Some Beginner Questions About Feeding And Behaviour

[isaac338]

My girlfriend bought me a 20gal starter kit (tank, filter, stand, light, hood, heater) for my birthday in November, after I'd been talking about it nonstop for months. The fish store sold me some white cloud minnows to start the cycle (I now know about fishless cycling..), and just recently I bought a red lizard plec, which I've sort of identified as a red whiptail cat (didn't find much info on red lizard plec anywhere).

It's become apparent I've been dumping too much food in the tank (dumb newb mistake!), as there's plenty of it lying around rotting. I also notice that the biowheel filter will push the food down into the water, so no matter how little I put in the fish only have a few seconds to eat it before it's blown all over the water and deposited in the plants and gravel. Should I be turning off the filter during feeding so the food will stay on the surface longer?

Also, the fish store recommended bloodworms as food for the catfish. Although most of the worms sink to the bottom, the cat doesn't seem to find it for a while (they mostly disappear after a few hours). Should I worry about uneaten worms dirtying up the water?

Other than these few things, I'm loving this hobby and it's fascinating me to no end..

edit: I just realized I forgot to mention the behaviour. The white cloud minnows spend 99% of their time at the very top of the tank, on the side opposite the filter output. They occasionally go down nearer the bottom but it's relatively rare. Is this something to be worried about or are they just not that adventurous?

Thanks for any help,

Isaac

 

[erk628]

My girlfriend bought me a 20gal starter kit (tank, filter, stand, light, hood, heater) for my birthday in November, after I'd been talking about it nonstop for months. The fish store sold me some white cloud minnows to start the cycle (I now know about fishless cycling..), and just recently I bought a red lizard plec, which I've sort of identified as a red whiptail cat (didn't find much info on red lizard plec anywhere).

It's become apparent I've been dumping too much food in the tank (dumb newb mistake!), as there's plenty of it lying around rotting. I also notice that the biowheel filter will push the food down into the water, so no matter how little I put in the fish only have a few seconds to eat it before it's blown all over the water and deposited in the plants and gravel. Should I be turning off the filter during feeding so the food will stay on the surface longer?

Also, the fish store recommended bloodworms as food for the catfish. Although most of the worms sink to the bottom, the cat doesn't seem to find it for a while (they mostly disappear after a few hours). Should I worry about uneaten worms dirtying up the water?

Other than these few things, I'm loving this hobby and it's fascinating me to no end..

edit: I just realized I forgot to mention the behaviour. The white cloud minnows spend 99% of their time at the very top of the tank, on the side opposite the filter output. They occasionally go down nearer the bottom but it's relatively rare. Is this something to be worried about or are they just not that adventurous?

Thanks for any help,

Isaac

I turn my filters off while feeding I have a 55 gal with two filters pushing 600 gallons an hour so I always turn off anything that can blow food around (just don't forget to turn them back on).With your minnows staying on the top does it seem like there gasping for air. I recommend getting a air rock and see if there behaviour changes. They may be stick to the top due to the not enough oxygen in the tank, a air rock will fix that probelm. Another thing could be if there is a strong current on the bottom they may not like that and try to get away. The longer in the hobby the better you will get with feeding. Also I would add a little food at a time until they seem not to be hungry any more. Usually the rule is feed them however much they can eat in a few minutes but I don't do this because my fish eat slow and they would never eat if I did this lol.

Also with the food on the bottom some corys or some kind of bottom feeders will help here. Also if there is a lot usually this is a sign of over feeding, if any thing use your gravel vac and suck it up real quick, just remember to top your water back off. Good luck!

 

[isaac338]

My girlfriend bought me a 20gal starter kit (tank, filter, stand, light, hood, heater) for my birthday in November, after I'd been talking about it nonstop for months. The fish store sold me some white cloud minnows to start the cycle (I now know about fishless cycling..), and just recently I bought a red lizard plec, which I've sort of identified as a red whiptail cat (didn't find much info on red lizard plec anywhere).

It's become apparent I've been dumping too much food in the tank (dumb newb mistake!), as there's plenty of it lying around rotting. I also notice that the biowheel filter will push the food down into the water, so no matter how little I put in the fish only have a few seconds to eat it before it's blown all over the water and deposited in the plants and gravel. Should I be turning off the filter during feeding so the food will stay on the surface longer?

