Newbie Needs Help!

[maisy12345]

Hi,i`m still going through a fish-in cycle as wasn`t given right advice from start.
Started off in a 28l tank first day added some liquid bacteria and then added 4 glowlight tetra the same day,and in weekly intervals added 2 bronze corries ,1 albino and 1 armano shrimp and ,lastly 1 armano shrimp.So tank running for about a month.
My ammonia keeps fluctuating,but although i`m doing up to 1, 60 percent daily water change my ammonia has been 0.50 for three days now,tested tap water and 0.25 ,and the tank water is relly clear ,could it be that i`m feeding fish daily ,as i`m feeding flakes about 2 to glowlight tetra once a day and putting about 4 catfish pellets in twice a day ,which everyone feeds on evev the tetra.The shrimp eat both ,should i be feeding then every other day ,just when i`m going through a cycle,please help with any advice ,thanks?

 

[minnnt]

Hey maisy. You are feeding way to many catfish pellets imo. I would say chuck a couple in once a day. Are they pellets or the wafers? I feed wafers possibly every other day at a maximum of 2 at a time. Cory's are good scroungers and will feed on any little bits of uneaten food that manages to sink and go un-noticed by the other fish. That is probably what is contributing to the unwanted ammonia in the tank as you don't seem to be overstocked by my reckoning.If you get something like Tetra Prima and slightly crush it between your fingers then feed them that some of it will sink for the cory's etc.

 

[maisy12345]

Hi Minnnt ,thanks for your reply,they`re catfish pellets the wafers last ages in the tank.Do you think it`ll be alright to feed every other day ,only i feel quilty as the tetra especially seem hingry?

 

[maisy12345]

Has anyone else got any advice about feeding whilst doing a fish-in cycle?

 

[coldcazzie]

Your fish will be fine with feeding only every other day, or even every 3 days. In fact, if you were to go on holiday for a week you wouldn't need to feed the fish at all. The reason they seem always hungry is because they are opportunists. They don't know that you plan to feed them again tomorrow. As far as they are concerned they might see food again for 3 weeks so they have to get as much in their bellies as possible now. It's an evolutionary adaptation to account for possibly not encountering food for a while in the wild.

I put in a finger-smear-full of micro worms every afternoon when the lights go on. The fish go crazy for them - hunting them around the tank. I feed half a spiru tablet broken in half (so 2 quarters) every other day: I have 3 bristlenose babies and 25 tetras/harlequins and they all eat the tablets. I also feed a small pinch of flake every other day. I have granules and mini pellets which I crush up and give sometimes too (have to crush them because the fish all have such tiny mouths! ).

My point with all this, is that I'm probably overfeeding. Which means that you definitely are! You have fewer fish than I and are feeding more food! More food = more poop and more leftovers to rot = more ammonia. In your situation I'd give a couple of flakes and 1 sinking tablet every other day. That would be plenty


EDIT: random afterthought, which sinking things are they that you give? Are they like Tetra Tabimin tablets which are about 8mm wide or are they like the tiny King British Catfish pellets which are about 3mm wide? Because that would make a difference... If it's a bigger tablet then I'd do 1 every other day. If it's the little pellets then I'd do 3 or 4 of those every other day.

 

[maisy12345]

Hi Coldcazzie,
Thanks for that,the catfish pellets are really tiny ones,so i`ll feed them less often and see if that makes a difference

 

[OldMan47]

I have some things called shrimp pellets that are intended for catfish like cories. They are only about 1 mm in size but there is no way I would use a whole one every day for a mature cory. What my cories get is the flake that the rest of my fish miss and once or twice a week they get an add on of those shrimp pellets. The cories are absolutely thriving on what may seem like too little food. Something hard to get across to new fish keepers is just how little food a fish needs. Unlike mammals, they do not waste tons of calories to maintain their body temperatures. Add to that the fact that they do not need to fight gravity like we do just to move around. A very slight flick of the tail will send them right across your tank. Almost all of their food energy either goes into growth or reproduction, something that is a minor amount of the total energy needs of a mammal. What this means is that fry need lots of food compared to similar sized adults in order to support growth but adults need so little it will feel like you are starving them.

 

[maisy12345]

Thanks oldman47,that`s reissured me