A lot of tank questions. Reading, nano set-up, reading, algae control, reading, format...   1/30/08
Hm. This makes. . . Attempt #4 to send though am waiting a couple days in between for good measure).
<Mmm, strange... have not heard of trouble otherwise... and this is the first time I've seen this msg.. Maybe our spam filter?>
PLEASE forgive me if you've gotten them all, just my email seems to be doing that "yum, email is tasty" bit when I hit send. . . Using a different one this time. Anyway. . . Thank you for being there to read people's emails and answer questions. And thank you for taking the time to read the horribly long story-of-my-life type message. Let me start by saying I recently (mid-last year?) Stopped taking LFS advise. I seem to always find the people who ?he's never steered me wrong ever!? and get the ?ooooh, no, you'll have no problems keeping a tang in a 2 gallon freshwater pico tank!? sort of advise
<advice>
from them(I?m not actually dumb enough to have fallen for that though, luckily. Though pretty much every other bad bit of advise I likely have at one time. I could nearly write a book on all the idiotic things I have believed.) Hence my not listening anymore and trying to tune it out when I go in for fish food and overhear the person telling a guy to buy a school of tetras and few blue gouramis for the 10 gallon tank that was set up that weekend. I try to get by the least of the 5 evils whenever possible. And have stocked up a lot of questions, most of which I know are answered on here, but my brain and search engines really don't play nicely together.
The first tank I've got is a 10 gallon nano-reef. No fish, can't seem to keep any of them alive (had no problems when the tank was first set up, yet after a bad move I've lost any other one I've tried :( a couple clowns when it was in a 20 gallon and a couple of Chrysiptera parasema at couple of separate times after,
<These Pomacentrids need more room...>
so I am keeping it just coral at the moment) I've got some Chaeto in it to soak up extra nutrients, but it seems to grow like a weed and looks bad in the main tank. Is there some way to keep it controlled?
<Remote it in a sump/refugium, keep it trimmed otherwise...>
I really don't have room on the back of the tank for a big hob to put it in, yet I like to have it in there. I've been toying with the idea of turning a small clear kitchen storage canister into a canister filter for it,
<Can be done... Have you read this: http://wetwebmedia.com/hagenrefugart.htm>
would I be able to put the Chaeto in that without a special light, or would I need to rig something up over that?
<A light would be very useful... there are some nice small units available commercially>
Also. Lately, I seem to be having an outbreak. . . of. . . Caulerpa? How'd that happen? I haven't added any LR to the tank in over 8 months, and no dry rock for a little over 6.
<Spores, propitious circumstances...>
Yet the other day I pulled a good bit out. 3 species, one of the feather-leaved ones, grape and some species I can't seem to find an id for looks almost like little green mushrooms on the runner). Now I see a bit growing back into the tank again. How do I get rid of it, just keep pulling?
<Reading...: http://wetwebmedia.com/caulerpacomp.htm>
And, if I do like I did last time, when I knock everything in the tank over trying to get a single rock out/clean, is that going to hurt anything? That seems to put a cloud of gunk up into the water column that I can't imagine being good for the tank.
<Hopefully not>
Second tank is a 29 gallon, newly set up as a planted tank. I was given a 65 watt pc fixture for it, but that needs a light (badly.) I set up the tank way too quickly, out of just being too impatient with myself (no excuse) I know everyone says that the 65(67?)K bulbs are best for plants,
<? You're off a decimal...>
but are the 10Ks just as good?
<Let's stop right here... It's obvious you haven't tried looking all this up for yourself... what you enquire about thus far is gone over and over on WWM... Please learn to and use the indices and search tool as posted here: http://wetwebmedia.com/WWMAdminSubWebIndex/question_page.htm
Am just skipping the rest... see my note below.>
I've seen some places say it is just a matter of preference, and others say that there is a huge difference in growth. The technical info just makes my head spin and all I need to know is if I can get a 10K bulb locally or if I really need to order one from online. . . Also, I've been told that with that much light if I do not have CO2 all I will be growing is an algae farm. But I can't get more info than that. . . I can't afford pressurised. Way out of my price range. I was looking at the Hydor green NRG CO2(are they any good? Apparently no one on the forums I'm on has used them before. Maybe you guys have heard a good/bad review?) system at first,
yet the refills are really expensive. Can you put a home-made yeast based concoction in there when the CO2 level starts to get low, or do you have to buy theirs? If you must use theirs, is DIY nearly as good as that system? And of course, I had an apple snail well over a year old) that died in there behind something and I didn't know about it until I had an ammonia spike a bit green in the test tube >_< way too high!) I did a 10 gallon water change and it seems to have pulled all of the ammonia out (I'm going to keep monitoring it though) if that was the only problem with the tank that should stabilise it and prevent any more spikes, right?
Last question about that tank. Another famous stocking question (yay, don't you just get so sick of answering these?) Currently the tank has a lot of ?refugees? from the 60 gallon I had. It was my planted tank, though never looked good, so I decided to turn it back into an Oscar tank plus I missed my last Oscar too much!) I gave away most of the fish and being that the tank was stocked at the recommendation of one of those bad stores, it was way too many. . .) 1 male sword* 8 male guppies TINY guys! Even after being raised in a 60 gallon tank none is larger than an inch. . . Too much inbreeding?)** 10 neon tetras thinking about upping that to 12) 4 ottocinclus(getting algae wafers) 1 Panaque maccus(I think? Closest ?clown pleco? I can seem to find. He's also going to be moved from the tank quite soon, given to a friend whose got a bigger tank) and unfortunately 4 Cory cats. 2 ?spotted?(look to be Corydoras agassizii) and 2 albinos, because I was guaranteed that
