New To Fish

[iroc]

Hello everyone, I have had the hardest time finding consistant answers about my new tank and the fish I have ( 5 neon tetras and 3 mickey mouse platys) the tank is a 20 gallon and the water seems to be about 80 degrees and at a 7.2 ph. I have been removing 10% of the water 1 a week ( actually I have only had it a week and I just did that) and one of the neons already died ( I had 6) here are my questions

1. should I be adding any slat to the water - I was told to add 1 tsp for every gallon by the place I bought the fish

2. Do plays usauly swim around at the top of the tank or is this a sign of hunger or sickness

3. Should I only use the light when I am looking at them or should it be on some sort or timer that will give them constant hours of light vs. darkness

4. How often and how much should I be feeding the tank

5. are the things ( temp, ph etc.) I already have good or do I need to adjust them

6. What would be a good fish to add next


Any help would be wonderful thanks in advance

 

[Inchworm]

Hi iroc

Welcome to the forum!

Being new to the hobby, you have a lot to learn that your lfs (local fish store) probably didn't teach you. One of these things is how to cycle your tank and the role that beneficial bacteria play in it. You came to the right place to get information.

I got your message and will move your thread to the beginners section. I hope you enjoy your fish and your participation on this forum.

 

[iroc]

Hi iroc

Welcome to the forum!

Being new to the hobby, you have a lot to learn that your lfs (local fish store) probably didn't teach you. One of these things is how to cycle your tank and the role that beneficial bacteria play in it. You came to the right place to get information.

I got your message and will move your thread to the beginners section. I hope you enjoy your fish and your participation on this forum.

Thanks, yea I did have enough thought and asked a bunch of questions of ppl that I knew had fish, and I was told lots of things, the cycling part is what I am concerned with now becuase a fish lover told me to remove 10-15% of the water once a week for a month and this would help stablize the tank however I read on a site that I should be removeing that same amount ever 3 days for the 1st 2 weeks then drop down to once a month, What is the real deal??

 

[MaryPa]

Since you didn`t cycle the tank before adding fish you`ll need to do daily water changes of 25% until it`s cycled. This takes about 6 weeks. You`ll need a test kit to test first for ammonia,after the ammonia is gone test for nitrItes. The nitrIte part of the cycle will be the longest. After the nitrItes are gone test the nitrAtes. When they`re about 20 your tank should be cycled. After this do weekly water chages of 25% using a gravel vacuum to remove all the waste.
You can bypass the whole cycle mess by adding Bio-Spira. It usually cycles the tank in a couple hours and is well worth the couplke dollars you spend.

 

[iroc]

Since you didn`t cycle the tank before adding fish you`ll need to do daily water changes of 25% until it`s cycled. This takes about 6 weeks. You`ll need a test kit to test first for ammonia,after the ammonia is gone test for nitrItes. The nitrIte part of the cycle will be the longest. After the nitrItes are gone test the nitrAtes. When they`re about 20 your tank should be cycled. After this do weekly water chages of 25% using a gravel vacuum to remove all the waste.
You can bypass the whole cycle mess by adding Bio-Spira. It usually cycles the tank in a couple hours and is well worth the couplke dollars you spend.

thanks for the advice but lots of ppl have told me not to use any products to do the cycling becuase it can kill all the fish???

 

[djloach]

Since you didn`t cycle the tank before adding fish you`ll need to do daily water changes of 25% until it`s cycled. This takes about 6 weeks. You`ll need a test kit to test first for ammonia,after the ammonia is gone test for nitrItes. The nitrIte part of the cycle will be the longest. After the nitrItes are gone test the nitrAtes. When they`re about 20 your tank should be cycled. After this do weekly water chages of 25% using a gravel vacuum to remove all the waste.
You can bypass the whole cycle mess by adding Bio-Spira. It usually cycles the tank in a couple hours and is well worth the couplke dollars you spend.

thanks for the advice but lots of ppl have told me not to use any products to do the cycling becuase it can kill all the fish???

You probably don't need to do 25% water changes unless you find the ammonia or nitrite getting much above .25 ppm. I have never used Bio-Spira but I hear it works well and shouldn't kill the fish. In theory it is just a bunch of the beneficial bacteria in a bottle. Another option is to get some of your friends who alread have aquariums set up to take a small portion of their filter media and put it in yours or put a bunch of their gravel in your tank. This will give your tank a head start as the filter media and gravel will have a bunch of the good bacteria all over it. Just make sure it doesn't dry out in transport.

 

[Boxermom]

BioSpira doesn't come in a bottle, it comes in a packet. Must remain refrigerated until use or the bacteria will die. Its the only product that works, nothing else does.

To answer some of your other questions, no, do not add salt for those particular fish. Fish need a day/night cycle but if there's enough ambient light, they don't really need a light on the tank. We turn ours on in the morning when we get up and turn it off about 12 hours later (10 hours for the planted tanks). Feed the fish twice a day, only as much as they can eat in 2-3 minutes. For smaller fish, it helps to crumble the flakes up a little.

If you don't get BioSpira, I agree with MaryPa that you'll need to change 25% of the water daily until your tank cycles. Your pH is fine, don't do anything to adjust it. I'd lower the temp a tad to about 77-78ish.

Don't be surprised if you lose more neons though. They aren't very hardy fish, certainly not hardy enough to be used to cycle a tank.

 

[PaPeRo]

BioSpira doesn't come in a bottle, it comes in a packet. Must remain refrigerated until use or the bacteria will die. Its the only product that works, nothing else does.

I've had great success with CYCLE for years.