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Update on the apon flower: it keeps on growing longer and longer. It's now over 10cm long. Will this thing eventually die off by itself? Has anyone tried to propagate an apon using the flower?

Nothing much happening on the tank front. Waiting for my order of plants to arrive this week so I'm postponing today's weekly water change until then. I'm just continuing with the EI routine in the meantime (I dosed macros on Sat, my normal day off from dosing). I hope this is ok.

Algae on glass hasn't returned since I cleaned the glass on day 2 after yeast mixture change. I think this algae appearance has something to do with the inconsistency of CO2 output in the first days of the mixture. Next time will try letting the mixture sit and brew for a couple of days before hooking it up.



Attached Image:

Apon flower a few days ago (now even longer)

-P

Paulus,

Yeah, I think I have seen such a flower before . I usually cut it off when it reaches that stage. My tank is in the basement and very little light can reach the area above the tank, so my flowers tend to fade away once they are above the tank light. About the one stem that turned into a leaf: I think Bensaf mentioned that this would be because it is not a Crispus but a Natans (or something like that) that produce floating leaves. I had one plant (out of 3) that did that twice, but still produced submersed leaves as well. I will never find out what it was as I removed my Apons during the "big change" 4 weeks back.

About the spot algae: Yeah, I am with you on the idea that it has to do with the new DIY having to kick in first, maybe even before that when old one wasn't all that efficient anymore. That is why quite a few people run two bottles, one just starting and the other on the height of performance. Seems a little tricky though because even such a system doesn't assure equal output.

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Hi Ingo,

Of course I remember your apon flower - it's just that I haven't had the strength to find out which page it was on. Interesting about its dependence on light - I guess I never thought about it because this tank is in the kitchen area and receives plenty of natural light during the day. That would explain why it keeps on growing nicely.

Cheers!

-P

Paulus,

If you really want to see my flowers again, Here is a link to a photo forum entry that is all about flowers only .

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Hi guys,

Another week, another update.
The plants I ordered online (bacopa caroliniana, pearl grass, echinodorus parviflorus tropica, crypt parva) came yesterday. When I opened the package, I could tell straight away that I'm going to have a love-n-hate relationship with the pearl grass. The stems & leaves are so thin and delicate, it's impossible to not lose some stems & leaves everytime I touch it. I had to give it a haircut straight away to make the bunch looking decent.

I was pleasantly surprised to see the parviflorus had a runner with 3 plantlets attached. I wonder how quickly this plant produces runners? I hope it's not as fast as tenellus. It's certainly prettier than tenellus.

Anyways, here's the result after the water change and some rearranging (including adding a little piece of DW on the right):
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v58/witje/Fish/23g_20060301.jpg

Left side:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v58/witje/Fish/23_20060301_left.jpg

Right side:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v58/witje/Fish/23g_20060301_right.jpg

Believe it or not, there are bacopa stems behind the pearl grass. They came in much shorter than I expected.

The crypt parva (2 small bunches to the right of the anubias rocks) is a nice-looking plant. It came tightly wrapped in rock wool and I couldn't remove all of the wool (didn't want to break the roots in the process). Hope they'll be alright.

The rotala has become my favorite stem plant. Next time I'll have to prune it. How should I prune it? Just top it and plant the cuttings?

I don't have the heart to get rid of the big apon yet. Maybe after the flower dies (still growing BTW).

I was going to throw away the polysperma bunches, but instead I shoved them in the back corner behind the ludwigia. It actually filled the gap quite well.

Any comments or suggestions (esp. on plant placement) would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers!






-P

hi,

I could tell straight away that I'm going to have a love-n-hate relationship with the pearl grass.

It'll be mostly love. When I first planted mine I had about a million little leaves floating on the surface of the water, it was very brittle. It was slow to start growing but it fills out at a pretty good tick. Noticed mine is starting to creep along the bottom. Very pretty plant, the small leaves are quite nice.

The rotala has become my favorite stem plant

Same here, I remember saying that a few months ago in my log For now if you want to get rid of the old growth, cut the tops half way down and replant. Then for a few trimmings I think you can just trim the tops off and let them grow in. Consensus seems to be it can take that a few times, eventually needing to be replanted.

