Meditation With Oscars

[monofin]

Hi fish heads, ( in good taste, i am such a fish head you wouldn't believe )

i am super new to this so please feel free to answer the obvious,.... i have a fish tank with 2 baby Oscars and some ciclids and a convict.

my ph is around 7/ 7.5

hardness is 5 drops in 5ml then it goes yellow. ( i think i need to get this higher, how ? )

the tank is 100 liters, i am pumping/filtering 300 liters an hour through ceramic and sponge fliter.

So the question is : how can i grow my Oscars to be strong healthy and super fit ( jijiji like me )

what is the perfect set up, water ph/ kh etc... feeding....love,. temperture....etc.....

i have had already one die

i think he had a worm in his head, so the lady in the shop told me to disifect my tank with a little salt, i haven't done this yet,......what do you think ??


really appreciate some help,

monofin, another fish head

 

[diademhill]

Hi fish heads, ( in good taste, i am such a fish head you wouldn't believe )

i am super new to this so please feel free to answer the obvious,.... i have a fish tank with 2 baby Oscars and some ciclids and a convict.

my ph is around 7/ 7.5

hardness is 5 drops in 5ml then it goes yellow. ( i think i need to get this higher, how ? )

the tank is 100 liters, i am pumping/filtering 300 liters an hour through ceramic and sponge fliter.

So the question is : how can i grow my Oscars to be strong healthy and super fit ( jijiji like me )

what is the perfect set up, water ph/ kh etc... feeding....love,. temperture....etc.....

i have had already one die

i think he had a worm in his head, so the lady in the shop told me to disifect my tank with a little salt, i haven't done this yet,......what do you think ??


really appreciate some help,

monofin, another fish head

There are plenty of sticky threads at the top of this section about Oscars & other cichlids.
The first thing you need is a suitable home - a minimum of 300 litres for just one Oscar!
What are the other cichlids?

How long has your tank been set up & how did you cycle it?
Unfortunately fish stores are not always the best source of advice.

 

[monofin]

hi diademhill,

thanx for the reply, i have one firemouth, 2 african cichlids ( i don't know there names ) one is small long slim fast and orange, the other is green silver camoflaged small and fast with a stocky build.

i did have another firemouth but it got killed recently by the other one

i have had the tank for 4 weeks, i did usual beginner stuff to much food, water change .

the Oscars have taken over the right side of the tank, they are very small at the moment 5cm long. So it looks like i will have to get a larger tank very soon

what do you mean by cycle ? do you mean how i set the water up ?

i used tap water with a chemical that kills all the chlorine etc.... then put in the correct amount of bacterias, then added a small amount of bacterias every day for 2 weeks into the filter. I have some plastic plants, lots of rocks and hiding places.

i put some salt in yesterday to disinfect the water after my Oscar died, today i bought some Calcium carbonate from the chemist to increase the KH ( hardness ).

i feed them fish pellets, cichlid food and beef heart and a few peas.

is this all ok

thank you

 

[freddyk]

Momofin the best thing you can do right now is try to return all the fish to the store and get credit for them. Check out the different types of cichlids and plan the tank to suit the ones you like. These fish are very territorial, often brutal, and amazingly diverse in every way, including behavior. Males tend to kill each other off, while most of the African cichlids come from an opposite biotope, making them poor candidates for a tank of new world cichlids like Oscars and Firemouths. A 100l tank is a good size for a pair of Convicts or Firemouths and is useless for an Oscar, which will reach over half the size of that tank. For the pair of Oscars you'll appreciate having at least 500 liters. There's a lot to know if you want to keep cichlids properly, but the information's available.

Here's a good start if you're interested
http/www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/

 

[monofin]

Thankyou Freddyk,

Oh deary me...what have i done


That link looks like a great information source thanks very much i will read on

 

[kubora666]

thats not true, i have a south american cichlid tank, and was so compelled that i had to buy 2 smallish mbuna's. the bigger one rules the tank , is fine with everything and a greedy lil fishy no trouble atall and from what my uncle has i would say cichlids of similar water types can live peacfully together

btw anyone who interested my uncle has a HUGE tank hes got:

2x 10" oscars,

some large africans, like a peacock, a blotchy mbuna and a large electric blue one, he also has a huge blue fish with a lump on his head and a parrot shaped mout/head, hes a south american . also he has a school of tinfoil barbs, hes had these fish fro a few years and he has no trouble atall.

 

[freddyk]

This doesn't mean that it's the best thing for them, and many people mistakenly believe they've defeated the odds yet the fish aren't even mature and haven't shown any of their true territorial nature yet. Also just because the fish are surviving under certain conditions doesn't mean you're seeing them as good as they could be in both behavior and looks.

There are many ways to keep these fish and many exceptions to rules, but those who want the best for the fish and enjoy them long term, and anyone who actually appreciates the remarkable behavior of these fish, will try catoring to them and their needs including diet, water, and appropriate tankmates. Anyone may do what they like and they will anyway, but that doesn't mean it's good advice to pass around.

 

[monofin]

ok i took all the africans and fire mouth and i had a jewel too....back to the shop

i got a beautiful pimelodus pictus catfish

the tank is way more peaceful now and the baby Oscars are growing fast.

more baby Oscars and 370 litre tank coming soon.

i am completely hooked

 

[diademhill]

ok i took all the africans and fire mouth and i had a jewel too....back to the shop

i got a beautiful pimelodus pictus catfish

the tank is way more peaceful now and the baby Oscars are growing fast.

more baby Oscars and 370 litre tank coming soon.

i am completely hooked

If you have two baby Oscars & a pictus you have enough fish for the 370l tank - athough the pictus would be happier with a couple more as these are shoaling fish.