these test strips will go quickly,and then Dean will be right back where he started,so he does need to take a moment and figure out his next steps.
Taking care of fish properly can be costly at times,but something that you need to do if you want to keep happy/healthy fish.
We simply are trying to teach Dean "The Basic's" so that he can continue to enjoy his new found hobby without having many fish deaths.
vmlola,we certainly realize that your offer was sincere,so please don't even worry about it.

sorry! I was helping my grandparents with their new house becuase they are about to move so i was helping them!

Thanks!

i will e-mail you my info right now!

Dean, I just received your mailing info, and I will send these test strips out tomorrow! I'm sure you will get them in a couple days!

Let us know when you receive them! I hope they help!

okay! i was just looking for your name becuase i was going to pm you in case you did not get the info through e-mail becuase it does have a mind of its own sometimes!

Thanks!
How can i than yoU!

No need to thank me Dean, just take good care of your fish, and listen to what the people here have to share with you in the way of fish keeping! And have respect for the information that is sent in your direction!

That will be thanks enough!

okay!
Thanks!

i got the test kits and the only thing that is off is the hardness becuase it is hard and then ph is fine and everyhthing else is fine!

Thanks agaiN! I love the keychain! Was that suppose the be on there? Thanks!

Dean, YOU'RE SOOOOO LUCKY!!!!!!!!

i know becuase of someone so special and caring on here!

Thanks again!
vmlola

Dean, I'm glad you got them so fast. Use them wisely, as they will not last forever.

Yes, I thought you might like the keychain with the scorpion. Those little buggers are all over here and thats a small one. YUK! I hate them.

And Dean, there are so many caring people on this site! Just look at all the replys you always get to your threads!

thanks!