I like the placement of the HM and the rotala, the polysperma will wind up all over your tank anyway it grows so fast, so can decide where it looks best.

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Back in the saddle!

upikabu,

i like the way your tank is filling up now, looking good .

A question: Is your light shorter than the tank and you have it more on the right than the left? The tank looks so much darker over there.

About the Pearl Grass: I am sure you will love it . You will see that it grows pretty fast and as such gives you a bazillion of options on what you can do with it. For example, when looking at your picture I can see that it would look very nice if you would create a street with it that extends from its current position left-forward through the gap between the 2 pieces of driftwood, with the height being as tall in the back as it is right now to maybe 1 or 2 inches in the front, gradually falling.

If you keep the Apon until the flower is gone then you may keep it forever. Not because this flower will not die, but because there will be another one coming to replace this one (maybe). Also, the Apon looks very nice in the current layout. It contrasts very well with the Pearl Grass.

That's it for now, have fun,

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Hi Nowhere,

Thanks for your comments!

How do you deal with pearl grass when it starts growing - just trim the top and throw away the cuttings? I don't see how a sane person can have the patience to plant individual stems in the substrate (e.g. as foreground plant), unless the stems actually thicken up/become more robust eventually (they're very thin ATM). Right now all I could manage to do was to plant the whole bunch as it came (with lead weight on bottom). I hope the bottom part doesn't die off from lack of light.

Thanks for the rotala tip. The polysperma will probably not stay there for very much longer - I'll just have to find something to replace it. Perhaps more ludwigia.

Cheers!


-P

Hi Ingo,

Sorry just saw your post after I posted mine.

A question: Is your light shorter than the tank and you have it more on the right than the left? The tank looks so much darker over there.

Sort of. The reflector has 2x36w PC bulbs in a staggered position; the bulb on the left is situated on the front of the unit and the one on the right is towards the back. That's why the left back area looks darker (and probably why the hygro stricta doesn't grow as fast as the rest of the stem plants).

For example, when looking at your picture I can see that it would look very nice if you would create a street with it that extends from its current position left-forward through the gap between the 2 pieces of driftwood, with the height being as tall in the back as it is right now to maybe 1 or 2 inches in the front, gradually falling.

Not sure I quite understand this - do you having the HM extend to the right to in front of the anubias/DW combo (i.e. where the parviflorus sword currently is)? That's a neat idea, except then i wouldn't know where to put the sword. Hmm...perhaps I could even use it to fill up that front right corner gap (where the odd rock is now).

Thanks!


-P

How do you deal with pearl grass when it starts growing - just trim the top and throw away the cuttings? I don't see how a sane person can have the patience to plant individual stems in the substrate

No, you don't plat individual stems. When I got mine I got a lot of it. I broke it down into bunches of about 7-10 stems then planted each bunch about two inches or so apart from each other. After a few weeks it filled in. The stems ont get thicker, but they will grow side shoots that will fill in and make it more bushy looking. I'm going to post a new pic later in my Log, you can see there what I've done with it. In my case I want to continue to fill out one side of my tank with it so I replanted the clippings elsewhere, but i think you can just keep snipping the tops off and disposing of them to your hearts content. Not sure how it will handle repeated snippings, but it seems fine with them right now. In other words, the bottom sections don't die off or anything, and shouldn't get ugly as long as proper water nutrients are available.

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Back in the saddle!

I am with NowherMan6 on the trimming and planting routine, although it seems like the Dr. is planting individual stems.

I tend to occasionally remove the enitre bunch and replant the tops as bottoms in a very large group can get too shaded and might not look their best.

This picture shows you what I meant with sloping the Peral Grass towards the front:

Attached Image:

Sloping Pearl Grass

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Thanks Nowhere & LF for the pearl grass tips.
One question: what do you use to tie group of stems together (if you use anything)? Seems like the stems would be too fragile (ie. it would break) if you use regular plant anchors. And if you don't use anything, how do you keep it down in the substrate? I noticed this morning that a few individual stems in my tied bunch have already tried to float away but got caught by the other stems in the bunch.

it seems like the Dr. is planting individual stems

Yup, that's who it was. He must have a special power, he's the Dr. after all.

Interesting idea about the sloping pearl grass LF. I'm hoping to leave the middle area somewhat clear in case the crypt parva decides to proliferate someday. BTW nowhere, did you get your crypt parva yet?


