Dorm Room Goldfish

[Amunet]

If you don't want a betta... you could always try guppies. They come in all different colors and are the most curious fish, plus they stay small so you could have a few in there with no problem

It sounds like you're probably not gonna wait for your tank to cycle before you get fish.
You're just gonna have to do daily or every other day 10-20% water changes (with dechlorinated water) to help keep the toxins down so your fish don't get too stressed.
You should also think about getting a master test kit.

And etc etc.... sounds like you're willing to spend some money on this great hobby. Just be prepared to spend more than you wanted heh

 

[DormFishKeeper]

I ended up buying a new tank that is a 2.5 gallons. I got six tiger barbs for this 2.5 gallon tank. I filled it with distilled water. I then put the chemicals in to get rid of the chlorine and what not that you use. I then let it run with the air filter for a couple of minutes. I put the fish in their bag in the tank for an hour or so. I then poured all the water into the tank.

I had a few questons;
-how do I clean a tank like this?
-do I change the 10% of the water weekly? How is that done?
-when feeding them they are very aggressive. How long and how much should they be fed along with how often?
-Does it matter that occationally they will nip at each other?

Anything else you want to add or where I made a mistake let me know.

Thanks.

 

[Jozlyn]

Ummm, did you cycle this tank? Your note sounds like you bought the tank and the fish at the same time, set it up and put the fish straight in. Given that your first post was only a few days ago, I'm guessing you didn't end up reading the pinned topic on fishless cycling.

Were you able to get any filter media from your LFS? I can't see a heater in your pictures, do you have one? If not, the filter media will most likely be dead now. So you'll have to either take the fish back or cycle the tank with them in it. That's a big job as you'll have to do lots and lots of water changes until the bacteria build up in your filter.

You need to get a gravel vac, this will suck up the muck from the bottom of the tank along with water which you discard (after rinsing your filter in it) then top up with fresh, warm, dechlorinated water. I do around 25% water changes weekly.

Did you get a master test kit? What are your water stat's?

I don't have any Barb's so I can't help you out with feeding, agressivness etc.

Good luck!

 

[DormFishKeeper]

Yes I didn't do the cycling part. I realize this may have been a mistake, but I dont have a car to get to the pet store often enough so I figured Id get it at once.

so I need to buy a gravel vac to clean the bottom of the gravel? I do that weekly? I assume this will be a very small gravel vac too.

I don't have a master test kit, should I put that on the list of things to get? Is it fairly easy to do?

 

[Jozlyn]

Yup, not cycling the tank is a mistake, but not something that can't be over come.

You need to get the master test kit NOW And test your water and post the test results. Most LFS's stock master test kits, if they dont, you'll need to get three kits, one for amonia, one for nitrItes and one for nitrates. Do the tests straight away and post the results. The tests are easy, you take a sample of your water add the drops then compare the colour of the sample with the chart you get with the test kit, this will give your level number.

Have you got a heater yet?

If the amonia levels gets high your fish WILL die, no two ways about it.

In the mean time you need to start doing daily water changes of around 20 - 25% this will keep your fish alive until the tank has a chance to cycle.

 

[DormFishKeeper]

Yup, not cycling the tank is a mistake, but not something that can't be over come.

You need to get the master test kit NOW And test your water and post the test results. Most LFS's stock master test kits, if they dont, you'll need to get three kits, one for amonia, one for nitrItes and one for nitrates. Do the tests straight away and post the results. The tests are easy, you take a sample of your water add the drops then compare the colour of the sample with the chart you get with the test kit, this will give your level number.

Have you got a heater yet?

If the amonia levels gets high your fish WILL die, no two ways about it.

In the mean time you need to start doing daily water changes of around 20 - 25% this will keep your fish alive until the tank has a chance to cycle.

http/freshaquarium.about.com/cs/cyprinids2/p/tigerbarb.htm

according to that it mentions you can keep it in an unheated thank. Is that wrong?

As for the master test kit I'll try to get one soon, but tommorrow is a holiday in the US so it might have to wait till wednesday. Until then I need to take a cup and take out 20-25% of the water daily? Then put back in filtered water? Do I also add the dechlorine liquid?