they?d all be happy together since they?re all cories. I want to give 2 of them away and keep 2. Would either one be better in a 29 than the other? Once I give the 2 away I am going to get a couple more of the sort I have kept(how many should I have in my school? With the other fish I've already got.) [*the sword is a loner because he was a ?feeder fry? I took home with a group of other ones and he is the only one who lived. He's NOT going to be replaced when he dies of old age, but seems to not have solo problems. He's always willing to eat and seems to be any less active than the swords I see in stores/the other fish in my tank. **the guppies also won?t ever be replaced. All of them were bred in my big tank, and are little gems.]
The next is a 10 gallon. It has fluorite and chain swords along with java moss in it. And some form of tiny bladderwort. I had it divided with 2 bettas in it, but for some reason both died within days of each other this week. I Think the one was really old at the store because he had raggedy fins and was slightly underweight(either that or he was just in really poor shape from those blasted cups) I had him for around 6 months, though he never seemed to improve or decline and the other guy for around 3(wasn?t divided until then) and he seemed to be in fine health. The first guy went on Tuesday of last week, and on Thursday when I was off work and had time to do a water change the other(healthier) guy was dead. He hadn?t been showing any sort of illness at all. I figured it may have been ammonia from not pulling the other guy out quickly enough, but did a water change anyway and when I finally got a new test kit on Saturday(couldn?t find my last one) I was getting 0s
for ammonia nitrate and nitrite. Like I do from the identical(other than what species of plants are in it) tank that is directly next to it(about 4" away, so if something had gotten into the water I'm sure the other one would be showing it by now?) I?d really like to use it for a crowntail I've got so he can have better water, but I'm somewhat afraid of putting another fish in there since I don't know what killed my last ones. Do you think it?d be safe, or would I be risking something(I used the same siphon on the other 10 without thinking about it and those boys are both completely fine still) If not how can I sanitise the fluorite and plants? Also, in those tanks how necessary is it to actually change the water? I've never gotten any nitrate readings in either of them(I know the test kit works, nitrate shows up with it in other tanks) Is there anying that the water adds to the tank that the fish can't get from their food?
Okay. Finally the LAST tank I have questions about(I can almost hear you sighing in relief!) is the 60 gallon I've got my baby Oscar in(he?s quite the handsome little devil, about 4", a tiger albino, and already a beggar!) My history with oscars is just as tainted as the rest of the tanks I've had. The last one. Aye. I?ll let you hear a bit of why I don't listen to pet stores anymore. I was looking at a bunch of cute babies(little ones, a couple inches) at the store and was told that for my 10 gallon gravel bottomed tank that I should get 2 oscars and 2 firemouths. No joke. A couple months after I found out how much of a complete idiot I was I bought the 60 gallon and returned 1 of the oscars and the firemouth that was still alive. And was promptly talked into 5 silver dollars and a common pleco. 2 of the silvers kept dying after being replaced so I stuck with 3. On that 60 I had a hornwort plant(well underlit and was always shedding like mad as a result) and
around 2-3" of gravel. As predicted that was impossible to keep clean and it was a nitrate factory. When the test kit was finally staying blood red after 75% water changes I gave them all away and decided to go with the peaceful community.
Flash forward to the current setup. I've got just enough gravel to cover the bottom of the tank, some driftwood with anubias and java ferns(the ferns seem to be doing better, so I'm probably going to take the anubias out and put more ferns in there, unless little bit decides to shred them) and a rena xp3(350 GPH) It?s got 4 sponges a basket 2/3 full of bio rings and a layer of floss in it. While the Oscar is still small I want to optimise my filtration. Should I leave just a couple of the sponges(1 less coarse, 1 more coarse) and a bit of the floss and fill the rest with bio-rings? Or should I just fill the rest of my empty space with the rings? I've also got a penguin filter that moves the same amount of water. Should I add that? And if so what can I use for media? All of the commercial pads for them have carbon, and call it superstition but since I quit running carbon I've not had a single sick fish except ones that were sickly when I got them. Figure it isn?t
bad if I need to get something out of the water, but until then I don't see any need to have it in my system. Should I just take the carbon out of those or get something else to put in there?
Lastly, I have a small striped raphael catfish(Platydorus something?) I do remember that with my last O, no matter the food size I gave him, he?d always blow about half of it out his gills. Hence having the pleco(as a ?cleaner? that seemed to put out more waste than he ate!) in the original tank. I figured the extra food that I?ll need to add at night for the cat/ extra water change time wouldn?t hurt and I wanted something to clean the uneaten food from the tank bottom instead of just letting it rot. I?d looked around online and saw that most people(on Oscar forums anyway) suggest synodontis species or the raphaels as good cleaning tankmates. The only synos sold locally are either ones that get to be close to 2 feet long, or didn't look like eupterus, though they were labelled as such. And I definitely did not want to get one only to find out that I got another species that would get to 18+". So I got a raphael instead. When I looked them up on planet catfish the
article did not have anything about them needing to be in schools, yet I've seen that on one of your faqs. Does this mean I made yet another mistake by buying him? I Know the tank wouldn?t be able to get by with an entire school of them in it. . .
Thank you again for reading this long winded thing. And for being there to answer undereducated hobbyist?s(like me) questions!
<Going forward. LOOK first for your answers (and much more you will find in the way of related/ancillary material in the process) and "break up" your questions a bit... re topic, type of system... for others perusal. Cheers, Bob Fenner>

