maxikfr
New Member
So I got my first fish tank its a 10 gallon, it has 5 zebra danios and an otto, is it alright if the otto is left alone or does it need more of its kind?
🐠 May TOTM Voting is Live! 🐠
🏆 Click here to Vote! 🏆
Hi and welcome to the forum 
Otocinclus catfish like company. However, they don't do well in new tanks and should not be added to tanks that are less than 6 months old. So don't add any more fish for at least a few months.
Did you cycle the tank before adding fish?
If not you will be doing a fish in cycle. This simply means there are fish in the tank while the filter develops beneficial bacteria to help keep the water clean.
Reduce feeding to 2-3 times a week for the next month.
Do a 75% water change and gravel clean the substrate 4-8 hours after feeding for the next month. After that you can do it once a week.
Make sure any new water is free of chlorine/ chloramine before it's added to the tank.
Get a couple of new buckets and use a permanent marker to write "FISH ONLY" on them. Use those buckets for the fish and nothing else.
------------------
What sort of filter do you have?
Did the shop tell you how to clean the filter?
Otocinclus catfish like company. However, they don't do well in new tanks and should not be added to tanks that are less than 6 months old. So don't add any more fish for at least a few months.
Did you cycle the tank before adding fish?
If not you will be doing a fish in cycle. This simply means there are fish in the tank while the filter develops beneficial bacteria to help keep the water clean.
Reduce feeding to 2-3 times a week for the next month.
Do a 75% water change and gravel clean the substrate 4-8 hours after feeding for the next month. After that you can do it once a week.
Make sure any new water is free of chlorine/ chloramine before it's added to the tank.
Get a couple of new buckets and use a permanent marker to write "FISH ONLY" on them. Use those buckets for the fish and nothing else.
------------------
What sort of filter do you have?
Did the shop tell you how to clean the filter?
maxikfr
New Member
Its a topfin 30 gal filter or something and yeah i just rinse it with water to clean the filter i believe also how do i clean the gravel?
You clean the filter with tap water or old tank water?
There are "gravel vacuums" you can get cheaply at most pet stores or online...
I would also suggest getting a larger tank later on down the road... Zebra Daniel are active and should be housed in a 20g long... The ottos will need more of their kind but like Colin said, wait on adding more fish to the tank.
maxikfr
New Member
Havent cleaned the filter ever, since i just got it today but what should i clean it with?
Don't clean it unless its clogged really. But when you do clean the media. You use the water you took out of the tank during a water change or the "old tank water"
maxikfr
New Member
alr thanks, also should I feed the otto cucumber since i dont really see him eat and idk if algae is enough
I would buy some algae wafers... They love those and they are very nutritional. Cucumbers can also definitely be fed. Just make sure to rinse them off and remove what hasn't been eaten of the cucumber
maxikfr
New Member
alright, should i boil them aswell and cut off the skin?
Maybe blanch them instead and then remove the skin
Filters should be cleaned once a month. However, if the filter is less than 6 weeks old, do not clean it. Wait until at least 2 weeks after the filter has cycled before cleaning it for the first time.
To clean the filter, squeeze or wash the filter materials/ media in a bucket of tank water and re-use the media. Tip the bucket of dirty water on the garden/ lawn.
The filter case and impellor assembly (magnet with 3 or 4 plastic blades on one end) can be washed under tap water.
*NB* Don't use soaps or detergents to clean anything in a fish tank. Just use tap water for most things, or aquarium water for the filter media.
Because this is a new filter, you can add some sponge to it so you don't need to replace filter pads/ cartridges. Just buy a filter sponge from any pet shop. Get one that is slightly large than the filter pads/ cartridges and either squeeze it into the filter or use a pair of scissors to cut it to fit.
Sponges get cleaned the same way as all filter media (in a bucket of tank water) but the sponges will last for years and only get replaced when they break down. Same deal with the filter pads/ cartridges. Just replace them when they start to fall apart, or put sponge in the filter now with the pads, and when the filter pads break down, throw them away and put more sponge in with the remaining older sponge.
-------------------
To clean the gravel, get a basic model gravel cleaner like the one in the following link. It will let you drain some water out of the tank and clean the gunk out of the gravel while the fish remain in the tank. You simply start syphoning water out of the tank and use the gravel cleaner part to suck the gunk out of the gravel. There are videos on YouTube showing how to use them or ask the pet shop to show you.
Aquarium Cleaning Made Easy
Aquarium cleaning should take 30 minutes every two weeks. Learn how the professionals do it in 18 easy steps.
www.about-goldfish.com
Last edited:
Courgette aka zucchini is more nutritious than cucumber. I just take the skin off a slice then put it in a cup of water and microwave it for 30 seconds. Don't leave it in the tank for too long as it will go mushy and pollute the water.
It sounds as though you did not cycle the tank before getting fish, especially as you only got the filter today. The fish will be going through a fish-in cycle. To keep them alive, you need to test the water for ammonia and nitrite every day and do a water change whenever read above zero. Feeding only once every 2 or 3 days means the fish will make less ammonia. If you don't have a test kit, you need to change half the water every day until you have a test kit which can test for ammonia and nitrite. 5 in 1 or 6 in 1 strips do not contain ammonia tests, and liquid reagent testers are better - and last longer so they are more cost effective.
This explains what cycling is
www.fishforums.net
It sounds as though you did not cycle the tank before getting fish, especially as you only got the filter today. The fish will be going through a fish-in cycle. To keep them alive, you need to test the water for ammonia and nitrite every day and do a water change whenever read above zero. Feeding only once every 2 or 3 days means the fish will make less ammonia. If you don't have a test kit, you need to change half the water every day until you have a test kit which can test for ammonia and nitrite. 5 in 1 or 6 in 1 strips do not contain ammonia tests, and liquid reagent testers are better - and last longer so they are more cost effective.
This explains what cycling is
Cycle Your Tank! A Complete Guide For Beginners
Fishless cycling https://www.fishforums.net/threads/cycling-your-new-fresh-water-tank-read-this-first.421488/ Silent or plant cycling https://www.fishforums.net/threads/planted-silent-cycling.470400/ Fish-in cycling...
www.fishforums.net
maxikfr
New Member
also may I add, how much is the maximum fish for a 5 gallon tank? and a 10 gallon
Well what fish do you want? There are numerous fish but only certain species can be in smaller spaces in certain amounts
maxikfr
New Member
dwarf gourami look pretty cool
Most reactions
-
255 -
215 -
150 -
147 -
122 -
104 -
96 -
89 -
87 -
84 -
82 -
81 -
80 -
77 -
60
