Wondering about chlorine and chloramine mostly. I’m on Howard county city water. I like to do water changes with water straight from the tap. I’ve got test strips that show no chlorine but wondering how to keep informed about what the county might add during summer or storm season, etc.

My fish when I was keeping tanganyikans loved the water changes and did well. I’m now keeping different species (rainbows, tetras, plecos and rams) and it’s mostly gone pretty well. I also just added a couple of angels a week ago.

I don’t use Prime and have never used it or otherwise treat the water. The ph in my tanks is around 8 and tap water is 7.6, which I know isn’t ideal for rams. I do have two sets of M/F that appear to have bonded in the last couple weeks. No breeding yet but they seem to be very happy.

I lost two rams with definitive post water change symptoms. Weirdly, it was two separate occasions, both times it was the biggest and most dominant ram in the group and most dominant fish in the tank and no other fish were affected. There were 6-8 rams in the tank, along with various tetras and plecos. The day after the water changes, one ram just started losing color and behaving listlessly. In one instance it was gasping at the top of the tank. In the other, it hung near the bottom. Definitely a mistake by me but trying to figure out what it was to hopefully avoid it again. Thanks!

4 Geophagus sveni and 1 Geophagus abalios up for sale. 3-5" $50 takes all. I am not looking to sell them individually. Pickup in Frederick, Md.

150 gallon tank with glass lids

Tank only, no stand $250. Needs help to move.

Located in Derwood, MD.

Rocks of various kinds for sale. I’m willing to take offers on particular pieces. In derwood, MD

Hi CCA — Berto here.

I currently have these plecos for sale:

• L134 Leopard Frog Pleco

• L236 Super White Pleco

• L333 Albino Pleco

• L471 Mini Snowball Pleco

• L306 Blood Red Tiger Pleco

• L183 Starlight Bristlenose Pleco

If you like plecos, you can get them from me here:

https://www.firstprinciplesbreeder.com/inventory?origin=First+Principles+Breeder

But those plecos are only one part of why I built First Principles Breeder.

FPB exists to unite local breeders under a common flag. On our own, each of us has limited inventory, reach, and leverage. Together, we can combine our inventory, gain negotiating power, and offer the local fish stores many of us already support a broader, steadier supply of locally bred fish.


The goal is a better path to market for breeders and a dependable local source for stores—without asking every breeder to build their own storefront and sales operation.


I’m here to meet breeders who want to be part of that network, stores interested in sourcing from it, and hobbyists who want to support locally bred fish.


If you breed fish locally or work with a store, reply or message me. Tell me what you breed or what your store needs—and what would make a network like this genuinely useful to you.


Breeder information: https://www.firstprinciplesbreeder.com/partner-program

Store information: https://www.firstprinciplesbreeder.com/wholesale-program