I tried my usual spots hoping for more longnose dace with no luck, then i tried another part of martin brook (which cut through someones yard) which was slow and weedy, I dip netted two chain pickeral fingerlings. Sadly I had to throw them back. I so wanted to keep them but fish and game frowns on the keeping of game fish, they will outgrow my tank, and eat all my other fish.

I bought 5 fathead minnows from petco, 2 died.

I also did another water change (about 13 gallons) and used my tank vacuume for the first time. I noticed water wasn't flowing through my canister pump anymore despite it running, i am not sure what the problem could be.

I tried my usual spots hoping for more longnose dace with no luck, then i tried another part of martin brook (which cut through someones yard) which was slow and weedy, I dip netted two chain pickeral fingerlings. Sadly I had to throw them back. I so wanted to keep them but fish and game frowns on the keeping of game fish, they will outgrow my tank, and eat all my other fish.

I bought 5 fathead minnows from petco, 2 died.

I also did another water change (about 13 gallons) and used my tank vacuume for the first time. I noticed water wasn't flowing through my canister pump anymore despite it running, i am not sure what the problem could be.

check the hose sometimes they get a wad of junk in them.
change or clean the fillers real good wash it with tank water
sorry to here about your new fish.most feeder fish from those
stores are in poor shape for some time before you pick them up.

I also did another water change (about 13 gallons) and used my tank vacuume for the first time. I noticed water wasn't flowing through my canister pump anymore despite it running, i am not sure what the problem could be.

If the water level got too low, you can loose the flow into those Fluvals. You may need to re-prime the system.

Yep, they can lose prime while cleaning. I have a 405, and after cleaning it can get an air bubble on the impeller, and will just sit there and thrash away. Shake it side to side, some times that gets it to burp up the air. Also, turn it off, wait a few seconds, turn it back on, you may have to do the shake and turn off/turn on cycle a few times before it's back to full capacity.

Yep, they can lose prime while cleaning. I have a 405, and after cleaning it can get an air bubble on the impeller, and will just sit there and thrash away. Shake it side to side, some times that gets it to burp up the air. Also, turn it off, wait a few seconds, turn it back on, you may have to do the shake and turn off/turn on cycle a few times before it's back to full capacity.

I got it working again, it was simply a hose falling over and kinking, i have it propped up now.

Now onto my sampling for this weekend.

On saturday I sampled a small cold water stream near me called Roaring Brook. I got two longnose dace and a blacknose dace. I added them to my tank. The blacknose itself seems better behaved than my other cyprinids and the big longnosed has helped break up my fathead minnows gang mentality making them more peaceful.

As well as the fish I caught the usual crayfish (which suprised me that far up in a coldwater area, i know that part of the brook was used for salmon restoration once) andd a couple leeches (which thankfully did NOT attack my legs, running into bloodsucking leeches or worse yet, sea lampreys are one of my big sampling fears). As usual i threw the invertebrates back into the water.

I noticed all my cyprinids (fatheads, longnose, blacknose, even the algea eaters i bought for cleaning purposes) seem to have a need for a pecking order and seem to chase and boss around smaller fish. After a day or two this behavior reduces but hasn't vanished.

Today I did some sampling and fishing in the connecticut river. fishing got me bluegill, pumpkinseed, and red breast sunfish (all of which i put back). Sampling got me one small bluegill.

The connecticut also got me my first time ever i fell into the water while sampling. (their was a sharp drop off and the rocks rolled out from under my feet).

On the tank front I am medicating it with a chemical that treats fungus and protozoan infections, the ammonia is still at stress levels despite changing 38 gallons of water over the week, and I am starting to get nitrate (but not nitrite, the strips may be defective, not sure though). I have liquid tests but am scared to use them as they give a warning one chemical for ammonia is caustic and should not be touched, and i usually spill chemicals when using them.

I got it working again, it was simply a hose falling over and kinking, i have it propped up now.

Now onto my sampling for this weekend.

On saturday I sampled a small cold water stream near me called Roaring Brook. I got two longnose dace and a blacknose dace. I added them to my tank. The blacknose itself seems better behaved than my other cyprinids and the big longnosed has helped break up my fathead minnows gang mentality making them more peaceful.

As well as the fish I caught the usual crayfish (which suprised me that far up in a coldwater area, i know that part of the brook was used for salmon restoration once) andd a couple leeches (which thankfully did NOT attack my legs, running into bloodsucking leeches or worse yet, sea lampreys are one of my big sampling fears). As usual i threw the invertebrates back into the water.