I learned to use the search tool and I bought your book   11/3/07
Hello Bob,
<Mark>
I learned to use the search tool and I bought your book. I apologize for not researching the FAQ's before asking my questions and wasting your time.
<No worries>
As penance, I made a donation to support your site.
<Heeee! I absolve you>
I have noticed that many people make the same mistake as me...not doing proper research before asking a question. When this occurs, why not
recommend in your response that the offending party do just that?
Mark Gilbank
<Perhaps we've had too much western "acculturation"... Could be re-termed Judeo-Christian brain-washing. Cheers, BobF>

Re: Lion fish and over stocking
... Using WWM
Do you need live rock for seahorses and how much (scrape the lions )
Last note how do i get rid of excessive algae growth especially hair algae
<... please learn to/use the search tool, indices: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/WWMAdminSubWebIndex/question_page.htm

Re: BTA & Candy Cane Coral Concerns   9/12/07
Hello,
<Hi Jackie, Mich here again.>
I wonder if you could resend your response to my email.
<Certainly! I will include below.>
Outlook Administer removed it because it was seen as SPAM.
<Wonderful Spam... wonderful Spam... Spam... Spam... Spam...>
I have sense <or since> added you to my safe list, which will enable me to receive emails from you.
<Excellent!>
Thanks,
<Welcome! Mich>
Jacqueline S. Morris

New entrant into the Saltwater arena, wisenheimer, lazy or just ignorant re WWM?  – 08/31/07
Hi,
<Dinesh>
I have just got a Saltwater aquarium wherein i have 1 maroon clown,
<Can be a terror in time, places...>
1 yellow tailed damsel , 1 blue damsel and 1 anemone (maroon in colour and short bulb like tentacles).
<Mmm, do you know which species?>
The size of my tank is 3 feet wide 4 feet height
<!>
and 1 feet depth. It has rocks and sand in it. Approximately 200 lts of water
<Nah... doesn't compute>
I have one blue light and i pink light.
<...>
The anemone has climbed 3/4 th. way up on the glass and my clown does not play with it . (it's been only 3 days that the have all met).
<... are you pulling old Bob the Fishman's fins here?>
My question is on adequate lighting for this size of a tank, and what to feed the clown, damsels and the anemone and how often to feed them.
regds
Dinesh
<Please read here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/WWMAdminSubWebIndex/question_page.htm
and learn to use the Indices on WWM... your answers and much more that you're likely unaware of but essential to know, is posted/archived there. Bob Fenner>

Some reading now! SW... a jokester?    8/18/07
Hi my name is David. I have a 55 gallon fishtank and I wanted to set up a reef aquarium with soft coral and sea anemones. I am also adding a Radiata Lionfish and a Sand Sifting Sea Star as well. Is there any anemone fish that can live with that combination? I have done my research and have come up empty handed. Please help
<... You're joking? Please... what you list won't work... read here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/marine/index.htm
the pretty blue writing are links. Bob Fenner>

