Stocking and Filtration Questions
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Outside dimensions: 48ā long x 24 3/4ā high x 12 3/4ā deep
Interior is more like (above substrate line and assuming my math is right): 46 1/2ā L x 21 1/4ā H x 11 1/4ā D
Edit to add: thereās a spot in the middle of the tank that doesnāt quite have enough substrate in it. It actually may be enough sand if I can get my arm in deep enough to shift it around some more.
Those dimensions indicate a 60 US gallon tank, so that was correct. With substrate, wood/rock, etc the tank will probably be around 45-50 gallons, useful to know if you ever use additives of "x" per gallon, etc.
A sand depth overall (i.e., flat side to side) of around 1.5 to 2 inches is sufficient. You can then arrange this with deeper at the back, but sand like any substrate will tend to shift over time. Using rock or wood to "terrace" a bit can work, depending, but again the normal shift of water flow will usually change this, and some fish will on their own. I like to keep some sand back to use for filling in around plants if they uproot or something.
Then I may not need much more sand except for in that one spot. I think thatās where the hose was sitting. Awesome!
Iām about to do the first dose of ammonia and see if my lovely peacocks are suitable now that Iāve got some information about my source water. Iām worried that my ph may be too high for them though. However, itās harder to adjust my pH than it is for me to adjust my stock list, right?
Do you intend live plants? If yes, I would not use ammonia to "cycle." I can explain if asked.
Re the tests, I would pin these numbers down before deciding anything. GH is the most important for fish, followed by pH. If the GH really is zero, that is very soft water, and the pH at 8 must be due to something being added to raise it. The KH/Alkalinity at 240 I do not understand. Can you check with the water authority, maybe on their website? Or call them? Get the number and their unit of measurement (for GH and KH) so we can work it out.
Info on peacock gudgeon, presumably the species Tateurndina ocellicauda:
http://seriouslyfish.com/species/Tateurndina-ocellicauda/
Adjusting water parameters is a complex subject. It can be done, but one must recognize the risks. Having to prepare water for each and every water change, emergency water changes...being able to run tap water in with a conditioner is much simpler. Never consider using any chemicals to adjust parameters. The only safe way is naturally. I won't get into all that, but I will say that if your GH is really close to zero, the pH is most likely due to some additive by the water authority (I have this) and may be temporary so it will lower in the aquarium once the biology is established. You could check into this with the water folks.
Re the tests, I would pin these numbers down before deciding anything. GH is the most important for fish, followed by pH. If the GH really is zero, that is very soft water, and the pH at 8 must be due to something being added to raise it. The KH/Alkalinity at 240 I do not understand. Can you check with the water authority, maybe on their website? Or call them? Get the number and their unit of measurement (for GH and KH) so we can work it out.
Info on peacock gudgeon, presumably the species Tateurndina ocellicauda:
http://seriouslyfish.com/species/Tateurndina-ocellicauda/
Adjusting water parameters is a complex subject. It can be done, but one must recognize the risks. Having to prepare water for each and every water change, emergency water changes...being able to run tap water in with a conditioner is much simpler. Never consider using any chemicals to adjust parameters. The only safe way is naturally. I won't get into all that, but I will say that if your GH is really close to zero, the pH is most likely due to some additive by the water authority (I have this) and may be temporary so it will lower in the aquarium once the biology is established. You could check into this with the water folks.
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I will use live plants but I donāt intend on getting any for a few weeks. I was going to plant when I bought the fish. The whole āsilent cycleā concept confuses me to know end, if thatās what youāre talking about. Plus, the species I probably would initially start with (minus the floating plants) are probably not the best for ammonia consumption because they are slow growers, right?
I will try to get in contact with the water people and see whatās up with the water. The alkalinity reading was just what I got off those strips. They have it in ppm which I donāt think is the usual scale. I seem to recall that API makes a kh test? I can order that (and a gh if needed) if it would be beneficial.
