Fish Newbie

[Ace_Of_Fades]

Hello Fishforums,

 

 

[fluttermoth]

 

[LyraGuppi]

Welcome

 

[gmc1]

Hello

 

[Munroco]

Hello Ace

 

[Akasha72]

hi and 

 

[Ch4rlie]

  to the forum.
 
Hope you enjoy the forum, glad to have you on board.

 

[Ace_Of_Fades]

My apologies FishForums, I pressed tab to indent my first paragraph then enter to find where the cursor was, and in turn accidentally posted with only two words. >.< so here's what i meant to say.
 

Hello Fishforums,

  My name is Alex and I am new to keeping fish, here's my story of how I got into it. I love animals with a passion, and have been living on my own for the past year in a non-pet friendly building with my girlfriend. She promised that once we moved into a new place I could get a cat :3 because I love cats. So about a month ago we moved into a new building that is pet friendly and I asked her if I could get one,  she said no because she's pregnant and cats aren't good for pregnant women and they could smother our baby when he's born. :'( We got into a huge argument because she thinks they're just a chore and doesn't understand my reasoning for wanting a pet. Basically the argument ended in her saying the only pet I could have was a fish, so I kinda won

! Started doing a bunch of research on fish, and I realized there was actually quite a lot to it, which made me happy because I love learning and caring for things. So after doing a couple days of research I decided that I wanted to go get myself a betta and some corys. Went to the pet store bought one betta, eight peppered corys, four snails, 10 gallon tank, filter and decorations. My fish community gets along well and I hope to make it bigger someday. I would have never guessed I would have gotten into caring for these little guys but now I feel obsessed with them! So here I am, here to further my knowledge in fish keeping. I hope to learn lots from everyone.
 

 
 
P.S Thanks everyone, glad to be on board.

 

[Akasha72]

Hi again, from reading your introduction the first thing that jumps out is the question 'how did you cycle your tank'. It reads as though you set up the tank and put fish in immediately? Please correct me if I've misunderstood that.
 
I have just commented on your other thread about Nitrite readings and now I am wondering if this is connected. If the tank was not cycled properly before you added your fish you are now in what we call a 'fish in cycle'. It is still possible to cycle a tank this way but it is incredible hard work and takes a lot of dedication. 
 
If I am understanding this correctly then I'd recommend you head over to our beginners section and read up on cycling tanks so that you can inform yourself on the things you will need to know. 
 
Best wishes - Akasha

 

[Ace_Of_Fades]

o.o Ummm, yeah ...... I let the water cycle for about an hour before putting them in...... but I see that's not correct oh no, I'm worried now! I've read through the topic below, it was really informative. Wish I would have read it earlier. Seriously Akasha, thank you.
http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?/topic/224306-fish-in-cycling/

 

[Vethian]

o.o Ummm, yeah ...... I let the water cycle for about an hour before putting them in...... but I see that's not correct

oh no, I'm worried now! I've read through the topic below, it was really informative. Wish I would have read it earlier. Seriously Akasha, thank you.
http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?/topic/224306-fish-in-cycling/

 
I also fell prey to this with my first tank.  Something that helped out the fish to survive was a product called Tetra Safe Start Plus.  It isnt a cure all, but it did speed things long and helped me control any spikes.  Also, get a proper testing kit and be prepared to do water changes when needed.  
 
OH...Welcome!

 

[Akasha72]

okay, glad we got that sorted and we know what we're dealing with. As Vethian says there are products on the market that can help a tank cycle, some are good, some are a waste of money. The Tetra one Vethian mentions I believe is a good one. There's another I've seen recommended on the forum and that's by Dr Tim. I've not used either of these products myself so I can't vouch for them personally but there are those on the forum that can vouch for them and I'm not going to argue.
 
The best way to get a tank cycling quickly is to get hold of some cycled media. Some local fish stores will help you there, some won't. Often it's the small indipendant stores that will help rather than the large chains.
 
Alternatively, if you know someone with an established tank then ask them if you can pinch some media from them
 
By media what I mean is a sponge or small piece of sponge or a squeeze of the smelly brown gunk from an external canister filter. Hope I've not confused you too much. This is a steep learning curve I'm afraid but I try to keep things as simple as I can

 

[Ace_Of_Fades]

 

o.o Ummm, yeah ...... I let the water cycle for about an hour before putting them in...... but I see that's not correct

oh no, I'm worried now! I've read through the topic below, it was really informative. Wish I would have read it earlier. Seriously Akasha, thank you.
http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?/topic/224306-fish-in-cycling/

 
I also fell prey to this with my first tank.  Something that helped out the fish to survive was a product called Tetra Safe Start Plus.  It isnt a cure all, but it did speed things long and helped me control any spikes.  Also, get a proper testing kit and be prepared to do water changes when needed.  
 