Re: Refugium make-up  8/16/07
Hi Bob,
<David>
Thanks ever so for the quick response. [Had a quiet chuckle with your Chaetomorpha (i.e. spaghetti) western quip :-)]
<Wish the present Net would allow me to whistle the theme tune...>
No questions this time just a few responses to share.
I will now use fine coral sand instead of the aragonite for the DSB.
I have heaps of live rock rubble so I will throw more in to the refugium.
<Good times two>
Unfortunately the sump/refugium is as big as is practical to fit under the display tank. Aesthetics (or rather my wife)
<Heee!>
prevent me from situating it outside the cabinetry. It will have 80l in the overflow chamber/sump and another 80l in the refugium. Once up and running I will perform a transit water overflow test and increase the size of the baffles accordingly.
<Well-stated>
By my rudimentary calculations I believe I will be able to increase these by a further 50mm (2") and still leave enough volume for pump failure. This will add 10 litres to the sump and another 10 litres to the refugium bringing the total to 180l. This represents roughly 20% of the main display tank (650l).
<Mmm, yes>
Further down the track I have a plan to introduce an outside sump/refugium which will receive overflow from the main display first, which will then gravity feed to the under the display sump/refugium, before being returned. I am not limited by space here so I have thoughts on a largish 500l tank split 100l for overflow capture and 400l for the refugium. This will mean I will effectively have 2 refugiums and the water volume by comparison to the main display will effectively be doubled.
<Nice!>
This is probably as big a project as the main display itself which is underway. It will involve erecting a purpose built housing adjacent to the outside wall, more holes in the wall (I already have plumbing going to/from an external chiller and separate plumbing for automated RO water top ups and 10% weekly water exchanges, more holes for external electrics, and then the whole tank sits on a tin base which has separate floor level plumbing for emergency flooding to an outside drain.), so many holes in fact I'm considering removing the wall. :-)
<Might be best here... and not to kibitz too much... wouldn't a walk-in space with power, water/sink and drain line be great there?>
So now to your question of me. Re "How'd you like to write them, come up with a/the scheme to re-organize, move?". Sadly my life is full raising a family of 4 kids between the ages of 5 & 10.
<Yeeikes! I have a hard enough time keeping up with our dogs! Oh, and Pete, our roomie>
What little spare time I do have will be preciously spent resurrecting my marine hobby which I hope to introduce the kids into. However I do have one small suggestion for the advice on posts on your 'Ask the WWM crew a question' page. I notice that many of the emails start off on one subject and then drift off into other non-related areas. This means that valuable responses can be missed if someone is researching a particular topic and the response has been filed under a different category.
<Yes... getting "corrected" with time, efforts to sub-divide, make the headings/categories more focused, limited>
Whenever I post I send separate mails for each topic knowing that they will likely end up in different areas. Would it be worthwhile maybe advising others to do the same?
<Mmm, yes... unless the input, other info. is related somewhat... I do place such "FAQs" in more than one "box" often enough...>
Maybe something like "e. Have more than one topic? - then send more than one mail." or such like. As I say just a thought, but do keep up the great work - yours is an invaluable resource to good fish keeping husbandry as are your books (I have the lot).
Cheers
Dave
<Thank you for this valuable input and your kind acknowledgments Dave... Bob Fenner>

Re: Fish ID... Novaculichthys taeniourus (Dragon Wrasse) - 08/06/07
Thank you
<<Quite welcome. EricR>>
Backgrounds, Courtesies, And Maybe A Crew Member In The Making – 08/06/07
Hi,
<<Hello Wikus>>
My name is actually Afrikaans. I'm from South Africa.
<<Ahh...I see>>
It's really nice to get a response after a simple thank you.
<<Indeed...a simple courtesy>>
I appreciate the work you guys are doing and hope to be able to do the same someday.
<<We’re happy to be of service...perhaps you will join us one day>>
All of the best,
Wikus
<<And to you in kind. EricR>>

I couldn't help myself!   7/25/07
Crew,
<Mike>
I can't believe the grief you receive trying to help people with problems/questions who come to you! I had to comment on a couple of items in the daily FAQs. In regard to the individual upset about the search feature, a quick way to find what you want in a page full of threads is to do the Google search, open one of the links suggested, then in the pull-down menu of your web browser click edit, then find. Type in what word/phrase you are looking for and click "find next". Continue clicking "find next" until you are at exactly what you went to the page for. For the individual who "knows how many crabs s/he has", I "knew" I had no mithrax crabs in my tank until I found one hiding in the rock. Hitchhiker indeed!
Mike
<Thank you for this input and commiseration. Bob Fenner>

Searching for info on WWM – 07/24/07
Dear Crew,
I saw this in the dailies today, and wanted to respond to it:
<I thank you>
>Searching for info, on WWM, elsewhere... – 07/22/07
>I have been using this site for six months.
><Me? Ten years or so>
>My question or maybe suggestion is that when I do a search and click one of the results I am then
>sent to page with at least thirty 'related discussion' posts and it is very difficult to find the one >that pertains to me.
><Mmm, depending on the logic, subject, limit of the topic... likely about all you can do... The site
>is arranged to avail relevant, related info>
>While there is always good info to be read on these other posts, it is frustrating and time consuming enough that I turn to another reef site. <Go there>
>Isn't there any way to make it so that when I search for something on say 'Deltec skimmer' the only link that I click brings up ONLY 'Deltec skimmer' posts as opposed to the general forum on skimmers.
><Write the folks at Google such questions... not our search tool. RMF>
>Thank you for all your hard work,
><Welcome>
>Todd
After you have used the google search feature, and it brings you to a page with multiple posts, it is easy enough to find what you are looking for by either pressing "Ctrl" and "F" simultaneously or by selecting "Edit" and then "Find" in the Internet Explorer toolbar. This brings up a search dialog for that page that you can paste your search term into (In this example it was 'Deltec skimmer' and it will bring you to the exact part of that page that it is on.
Daniel
<Bingo. BobF>

