Hi Sue, Steve and Jesnon,
Steve – I did not mean to portray you as a “in-house police”. It was meant to be rather flattering, in fact – a sane person around with logic... And as for the heat – you are in London, aren’t you? It is probably the only place in the UK where it is colder than it used to be in summers of the last few years but it is actually much warmer elsewhere! My recollection of the last summer (hugely inaccurate and exaggerated) is of a one with rain non-stop 24/7 and the daytime temperatures being somewhat “not right” – about +12 to + 15...with an occasional “balmy day” with a “hot” +18 and just clouds... Last summer with a few days with +23 or so here was in 2006, if I remember correctly... You lucky Londoners!
Sue, - thanks for the kind words! I simply cannot just ignore things when I can help – and this will (hopefully) help aquarium fauna and flora (which is, in a way, also “aquatic pets” as they are living things)...
I think temperature wise your Salvinia will be fine in a tub but it has got rather used to the aquarium water which will be different to tap water, so I would pop it back in... With the flaps open – it is certainly a thing to try. There are a few unknown “parameters” like: how much air movement around your tanks (people passing, doors/windows open/closed, etc.). Anyway, it is certainly worth a try. I would separate the Salvinia into two portions and add it to each tank – and see what happens. It may be it will be doing better in one than in another...
As for the Beta G: it contains Beta Glucans (sorry, this is obvious, really). Beta Glucans are known to help shrimp keepers/breeders – the ones which deal with more challenging shrimp. The reports are that the mortality rates are significantly reduced when adding Beta Glucans. In any case – this is not a miracle cure but it helps and if even it does not (something else is causing shrimp’s mortality) it is absolutely harmless and I think that it is at least neutral or possibly even quite good for fish as well. I have a tank with rare wild caught in China Caridinas. I have had a few deaths which was frustrating and expensive – at £8 + per shrimp. I started adding Beta G and I have not had any fatalities for a while now. As I accidentally bought two packets and only a small amount is needed every time, I thought I would start adding Beta G to every tank during a water change (some of them have shrimps and some don’t). I have not noticed any significant improvement in my fish but they are all fundamentally healthy so I could not expect them to be “even better”, really... The fish are ranging from Burmese Rosy loaches to Melanotaenia Australis with anything in between...
Jesnon, -first of all: thanks! I do get frustrated by militant ignorance and lack of common sense – this is true... but my intensions at all times are to put things right (ONLY when I know the answer!). Steve is absolutely right about the little plantlets on your Windelov fern – they are little “babies”! What slightly – only slightly! – concerns me is the fact they are produced in numbers (if I understood this correctly). They do produce one or two over a long period but they start producing more either if they are very happy or very unhappy (survival instinct in plants, believe it or not!). “Unhappy” is most likely, to be honest... So, if your main plant is not spreading and growing new leaves but just producing plantlets in quantities – then there might be a slight problem. This is not anything to panic about – it all can be resolved...