New 14L Rectangular Aquarium. Tropical + Hydrilla

[JohnDougls]

Hi,
 
First time on these forums and it looks like a great site to discuss.....topical Fish.
 
We promised our Son some fishes during his holidays and off to the fish shop we did go. Some $$$ later and after some careful thought, like "Wow.... those little colored fish are real nice. Lets get those ones." After an hour or so, and some reasonable up selling, we had ourselves a nice new fish tank, heating elements, water conditioning chemicals, fish food and a plant, or Hydrilla! So with no fish yet, but a disappointed and confused Son. We headed home to set things up.  Just thought I would share the first part of the story, and I'm sure many have been down this road, or river, before!
 
So having purchased 1 x "32 EcoStyle 14L Rectangular Aquarium 32W X 21D X 33cm H (black)" , I have attempted to establish the Hydrilla roots, or ends,  in the thin layer of rocks on the bottom of the tank.
 
Just a foot note: the Hydrilla had been left in a plastic bag with added paper towel soaked in tap water, but unfortunately was left for 24hrs before planting. While I was setting up the tank tonight with the Hydrilla I just noticed the water turning a little green, and was thinking of vegetation rot. I have now left to sit over night in the tank. I am thinking that I have either killed this poor plant, although I do understand that this species is pretty rugged, but could continue to pollute this small tank before we have a chance to fill with fish on the weekend. Or perhaps this sized tank is just too small for plant life anyway, or a better species could be used?
 
Just wanted some advise before I started to condition the water for the fish with the "Stress Coat", "Quick Start" and "KH Powder +7.0"
 
Looking forward to some advise and thanks on advance......

 

[Vindicare066]

Hi John,
 
Welcome to the forums! I am adding links to some of the important essentials you should know when you are about to start a new fish tank. Take a look through them as they provide important information on how to properly set up your tank before you add any fish.
 
All of these sub threads can be found here: http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?/topic/277264-beginners-resource-center/   I would encourage you to give them a look over as they are really insightful and can really help you avoid some headaches and help you save money.
 
I have added a few of the more immediate ones you should to read.
 
http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?/topic/271928-the-nitrogen-cycle/
 
http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?/topic/421488-cycling-your-new-fresh-water-tank-read-this-first/
 
http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?/topic/13133-some-newbie-no-nos/
 
 
Can you list all the chemicals and materials you picked up from the Local fish store? You may have bought some stuff you don't need or may be missing a few essential products.  Do you have a liquid feshwater test kit? 
 
Best of luck.
 
Vindi

 

[JohnDougls]

HI Vindi,
 
Thanks for your prompt response. The following treatments were recommended.
 
API Stress Coat+ : Removes Chlorine & chloramines / Detox heavy metals
API Quick Start : Allows instant addition of fish by limiting toxic ammonia & nitrates. Contains live "nitrifying" bacteria!
KH Powder +7.0 : With added potassium.
 
Aqua One Tropical Flakes  :24g Complete Feed for tropocal species.
 
Aqua One 25W Heater  Slightly oversized but appears to be smallest in range
 
Aqua One Glass Thermometer (10-50 C)
 
 
Although no test kit was purchased, we have been asked to bring back a sample of the water before purchasing the fish. Also curious about your thoughts regarding the plant. Do you think I should start water treatments, or throw the plant. Personally, in hindsight. I think the plant may have complicated the setup by a few fractions. But there maybe others who say go with it confidently

But it is only a small 14L tank for my Sons room. Thank you for the links, I am reading now.

 
Thankyou 

 

[JohnDougls]

API Stress Coat+ : 1/2 teaspoon (1/4 cap) once for set up.
API Quick Start : Instructed to use 1 cap ( 10ml) every day until finished.
KH Powder +7.0 : Two teaspoons once for set up.
 
For every 1/2 water change, every 2 weeks, add another half teaspoon of Stress coat, and 1 teaspoon of KH Powder
 
 
And here's the finished product.......Just add fish !
 

 

[Essjay]

Of the things you list:
API Stress Coat - this is a dechlorinator and needs to be used every time you do a water change.
API Quick Start - is unlikely to help add bacteria, and even if it does it won't work instantly
KH powder - please do not use this. Messing with pH is something that should only be attempted by experienced fish keepers, and is not undertaken lightly even then.
 
You will need to buy a test kit. When you take the water to the shop to test it to see if it ready for fish, they will say yes it is because you have not got anything in there to make ammonia. As soon as you add fish, ammonia will start to rise and you'll be stuck doing a fish-in cycle which is hard on the fish and time consuming for you.
If you do a much easier fishless cycle you will need your own test kit, one that has bottles and test tubes rather than strips.
 
 
The first thing to do is read all the links Vindicare gave you, especially the second one. If the Quick Start helps, the cycle should go quite quickly.
While the tank is cycling you can research fish and your water parameters. The tank you have is very small, not many fish are suitable for such a tank. Off the top of my head I can think of a betta or shrimps, providing your water parameters are oK for them.
 
The parameter are pH, GH and KH. Look at your water supplier's website, that should give figures for all three, though they may use the term alkalinity instead of KH.

 

[Vindicare066]

HI Vindi,
 
Thanks for your prompt response. The following treatments were recommended.
 