OH...Welcome!
 

 

okay, glad we got that sorted and we know what we're dealing with. As Vethian says there are products on the market that can help a tank cycle, some are good, some are a waste of money. The Tetra one Vethian mentions I believe is a good one. There's another I've seen recommended on the forum and that's by Dr Tim. I've not used either of these products myself so I can't vouch for them personally but there are those on the forum that can vouch for them and I'm not going to argue.
 
The best way to get a tank cycling quickly is to get hold of some cycled media. Some local fish stores will help you there, some won't. Often it's the small indipendant stores that will help rather than the large chains.
 
Alternatively, if you know someone with an established tank then ask them if you can pinch some media from them

 
By media what I mean is a sponge or small piece of sponge or a squeeze of the smelly brown gunk from an external canister filter. Hope I've not confused you too much. This is a steep learning curve I'm afraid but I try to keep things as simple as I can

 
Perfect, I plan on going to the pet store as soon as I'm off work. So far my shopping list includes the following.

• Tetra Safe Start Plus (I saw this when I was in there last)
• Air Pump
• Tubing
• http/www.amazon.ca/Aquarium-Biochemical-Double-Sponge-Filter/dp/B005VAFGKI/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1436456718&sr=8-2&keywords=sponge+filter
• API Freshwater Aquarium Master Test Kit
• Play sand for susbtrate (I hear corys like it)

Another question, instead of having ceramic media in a sponge filter like I've seen some people do... is it a bad idea to use activaed carbon instead?
 
Also considering this is my introduction topic and I have a topic decicated to this conversation already, can you reply there instead?
http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?/topic/438695-help-high-nitrite/#entry3715240
 
Thanks,
 
  ~Alex

 

[Vethian]

 

 


o.o Ummm, yeah ...... I let the water cycle for about an hour before putting them in...... but I see that's not correct

oh no, I'm worried now! I've read through the topic below, it was really informative. Wish I would have read it earlier. Seriously Akasha, thank you.
http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?/topic/224306-fish-in-cycling/

 
I also fell prey to this with my first tank.  Something that helped out the fish to survive was a product called Tetra Safe Start Plus.  It isnt a cure all, but it did speed things long and helped me control any spikes.  Also, get a proper testing kit and be prepared to do water changes when needed.  
 
OH...Welcome!
 

 

okay, glad we got that sorted and we know what we're dealing with. As Vethian says there are products on the market that can help a tank cycle, some are good, some are a waste of money. The Tetra one Vethian mentions I believe is a good one. There's another I've seen recommended on the forum and that's by Dr Tim. I've not used either of these products myself so I can't vouch for them personally but there are those on the forum that can vouch for them and I'm not going to argue.
 
The best way to get a tank cycling quickly is to get hold of some cycled media. Some local fish stores will help you there, some won't. Often it's the small indipendant stores that will help rather than the large chains.
 
Alternatively, if you know someone with an established tank then ask them if you can pinch some media from them

 
By media what I mean is a sponge or small piece of sponge or a squeeze of the smelly brown gunk from an external canister filter. Hope I've not confused you too much. This is a steep learning curve I'm afraid but I try to keep things as simple as I can

 
Perfect, I plan on going to the pet store as soon as I'm off work. So far my shopping list includes the following.

• Tetra Safe Start Plus (I saw this when I was in there last)
• Air Pump
• Tubing
• http/www.amazon.ca/Aquarium-Biochemical-Double-Sponge-Filter/dp/B005VAFGKI/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1436456718&sr=8-2&keywords=sponge+filter
• API Freshwater Aquarium Master Test Kit
• Play sand for susbtrate (I hear corys like it)

Another question, instead of having ceramic media in a sponge filter like I've seen some people do... is it a bad idea to use activaed carbon instead?
 
Also considering this is my introduction topic and I have a topic decicated to this conversation already, can you reply there instead?
http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?/topic/438695-help-high-nitrite/#entry3715240
 
Thanks,
 
  ~Alex
 


You will see mixed opinions on activated carbon.  In my opinion, you dont need it.  use sponges and/or filter fibers.  Then use a bio media.Centered glass seems to be the best, but you can even use lava rock or ceramic media.  The bio media will house the bacteria needed to keep the nitrogen cycle going.  Then make sure you do your weekly water changes.