am i still a beginner?

[IKeepAngels]

i recently bought 4 young (about 1 inch) yoyo loaches from the store. i was originally looking for dwarf chain loach but no store in my fish market in the philippines had so i bought the yoyos. i did no research about them or on how to care for them because i thought one store would have the chain loaches. i've read online that yoyo loaches aren't recommended for beginners and i am worried i might kill them. i do what the websites say i'm supposed to do even before i had the loaches anyway. how do i know if i am ready for more challenging fish?

 

[Jessie J.]

Do you know how to cycle a tank?
How many people have you helped/answered questions they had about aquariums?
What fish do you currently have?
How long have you been keeping fish?

 

[Colin_T]

As long as you keep the aquarium clean and the water in good condition, you will be fine. Doing regular water changes, gravel cleaning, and filter maintenance/ cleaning will help keep things safe for the fish.

Monitoring the water quality for ammonia, nitrite, nitrate & pH will help you work out if the filters are working properly. And if the nitrates go up quickly then you need to do more water changes or bigger water changes, or put less food in the tank.

Having an aquarium with a cycled filter is essential for all fish regardless of if they are loaches, tetras, barbs or goldfish, or anything else that lives in water.

Loaches are not hard to keep as long as the water is free of ammonia & nitrite, and the nitrate is kept as low as possible (preferably below 20ppm).

Loaches are scaleless fish and if they get sick you will need to find medications that are suitable for scaleless fishes. However, loaches are generally quite hardy and don't normally get sick. Clown loaches regularly come in with white spot but once that has treated they should not get any diseases if kept in a well maintained aquarium. And Yoyo loaches (Botia lohachata) are a lot less likely to have whitespot or any other diseases compared to clown loaches.

With an established filter and regular maintenance you can keep just about any fish.

 

[NickAu]

How big is the tank?

 

[IKeepAngels]

Do you know how to cycle a tank?
How many people have you helped/answered questions they had about aquariums?
What fish do you currently have?
How long have you been keeping fish?

yes
a lot
angels,loaches whiptails, and tetras
about 5 years

 

[IKeepAngels]

How big is the tank?

50 gallons

 

[Colin_T]

If you have been keeping fish for 5 years, you are not a beginner.

 

[IKeepAngels]

th

If you have been keeping fish for 5 years, you are not a beginner.

those 5 years are divided. So for a few years i kept fish, stopped, then kept fish again

 

[DrRob]

We're all beginners at something. I've been keeping fish for many years, but have never kept marine (soon to be rectified once I finish renovating the room the tank is going in). To me, the biggest difference between a beginner, an established keeper, and an expert, is that the beginner doesn't know what to ask, the established does, and the expert doesn't need to. Sadly, all too often, the beginners can't see the difference between themselves and the experts.

 

[Colin_T]

To me, the biggest difference between a beginner, an established keeper, and an expert, is that the beginner doesn't know what to ask, the established does, and the expert doesn't need to.

LOL, I like that

 

[AVB99]

Hello. I hope this is the right place to post. This website is not easy to navigate in my smartphone. It's doing all sorts of things

I've just transferred the contents of my 60l tank to an 80l tank. There are thousands of tiny air bubbles on the front glass. Any ideas why please? Thanks in advance.

 

[Colin_T]

Hi AVB99 and welcome to the forum

Normally we would prefer it if you start a new thread for new topics. The following link is where you should have gone. However, since you have posted I will respond here. The air bubbles are fine and normal and appear on the glass in new aquariums because the glass is very clean. In a few days the bubbles will go and that will be the end of them. They are nothing to worry about.

http://www.fishforums.net/forums/new-to-the-hobby-questions-and-answers.26/

At the bottom right of this link is a button called "Post New Thread". Click that button and it will open a new page and you can start a new thread there.