According to this alkalinity map, my city, Jackson, MS, is quite alkaline. They have us in the 200-400 ueq/l group.
https://water.usgs.gov/owq/alkus.pdf
A similar hardness map from the same website has my area in the 0-60 milligrams/liter group.
https://water.usgs.gov/owq/hardness-alkalinity.html
https://water.usgs.gov/owq/alkus.pdf
A similar hardness map from the same website has my area in the 0-60 milligrams/liter group.
https://water.usgs.gov/owq/hardness-alkalinity.html
Both links are nation-wide. Can you get data from your actual water authority?
The hobby uses ppm (which is equal to mg/l) and degrees (dH or dGH). I prefer the latter simply because the numbers are smaller and I can remember them better, but it is easy to convert using 17.9; multiply degrees by 17.9 to get the equivalent ppm, and divide ppm by 17.9 for the dGH. Works for KH too.
I have never added ammonia to cycle an aquarium and I never will. Ammonia if overdosed can kill plants and bacteria. It works, but to me it is an unnecessary complication. A few floating plants will handle things nicely, and much more safely.
Not tonight. The office closed early today. The water association is run through our city hall and I guess that means they get to keep odd hours. Again, like with the test kit I bought, these maps are kind of pointing in the general direction until I can get actual answers. Oh, I hope I can get actual answers. When I lived in a smaller city, no one was able to tell me anything about what we hardness or anything like that so I had to kind of guess.
I promise Iām not trying to be rude!
No problem, nothing of the sort. It's just that you want to know the exact values so you can then forget it and not worry. I am a bit puzzled by such low GH with so very high KH, but I am not a chemist.
The hobby uses ppm (which is equal to mg/l) and degrees (dH or dGH). I prefer the latter simply because the numbers are smaller and I can remember them better, but it is easy to convert using 17.9; multiply degrees by 17.9 to get the equivalent ppm, and divide ppm by 17.9 for the dGH. Works for KH too.
I have never added ammonia to cycle an aquarium and I never will. Ammonia if overdosed can kill plants and bacteria. It works, but to me it is an unnecessary complication. A few floating plants will handle things nicely, and much more safely.
Thanks for the conversion tips!
So if you donāt add ammonia, do you just fully stock in one go (plants and fish) or do you add a group of fish at a time while the plants do their thing?
Obviously Iām not one either
Iām hoping Iāll be able to get more precise answers tomorrow morning.
You're welcome.
I set up the tank with plants, and always make sure the surface is nearly covered with floating plants. You need to ensure they are growing, rather than dying, of course. Provided I am not adding more fish than the tank can be expected to support to begin with, there will never be an issue adding the fish.
To someone starting out with this, I would get the tank planted, running for a few days, then add some fish, going slow. Some fish are better than others, and this is not the cycling issue but something completely different; some species need to be introduced to an established aquarium, and this takes time. Cycling is the means to establish the nitrification cycle of bacteria, but after that the aquarium will begin to establish biologically. There is no way to speed this aspect up, but once it has become established biologically, it is less likely to be "upset" by relatively minor fluctuations. The pH will remain stable, nitrates will remain low and never rise, etc. Regular substantial water changes factor in, and having the right fish matters; inappropriate fish combinations/numbers can upset a tank's biology seriously.
I have done this so often over my 25-30 years of fish that I don't even think about it. And when I set up a new tank or change out the substrate and have only a sponge filter, I can transfer in some floating plants from aother tank and the fish can go in the same day with no issues. Fast-growing plants of which floaters are the best are literally ammonia sinks.
Hmmm. I suppose that makes sense. So in this case, assuming the fish I want are compatible with my water (which may not be the case), the shrimp would probably not be the best option, neither the gudgeons because they like pristine water. So perhaps a school of robust tetras would be a good first addition? Or the Corydoras? I love the way CPDs look, but having heard mixed results about peacock gudgeons with celestial pearl danios, I am no longer sure about adding them in.
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