My New Tank

[vicstar078]

Hello,

I recently got a new tank set up. I got my fish on Wednesday for it.

I had two angel fish (one unfortunately died), I now have one angel fish, one small pleco, a red tail shark that I think may actually be a rainbow shark and an African Kribensis (I think).

The Kribensis chases all the fish around. The red tail shark/ Rainbow Shark has been hiding behind the filter for a day now but is eating. At first the shark seemed happy and swimming around.

The angel is eating (lots) and doesn't seem too bothered by the Krib but it does chase the angel.

I am going to get a few more angels tomorrow so the one I have left isn't lonely.

Is it normal for red tail sharks to hide alot?

Thanks

Vicky

 

[Curiosity101]

First things first. DONT BUY ANYMORE FISH! (caps aren't from aggression! Just really really need to emphasise it)

By the sounds of it you haven't cycled your tank. It's not your fault if you haven't heard of cycling. Shops don't always tell people everything they need to know to keep fish. They just take your money and send you on your way.
You really need to read these topics...
What's Cycling
The Nitrogen Cycle
Fish-in Cycling

In short, your angel fish died because it was poisoned. Your other fish will follow it soon if you don't read the above topics and get to grips with the ins and outs of cycling a fish tank. You are in a 'Fish-in cycling' situation. It basically means that your fish are producing lots of toxic waste products that will poison them. Over time (around 6-8weeks), a group of bacteria will grow in your filter which break down the toxic waste and make the water safe for the fish.
In the mean time they will still be being poisoned.

You have two choices, either 1. Take the fish back, buy a liquid test kit and fishless cycle your tank. or 2. Keep the fish, buy a liquid test kit and fish-in cycle your tank.

After you've read the topics I've mentioned (which you need to do ASAP), you'll be able to decide if you want to do a fish-in cycle or not.
Fishless Cycling <<-- this is a guide on how to do a fishless cycle if you decide that you'd rather take the fish back. A fishless cycle is easier on you and avoids any poisoning of any fish (double bonus)


Once all that is out of the way you need to address a couple of other things... What size is your tank?
Angelfish are aggressive towards other angels as they mature. The only live peacefully with other angels if there is plenty of room for them to set-up different territories, or if they have paired up with another angel (ie. a male and a female become a breeding pair), then they will happily share the same space. Either ways you may not have room for more than one angel long term if you want to avoid fighting.

The pleco is probably a common pleco. These fish grow up to 2ft over their lifetime and so you need to bare this in mind cause if you don't have bigger tanks available to transfer it into as it grows (and don't re-home it to a bigger tank with someone else), they it wont be able to grow properly and this often leads to a premature death.

Red tailed black sharks are very aggressive as they start to mature (yours sounds like it's still a baby). When they get older they need a 50gal tank (200l) to give them sufficient room to set-up a territory and stop them attacking other fish. Rainbow sharks aren't so bad, but grow to the same size so need at least a 30gal tank long term to give them a good amount of space.

Kribs normally aren't too bad unless you have a mated pair that is spawning. The only thing I can think is that it feels cramped in your tank and so is taking it out on the others. Once you tell me how big your tank is I'll be able to make a better judgement.

 

[vicstar078]

The Juwel Korall 60 Aquarium for Tropical Fish is the superb starter level aquarium from Juwel. It offers all the exceptional build quality and advantages of this brand leading manufacturer at an excellent price. Ideal for youngsters and adults alike it is supplied with the original Rekord 60 hood with T8 15 watt lighting built in. A new filter from Juwel, the BioFlow Mini keeps the water in excellent condition with its 280 litres an hour turnover, using the Juwel Compact media. Plus a Juwel heater to maintain the perfect temperature in the aquarium

Juwel Korall Aquariums are manufactured in black, the Rekord 600 stand will suit this aquarium and is available in Black or Beech finish.

Volume: approx. 63 litres

Light System with 1 x 15 W T8 tube

Aquarium Size: 60 x 30 x 30cm external measurements


I have the above tank. I also have red gravel, a shipwreck boat with bubbles, a dinosaur skull they can hide in, two big plants and a temple ruins for the angel fish to swim in.

I will have a read through the posts above.

I brought the tank and I treated the water as well?