-P

The Bacopa is not the fastest grower, the H.M. will easily outpace it. So you'll have the keep the HM trimmed to allow the bacopa to catch up.

The runners on the sword won't be a problem. Unlike chain sword the runner grows upwards not on the substrate. You can cut off any time or allow the the plantlets to grow (they'll be suspended in mid water) and snip them off and re-plant. They are not very prolific anyway.

Looking good

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Some days you're the pigeon and some days you're the statue.

Remember that age and treachery will always triumph over youth and ability.

Thanks, Bernard. I might have to relocate the HM if I get sick of trimming it before the bacopa catches up. Speaking of bacopa, how the heck do people make their stems stay in the substrate? It's probably the most buoyant stem plant I've ever dealt with (apart from HM I guess). I finally gave up and tied lead anchors around groups of 3 stems to make them stick.

That's interesting about the parviflorus' runners. I had a bit of trouble trying to plant the plantlets while they're still connected to the runner, so I had to cut them off and plant individually.

Hmm...looking back it's probably me who's planting-challenged. That, or river sand is just not ideal for planting stuff.

-P

That, or river sand is just not ideal for planting stuff

I assume the latter is the case, as you seem very good with planting things

The Bacopa gave me trouble as well. Now I plant them by removing the bottom 3 nodes of leaves. This gives me about 4 to 5 cm of plain stem which I stick all the way in the substrate. I have gravel so it holds it down more easily. You can try the 45 degree angle trick - don't stick it in straight down, angle it at 45 degrees. This way, the weight of the sand on top of the stem may help holding it down.

I found that planting them in groups of multiple works as well (was my first attempt with Bacopa), but I experienced that at least one of the 3 stems in the group rotted away.

For the Pearl Grass: I don't tie anything together. I take a few stems (maybe 5 to 7) and hold the bottoms together with my tweezers. Then I take that whole group and shuff it in about an inch to an inch and a half. This is not a fragile plant at all in my tank. Yes, a few small pieces may break off, but I don't care. The rest will grow just fine

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Agre with LF on planting techniques. For large leaved plant remove a few of the leaves at the bottom of the stem and just shove it down good into the substrate.

For the HM, same thing, except my tweezers are my finger tips and I liek to take a good amount in a bunch. I find the stems to be hardy - the stems won't break, you may lose some leaves though.


p.s. didn't get my parva yet, you'll have a nice head start on me

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Back in the saddle!

Ingo & Nowhere - thank you for the additional tips re: planting bacopa & pearl grass. I tried planting a small amount of pearl grass (the ones that broke away from the original bunches) in my 15g last night, using Ingo's technique (tweezers). Seems to work pretty well there, partly because the sand layer is much deeper in the 15g compared to the 23g.

IME thick stem plants like ludwigia, polysperma, & bacopa are much harder to "stick" in smaller substrate like sand or 1mm gravel. The substrate needs to be at least 1" deeper than when using normal (3mm) gravel. I don't have any problem planting them in regular gravel in my 42g.

Cheers guys!

P.S. Nowhere - I don't think a few months head start makes any difference with parva. I already saw one yellowing leaf on one bunch after one day. Hmm, I wonder if this crypt is as e to melting as some of the more common crypts.

-P

Hi guys,

Sorry haven't posted any updates here in over a week. I haven't posted any pics after last weekend's water change as the heavy trim that I had to do on my melted crypt wendtii made it look a bit funny.

Growth has been ok in general, especially the rotala rotundifolia. It has really thickened up to cover pretty much the entire space behind the left driftwood branch and has grown to the surface. I trimmed the tops that had reached the surface last Sunday and they're already reaching the surface again. Question: should I keep trimming the tops on this plant, or is it better to alternate with bottom trimming to prevent stunting? I haven't trimmed the bottom since I first planted it 3 weeks ago. Not sure if this plant is e to stunting from too much topping. I did notice that the new growth from the trimmed top has smaller leaves than the old growth. Is that normal? Also, how low should you trim the top of this plant to encourage bushiness - 50%? I only trimmed the last 25% last week.

