10gal Tank Started 7th June 08 & Cycling With 6 Cardinals

[Bblou]

hahah I dream about fish a lot too now!!!

weird!

Ive even dreamt about going to the lfs!



and...


weirdest...


I WAS a fish

 

[Lazerus]

Thanks Waterdrop.....Noted!

So no water change for 8 days ....Ammonia 0, Nitrite 0, Nitrate 0 & PH remains at 7.8. (Timer used today! )

My water hasn't stained any futher from the mopani.

Ended up in a different fish shop yesterday when I was out and about....saw a lovely little algae eater called Otocinclus affnis which I think I will get in a few months time (for when I actually have algae)....so including him in my stock will mean I have to cut back on something else.

You know, I might just leave with my current 6 Cardinals, the Otocinclus and two fish that grow to about 5cm at maturity, yet to be decided. I think that would be comfortable enough for the tank?

I would really like a female betta, they are gorgeous, I think I prefer them to the males, but if get one, thats it for the tank... I've read up that I can't put two female bettas in together...Its either one betta on it own, or four bettas in a group to stop bullying. Plus its quite hard to put another fish in with them because of their aggressive character.

So, one female betta (or two small co-habiting fish instead), six cardinals & one otocinclus...that might be my final stocking for this tank.

Anyway...more to ponder.

Bblou....glad to hear I'm not alone!

 

[Miss Wiggle]

good choice on the ottos, however they need to be kept in groups, so you need at least 3 of them which is obviously gonna impact on the rest of your stocking list, but they are fantastic little fish so well worth considering.

 

[Lazerus]

Ah right, I was hoping he'd be ok on his own.... I'd be afraid there wouldn't be enough algae for group being such a small tank and all. Hmmm. I'll have to think of something else so. I was hoping to get an algae eater but its not looking likely as most of them grow too big.

Another thing, talking about algae...remember that clear jelly substance that I was talking about on the heater...well, its a really dark day here today & I've just notice in the strange lighting that this clear jelly is growing all over the glass too.

What should I do with it? Or does it need to be cleaned?

 

[Miss Wiggle]

a couple of otto's would be fine in your tank, you'd just need to drop occasional algae wafers in for them to have in addition to the natural algae growth

a couple of amano shrimp would be another option,

 

[Lazerus]

Algae wafers eh!! This forum is a wealth of knowledge!

I saw shrimp in the shop yesterday there was see-through ones like the ones you see in a rock pool at the sea, and there was deep scarlet red coloured ones (they looked brilliant!)

I'll have a read up on those amono shrimp and see which ones they are...

 

[Miss Wiggle]

the red ones are most likley cherry shrimp, you could probably have those ones if you can find them locally. have to stick to other small fish the size and temprement of cardinals with them really as they are very small and make a tasty snack for a lot of fish!!

 

[Lazerus]

Ok...it thinks its day 9 since I did a water change and there has been a change...

Ammonia appears to be up....0.25ppm. (Its in between the 0pmm & .25ppm colour, not quite either) Nitrite is 0, Nitrate is 0....and PH still 7.8

What now?

Could my filter be dirty? Or could the mopani wood being driving the ammonia up?

I feel that I should do a water change but then will that will only hinder the nitrogen cycle process?.

Edited: I'm always editing because of my spellings!

 

[Miss Wiggle]

strange for it to just start now after all this time, but it's wise to assume the tank is now cycling and treat it as such. It's a case of regular daily water changes to keep the levels of ammonia and nitrite as close to 0 as possible (certainly no higher than 0.25ppm). So test each day, if you get any reading for either then do a water change, an hr or so after the water change re-test the water and make sure it's now below 0.25ppm. Just keep it up until both levels are steady at 0 again.

 

[Lazerus]

Yes...its is strange. The fish have been in there 3 weeks? I don't understand anything at the moment. I'm sure it will all become clear.

When you say the "tank is now cycling and treat it as such" do you mean that its possible its only just staring into the nitrogen cycle now? Or do you mean that its just doing its normal daily cycle?

Either way, I did a 15% water change just there because I will be out all day, and I don't want to be worrying about the poor little things.

I'll test later on today when I get home to see how things are going.

 

[Miss Wiggle]

for now, assume that the proper cycle is just starting. it may not be the case but it's an err on the side of caution thing. if it turns out to just be a blip then you'll just be better off than you thought you were, if it's a cycle then you're prepared for it.

 

[Lazerus]

Hi again…

Well…I almost feel scared coming on here to say this. but I am now the owner of a Male Betta Splenden. It was a surprise gift from my sister for some help I’d given her recently. She gave it to me this evening.

She’d heard me talking about various fish over the last week or two & thought it would be a nice surprise gift as a ‘thank you’! Well, surprise was an understatement!!

I wasn’t ready to put any other fish in just yet…and it’s all a bit premature. She just didn't know that bit!

As you know from reading this thread, I actually wanted a female betta but sure, he’s here now and he’s in the tank & seems to be getting along just fine. The cardinals aren’t interested in him at all & he seems to be timid too....but time will tell I'm sure.

So here he is…

I’ve named him ‘Prince’. (Seeing as he’s purple and all!)

I’m hoping and praying that everything will be ok Ah, but he's gorgous though....

By the way…Ammonia is back down to 0.

Edited: to add a picture.

 

[davefish]

I'm sorry but you might be in trouble as I think Tetras are known to nip fins. Your Betta obviously has a lot of these. If he gets nipped then it could all end in carnage...

On the plus side, Betta's don't need big tanks so perhaps you could buy a small tank and home him in that without breaking the bank.

I would be watching the tank like a hawk if I were you. It could kick off any second.

The only other thing I can think of is perhaps getting some large floating breeder trap for your current tank and put him in there. Short term solution, but if something did suddenly happen at least you'd be able to put him in there.

There is a Betta section on this forum, you may get better advice there.

Great fish by the way. Nice of your sister, even if you weren't prepared for it!

 

[Lazerus]

Yep, I hear ye!

Actually, Miss Wiggle had said the very same thing a few posts back ....my heart kind of went into my shoes when I saw him but I didn't want to seem 'ungrateful'

But who knows....perhaps mine will be a success story?

 

[davefish]

But who knows....perhaps mine will be a success story?

I really hope so. Good luck!

Try and come up with some kind of plan to separate them if they do start being problematic. A trap, or tank divider, or something. You don't want to be standing there watching the carnage helpless to stop it.