Thanks

Vicky

 

[Twinklecaz]

Hmmm. My tank is officially 60x30x38 cm and it says on the box it's 60l so that's confusing. You should measure the actual glass yourself too coz I just found my measurements are slighly less than they say and my actual capacity is 57/58L

The calculator at the top says your tank is 54L by those measurements. Not a prob though you can still have a nice lot of fish I think. Though I don't think they recommend you keep Angels in a tank that small. I was gutted too coz that's what I wanted!

 

[vicstar078]

Hmmm. My tank is officially 60x30x38 cm and it says on the box it's 60l so that's confusing. You should measure the actual glass yourself too coz I just found my measurements are slighly less than they say and my actual capacity is 57/58L

The calculator at the top says your tank is 54L by those measurements. Not a prob though you can still have a nice lot of fish I think. Though I don't think they recommend you keep Angels in a tank that small. I was gutted too coz that's what I wanted!

They seem quite happy in there.

Will this testing kit be ok, I will get it after work today if so?

http/www.seapets.co.uk/products/aquarium-supplies/fish-treatments/test-kits-for-aquariums/tetra-test-kits/tetra-test-kit-aquarium-6-in-1-test-strips.html

 

[Twinklecaz]

Yeah prob coz they're small. Apparently they grow too big

 

[Curiosity101]

Don't get test strips. They're incredibly inaccurate (we've tested them against liquid based kits), and the also don't test for everything we need to test for.
I would suggest the API Master Test Kit (£18 from ebay) around £26 in shops. There are other liquid kits you can get, but so long as you get liquid kits it'll be fine. If you don't have £18 to hand then you could always buy the kits one by one. Right now you need an ammonia test kit, and soon you will need a nitrite test kit.

Treating the water removes chlorine, chloramine and heavy metals usually. It doesn't make it safe for fish with regards to ammonia and nitrites.

Yes the angel fish is going to be too big for your tank long term. As are all the other fish you have unless you want to set it up as a krib only tank and breed them. With this being the case, once you've read all the info my recommendation would definitely be to re-home your current stock and go with a fishless cycle. But it is obviously 100% up to you whether you want to do this or not.

 

[vicstar078]

Don't get test strips. They're incredibly inaccurate (we've tested them against liquid based kits), and the also don't test for everything we need to test for.
I would suggest the API Master Test Kit (£18 from ebay) around £26 in shops. There are other liquid kits you can get, but so long as you get liquid kits it'll be fine. If you don't have £18 to hand then you could always buy the kits one by one. Right now you need an ammonia test kit, and soon you will need a nitrite test kit.

Treating the water removes chlorine, chloramine and heavy metals usually. It doesn't make it safe for fish with regards to ammonia and nitrites.

Yes the angel fish is going to be too big for your tank long term. As are all the other fish you have unless you want to set it up as a krib only tank and breed them. With this being the case, once you've read all the info my recommendation would definitely be to re-home your current stock and go with a fishless cycle. But it is obviously 100% up to you whether you want to do this or not.

Ok when they get bigger I will just buy a bigger tank.

So with this testing even if I test the water and its wrong I cant do anything to change the water can I?

 

[Curiosity101]

Of course you can. You do a water change!

Once you've read all the threads I gave you it'll all be much clearer. And if it isnt then you can start a new thread asking people to explain anything that you don't get

 

[vicstar078]

Of course you can. You do a water change!

Once you've read all the threads I gave you it'll all be much clearer. And if it isnt then you can start a new thread asking people to explain anything that you don't get

Ok I will get the test kit in a min when I finish, if its all OK can I get some more fish tomorrow?

 

[Curiosity101]

It wont be ok...trust me. You've had fish in the tank for 2 days and already one has died...does that not tell you something? I know it's frustrating as you just want to get your tank up and running.

But if you put more fish in there then it'll just mean more fish dying.
And also adding fish to a rather incompatible mix really wont help any of them.

 

[PDSimon]

I would listen to curiosity101, you're going to really struggle and probably waste time and money if you don't.

 

[vicstar078]

Ok, thank you for your posts!

I have not got a friend coming round with a really good testing kit in a minute and will buy my own this weekend

Got back from work and all fish are still alive at the moment thankfully!

 

[PDSimon]

Make sure to post the water results, you'll likely have to do some quite big water changes (with conditioned water) if you havn't already.