I noticed all my cyprinids (fatheads, longnose, blacknose, even the algea eaters i bought for cleaning purposes) seem to have a need for a pecking order and seem to chase and boss around smaller fish. After a day or two this behavior reduces but hasn't vanished.

Today I did some sampling and fishing in the connecticut river. fishing got me bluegill, pumpkinseed, and red breast sunfish (all of which i put back). Sampling got me one small bluegill.

The connecticut also got me my first time ever i fell into the water while sampling. (their was a sharp drop off and the rocks rolled out from under my feet).

On the tank front I am medicating it with a chemical that treats fungus and protozoan infections, the ammonia is still at stress levels despite changing 38 gallons of water over the week, and I am starting to get nitrate (but not nitrite, the strips may be defective, not sure though). I have liquid tests but am scared to use them as they give a warning one chemical for ammonia is caustic and should not be touched, and i usually spill chemicals when using them.

joshhhh..you have stress level ammonia and you added more fish?hmmmm

I have liquid tests but am scared to use them as they give a warning one chemical for ammonia is caustic and should not be touched, and i usually spill chemicals when using them.

I always spill that stuff. Just do your testing by a sink and rinse off if you get some on you. Unless you are really sensitive, that will be fine.

They say a bad day at fishing is better than a good day at work, that is true, as bad days at fishing exist while good days at work are those mythical things seedy media like tabloids report but no one ever sees. Right up their with bigfoot, loch ness monster, honest lawyers, and michael jackson fans in their mythical, non existant, nature.

Yes, I went sampling today and caught nothing.

My first stop was Tully brook, a marshy, swampy, brook that was weedy with lilly pads and such even in the current. This was my worst sampling location ever. The more I went upstream the deeper the mud went. I even went to walking along the shore to get to promising spots as the mud was up to my knees in parts.

Finally I found it, in a shallow side pool a school of minnows in the weeds. Even though my shadow was not on the water these minnows already knew I was here and were in a blind panic. I tried to wade in and get them but the mud up to my knees meant i could never get near them.

The mud STANK when i sunk into it too, like a smelly day in a poorly maintained restroom only worse, more concentrated.

My few efforts to dipnet only got newts, tadpoles, and insects.

I never got to see what these fish were but they got my respect. They live in waters i hope to never walk through again.


My second stop was pearly pond, i remember catching minnows in the outlet stream while fishing when i was a kid and hoped I could kick net some. I had no luck, the pond itself also gave me no luck.


Then I tried the contoocook (pronounced con-took-cut for some reason, so for the longest time i mispelled it). This river was unique for those in cheshire county as it is part of the merrimack river drainage. Knowing this my mind was filled with hopes for redfin pickeral, banded sunfish, and especially swamp darters. I started at its headwaters in contoocook pond with no luck (I never have luck dip netting ponds), then i moved to the main contoocook river in a riffley spot and got nothing. My hopes of moving downstream were dashed when i had to leave and use the bathroom so i decided to cut my trip short.

Edited by FirstChAoS, 12 July 2009 - 10:28 PM.

Another week, another sampling effort.

I went back to ashuelot river park in keene hoping for darters, I found only one (oddly it was in a clump of small dead plants not under a rock) it was very small though. The biggest suprise dipnetting was all the juvenile largemouth. I got about 4 of them. I also got a small shiner.

I tried fishing their too and got a few redbreast sunfish, all with small,black, pepper like, spots of parasites on them. However this was my first time getting a few redbreast entirely in NH. (before the best spot for them i found was on the vermont side of the connecticut river).

My next stop was higher up the river in surry mountain reservoir. Here dipnetting failed me (minnows in lakes are much harder to net). So I tried fishing. I had one of my most productive fishing days ever. I got fallfish, smallmouth bass, alot of perch, and the biggest white sucker i seen in a while.

I really wanted to keep the fallfish and the tesselated darter but released both.

In case any of you are curious on my aquariums situation, things have gone fine since the banded died. I added aquarium salt for their health like the guy at the pet store suggested and the effect was amazing. My fish are calmer and more peaceful now. They act more normal than i seen in a while. I also added little turtle ledges to the corners of the tank and my fish (especially my tesselated) love the raised perches these provide.

Edited by FirstChAoS, 27 July 2009 - 01:47 AM.

i know its an old post but if you have ammonia problems and didnt properly cycle the tank you can use seachem stabil it works. i use it when i move or have to replace a filter. another product that might help is cycle.