Newbie Here. Help Me Or Fish Will Die!

[dthoffsett]

This is most likley the shop i will be going to. They have some nice tanks, heaters etc and they have some water tester kits in there.

Their website is a bit of a mess but they seem to know what they are talking about.

http/www.grosvenor-tropicals.co.uk/Produ.../Products.shtml




EDIT: Ive heard that getting 'Mature tank media' Can help speed up the cycling process in my tank. I have a friend who also has a fish tank, but what do i ask them for? Some of their gravel?

I took a look at that website, looks like a nice place to shop, you should have no problems finding what you need.

Gravel will work, it doesn't have a huge amound of bacteria (most is found in the filter), but enough to help. Add some to a clean (as in new) nylon, and place it in your filter. Or depending on the type of filter your friend has, he/she can cut some of their filter floss/sponge or give you some of their bio-media (ceramic rings, bio-balls, etc), and again you add them to your filter. Just make sure you keep the borrowed media/gravel wet until you add it to your tank, and obviously don't add it until your tank is set up and running.

 

[Leitch]

Thanks Again. =]

 

[Slufa111]

I would say if you live in a NON-ACed house you do NOT have a heater until it gets really cold outside and the temp drops. I say this because My house is no ACed and my water temp is at 80F!

 

[Gremily]

I would say if you live in a NON-ACed house you do NOT have a heater until it gets really cold outside and the temp drops. I say this because My house is no ACed and my water temp is at 80F!

I don't think this is good advice, I don't know anyone who has air conditioning in their house and I doubt houses here would ever be warm enough for long enough to maintain a high enough temperature. It really depends on the climate you live in although there's no harm in having a heater.

 

[Leitch]

Well i got my new 70L tank today. Put in some gravel and fake plants.

Looks great.

I also got some de-chlorinator and some stuff that apparently contains the live bacteria that i need.

However i dont have a source of ammonia. So i will go to tesco's tomorrow and buy some bottled pure ammonia.

I went to a different pet shop, called 'Jolles'. They were quite helpful and ordered me a master test kit which i should be getting tomorrow also.

Im still a little confused about how much ammonia to put in. And also what levels of Ammonia, PH, Nitrate, Nitrite etc, are suitable.

Can anyone tell me?

 

[dthoffsett]

You really have to experiment with the ammonia to find out how much you need. There is no set rule of x amount of ammoina per gallon since the strength of ammonia can differ greatly between brands. Just add a drop or two (w/an eye dropper) of ammonia, wait a couple of minutes, then test the ammonia, continue to do that until you reach 5 ppm of ammonia. Write down the number of drops that took, and add them everyday until you see nitrite.

A cycled tank is one that always reads Ammonia-0, Nitrite-0, and generally a readable amount of Nitrate. The only way you can remove nitrate is by changing the water, and you'll want your Nitrate to stay below 40-60 ppm.

As far as PH goes, just test to see what your tap water is, anything between 7.0-8.0 is suitable for most fish as they are very adaptable, the most important thing is a steady PH, so avoid adding any chemicals that tout they will make your PH the "perfect" 7.0.

 

[Leitch]

Thanks again =]

I just read a fishless cycling guide. It said at the end of it all you will be left with alot of brown algae and that you should do a 75-90% water change, but wont this get rid of alot of the good bacteria?

Also what fish are good for getting rid of the algae? (if any)






EDIT: I also have a question about water changes. When Adding water to the tank, does it have to be de-chlorinated first? Or can i add it, and then add some de-chlorinator?

Also, after the huge 90% water change, do i have to add a load more de-chlorinator? Kinda confused here. (again xD)

 

[Behold]

You really have to experiment with the ammonia to find out how much you need. There is no set rule of x amount of ammoina per gallon since the strength of ammonia can differ greatly between brands. Just add a drop or two (w/an eye dropper) of ammonia, wait a couple of minutes, then test the ammonia, continue to do that until you reach 5 ppm of ammonia. Write down the number of drops that took, and add them everyday until you see nitrite.

A cycled tank is one that always reads Ammonia-0, Nitrite-0, and generally a readable amount of Nitrate. The only way you can remove nitrate is by changing the water, and you'll want your Nitrate to stay below 40-60 ppm.

As far as PH goes, just test to see what your tap water is, anything between 7.0-8.0 is suitable for most fish as they are very adaptable, the most important thing is a steady PH, so avoid adding any chemicals that tout they will make your PH the "perfect" 7.0.

I disagree there is a way to work out how much to put in.

for 5ppm

5/%of ammonia
Times the Litres of water in tank
divide by 10 to give the amount to put in the tank in ML

 

[dthoffsett]

I just read a fishless cycling guide. It said at the end of it all you will be left with alot of brown algae and that you should do a 75-90% water change, but wont this get rid of alot of the good bacteria?
It's been estimated that about 90% of the bacteria lives in the filter (which is why we add all that media), so by doing a water change, little to no bacteria is lost.


Also what fish are good for getting rid of the algae? (if any)
Brown algae will eventually disappear on its own with time.


EDIT: I also have a question about water changes. When Adding water to the tank, does it have to be de-chlorinated first? Or can i add it, and then add some de-chlorinator?

Also, after the huge 90% water change, do i have to add a load more de-chlorinator? Kinda confused here.
You can add the dechlorinator to either the water in the bucket or the tank, it's up to you. If you add 10 gallons of water to your tank, you'll want to add however much dechlorinator the bottle says is appropriate to treat that amount of water. Howe much water you add determines how much dechlorinator you need if that makes sense.

 

[Leitch]

Thanks for the help again =]

Ive been to the local supermarket but they didnt have ammonia.

So i ordered some off eBay (Yea they actually mail that stuff?! I was surprised too.) And it should be here within the next few days, Hopefully. Then i can start my cycle. Im going to the shop tomorrow to get either a rock or a log, the front of the tank looks a bit empty. I'll also buy a Liquid test kit. I think ill ask my next door neibour for some mature filter media, I'm just scared incase any diesease is present in his tank.

Anyway im pretty sure i know what im doing now. I was blown away at first, but i think ill be just fine. Heres a picture of my new tank

 

[dthoffsett]

Looking good so far.

Just get a good look at your neighbor's tank(s), make sure his fish are bright an active, and none of them look sickly. Also, ask him about his maintenance routine, how often does he clean his tank, etc.

 

[Leitch]

Yea alright.

Ill ask him about it once i get the ammonia =]

 

[Musho3210]

two drops of jewel osco (chicago supermarket) brand pure ammonia raised my ammonia to 8ppm in a 75 gallon tank (possibly more, 8ppm was as high as my test kit read). Only two drops, so unless you know the exact percentage of ammonia is in the bottle, i wouldnt be dosing like 5-10 drops in the beginning