API Stress Coat+ : Removes Chlorine & chloramines / Detox heavy metals
API Quick Start : Allows instant addition of fish by limiting toxic ammonia & nitrates. Contains live "nitrifying" bacteria!
KH Powder +7.0 : With added potassium.
 
Aqua One Tropical Flakes  :24g Complete Feed for tropocal species.
 
Aqua One 25W Heater  Slightly oversized but appears to be smallest in range
 
Aqua One Glass Thermometer (10-50 C)
 
 
Although no test kit was purchased, we have been asked to bring back a sample of the water before purchasing the fish. Also curious about your thoughts regarding the plant. Do you think I should start water treatments, or throw the plant. Personally, in hindsight. I think the plant may have complicated the setup by a few fractions. But there maybe others who say go with it confidently

But it is only a small 14L tank for my Sons room. Thank you for the links, I am reading now.

 
Thankyou 

 
 
Hi John,
 
You can add the API stress coat+ to the water if you haven't already.   API StressCoat+ should be okay, when buying water conditioners, you want to make sure the product you buy deals with chlorine, chloromine as well as heavy metals which it does. There are some products out there that only deal with chlorine so be sure to read the labels. If you are looking for another product that can do this I would recommend SeaChem Prime just for future reference.
 
I would not recommend adding the other two products. Here is why:
 
API quick start, does not contain the proper bacteria to cycle the tank properly, and to be honest won't have any impact on the tank in its current state, as the tank does not contain any bacteria in it. Don't worry I have made this mistake before too. I would recommend you either get Tetra Safe Start Plus or Dr. Tims One and Only. These two products contain the correct live nitrifying bacteria which that will help establish and seed the tank, and once established these bacteria will eat the harmful toxins ammonia and nitrite which can grow in your tank when you have fish in it. Once you get one of these products I would then add them to the tank promptly.
 
Regarding the KH powder: Essjay basically summed it up. So DO NOT ADD, I would add there are natural ways to alter pH and they are a lot safer on fish then adding chemicals. Many on the forum would stress that you want to keep the chemical levels in your tank to a bare minimum. Only adding them as a last resort if a safer alternative cannot be found. 
 
So doing water tests at the Local Fish Store is fine, BUT you should get your own kit, it will save you time and gas, as the tests they do at the store are not always that accurate as they use strips and not liquid kits. 

 

[Vindicare066]

Regarding the Hydrilla.
 
Taking care of live plants can feel overwhelming but it really not, you just need to be attentive to ingredients and everything that you are adding into the tank, proper dosages are key to keeping them healthy and vibrant while also avoiding algae blooms. I would encourage you to look up the signs and symptoms of what plant nutrient deficiencies and plant illness look like as you will probably see them pop up. Here is a quick link to some of the deficiencies you can run into and what they look like. If you see them dont panic!!!! Just take a picture post it here on the forum and we will help you diagnosis it and how to treat it
 
http/aquathusiast.com/nutrientdeficiency/
 
The scary stuff aside!  Having live plants is a good thing, as they provide the inhabitants of the tank with a sense of security,while at the same time provides additional O2 and moderation in your levels of ammonia and nitrites that build up in the tank over time. So make sure to give the plant love as it does a lot for the tank. The Hydrilla when in a good and healthy environment will grow quickly so it will need to be trimmed. When you do water changes this is normally when you do trimming if it needs it. You should also make sure this plant is properly rooted, if it comes loose and is left like that for a while it can spread across the surface and block out lighting, this can be a problem if you want to add another plant. With its quick growth rate and ability to grow at the surface if uprooted, this makes the Hydrilla a very sturdy and adaptable plant, In North America (particularly the US) they are actually considered an invasive species because of how adaptable they are. 
 
Now how to care for it, you will need to get a fertilzer this can be tricky as there are a lot of products on the market I would recommend Seachem line. Seachem Flourish it is a good starter fertilizer that provides everything a plant needs,  but it does rely on fish waste to help provide additional supplements to properly nourish the plant. Seachem does offer individual bottles of Phosphorus, Nitrogen, Iron and and Potassium which you can buy and add if your plant is showing a deficiency. Seachem also has a a low dosage when it comes to Copper, I mention this as Copper in high doses can be lethal to fish and more importantly shrimp or snails
 
You will also need to make sure the tank you have has some kind of light, What kind of light did your tank come with? LED?  I find the stock light that comes with tanks are not always the best, so you more than likely need to pick up another one to use in conjunction with the original tank light or to outright replace it. I would also do a quick search to see what kind of lighting conditions a Hydrilla needs to grow, if it can survive in low or weak lighting conditions then an LED light will probably do the trick. Side note:  DO NOT put your tank in direct sunlight as it will trigger algae blooms, but you can still keep it in a room that is bright from day light. 
 
Essjay does bring up a good point about the tank size. This is a very small tank 14L or 3.5 US gallons is really only good for a single male betta, or a colony of shrimp. You won't be able to house any other species of fish in this tank. Now you may be able to keep a betta and a few shrimp (Ghost or Amano shrimp) in the same tank together or get a snail, provided the shrimp are fairly large and have lots of places to hid in. Java Moss and lots of small decorations on the bottom of the tank that have cave like holes to hide in would solve this problem. I have owned a few bettas over the years and each one had a different personality, some I was able to keep shrimp and snails with, while others were just outright jerks to them.