New tank at last!

[sharky&george]

I finally have my new tank I did have a 55 litre and now i have moved up to a 128 litre So i cant wait to put my fishies in there new home, but i have to do a fishless cycle first. How long should it be before i can introduce them to there new tank? And also can bettas be in the same tank as male guppies?
I will try to upload some pictures soon, when i work out how lol. Any one got any really simple steps as to how to go about this cycle?

 

[keane]

i have to do a fishless cycle first. How long should it be before i can introduce them to there new tank?

if you are simply transferring your fish from one tank to another just transfer all of your media and your filters from your 55 litlre tank, together with say a half of your existing tank water, and your new tank will be cycled immediately

And also can bettas be in the same tank as male guppies?

The general concensu on here is no they can't.

Bettas will see the guppys as a threat/challenge because of their fancy tails. The likelihood is that your bettas will end up killing your guppies .

hope this helps.

steve

 

[sharky&george]

yea cheers thought so with the bettas and guppies. When you say filter media to go into the new tank what do you mean? I have upsized my filter from a fluval 1 (i think) to a fluval 3 sosounds silly i know but can you explain it step by step for me , cos if i can transfer them straight away that will be wicked thanks!

Also whats the best way to get plants to grow?

 

[keane]

yea cheers thought so with the bettas and guppies. When you say filter media to go into the new tank what do you mean? I have upsized my filter from a fluval 1 (i think) to a fluval 3 sosounds silly i know but can you explain it step by step for me , cos if i can transfer them straight away that will be wicked thanks!

When I said media I meant your substrate (sand or gravel). Sorry ) .

Transfer this straight across and add some more new substrate if necessary to cover the bottom or your tank.

Add some water from your existing tank to your new tank. Try and fill the new tank as close as you can up to about half with existing tank water, then fill up the rest with conditioned, dechlorinated water.

I assume your Fluval 1 is still running on your 55 litre? If so there will be beneficial bacteria in there. Take all of the media (sponges, carbon, biomax or whatever) out of your fluval 1 and put it straight into your new fluval 3 (also add some extra media if necessary) and put it in your new tank. Automatically cycled.


Another plan (probably a better idea actually!) would be to use both of your filters on your new tank .

You can never have too much filtration and you could do all of the above with your substrate and water then simply move your fluval 1 over to the new tank as it is and just run your new fluval 3 with its own new media.

It should quickly develop its own additional colony of bacteria because of the existing bacteria in your fluval 1 and your substrate.

hope this explains a little better for you.

EDIT: Not too hot on plants to be honest. Try a post in the Plants and Planted tanks section.

steve

 

[sharky&george]

thanks steve, i will do that, i did want to change the gravel from white to black but you say i will need to put my existing gravel in the new tank, which im happy to do but for the future how can i change it too black, actually is there any way i dont have to use the existing gravel as i will then have to mix the two colours which i didnt really want to do, but if have to i will

 

[andywg]

Firstly, don't worry about using the old water in the new tank, it holds virtually no beneficial bacteria. Just try and make sure that the water in the new tank has similar pH and temperature settings.

If you want a different subtrate (gravel or sound) just pu the new one in. Then put the old media in a tight leg and lay that on the new substrate for a few days. That should allow the new substrate to be cloned.

Finally, just move the fish over and run the filters side by side for a couple of weeks until the newer, bigger filter is colonised by the bacteria.

If you head over to the planted section there are plenty of topics about growing plants. The most important aspect is getting a number of parameters in the right ratios (light, CO2, Nitrogen, Iron, Phosphate, Potassium etc.).

I have made it sound horrible hard, but really it isn't. as I said, read in the planted section and you'll discover a treasure trove of knowledge.

HIH

Andy

 

[sharky&george]

What is " Then put the old media in a tight leg " Sorry dont know what a lag is

) Sorry just realised what it is how stupid lol

 

[Ferris]

The sponges from a fluval 1 won't fit into a fluval 3 unfortunately. The best thing is to run both filters in the new tank for 1 month until the beneficial bacteria is established in the new fluval 3 filter. You can then remove the fluval 1 completely if you wish.

 

[annka5]

tights = panyhose, if that helps!

 

[Iron Man]

Stockings (as we call them in america, hehe) make excellent media bags. You can hold ammonia removing crystals, gravel, peat or crushed coral (to keep ph up or down), anything that the stockings will hold and you can place them in your filter.

 

[sharky&george]

Am i ok to put some of the old gravel into a stocking then and drape it over the side of the tank?

 

[Nuttygal! :0)]

I think that will be ok, but alot of people actaully lay in on the gravel. It may be a bit of an eyesore though, but you could hide it with a decoration for the time being couldn't you?

 

[sharky&george]

am just havin wooden flooring laid so once that is done i will set up my new tank and look over all tour advice thanks again, let you know how i got on soon

 

[troutfly]

To chime in here, you could also mix some of the old white sand with the new black sand (put the white on the bottom and black on top, or you could mix it together to add a different look to it). Of course the idea of using the panty hose leg works also. Good luck with the new tank, it is always satifying to up-grade if you have the room.