Also, the fish store recommended bloodworms as food for the catfish. Although most of the worms sink to the bottom, the cat doesn't seem to find it for a while (they mostly disappear after a few hours). Should I worry about uneaten worms dirtying up the water?

Other than these few things, I'm loving this hobby and it's fascinating me to no end..

edit: I just realized I forgot to mention the behaviour. The white cloud minnows spend 99% of their time at the very top of the tank, on the side opposite the filter output. They occasionally go down nearer the bottom but it's relatively rare. Is this something to be worried about or are they just not that adventurous?

Thanks for any help,

Isaac

I turn my filters off while feeding I have a 55 gal with two filters pushing 600 gallons an hour so I always turn off anything that can blow food around (just don't forget to turn them back on).With your minnows staying on the top does it seem like there gasping for air. I recommend getting a air rock and see if there behaviour changes. They may be stick to the top due to the not enough oxygen in the tank, a air rock will fix that probelm. Another thing could be if there is a strong current on the bottom they may not like that and try to get away. The longer in the hobby the better you will get with feeding. Also I would add a little food at a time until they seem not to be hungry any more. Usually the rule is feed them however much they can eat in a few minutes but I don't do this because my fish eat slow and they would never eat if I did this lol.

Also with the food on the bottom some corys or some kind of bottom feeders will help here. Also if there is a lot usually this is a sign of over feeding, if any thing use your gravel vac and suck it up real quick, just remember to top your water back off. Good luck!

Thanks for the reply.

Now that I'm turning off the filter to feed, I've noticed the minnows seem much happier when there's no current. They're swimming all over the tank, not just by the top, and they seem to be chasing each other and having more fun. When I turn the filter back on they go right back to their little corner and stay there. Is there too much current in the tank for them? Obviously I can't keep the filter just turned off, but what can I do?

An hour ago one of the minnows jumped out of the water, just once, also. I have trace amounts of ammonia, no nitrites, and very little nitrates. The pH is 6.6. Is this a sign of something bad?

Thanks for the help,

Isaac

 

[erk628]

My girlfriend bought me a 20gal starter kit (tank, filter, stand, light, hood, heater) for my birthday in November, after I'd been talking about it nonstop for months. The fish store sold me some white cloud minnows to start the cycle (I now know about fishless cycling..), and just recently I bought a red lizard plec, which I've sort of identified as a red whiptail cat (didn't find much info on red lizard plec anywhere).

It's become apparent I've been dumping too much food in the tank (dumb newb mistake!), as there's plenty of it lying around rotting. I also notice that the biowheel filter will push the food down into the water, so no matter how little I put in the fish only have a few seconds to eat it before it's blown all over the water and deposited in the plants and gravel. Should I be turning off the filter during feeding so the food will stay on the surface longer?

Also, the fish store recommended bloodworms as food for the catfish. Although most of the worms sink to the bottom, the cat doesn't seem to find it for a while (they mostly disappear after a few hours). Should I worry about uneaten worms dirtying up the water?

Other than these few things, I'm loving this hobby and it's fascinating me to no end..


A ph of 6.6 seems awful low, what water do you use. Do you use tap or spring water. I know with my tap water I test it right out of the tap and it reads off the chart with ph and I've tested spring water that you buy at the store and its like 6.0 to 6.2. I use tap water for my tank and add tap water safe chemical. The ph in my tank is 7.8. If you use tap and its 6.6 I wouldn't worry about this its not far off, its closer then mine lol. With the minnow problems seeing how they are more active when the filter is of is telling me your filter is creating to much current for them. Does you filter have somehting to adjust the flow that comes out, it so try adjusting it to the lower level. By doing this it means the water will be cyled even more which won't be a bad thing. Your other option is getting another tank like a ten galloon or something and putting the minnows in there depending on there size of your fish of course. Also what how many gallons an hour is your filter pushing out. One last thing I'm gald I could help with your feeding problem.

edit: I just realized I forgot to mention the behaviour. The white cloud minnows spend 99% of their time at the very top of the tank, on the side opposite the filter output. They occasionally go down nearer the bottom but it's relatively rare. Is this something to be worried about or are they just not that adventurous?