 

[dixaisy930]

I ended up buying a new tank that is a 2.5 gallons. I got six tiger barbs for this 2.5 gallon tank. I filled it with distilled water. I then put the chemicals in to get rid of the chlorine and what not that you use. I then let it run with the air filter for a couple of minutes. I put the fish in their bag in the tank for an hour or so. I then poured all the water into the tank.

Is this a typo? A 2.5 is not big enough for six tiger barbs. I would say they need atleast a 15 gallon tank. In general, you want to stock 1 inch of fish to 1 gallon of water. Tiger barbs get 2-3 inches and with 6 of them, that's a minimum of 12 inches of fish. Do big water changes until you can tank them back to the store, or get a bigger tank.

 

[DormFishKeeper]

I ended up buying a new tank that is a 2.5 gallons. I got six tiger barbs for this 2.5 gallon tank. I filled it with distilled water. I then put the chemicals in to get rid of the chlorine and what not that you use. I then let it run with the air filter for a couple of minutes. I put the fish in their bag in the tank for an hour or so. I then poured all the water into the tank.

Is this a typo? A 2.5 is not big enough for six tiger barbs. I would say they need atleast a 15 gallon tank. In general, you want to stock 1 inch of fish to 1 gallon of water. Tiger barbs get 2-3 inches and with 6 of them, that's a minimum of 12 inches of fish. Do big water changes until you can tank them back to the store, or get a bigger tank.

Are you serious I was told by the man at petco that it was ok? He assured me that they would be fine as long as I got them into a bigger tank as they grew bigger. Could I take four back and leave two? or leave one? Petco also offers a 15-day guarentee not that I want them to die.

 

[Jozlyn]

Well they are tropical fish so they're best off being kept in a heated tank, they'll be happier.

Yes, you must to do daily water changes. Yes, you must add the dechlorinator.

However, you do not need to use distilled water, tap water + dechlorinator will be fine. Warm up some of the dechlorinated tap water in the kettle to bring your water temp' up a bit.

Never use hot water from the tap as this water runs through copper pipes and copper is also deadly to fish!

Keep an eye on your fish, if they start showing any signs of stress do another water change. Unfortunately until you get the test kits you wont know what's going on with your water, so the safest thing is to do lots of water changes. Up to 50% will be ok.

Petco are only out to make money, that's why they sold you fish that will grow to big for your tank as well as a new tank on the same day! Responsible fish retailers don't do things like that!

 

[dixaisy930]

Yeah, unfortunately 76% of what most chain petstore employees say isn't true.

Tiger barbs do best in groups of 5 or more because, like you have experienced, they do tend to get a little aggressive/nippy. This way, the more of them, the more the aggression is spread out.

With a 2.5 gallon tank, you are pretty limited in your options. In all honesty, a betta, snails, and shrimp are the only things you can have in there.

If you have the room/money, I highly recommend atleast a ten gallon or twenty. It will be easier to keep a handle on water quality and give you more stocking options.

 

[Jozlyn]

Oh gosh, I've just done a metric conversion on your tank, it's only a 10lt.

I have a 10lt tank at home with one Betta in it, and nothing else except a heap of plants.

Do minimum 50% water changes daily until you can take your fish back. I'm so sorry I didn't realise how small it was.

 

[DormFishKeeper]

how does petco keep them in the small tanks they do with like 4x the amount I have to sell them? Do they rotate them daily?

 

[dixaisy930]

They usually only have the fish for a few days, a few weeks at most. They also have different kind of filtration system than the average home aquarium system would have.

 

[Jozlyn]

They usually have a pretty big turnover.

Their tanks are cycled (yours isn't).

Generally large chain stores are fairly good with keeping the tanks clean etc. otherwise people wouldn't buy the fish if it doesn't look all lovely and clean.

And they don't really care about dead fish, they factor that into the price they charge you to buy them.

 

[DormFishKeeper]

could I keep one even though they like to live in groups?