Re: Yellow Watchman Goby 1 - Hermit Crab 0... New WWM...   6/22/07
I sent in an email on the 19th Subject: Yellow Watchman Goby 1 - Hermit Crab 0 with two questions one about the Yellow Watchman Goby the other about some corals. Isn't a time sensitive thing but I read that some emails get dropped so I wanted to check. Previous emails have been responded to with amazing speed.
Thanks for all your help,
~Matthew
<Haven't seen such... we're on the slippery and steep slide learning curve of a new ISP and webmail program... Please re-send. BobF>

Ok what size should I make the pictures?  - 04/23/07
<Keep the resolution, but shrink them with compression. If you start with .JPG files, you will have better luck with this. Or, send them one at a time and I will resize them for you. Each time you send one, I will send it back to you for reattachment in your final email. I have plenty of photo-editing software for this.>
I sent one email and they were too big so I cut them in half to 220k. Now they are too small
<I understand. Am sorry, but or server only has 10MB, and one message with half of that capacity really limits our ability to receive others' emails.
-GrahamT>

Re:  WWM, the "Simon Cowell" of the pet fish world? Lighting issues as well...   4/9/07
Thanks
<You’re welcome.>
- I will continue to research as you suggested
<Great…do particularly look into the Sanjay Joshi articles I recommended.>
- For clarity sake, my comment with regard to elitist is not that of knowledge or experience, which we agree you have more than me hence the questions.
<I understood this portion of your correspondence quite well.>
It is more the manor of response that at times comes across a little harsh for those just seeking help.
<Mmm….yes; you have said this before. But can your provide a specific incidence, we have, and have had many different participating crew members..>
Sometimes people are desperate and are franticly seeking some knowledgeable help and occasionally they are met with a slap in the face in the form of an e-mailed response. Such as asking them to do their research,
<Lance this is where we will always disagree my friend. This is not a slap in the face or a purpose attempt to belittle folks. It is an attempt to however encourage people to learn to do their own reading, to in some manor become confident in their individual/learned knowledgeable…, many times WWM is emailed with questions that could be met with an immediate answer had the individual used the WWM google function.  I am also of the opinion that spoon-feeding people will only hurt them long term.  And as a practicing atheist….while I’m not a bible reader by any means at all…I do believe this quote (the many form of it) fits: “Give a man a fish and he eats for a day…tech him to fish and he eats for a lifetime.” The same principle applies here.>
which for a lot of people asking you the question is a form of doing research.
<Yes but not an effective one, the detail catalogued in our articles, articles else wear are far more comprehensive than any single e-mail correspondence. I like to think of the crew as the entity that points someone in the right direction when they are stuck or get confliction information…we are not meant to be the sole means of research.> <<Well-stated Adam. RMF>>
Anyway, just my opinion and only my opinion which you did ask for.
<Yes I did, thank you.>
I admittedly am new to the hobby and will certainly make my mistakes.
<As we all have.>
My intent is to seek the knowledge that I will need to maintain a healthy tank.
<Much information abounds on this subject.>
Also the truth is what I am seeking, I would accept someone advising me that I am doing something wrong. But why so harsh
<Define harsh…instead of criticizing the crew, perhaps you could give us an example of this harshness or better yet describe for us in detail how you believe a query should be answered.>
- I also see this in e-mail posts from other people.
<Where?>
Maybe take it easy a little, just a thought.
I do respect the knowledge that WWM possesses and will continue to read it pages.
<Thank you for this, though I (and likely most of the crew) will disagree.> <<Mmm, the medium is the message... what does this mean? Sometimes to me, that the format can be/is more compelling than the content itself. RMF>>
Lance  
<Adam J.>

Re: WWM, the "Simon Cowell" of the pet fish world? Lighting issues as well...   4/9/07
Point taken and well stated - Although we may disagree, I appreciate the professional response with explanation of your point of view. My apologies for previous issues, I think I now better understand where you are coming from on certain points and appreciate the opportunity to express mine.
Thanks,
<Thank you for this Lance, the thoughts are appreciated and we are always open to suggestions.>
Lance - A reader with a new (better) perspective.
<AJ>

