Few Questions Need Answers Please!

[riggs111]

hi guys ive still been doing my daily checks on the ammonia and nitrite since i had a problem on the 16th october where i done a very big water changed which dropped the levels to 0 and since the 18th of october they have been on 0 since to this date,

my first question is when do i do a water change again? as its been over a week since ive done?

2nd question: when do i change the media in my filter? ive got a white pad which is not a fine bad its quite course and ive got a black pad which is the same courseness as the black one, im just curious on when i should change it?

3rd question: what fish do u reccomend i put in my tank? i have

4 rummy nose tetras
6 neon tetras
5 glow light tetras
6cherry barbs

i wanted to get a bristlenose sucker thingy? dunno the name there seems to be a few types but i wanted a plec kind of fish that dosent grow that big were i have to change my tank because it too big?

sorry about 50 questions

adam

 

[bassbonediva]

Your ammonia and nitrite *should* be at zero. The only reading that shouldn't consistently be at zero is your nitrate, which should be between 5 and 20ppm (depending on how heavily planted your tank is). So, that being said, what is your nitrate reading at? The amount of nitrates you have will determine when you need to do a water change.

As for changing your filter media...DON'T! Your filter media should not be changed unless it is literally falling apart, and even then part of it should be kept when you put in the new filter cartridge (or media) to keep the cycle on the tank. If you take out the filter media and throw it away, replacing it with a fresh one, you're throwing out the majority of your beneficial bacteria (what eats the ammonia and nitrites to keep your fish healthy and your tank cycled) and you'll throw your tank into a mini cycle which still stress your fish and possibly kill them.

How big is your tank? Bristlenose plecos (what I believe you mean when you say "bristlenose sucker thingy") need a minimum 20 gallon tank and all plecos require natural driftwood to aid in their digestion.

 

[mattlee]

Your ammonia and nitrite *should* be at zero. The only reading that shouldn't consistently be at zero is your nitrate, which should be between 5 and 20ppm (depending on how heavily planted your tank is). So, that being said, what is your nitrate reading at? The amount of nitrates you have will determine when you need to do a water change.

As for changing your filter media...DON'T! Your filter media should not be changed unless it is literally falling apart, and even then part of it should be kept when you put in the new filter cartridge (or media) to keep the cycle on the tank. If you take out the filter media and throw it away, replacing it with a fresh one, you're throwing out the majority of your beneficial bacteria (what eats the ammonia and nitrites to keep your fish healthy and your tank cycled) and you'll throw your tank into a mini cycle which still stress your fish and possibly kill them.

How big is your tank? Bristlenose plecos (what I believe you mean when you say "bristlenose sucker thingy") need a minimum 20 gallon tank and all plecos require natural driftwood to aid in their digestion.

i think that keeping nitrate between 5 and 20 is a bit too keen. fish can happily live in higher levels of nitrate with the exception of really sensitive fish and wild fish. nitrates can be found in tap water from 0 up to 50 and maybe more and not every tank has real plants. plants will use up some nitrates but unless its very very heavily planted then it wouldnt make that much difference, it also depends on the growth rate of plants as to how much nitrates are used up.

if you are or have been having trouble with the tank then i wouldnt add any more fish just yet and let the tank settle and stabilise for a few weeks just to be safe. regarding water changes its recomended to change 20-25% every week to replace the trace elements for better health and to help reduce your nitrate levels. the less nitrates the better but as i said its not essential to keep them very low, anything up to 60ppm will be fine for most fish and the fish in your stocking will be fine. the more stocked you are the more water is suggested to replace weekly.

bristlenose plecs are quite messy fish as they are constantly eating algae, wood and any food you feed them. they grow quite fast and can add quite a big amount to the bioload on a small tank. i would say that you could add at least half the bioload again on what you have already by adding a bristlenose, depending obviously on the size of the pleco thats added.

 

[riggs111]

right Ive just done a nitrate level check and it coming out at between 5-10ppm.

should i do a water change as it has been over a week nearly 10 days?

OK i don't want to put my tank under that much bio load. can you guys recommend anything? i dont mind what just want some ideas what i should add next as I'm a bit dumb when it comes to what fish? completely open to suggestions!