Having some trouble with keeping the pearl grass in the substrate. I separated the tied bunches, trim the lower stems and planted them in smaller groups without any lead weight, and by the end of the day some of the stems would be floating. Probably doesn't help that all my fish are mid to bottom dwellers - they're probably the ones knocking the pearl grass stems loose.

On the CO2 front, the 2nd yeast mixture (2 cups sugar, 1/4 tsp yeast) didn't last as long as the first one (came with the Red Sea kit - around 1 cup sugar, 1/2 tsp yeast). After less than 2 weeks, my pH went from 7.0 to 7.2 (KH 5 = 9-10ppm CO2). Consequently I saw some BBA developing on the right driftwood (fortunately only the wood so far, not the plants - fingers crossed!). I'm trying a new mix now, upping the yeast to 1/2 tsp (still 2 cups sugar), so hopefully this will up the CO2 level. It will experiment with different mixes in the coming weeks to find the ideal one.

Anyways, I'll post pics after this weekend's W/C.

Cheers!

-P

Lots of trimming & reorganizing during today's W/C.
First, the big apon is gone. It's just getting ridiculously huge. I'll miss the flowers though. Here's what it looked like after I took it out (ruler is 1ft/30cm; it started out as a smal bulb with 5 small leaves on it ):
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v58/witje/Fish/big_apon_final.jpg

Just for reference, here's the pic after W/C 12 days ago:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v58/witje/Fish/23g_20060301.jpg

Here's the pic right after today's W/C:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v58/witje/Fish/23g_20060312.jpg

I found some blyxa japonica at an LFS yesterday and decided to try it. Not sure if it'll do well in this tank - any tips on keeping blyxa happy?

Since no one replied to my questions about the rotala , I decided to just cut the damn thing in half and planted the top cuttings in my 15g. Also removed the bacopa caroliniana (can't stop the melting of lower leaves/stems). I put the blyxa in its place, not sure if it's the best place for it. Had trouble deciding where to move the pearl grass since blyxa also took its spot - ended up putting it in probably the worst possible place. Any ideas where I should put the HM? Still haven't decided whether or not I like this plant in this tank - it grows a bit leggy and seems to require a bit more maintenance (constant pruning, uprooting, replanting) than I'd like (I'm lazy ).

I'm also starting to like the right back corner now. It's got hygro polysperma, sunset hygro, ludwigia repens & palustrius all mixed together in one big bunch (unplanned of course) and the colour/shape contrast is quite nice. All I did today with that group is trim one stem of ludwigia. It seems like when these stem plants are bunched together, the leaves don't grow as big or as fast as when they're singly planted, even with CO2.

Cheers!

-P

Sorry for the laet reply

It's ok to cut the rotala in half. Actually the place to make the cut in your case would be just below the line of that drifwood branch going across the front of the Rotala. This will hide the cuts and when the new shoots come up you won't see where they are attached to the plant and it gives a bushier impression.

Every 2 or 3 trims you'll have to uproot and trim the bottoms replant the tops.

Really that's the only spot I can see for the HM. Lets fillout and give it a haircut which should bush it out. Hopefully you can create a thick bush that doesn't get too tall.

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Some days you're the pigeon and some days you're the statue.

Remember that age and treachery will always triumph over youth and ability.

Thanks, Bernard!

I was actually trying to cut the rotalas right where you suggested, but missed. (I took the whole thing out before trimming and just eyeballed it. )

Will see how the HM grow in that spot. Probably needs a weekly trimming if I keep it there. Leaf size is a bit too similar to the rotalas though. Ideally I prefer something with more contrast in that spot.

BTW, how much phosphate should I be adding to prevent green spots from the anubias' leaves? I've been adding 0.5ppm 3x a week, but they're still invading the anubias. Would upping the PO4 dosage to 1ppm 3x a week be beneficial, or is anubias in high light is just destined to be covered in green spots? I have 0 out of the tap, and around 1ppm on average if the test kits (Hagen, Salifert) can be trusted.

Cheers!

-P

Hi Paulus,

Well I dose just over 1ppm 3 times a week and that certainly keeps the greenspot off. So yes I'd up the P. But good Co2 is also important in keeping it at bay.

Anubias love phosphate so you should see quicker growth as an added bonus. Phosphate will really drive up Nitrate consumption and really seems to overdive plants, watch for increased pearling. If you see a jump in growth or better pearling increase dosage of N a tad just to compensate for the increased uptake.

