My Fish Has Actually Gone Missing From The Tank - Found

[eaglesaquarium]

I guess it was the word "range" that threw me. There is no "range" for acceptable ammonia or nitrite. ZERO is the only "acceptable range". Nitrates have a range, but not the other two. If they are anything other than zero, then you are NOT cycled.

 

[Tizer]

Im totally cool with a fish in cycle, i do them myself, but corys are not an acceptable fish to use

 

[colleen0309]

Im totally cool with a fish in cycle, i do them myself, but corys are not an acceptable fish to use

Years ago, fish in cycles were what we did. We didn't know about fishless cycles. If it's done right, you can be very sucessful. I wouldn't suggest it to someone that has no patience or a beginner. A fish in cycle can take forever, and a beginner can get too frustrated when things go wrong. If you are experienced, you tend to keep a close eye on things and can almost tell when things are going to get dicey and act accordingly. The key is to do a fish in cycle very very slowly and do lots and lots of water changes. And don't use sensitive fish, like corys. We always used zebra danios. I'm not advocating fish in cycles, but it is an option, and it is what most beginners find themselves in thanks to the wonderful advice from their lfs.

 

[Fishcakes]

Im totally cool with a fish in cycle, i do them myself, but corys are not an acceptable fish to use

Who said I used did a fish-in cycle with corys?

As my post said, I only got the corys recently. My tank was cycled with 2 mollies and a platy. Fully cycled, 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite, 10-20 nitrate.

So am I fully stocked when I give away the fry/juveniles and one/both mollys? So if I have 3 platys, and 6 catfish, am I really full?

 

[eaglesaquarium]

Yeah, pretty close. Give it a little while to settle down. Then you can add a few more platies or maybe some endlers (males only would be my suggestion, NO FRY! ). I wouldn't add more cories as your bottom would be too full.

You can add a few more fish than the "inch of fish per US Gallon" rule, but you need to do bigger more frequent water changes to ensure that things stay in check. We use nitrates as a gauge. You want to keep your nitrates as close to 20-40ppm above your tap water as possible. If you feed lightly, keep up with the water changes and stay focused on your fish for signs of stress, then you can get away with a bit more. But, generally, this isn't suggested for beginners.

 

[Fishcakes]

Yeah, pretty close. Give it a little while to settle down. Then you can add a few more platies or maybe some endlers (males only would be my suggestion, NO FRY! ). I wouldn't add more cories as your bottom would be too full.

You can add a few more fish than the "inch of fish per US Gallon" rule, but you need to do bigger more frequent water changes to ensure that things stay in check. We use nitrates as a gauge. You want to keep your nitrates as close to 20-40ppm above your tap water as possible. If you feed lightly, keep up with the water changes and stay focused on your fish for signs of stress, then you can get away with a bit more. But, generally, this isn't suggested for beginners.

Okay, thank you.