 

[Gilli]

You should be doing a water change at least once a week every week along with a really thorough gravel vac each time to keep your tank healthy.

 

[mattlee]

right Ive just done a nitrate level check and it coming out at between 5-10ppm.

should i do a water change as it has been over a week nearly 10 days?

OK i don't want to put my tank under that much bio load. can you guys recommend anything? i dont mind what just want some ideas what i should add next as I'm a bit dumb when it comes to what fish? completely open to suggestions!

we still dont know what size tank you have... without this info it makes it very hard to suggest a fish species that would suit.

as said above do weekly changes of 20-25% and it will be fine with your stocking

also what nitrate test have you used?

 

[riggs111]

ok sorry i have a fishbox 60 which is a 64L tank and i have been using a API master test kit, is that ok for nitrate?
adam

 

[mattlee]

ok sorry i have a fishbox 60 which is a 64L tank and i have been using a API master test kit, is that ok for nitrate?
adam

with the API nitrate test kit be syre to give the bottles a real good shake, especially bottle 2. the liquids really need to be mixed up well before adding to the tube to get the more accurate readings.
if this is what you have done then the nitrate levels are more than satisfactory

i think the tank might be a little small for a bristlenose plec as they get to 6 inches ish and will turn your substrate brown with poo there are smaller plecs that might be more suitable like the bulldog plec, pitbull plec etc that will also graze on algae and try to keep your glass and decor clean for you. check out planet catfish for a suitable pleco for your tank their info is normally pretty accurate and a good place to start

 

[riggs111]

aww thats fantastic thank you for your help! yes i followed the instructions with ever test i do as i have a really bad memory haha.

mattlee youve been a great help and everyone else has for that matter!

ok im not sure on the plec now to be honest.

do you recommend any fish that would be nice to put in my tank with my other fish?

adam

 

[waterdrop]

Hi Adam, Glad to see you are getting good advice about water and maintenance.

I guess we could do a little baseline work that might help help put your stocking plans in perspective (I probably shouldn't be doing this as I'm notoriously bad and will probably make some simple mistake but I'll throw it out anyway for the others to correct.)

Let's see, you have a 64L/17G tank, with:

neons: (adult size 1.2") x 4 = 4.8
rummys: (adult size 2") x 6 = 12
glowlights: (adult size 1.8") x 5 = 9
cherry barbs: (adult size 2") x 6 = 12

That's a nominal 37.8" of adult fish, or 2.2 times the one inch of adult fish body (fins don't count) per one US gallon of water volume prior to considering what species they are. Now, when we consider species, the neons and glowlights are so small bodied that an inch of their body counts less really, whereas the cherrys and rummys are about normal.. so really we're probably a little less than twice the recommended amount of fish for the tank but we're still overstocked, technically.

Next, we turn our attention to species groupings: The cherrys and rummys come in ok at the minimum 6 to barely keep their stress level ok but the other two, the neons and glowlights also really need to be brought up to six minimum.

If you have a friend also in the freshwater hobby who needs or has room for more fish then you might consider giving up one of your species to that person. On the other hand, if you were to practice really good maintenance habits, perhaps doing even more than one gravel-clean-water-change per week, you might do just fine with this bioload. Its against my better judgement for beginners but I guess if you were to do it, I would recommend that you bring the neons and glowlights up to six and then of course hold there. Since the neons and glowlights are small, it might work ok, I'd just hate for you to have a bad experience as time went on for your first year or two.

~~waterdrop~~

 

[mattlee]

I agree with waterdrop here. from keeping rummynose tetras in the past i noticed that they prefer a big space as they are very very active so these may not be ideal for your tank size. the neons and glow light tetras are similar in their ways and arent as mad and hectic as the rummynose tetras so would suit your tank better. the barbs may require different water parameters so i would think about moving these on too.

6 of each neon and glow light tetras will be a better set up and the fish will be more relaxed in a larger group of each species rather than a few of each so you will really get to see the best of your fish.

if you really did want to add a few more fish then pygmy corydoras might be ok as they are small so dont add a great deal on the bioload. they are mainly bottom feeders but unlike most other cory they swim in the mid tank zone too. there are a few different species of small cory so it might be worth checking them out and if you like them a group of 5 or 6 might be ok