Are These Fish Okay For My Aquarium?

[coldcazzie]

The black plastic sponge will be fine. I've had plastic sponge, plastic bio balls, ceramic rings, filter floss (which is like cotton wool) - they are all fine. What you do need to be careful about what sponge you replace it with. If the sponge has been treated with chemicals then its not suitable - you can't just bang any old bit of sponge in once your filter is fully cycled then you can clean the sponge by swishing it and giving it a bit of a squeeze in old tank water, about once every month should be sufficient.

The neons not schooling is fine. Schooling is a protective action that they perform when anxious or in danger. If they are comfortable and don't feel threatened they won't school. If you were to put your hand in and move some stuff around, they'd start doing it again.

It wasn't pathogens that killed the barbs. I know its difficult to understand at first, but the bacteria you need in your filter are slow growing. It takes around 2 months for the colonies to fully develop and there is no way to make them grow faster, you just have to wait it out. In the meantime, your fish are very much at risk of poisoning and you're the one who needs to protect them by water changing.

 

[Harlequins]

Excellent info from the peeps here

I know you mentioned a salt dip but Please do not use salt in the tank whilst having cories in there,they dont tolerate salt at all well.

 

[ron4sum1]

Do I still add nitrifying/biological bacteria when I do 50% water change?

 

[KkAaNnEe]

Is it bottled?

 

[Louiseness]

Hi

You have plenty of good advice here re cycling so I won't interfere but I just wanted to say that you have the same tank as me. My Stingray broke about 3 days into cycling so I then bought the Fluval U2 and have never regretted it. It's a fab filter and totally silent.

I had a stingray too in my old 60L, it lasted maybe 3 months before it started rattling like hell then broke.

But I cycled my tank with it and never had any problems with the sponge or whatever. It had a small square of sponge and other media, can't remember whether it was carbon or ceramic.

 

[ron4sum1]

Is it bottled?

Yes. It's called Stress-Zyme I believe.

 

[KkAaNnEe]

Then its not gonna benefit your tank

 

[ron4sum1]

Then its not gonna benefit your tank

I thought they're the biological bacteria needed for the cycling? What are them for o_o?

 

[KkAaNnEe]

Take a read of the beginners resource centre. The bacteria in your filter will grow on its own, once you get the sponges* as there will be ammonia in your tank. The bottled stuff wont do anything as its really hard to keep bacteria alive inside a bottle with no ammonia source