Please Help

[Bugsvile]

Hi to all,

I am totally new to tropical fish and have set up my tank as per instructions i have read and the stockists advice.

I have got my fishless cycle going and i am unsure as to the type of fish i can have.

As i am new i only have a small 64 litre tank but i do intend to add another larger tank soon if all goes well.

I like the idea of a community tank and have looked at several species of fish, the fish i like are the Siamese flying fox, Harlequin, dutch rams, cardinal tetra, male siamese fighter and the lampeye fish.

Are these suitable fish together or should i think of only a few of these species?

Also which order would be best to start with?

Hope you can help

 

[Marve99]

How is your cycling going?
Are you testing your water - getting any nitrites/nitrates?

On the stocking

Not sure cardinal tetra would be a good choice for a new tank - I believe they like a more mature set up
Siamese figter with tetra could be trouble.

 

[waterdrop]

Where did you find ammonia for your fishless cycle? What make/type of test kit do you have?

Cardinals/Neons are fine, its just that you do need to wait until the tank is 4 to 6 months old before introducing them.

~~waterdrop~~

 

[Bugsvile]

Just checked my levels now,

i have ammonia levels of 0.05-0.1

nitrite levels of 0.1

my nitrate levels came out a clear result so not sure what that means?

the ph levels show around 7.5-8

does this help by the way the tank has only been set up a few days now but i was just looking into the tyes of fish that would be ok.

thanks for the reply by the way

 

[Bugsvile]

Where did you find ammonia for your fishless cycle? What make/type of test kit do you have?

Cardinals/Neons are fine, its just that you do need to wait until the tank is 4 to 6 months old before introducing them.

~~waterdrop~~

i have the interpet easy test kit and i was just using the filter start to get things up and running, i do have a couple of plants in the tank so not sure if this adds to any ammonia in the water?

i read somewhere thaat adding fish food to the water helps to add amonia to the water is this also correct?

 

[Curiosity101]

If filter start adds ammonia to the water (which it does seem to have done), I would guess it's because the organisms that were once alive in there are now dead, have rotted, and have therefore released ammonia.

Have you read our beginner sections explanation on fishless cycling? As at the moment you are not actually cycling.
To cycle a tank you need an ammonia source, this can be...
Live Fish (They produce ammonia as a by product of living, however ammonia is poisonous to them)
Dead Prawns (Such as the type you get from the fishmongers)
Fish Food
Or (And this is the best) Bottled Household Ammonia.

Bottled ammonia is the most accurate way of introducing ammonia to the tank and getting it ready for fish.

If you go to the top of the section ('New to the hobby') and look at the top pinned subjects. One is called 'Beginners Resource Centre', I suggest you go have a read in there. Particularly about cycling.

 

[Bugsvile]

thanks curiosity101 i will check it out, but could you tell me the amount of ammonia i would need to add to a 64l tank?

 

[Curiosity101]

Why do you think I told you where to go and look...

You need the instruction on how to do a fishless cycle, then you need to use the calculator to work out how much ammonia you need.

The calculator is at the top of this page 'Aquarium Calculator'

 

[HappyGeorge]

thanks curiosity101 i will check it out, but could you tell me the amount of ammonia i would need to add to a 64l tank?

Try this out

http/www.stanlee.plus.com/AmmoniaCalc.htm

 

[waterdrop]

thanks curiosity101 i will check it out, but could you tell me the amount of ammonia i would need to add to a 64l tank?

Hi there bugsvile,

The *amount* of ammonia you'll need as a supply during the whole fishless cycling process is rarely a problem. Usually the bottles of household ammonia, once you find them, are quite large (for cleaning) and you'll be squirting little dropper-full type quantities into your tank, so its hardly likely you'll use up the quart or half-gallon or whatever. The usual challange is the actual *finding* of the right stuff. That can be quite an adventure sometimes. It has to be pure clear household ammonia (technically its "aqueous ammonia" which means some percentage of ammonia gas dissolved in distilled water, but it won't say that on the bottle) and it has to not have dyes, fragrances or soaps/surfactants in it. Many of the ammonia cleaning products *do* have one or more of these things, so it can be tricky finding the correct type. You have to look in mop and broom sections of big-box stores or go to hardware stores or pharmacies. Boots and others have been mentioned in UK.