RE: SAILFIN BLENNY   3/26/07
LOOKING FOR A FOOD SUPPLEMENT - I HAVE NOT BEEN SUCCESSFUL WITH
SUPPLEMENTED FOODS. I HAVE TRIED FORMULA TWO, ALGAE SHEETS, WAFERS,
FLAKE FOODS AND PELLETS. IT WILL ONLY EAT OFF OF THE GLASS AND ROCKS AND
IS GETTING VERY SKINNY (NOT ENOUGH IN TANK). I EVEN PLACED IT IN
ISOLATION AND PROVIDED FOODS BUT TO NO AVAIL. ANY OTHER THOUGHTS - I
FEAR THAT IT WILL STARVE TO DEATH.
<Please... re-key and re-send your msg... NOT IN ALL CAP.s>
Forget it!
<Mmm, tis your choice, my friend. We are an all-volunteer service, provided for a world-wide community free of charge, and our only 'cost of usage' is the request of a little common courtesy when it comes to the text format as it arrives to us. If you're not willing to do what little we ask, we're not willing to assist. It's a pretty simple dichotomy, if you ask me. Get what you give. -JustinN>
<<Well done Justin... and to cap it off... the info. requested is posted on WWM... in an article I penned, placed. B>>

Some folks just "don't get it"  03/26/07
You seem to be forgetting that my original question was not answered but ignored - I had to resend the question. Generally I was hoping to get some assistance with a problem but was met with belittlement and no answer. I was then asked for an update and was told to restate the question because someone must have forgotten.
<<We don't "hold onto" such questions... too much volume, not enough human or computer RAM... RMF>>
After restating the question I'm told that the format was wrong (caps)- excuse me for not being perfect for you purpose - It shouldn't be that hard to just offer some advise or direct me else ware.
You seem to be asking for "common courtesy". Well give and you shall receive as you might say
I also find it funny that it takes you minutes to be raid me when it take days to provide a real answer - funny how that works.
<Kindly have a read here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/WWMAdminSubWebIndex/question_page.htm and http://www.wetwebmedia.com/faqstips.htm. You are NOT special in this case, we are simply asking what is expected of EVERYONE who expects a response from us. Again, this is an ALL-VOLUNTEER staff, who spends well over 100 hours a day collectively logged into a mail server answering questions such as yours. We receive upwards of 50+ queries a day; is it fair to us to have to correct every single one of these when they don't conform to the very simple standards that we expect? There are not enough hours in the day, to retype entire queries simply because someone feels that they deserve more attention than another. Sorry, bud. No sale. The information you want is posted, the attitude is undeserved. Remember this very simple point, my friend: You contacted US, not vice versa. -JustinN>

Size those attachments!  3/1/07
I whole heartedly apologize for that as I had purposely limited the number of images to what I felt would be manageable.  I did not see any directions as I just went to contact info and sent the email.  I will not make the mistake twice.  Thank you for responding!
Thanks,
Brad
<Ahh, apology accepted... Our mailserver unfortunately only has a ten meg capacity... We've tried to have this enlarged... but no go thus far. Hence we ask that folks limit the size of graphics to no more than a few hundred Kbytes. Cheers, BobF>

Language Issues:  Proper Use of Affect and Effect    02/17/07
Hi Crew
<Hi Karen, Mich here.>
I know you spend an inordinate amount of time and effort correcting poor grammar and spelling from your questioners and it is much appreciated amongst everything else.
<Hmm, you noticed?  Hehe!>
However, as the site is used by a lot of non-native speakers of English and I see the words Effect and Affect are often muddled in meaning.  Will you take on board the following comments in the spirit they are offered (better communication of important information)?
<Oh yes!  Most assuredly!>
These words do not have the same meaning but CAN be used in the same context.
e.g.
Water movement can be effected by the use of an additional powerhead  (stationary water made to move)
Water movement can be affected by the use of an additional powerhead  (existing water movement changed)
Water changes effect a dilution of pollutants and hence affect  water quality in a positive manner.
Chemical warfare between corals may affect growth and effect death of one party.
Effects: makes happen, brings about.
Affects: changes, influences.
(Not the complete dictionary definition : ) )
<At one point in my life I learned a little saying that helped me use these two words properly (something along the lines of  "I before E except after C".) but I am no longer able to recall the reminder, but remember it being quite useful.  If anyone knows please share.>
Keep up the great work, Karen
<Will do our best!  -Mich>

Re: Language Issues Proper Use of Affect and Effect  2/18/07
Mich
<Karen>
I think you would be referring to something like this
"Affect," except for the specialists mentioned below, is a verb, meaning to cause change in something.
"His headache affected his ability to concentrate."
Verbs are words of action. So think "A"  â€” Affect, Action —  something is Acting on something else.  
"Effect" is usually a noun, a word for a thing, in this case a result of something.  
"Aspirin had the desired effect, and he aced the exam."
Think "E" for End Product.  
This is a way to tell a verb and a noun apart lol BUT won't help the crew that much. The crew and others are having problems with the two VERBS, affect and effect. :) So much for the most common situations.
<Hehee!>
A less common (but useful) form of "effect" is a verb meaning to bring  about or cause to happen. "She effected a revolution with her challenge to the grading system."
TTFN
Karen
<Karen, thank you for sharing, helping.  It is appreciated.  -Mich>