Green spot is a fast grower. A clean leaf can end up with dozens of spots in just one day, so it's important to keep the P constant and rich.

My own experience of going from 0.5 ppm to 1ppm dosing of P three times a week as been all good. Don't see greenspot on Anubias anymore even in full light.

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Some days you're the pigeon and some days you're the statue.

Remember that age and treachery will always triumph over youth and ability.

Great, thanks!

You must be a bit psychic , 'cause I was gonna ask about N too - whether or not to increase it along with the increased P - so thanks for preempting the question.

Oh forgot I had a question about diffusing CO2 as well. I'm wondering if a glass diffuser will work better than the pump I'm using. One problem is I don't know where to put it. My HOB is way on the left, so the right side of the tank doesn't get very good circulation. Currently the diffuser pump helps water flow in the right side. If I put the glass diffuser near the HOB return or in the middle back, I'm afraid the bubbles won't get spread around to the right area. Would it help if I put the little pump above the glass diffuser on the right side so it will blow the bubbles across the length of the tank? Or any other suggestions?

Thanks!

-P

Well I can't reccomend the diffusers highly enough

They are super.

Right under the HOB outlet should work fine, the downward flow of water should push the bubbles about nicely.

A powerhead directed at the bubble stream will work also but is more visible. Try under the HOB outlet first. You'll see the bubbles moving and that will tell you how much spread your getting.

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Some days you're the pigeon and some days you're the statue.

Remember that age and treachery will always triumph over youth and ability.

upikabu,

I meant to tell you the other day, when I addressed the Blyxa issue in my thread that I somehow missed this thread. I don't know about your guys, but since the redesign I've missed alot of threads.

Tank looks really crisp, colorful. Once those plants fill in around the dw it should be quite beautiful. That blyxa looks really tall (I guess that's good since it's in the back)

I'm also with Bensaf on the glass diffusor. Pound for pound, dollar for dollar, aestically the best. It's kinda like a limewood diffusor on steriods. Which by the way is good to, but the glass diffusors is more efficient.

Important info about the Rotala that Bensaf said. Don't cut tops too many times or you might be left with cryonic bottoms.



My Scapes

Well, I tried hooking up the glass diffuser last night and it didn't work. No bubbles, zilch, nada. I suspected that the DIY CO2 didn't create enough gas pressure to push through the plate, and a search in APC confirmed that. Apparently you'd have to use a lot more yeast in order to get a strong enough pressure to produce the bubbles, but then you run the risk of the mixture producing an uneven amount of CO2 and conking out faster. Plus someone mentioned that whatever gas is mixed in with the CO2 in the yeast mixture output (it definitely smells "alcohol-y" ) tends to clog up the plate rather quickly, potentially resulting in gas buildup and explosion.

Moral of the lesson: glass diffuser & DIY CO2 don't mix.
Too bad, I was looking forward to using it too. Guess more impetus for going pressurized.

Tetra - thanks for your input. Always good to hear other people's opinions. The blyxa is tall because each stem has multiple side shoots that I didn't have the guts to cut (yet). I'm wondering what would happen if I leave it alone this - whether it will continue to grow upwards and produce sideshoot or do something else (other than dying hopefully). It fits in the current position quite nicely (looks somewhat like your stellaromatica in leaf shape/size) so I'll leave it be for now.

As for the rotala, I noticed that the new leaves that are growing from the top nodes (below the cuttings) are smaller than before. Is that normal?

Cheers!

-P

Sorry to hear about the glass diffusor. A limewood airstone is probably out too. I know once you go pressurized you'll wonder why you didn't do it sooner. Not only is it better, but once it's setup you never have to think about it. In your tank a 5lb bottle will last over a year. So it's $10 a year for the refill - done!

Anyway the rotala. Are you talking about leaves that have been out a while. How old are the new leaves below the cutting. I think some of the leaves along the new stem that eventually develops might be alittle smaller. Always keep some of the tops, so if you have a problem with the bottoms stunting at least you'll have some tops to restart.
I just cut some tops off a few days ago and I'm starting to see some new leafs. I"ll let you know if they are smaller than the leaves below the cut.