The Interpet test kit you are using has had a few reports of causing problems in various threads here over time, but its a liquid kit and I would go ahead and use it for now unless we seem to start having problems. The stories you've heard of using fishfood, prawns or whatever to grow bacteria in the tank are not as good methods as using the household ammonia. Those things have organic molecules which must be broken down into ammonia by "heterotrophic" bacteria (different from the two species we are trying to grow in the filter) and that process can not be controlled in a quantitative way, which is necessary for a predictable process.

Performing a fishless cycle takes anywhere from 3 weeks (if you were very lucky) to a more usual 6 or 8 weeks. Surprisingly (to beginners) it is a much easier process than what happens if you -don't- do it. In that case you find yourself caring for fish without a working filter and you have to become the filter yourself, messing with water on a daily basis (it gets old really fast.) I imagine this all sounds pretty weird but you've stumbled on to a real hobbyist site and believe me, this info will leapfrog you past all sorts of misunderstandings that it takes many beginners years to work out if ever. Good luck and lets hear your next questions!

~~waterdrop~~

 

[Bugsvile]

thanks Waterdrop and Happygeorge for your replies, because i am new to this i just seem to have so many questions i am just eager to get things right.

Why is it that the store where i had intended to buy my fish had said that it should be 2 weeks before introducing fish? i hear one story from one store and one that told me it would only be 3 days before i should add fish?

I am glad i have stumbled across this site as i was purely going on things i was reading on the internet.

Oh and sorry Cursity101 as i said i am just so eager to get it right but i can see now that patience is something that i need for this hobby.

 

[mattlee]

thanks Waterdrop and Happygeorge for your replies, because i am new to this i just seem to have so many questions i am just eager to get things right.

Why is it that the store where i had intended to buy my fish had said that it should be 2 weeks before introducing fish? i hear one story from one store and one that told me it would only be 3 days before i should add fish?

I am glad i have stumbled across this site as i was purely going on things i was reading on the internet.

Oh and sorry Cursity101 as i said i am just so eager to get it right but i can see now that patience is something that i need for this hobby.

most lfs tell people to set the tank up run it for a week then its ok to add fish...... i was one of these people and followed their instructions and ended up in a fish in cycle and lost 5 fish due to this. i went back to lfs a week after setting my tank up and added 2 dwarf gouramis and 5 neons, within a week or 2 my neons died but my gouramis seemed fine. after loads of water changes my tank finally matured enough to handle the ammonia from the fish, i dont know what damage it has done to the gourami ie poisoning but it seems ok still now. i also got sold neons straight away which as people have said need a mature tank of 6 months at least...... i was also sold a catfish that i was told grows to 12cm i later found out that it grows up to 18 inches!!!!!!!!!!!!! what im trying to say is before buying fish or doing anything to your tank its best to research on the internet or ask questions on here. there are loads of nice clever people on here who will advise you and put you right (waterdrop and curiosity have helped me out in the past) i even believed a lfs today that sold me 2 spotted climbing perch, they told me 2 inch max and good community fish.... they dont sell them near where i live so bought them as i wouldnt be going there anytime soon, got home and checked them out and guess what, 6-8 inch max and predator fish will eat anything small enough!!!!! luckily i have a bigger tank now and no small enough fish, i hope........

 

[Bugsvile]

Sorry to seem daft but who or what LFS? I hear it all the time but i cant figure out what it means.

I have been searching everywhere but i cant seem to find if all types of tetras will mix, my wife and i love the lamp eye or glowlight but also like the cardinal tetras, will they mix together ok?

As we have set our hearts on these two types of fish, which fish would be best to introduce first? It appears tetras need to be added to a mature tank but we would like to have something else, any recomendations as to the first fish we should introduce?

Dont worry i wont be adding them until i have cycled my tank correctly which after reading on here is something i was advised incorrectly by the fish stockist.

 

[HappyGeorge]

Local Fish Shop - easy when you know

 

[waterdrop]

Glolights are great with cardinals/neons. I can't remember about lampeyes (but I think I remember I like them)... perhaps agent 101 will come to our rescue or someone will actually look something up ... I gotta walk home from work and do a water change now! WD