Thanks for any help,

Isaac

I turn my filters off while feeding I have a 55 gal with two filters pushing 600 gallons an hour so I always turn off anything that can blow food around (just don't forget to turn them back on).With your minnows staying on the top does it seem like there gasping for air. I recommend getting a air rock and see if there behaviour changes. They may be stick to the top due to the not enough oxygen in the tank, a air rock will fix that probelm. Another thing could be if there is a strong current on the bottom they may not like that and try to get away. The longer in the hobby the better you will get with feeding. Also I would add a little food at a time until they seem not to be hungry any more. Usually the rule is feed them however much they can eat in a few minutes but I don't do this because my fish eat slow and they would never eat if I did this lol.

Also with the food on the bottom some corys or some kind of bottom feeders will help here. Also if there is a lot usually this is a sign of over feeding, if any thing use your gravel vac and suck it up real quick, just remember to top your water back off. Good luck!

Thanks for the reply.

Now that I'm turning off the filter to feed, I've noticed the minnows seem much happier when there's no current. They're swimming all over the tank, not just by the top, and they seem to be chasing each other and having more fun. When I turn the filter back on they go right back to their little corner and stay there. Is there too much current in the tank for them? Obviously I can't keep the filter just turned off, but what can I do?

An hour ago one of the minnows jumped out of the water, just once, also. I have trace amounts of ammonia, no nitrites, and very little nitrates. The pH is 6.6. Is this a sign of something bad?

Thanks for the help,

Isaac

I forgot to scroll al the way down before I started typing sorry about that. I'll post again so its easier to find.


A ph of 6.6 seems awful low, what water do you use. Do you use tap or spring water. I know with my tap water I test it right out of the tap and it reads off the chart with ph and I've tested spring water that you buy at the store and its like 6.0 to 6.2. I use tap water for my tank and add tap water safe chemical. The ph in my tank is 7.8. If you use tap and its 6.6 I wouldn't worry about this its not far off, its closer then mine lol. With the minnow problems seeing how they are more active when the filter is of is telling me your filter is creating to much current for them. Does you filter have somehting to adjust the flow that comes out, it so try adjusting it to the lower level. By doing this it means the water will be cyled even more which won't be a bad thing. Your other option is getting another tank like a ten galloon or something and putting the minnows in there depending on there size of your fish of course. Also what how many gallons an hour is your filter pushing out. One last thing I'm gald I could help with your feeding problem.

 

[isaac338]

I found your reply anyways, just took a little searching

Anyways, I realized the water in the tank was a good two inches below the top, and the extra distance from the filter output and the waterline was making a lot of turbulence. I topped up the water to about a quarter inch below the top, and the current was reduced a lot. The minnows are swimming all over their side of the tank now, diving to the bottom and not staying right next to the top. That's probably a good thing

They still are avoiding the side of the tank with the filter output but they're getting closer.

Thanks again!

Isaac

 

[erk628]

I found your reply anyways, just took a little searching

Anyways, I realized the water in the tank was a good two inches below the top, and the extra distance from the filter output and the waterline was making a lot of turbulence. I topped up the water to about a quarter inch below the top, and the current was reduced a lot. The minnows are swimming all over their side of the tank now, diving to the bottom and not staying right next to the top. That's probably a good thing

They still are avoiding the side of the tank with the filter output but they're getting closer.

Thanks again!

Isaac

NP glad I could help!

 

[Kyrielle]

If you can't control the flow and your filter output is the type that can simply be obstucted to reduce the flow, you could try the DIY method involving a bit of a soda bottle. You take a water/soda bottle and cut out a section of it--the area around the label. So this way you have a piece of clear, plastic tubing with the water/soda label on it. Peel off the label and where the glue for the label starts, cut vertically through the tube so that you now have a curved sheet of plastic. Then all you need to do is wrap it around the filter output such that the plastic is obstructing the flow from the output. Make sure the glue side of the plastic isn't in the water. Secure it with tape, if needed, and you're done.

Cheap, easy, quick.