My Scapes

Back when I was in the dark ages I used a lime wood diffuser. It worked pretty well. The 2L bottle seemed to be quite a bit firmer than the ones I had hooked up to the bubble ladder. You just need to make sure to keep it cleaned off. A good shake (ice cream anyone?) of the bottle will help keep the mix going strong.

(after thought) didn't Bensaf say that a glass diffuser would work with DIY? (can this guy be trusted?)

I am also starting to wonder about flow in my tank. I might have to break down and ask the boss for a canister filter so I can get some even flow in my tank. Also thinking of a power head to a DIY spray bar but I don't know... I down want to spend the cash on it only to break down and do the real deal.

This fish tank...or plant tank thing is a really big work in progress. Do you guys ever wonder if you think about your tank too much?

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

I know once you go pressurized you'll wonder why you didn't do it sooner. Not only is it better, but once it's setup you never have to think about it. In your tank a 5lb bottle will last over a year. So it's $10 a year for the refill - done!

Believe me, if a CO2 tank weren't as expensive and a PITA to get as they are here, I'd gotten one a long time ago. I already have all the accessories (even a pH controller), but alas no bottle. A one-lb bottle costs almost US$200 here. I can rent a bottle for $10/month, but the smallest size available for rent is 14lbs! Plus with another baby coming later this year, I don't know how much time I'll have to maintain a high-tech tank (I know the wife's been muttering threats lately if I keep up the amount of time I'm spending on this hobby! ). That's the main reason I started with DIY CO2 on this tank (my 2 other tanks are still low tech and low maintenance). I wanted to get a feel on how much more time a CO2-injected tank requires, so I can decide whether or not to continue the "experiment". Of course now that I'm in it, it's very hard for me to pull the plug, especially as I feel I haven't accomplished the mission yet. I guess I won't ever know until I get the real deal. Anyways, enough rant!

Anyway the rotala. Are you talking about leaves that have been out a while. How old are the new leaves below the cutting.

The leaves below the cutting have been there since I bought the plant 3 weeks ago. They're the about the same size as the new ones that have grown in my tank (before the cutting). But new leaves after the cutting are definitely smaller in size. Anyway I saved the old tops (planted in my 15g) so I can always put them back. It'll be interesting to see whether or not your rotalas behave similarly.

A good shake (ice cream anyone?) of the bottle will help keep the mix going strong.

Hey Wings - thanks for this tip! I never thought about doing this. How often did you do this - daily, weekly? Probably could've gotten more life out of my 2 previous mixes this way.

This fish tank...or plant tank thing is a really big work in progress. Do you guys ever wonder if you think about your tank too much?

Ain't that the truth! My wife would definitely agree 100% with the second sentence.

Cheers guys!

-P

I did a little shake just to keep things mixed up well ever couple of days. You want to be carefull though to not get the mix up in the tube then into the tank. It makes the water all cloudy and funk for a little while.

I have started to think about how much I think about fish and what I want to do with my tank(s) and it has started to scare me. Maybe thats why my classes are so much harder this sem.

55G Planted tank thread
19G Container Pond
[IMG]http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y118/Wingsdlc/Ric

Paulus,

Finally I had a chance to skim through your thread as well, you guys have been busy changing things around in my absence. It feels like I am returning to my hometown and someone changed all the road names while I was gone. Plants moved all over the place .

So, the biggest piece I picked up in your log is "Plus with another baby coming later this year" (number 2? ). That is great, when is "later this year" ? I would suggest you train yourself in the "one-handed" water change routine. This way you can combine holding the baby and doing tank maintenance at the same time .

And I am glad to hear that you are in the same boat with most of us (males and females with significant others) as for some reason it appears as if only few fishkeepers have partners that are into the hobby as well. Maybe someone should create a study about this, could be interesting.

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Hi Ingo - Yup, no. 2 is scheduled to make an appearance sometime in September. I'm not worried about water changing at all when that happens as the baby will be strapped to my back, courtesy of baby carriers (some of them German-made, BTW). It's my wife giving me the evil eyes while I'm doing it that worries me.

As for lack of partners that are into the hobby, I think it's a bit of natural selection going on. Who'll take care of the kids/food/etc. if both partners are spending as much time on this hobby as we are?

I know how you feel about being a bit lost coming back. At least you only have a week's worth of catching up to do.

-P