Some Advice Please...

[diggy]

hi everyone,

This is my first post and hopefully not my last...I've just started up my fish tank for the second time due to me moving house and was hoping for some answers to my questions.

A brief history about the tank and fish......
i have a jewel vision 180L tank with the jewel filter system(1x filter wool,1x carbon sponge,1x nitrate remover sponge,1x sponge course and 2x fine sponge)jewel heater set at 26 degrees.I also have white gravel on the tank floor,two ornaments(divers helmet and a broken pot),three potted plants,two air stones running at half power..

I had the tank running for 2 weeks before i added any fish and i made sure that the ph level was ok.

at the moment i have:

1 fighter fish
3 female guppies
1 female molly
5 noens

i have lost 2 male guppies,1 male molly,5 noens and 4 congos
i lost most of these fish to white spots so i decided to do a 25% water change and treat the tank with interpet no.6 anti white spot plus.i also change the white filter every week.

i've noticed today that two more noens look like they have white spots too...so i went out and bought a freshwater master testing kit and these were the results.
ph 7.6
ammonia 10mg
nitrate no3 20mg
nitrate no2 5mg

thats the history of my tank so far and i just wondered if anyone could guide me in the right direction.so i have these few questions to ask..

Does it sound like i am doing the right thing?
When should i do the next water change?
should i worry about the test results?
should i give the tank the 4-6 weeks to recycle before another test?
should i add salt to the tank?

and just one more question for when i get the tank settled

could anyone advise me a a good mixture of fish for my tank?

i'm sorry if i bored you with this post but any advise would be helpfull

thank you

 

[newtotropical]

Right first things first!

Your tank is no where near cycled, you will lose all but the most hardy of fish
If you are putting meds in the the tank remove the carbon fileter. In fact bin it anyway it does nothing to help.
You need to do big water changes daily 30-40% to avoid killing them all!
look in the pinned thread there are people you will donate mature filter medium, id find the nearest to you and get some if i were you. This will help cycle the tank

Im not an expert but thats what i can see wrong for starters.

Hope this helps

 

[diggy]

thanks newtotropical

i've just this minute thrown out the carbon filter and gone onto the pinned thread to ask for a mature filter medium..then tomorrow i will do the water change.

 

[newtotropical]

No worries! hopfully you eill get more advice soon!!

 

[mark.w.jones]

to TFF

Youve made the same mistakes a lot of us did in the beginning so don't feel too bad. Youre priority really is to get rid of the white spot outbreak. This was bought on by stocking too quickly in a tank that wasn't cycled properly.

This offers some good advice

http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showto...p;hl=white+spot

Keep up 20% water changes every other day as well in order to keep levels of ammonia and nitrite down.

Also keeping together bettas and guppies is not really a good idea. The females whilst being more docile than the males may sometimes attack fish that they consider similar to themselves and guppies fit the bill. This article offers good betta advice.

http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showto...86&hl=betta

Finally read all the articles / faqs at the top of this forum and the tropical chit chat one. They are a mine of useful info. that you wont always get from your LFS. Also make sure that white spot is completely gone and that your ammonia and nitrites levels are at zero for at least a week before adding any other tankmates.

 

[vinylman]

Diggy, please don't change the white filter sponge every week; that's where most of the beneficial bacteria live, and it's even more important in a new tank. You should only squeeze it out in a bucket of tankwater every 2-3 weeks (depending on stocking rate). No matter what it says on the box, a filter sponge will last a very long time. Good luck.

 

[diggy]

thanks vinylman..i'm glad you told me that about the white sponge.else i would have kept changing it every week like they say to do on the box.

 

[newtotropical]

Diggy, please don't change the white filter sponge every week; that's where most of the beneficial bacteria live, and it's even more important in a new tank. You should only squeeze it out in a bucket of tankwater every 2-3 weeks (depending on stocking rate). No matter what it says on the box, a filter sponge will last a very long time. Good luck.

Oops missed that bit!!

 

[Miss Wiggle]

have a read of this