I would like to send some marine fish photos...How do you prefer that to be done?...    2/16/07
Thanks
<Mmm, jpgs of a few hundred Kbytes as attachments... BobF>

A suggestion, maybe a link to add?  2/9/07
Good afternoon Bob, if it is indeed you.
<Tis Nicole>
I noticed you received a query today from someone who had not capitalized their proper nouns or the beginning of their sentences, and they had around eight questions in all. I was wondering if it might not be easier for you to redirect these sorts of questions to the site I volunteer at?
<Mmm, not easy... but will post your message>
The site is www.allexperts.com. After you click on Animals/Pets and then Pet Fish, there are three categories to choose from: Fish, Freshwater Aquarium, and Saltwater Aquarium. There are 15 experts in Freshwater Aquarium currently. A few of these also volunteer in the category Fish. I know one of them has a PhD - and it certainly isn't me! I'm not exactly sure about the credentials of anybody else...
I answer seven questions a day (we set limits in our own individual Preferences) and most of the others answer five a day or so. The questions are posted verbatim, so we either reject them for a specific reason, or answer them the way they are. We appear to have no expectation to follow English conventions in our replies, although I do the best I can as a "common" courtesy...the quotation marks because it is all but common, as you know!
<Oh yes>
I suspect you have been overwhelmed with questions lately. A few of these read as though they should be directed to message boards, or forums of a more informal nature, so I thought I would suggest allexperts.com...perhaps you can include us in your Links page?
Thank you for you! Along with this wet world which you founded.
Nicole
<Will gladly post this as well. Thank you for your input and efforts in general. Bob Fenner>

Re: More poor English...  about FW ich?    1/14/07
ok I think I found the source of my problem in my tank I have a algae eater too and I found two white spot on its fins do I need to clean out my tak to save my last two fish and put the one fish in qurintine my tank is a 5 gallon tank I dont know the ph levels or the tem I am new to this fish thing how cold or how warm should I have my tank we olny have the tank since xmas.
should I take all the fish out and clean out my take to get rid of the ich <All of the information you request is already posted, available on our site. Likewise, you are still not following our conventions for question requests. I once again implore you to read here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/WWMAdminSubWebIndex/question_page.htm and
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/faqstips.htm thoroughly, and recompose your letter with punctuation, capitalization, and proper grammar. -JustinN>

Post-script from a FAQ querier...FYI   1/6/07
Bob,
   I've been helping this gentleman by the name of John out with his FW nitrate levels, and I wanted to forward you the post-script he attached to his last correspondence.  I told him I'd send along to you, as you're in charge of the site:-)
   Best, Jorie
   "P.S. snip this PS out, but could you use a faq on sending pictures, the site mentions kb's etc with regard to sending attached pictures, most people don't understand this. I would happily write you a guide on sending pictures for those using Windows XP (so about 90% of those reading your site by my reckoning (Linux users should know better LOL)). It would be nice to give something back. Let me know if that would help, I struggle with fish care but writing help files/faq's is my living, do let me know if I can help.
   The Windows world needs to know that the right mouse button is there for a reason, I see it as my mission to educate them :-)
   Thanks again
   John"
<I thank you for your offer, and we will gladly post your guide here. Please send it along to either my addr. or the Crews. Bob Fenner>

Hey Crew   1/3/07
Happy New Year crew,
<And to you Brandon>
I was wondering if ya'll have been having e-mail issues?!?
<Oh, yes... thanks for not giving up...>
I have sent the same question 3 times over the past 2 months and have yet to receive a reply. The question had a 77mb
<Yikes! We only have (total) a webmail service that allows ten megs en toto... Could have gotten bumped for this alone... Need to re-size, send images of a few hundred Kbytes... per our instruction set re writing us: http://wetwebmedia.com/WWMAdminSubWebIndex/question_page.htm>
picture attached and was concerning brittle star fish. I have not received a bounce back from your server so I am assuming that it got lost in the shuffle. Please let me know so I know if I should re-send the e-mail again.
Thanks,
Brandon
<Please re-size, attach and re-send. Cheers, Bob Fenner>
Sorry Bob,  
I misquoted... The size of the image was 75Kb not Mb... I will try to resend the e-mail right now.
<Ah, good>
Thanks,
Brandon
<BobF>

Email Received?   12/29/06
Hi,
<Hello Stephanie, Mich here.>
I've sent a few emails to the wet web crew over the last week or so, but haven't received a response.  
<I do not recall seeing your email address.  What was the subject of your email?>
I did have a picture attached (resized).   It doesn't appear that my emails have bounced back, and I don't see the reply posted anywhere...Is my mail getting through?   
<I do not think it is getting through.>
Or did I fail the minimum IQ required for a
question (he heee... really hope that's not the case)?  
<Most certainly not the case!>
Sorry to pester you, I feel like I'm harassing you folks... but that's not my intent.  
<No worries!  I do not think you email was received.>
I just want to be sure something didn't filter out my email because of the attachment.
<I don't think it would be related to the attachment, but there have been occasional issue with our server.>
Response or no, I really do appreciate this website and the wealth of information available through it!  ...and so do my fish....
<Great to hear!>
Stephanie D.
<Please try resending.  Please note, it is always good if the subject line doesn't sound like stock tips, sales, porn, or drugs.  We get incredible amounts of junk mail!  Thanks!  -Mich>   
<<These email losses "happen" all too frequently... don't know if the trouble lies on our ISP/Webmail server end, the recipients, or somewhere in-between... Troublesome. BobF>>

