[katkin]

Fingers crossed all round, I hope you get the job.
k

[katkin]

a big GOOD LUCK!
(and hopefully by the time you read this)
CONGRATULATIONS!?!

After my recent downer on not being able to find a job/childcare, I’ve just landed on my feet too. Unfortunately not in a fish shop :cry: But it’s local (farm shop) with flexible hours and my neighbour has agreed to have my youngest for me. Oh, and my mother has offered to pay for me to go on a training course to be a mobile spray tanner and all the start up equipment!
So hopefully by Christmas I’ll be rolling in it (NOT!)

Glad to hear you’re branching out and giving salt water fish a go. My husband would love a marine tank, but we’ve agreed to wait until he’s out of the army and we have our own house. By then you’ll be an expert and I can hammer you for info!
K

[katkin]

@chr15_8 wrote:

congrats on the move katkin. havent you moved down here (south) if i remeber correctly?

Yep, Arborfield, not far from Reading.

Think I may have come up with a plan for making money, well actually my mother (mad cow that she may be) wants to go on a training course to do spray tans (she lives in Spain and is opening a lingerie shop out there)
Anyway, I’ve been getting the info sorted for her, booking a course etc. and today when I rang her to confirm the dates she’s coming over etc she offered to pay for me to do the course and get the business start up pack as well (around £500 all in)

Fingers crossed, she actually goes through with it, then I can make my own hours, pay for nursery and still have some left over at the end of the month to upgrade my tanks!

My husband thinks I’m mad, but hey, spray painting a body can’t be any harder than spray painting a fence!

K

[katkin]

Hi guys, I’ve just started getting into planted tanks, but I’m going for the low light. Well, up to 2.5wpg which I think is what my corner tank is. DIY CO2 until I’ve got some cash to upgrade. Just started EI dosing today, picked up the powders from aquaessentials and tropica for trace.
In the corner tank I’ve got swords, vallis, some java moss, a lotus bulb (I think) and loads of fast growing stuff to help combat any algea, seem to be struggling with hair/string algea (might need to invest in some shrimp!)

The 4ft tank with my cpd’s is at the moment VERY low light, in fact I’ve not even bothered working it out. Desperately needs new bulb OR whole new light system(once I’ve won the lotto!) Eco Complete with a mix of exrta fine black(more grey) river sand/gravel substrate. This tank will be full of bog/driftwood, java fern, windelov fern, narrow leaf java fern, various mosses(java, christmas,weeping, willow and any others I can get hold of), crypts and anubias.

I will eventually get round to taking some pictures…..one day.
K

[katkin]

18ish cpd’s, they never stay still long enough to count them! (+30-40 fry)
2 albino bristlenose plecs
4 albino corydoras (plus three babies)
1 zipper loach
1 clown killies
dwarf gouramis(all gone now)
4 cardinal tetras
4 ottos
1 betta
5 white cloud minnows

K

[katkin]

@L168 wrote:

Hi Katkin,

I didnt want to go back to the U.K after 10 years in Germany and Canada so i signed off, i work now for the local counsel as a bus driver, it pays the bills till the children have done their A Levels, then its the big move back to Canada

Mfg Peter

I’d love to get out of the UK, but I wouldn’t go back to Canada, I grew up there and it never felt like home. I can’t afford to buy in the UK so I’m working on convincing my husband to move to France, something I’ve always wanted to do. I’ve got 6 years to convince him!
K

[katkin]

@ste12000 wrote:

What do you do Katkin??.. with 4 kids i would of thought thats a full time job on its own.

Ha! just about anything other than sit in the house all day looking at the housework I don’t want to do – and the fish tanks I can’t afford to do what I want with!

In all honesty, I’ve tried my hand at allsorts from being self employed (importing goods from South Africa), baking and odd jobs in a farm shop, ran a riding school(voluntary!), ran an army info centre, barmaid, home carer for the elderly, house cleaner, and most recently Lab assistant at an animal feed factory, which surprisingly, I really enjoyed!

Not sure what I want to do next, maybe I should try for a job in an aquatics shop, only prob there, is the pay’s not enough. Especially when nursery fees here seem extortionate. I used to pay £70 per week (army subsidise) now I’m looking at more like £200! Therefore, I think I’m going to have to find a night job, yuck!
K

[katkin]

L168….you are so lucky. I would have loved to have stayed in Germany, as it was we only managed 3 yrs.

Ste….was very stressful, especially with 4 kids who didn’t want to move!

Now all I need to do is find a job!
K

[katkin]

Well, we made it, fish and all. Despite the fact that the fish had no tank for 3 days and it took me another 2 days to find somewhere to put them and set them up….everyone survived! Yay!
My cpd’s are now happily swimming around their new 4ft tank and loving the space. Unfortunately it doesn’t look how I want it to as I have run out of money to aquascape the way I plan to. So for now it’s a bit bare and I will refrain from posting pics until I’ve found a job, the kids are back in school and I have some money!
Spawning tank is set up and running and there is now space for grow out tanks aswell.
Such a relief to get it over and done with. I can relax now until the next move!
K

[katkin]

Thought I’d better update as I am no longer in North Yorkshire (nor Suffolk as I first thought!)
I am now in Berkshire, not far from Reading (for the next two years anyway)
Katkin

[katkin]

When I’ve recieved fish in the post they have been as follows;
Fish do not get fed for 24hrs before posting.
Double bagged in ‘breathable’ bags, 1/3 tank water 2/3 air.
packed in polystyrene box, wedged in with either newspaper or bubble pack (anything to stop the bag from moving around. If needed, a heat pack is strapped/taped to the inside of the lid.
Poly box is well sealed and sometimes placed inside a cardboard box for extra security/peace of mind.
Most of the fish I have received through the post have been through RoyalMail Special Next Day delivery and have arrived before 12noon. No deaths so far.

Bags and poly boxes can usually be obtained from your lfs. Find out what the latest time is that your post office will take items for next day delivery so you can be sure not to pack the fish too early or find that you have missed the cut off time and risk the fish being boxed longer than neccesary.

Hope that helps
K

[katkin]

Wow, that looks fantastic. I’d love to have the space to set up a fish room, but since I live in forces accomodation and move every few years, it’s not very practacle! ONe day I’ll have my own place, until then I’ll just have to dream!
K

[katkin]

HAPPY BIRTHDAY! And nice photos of course!

[katkin]

Great pic!

[katkin]

Just out of curiosity, to those of you that breed other fish….do any of you use microworms? I was feeding my cpd fry on them from a few days, (maybe a week free swimming) and they seemed to do well on them.
Just wondered if that’s okay for them or should I try mixing their foods, ie alternate with a small flake/powdered food?

Sorry to highjack your thread plymbloke
K

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