Help Me!

[drsoda007]

I’ve bought an aquarium light + bulb
A bottle of AMTRITE DOWN and WATER AGER GN
A MASSIVE 35 Gallon tank
Gravel Siphon
Gravel
Magic-Jet Filter
Heater
Net

Q: What else do I need?
A:

Q: What is compatible with Lyre-Tail Dalmation Mollies?
A:

Q: I plan to fishless cycle and have read that article everyone mentions rdd something, anything else to do except start fishless cycling?
A:

 

[OldMan47]

I'm not sure what the "amtrite down" and the "water ager GN" are but a 35 with a filter and heater is ready for you to start fishless cycling. You will need some ammonia and a testing kit to know how you are doing and a thermometer because heater markings are notoriously inaccurate. You need to test too often at first to be running to the fish store for ammonia testing. The heater would help you get the water warm enough to get your bacteria growing well at say 27C. That is warm enough to promote the bacterial growth without being too warm for most fish. That way when your cycle is going well, you won't need to start trying to adjust to a temperature that the fish can go into.
Basic approach is to wash the gravel and put it the way you want it into the tank, add water, heater and filter and get things circulating. Add in the starter amount of ammonia and start testing every few days. When ammonia starts to go down, start testing for nitrites and add enough ammonia to bring the levels back up. You should have some nitrites by then so its time to start testing and watch for them to come back down. By the time the nitrites come down, the ammonia should be getting converted in 12 hours or less so its time to find out how you are doing with nitrates. Chances are good that they are sky high so do a big enough water change to get them in line. If you had the heater too hot for fish, its time to turn it down a little.
When you are processing your ammonia in 12 hours and do not have detectable nitrites its time to make sure temperatures are good and go looking for fish. Its always best to go easy when stocking a tank although theoretically you can fully stock after a fishless cycle.

 

[Aphotic Phoenix]

Okay, I'm not very familiar with Amrite down, and water ager, but seem to remember that one of them is a rather useless product that supposedly helps to start your cycle and most likely won't. The only chemical you really need for your tank (and even some people would debate this), is a water conditioner that removes chlorine/chloramines.

I second the motion for purchasing a test kit. Buy one of the liquid kinds because even if it looks more expensive they are more accurate, and more cost effective. Also, even though you shouldn't stress too much about the pH and hardness of your water, it is a very good idea to get an idea of what the normal levels are.

Cycling can be one of the most frustrating and confusing things for beginners (except for possibly stocking where people will almost always have conflicting opinions), but don't give up. Take your time, and if you do things right your reward will be a tank of healthy happy fish!

 

[drsoda007]

Okay, I'm not very familiar with Amrite down, and water ager, but seem to remember that one of them is a rather useless product that supposedly helps to start your cycle and most likely won't. The only chemical you really need for your tank (and even some people would debate this), is a water conditioner that removes chlorine/chloramines.

I second the motion for purchasing a test kit. Buy one of the liquid kinds because even if it looks more expensive they are more accurate, and more cost effective. Also, even though you shouldn't stress too much about the pH and hardness of your water, it is a very good idea to get an idea of what the normal levels are.

Cycling can be one of the most frustrating and confusing things for beginners (except for possibly stocking where people will almost always have conflicting opinions), but don't give up. Take your time, and if you do things right your reward will be a tank of healthy happy fish!

I have just started cycling today,

Have put in Water Ager GN (Water conditioner)
Washed gravel, chucked in
FIlter+light=running


However the lady from a [trustworthy] aquarium place said for me to take a sample of water back to her in 2 weeks, then i will buy my master liquid test kit, fish, decor and plants

BTW still waiting for answer on....

Q: WHat fish a compatible with Mollies

 

[OldMan47]

It sounds like your water ager is just a chlorine / chloramine water treatment. If it is designed to make water safe to add to the tank you are going to need to use it each time you want to add water or change part of the water. Treat the water before it goes into the tank so that chlorine won't damage the bacterial colony that you are trying to establish. The lady you trust at the LFS may be helping you in one way and that is that she is keeping you from testing the water to death before there is much chance of having any changes start to take place. Does she know that you are tryin to do a fishless cycle with ammonia? If not she might have given different advice if she knew.
Mollies are fish that prefer their water somewhat hard and with a pH above 7.0 to as high as maybe 8. Temperatures should be from about 23 to 25 degrees. Many other small fish can live in those conditions but your best bet would be other livebearers because most of them prefer that kind of water. If you intend to keep mollies in a community situation, ignore the advice you will get from some people about how mollies must have salt. The facts are better than that for mollies, most mollies are bred and reared in fresh water so it is what they are acclimated to live in. Although they can be acclimated to live in a pure salt water aquarium if given enough time to adapt, they do not need salt and it will limit what else you can keep with them. The adaptability of mollies is often mistaken for a need for salt. If you decide you need salt for them, at least use sea salt and not the common aquarium salt that is sold. At least it will have a good pH for them.
Many of the small tetras can adapt to the water conditions that mollies live in as can rasboras. Another group of fish that are nice to have and won't bother the mollies are the small corydoras catfish. They like their water a little softer but can readily adapt to the harder water. If you decide to go with the cories, be sure to get at least 5 of the same type since they work best in schools and don't do as well alone.