Re: My snail is dying  - 12/12/06
where's the reply?  I didn't see it anywhere!
<Hmm.. Thanks for this, Leslie. Here is the reply I added to Mich's previous correspondence.>
<Hey Leslie, JustinN with you this morning. I noticed your post about your snail, and thought I'd chime in a bit as well. I would agree with Mich that it sounds as if there's a lack of calcium and minerals in your water provided for the snail. One quick and simple solution is to add a clean cuttlebone to the tank for the snail. This should help him out some. Hope this helps you! Good luck! -JustinN>
<Bob, I think I know what's going on here... I think that when we're using dual brackets, its being recognized by email clients as HTML code... Its trying to treat the comment as executable. Just a thought. -JustinN> <<Ahh! A definite possibility n the outbound. RMF>>

See Daily FAQ page for "missing" responses - Re: Second letter sent - please help, somewhat urgent now.... sick betta and compatibility.  12/5/06
Hi Crew,
<Hello Emma - I did indeed respond to your questions when you initially sent them, but it seems as though our site is having some server troubles.  I apologize for the response not reaching you quicker.  I found my reply to you categorized in the daily FAQ's here, about half-way down: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/fwdailyfaqs.htm
I think I've answered your queries, but if not, please let me know. Best of luck, Jorie> <<RMF is wondering, worrying that the world of this and that "blocking" software is having its way with all of us>>

Goldfishes...?  WWM, English, Re-sending... Receiving   12/4/06
Ahoy Crew,
Just wondering if you received my message or not since it's been a few days and I've read in a few places that it only takes 24 hr (usually) for a response.  Also wondering if perhaps I might've crossed your "typing in proper capitalization" rule, if I did I apologize and I can resend.  But please note that I earn my way of living by working at a place that involves me typing very, very fast and where capitalization isn't important, only typing in verbatim.  I also read your response to another (apparently) younger gentleman who hadn't typed with proper caps, yet his letter to you was still completely legible.  Please also remember the internet is not a place of formalities.  With myspace, and facebook, and xanga, and livejournal and all those instant messengers running rampant, you should be lucky there aren't any u's, or ur's, or 4's for fors or other such nonsense.
<"We" are not "them"... proper English is the "coin of our realm"... folks either pay or we return their efforts>
Basically, please be kind.  Each person is doing their best.  What if you had a retarded child who asked for your help with their tank?  Would you blow them off for improper grammar?  Or what about someone who was born deaf and has only known ASL (American Sign Language) their entire life, which is not broken English but instead an entirely different language using English words?
I do appreciate what you're doing, it's obvious that you have helped a lot of people with their quandaries.  But couldn't you be a little less, oh..
stuck up about it?  If you can read it, post it.  Don't waste your time retyping something so it looks pretty.  Fishies lives hang in the balance!  
:-)
Good luck guys, and don't take things too seriously.
Sincerely,
Ashley
<Ashley... did you receive a response? It may well be that our mail-server is gone awry yet again. If you don't see such w/in a day, please do re-send. Bob Fenner>

Re: electric blue ahli spitting out food , labored breathing ... illiteracy   11/30/06
do I get an individual response? or where do I find it on your website?
  Vicky
<An individual response was sent to you yesterday by Bob, as well as was posted to the Daily Q&A section of WetWebMedia. In a day or so, it will be sorted into FAQ's outlining Cichlids. We respond to all emails at their original email address, and post the correspondence to our page. Your original message, and Bob's response, is as follows. -JustinN>

Why the sudden lack of answers?... Don't know... not received  11/18/06
Dear Crew,
   <Danny>
  After eight attempts at an answer, I have decided that you are either inept or suffer from an intense lack of caring, although it might be both. I sent the original letter with a sincere hope that it would be answered and with no failure delivery notice, I assumed you got it. After the third and fourth letter, I became more cynical and pessimistic.
<Something strange here... we respond to all... Must not have been getting... though this is here... Perhaps "something" on your end>
When I wrote the eighth letter asking about a species of fish, I did not expect a response since I had already decided this website is governed by fools.
  Please take this as personally as your self-esteem will allow and although I cannot in any way affect your website, learn from it.
<Mmm, I assume you're not a jokester or mentally ill... If you, others have difficulties reaching our mail server, you're welcome to send to my personal addr: fennerrobert@hotmail.com
Bob Fenner>