What Do I Need?

[missigfunk]

i got my first tank on my 13th birthday and have recently (about 4 months) just upgraded to a 3ft tank (im 21 now!)

i never really had any problems in my smaller tank, but in the bigger tank i have had 1 case of white spot (killed all of my baby mollies ), 2 cases of pop eye and an ammonia problem.

i guess what im trying to ask is what are the most important things to keep on hand at all times.

all i have is fish food, ph kit, glass cleaners, gravel vac and water conditioner.

what else should i have?

 

[Tokis-Phoenix]

I would advise buying an accurate test kit/s for ammonia, nitrites and nitrates to add to your fishkeeping kit .
What sorts of fish are you currently keeping and how many? Do you know the gallons/liters of the tank? What is your average tank cleaning regime and how often do you perform it ?

 

[missigfunk]

hey tokis

i just replied in my other thread

i will look for my old thread and get back to you

 

[missigfunk]

i added the stats in the other thread...


roughly...

910mm long
370mm wide
500mm high



the fish i have in there are also mentioned in the other thread...

i have:

platys
gouramis
angels
bumble bees
mollies



i usually take out half of the water when i do a clean and fill it with just tap water? then i put some water conditioner in it and check the ph about 30 min later. thats about it?

 

[Tokis-Phoenix]

i added the stats in the other thread...


roughly...

910mm long
370mm wide
500mm high



the fish i have in there are also mentioned in the other thread...

i have:

platys
gouramis
angels
bumble bees
mollies



i usually take out half of the water when i do a clean and fill it with just tap water? then i put some water conditioner in it and check the ph about 30 min later. thats about it?

I personally mix the dechlorinator in as i fill my tanks up, but i don't think it matters too much as long as you do add the dechlorinator. You should clean the filter out in old water taken from the tank whenever the filter is becoming clogged up, but remember not to over-clean the filter (just clean it enough in the old water so that the filter can run smoothly when its put back together in the tank). A 25-60% water change once a week is good .
Because you have a gravel substrate you should ideally clean it once a week or fortnight, as decomposing matter in gravel can harbor nasty fish diseases or make nitrates rise really high etc.
Whenever you give your tank a clean, you should check to make sure everything is working properly- don't let stuff like limescale or algae etc build up on the heater as this can interfere with the tanks temp, and make sure that the plants are firmly rooted down in the substrate etc.

And thats pretty much it .

 

[missigfunk]

ok so dechlorinator is something i can get/buy?
i will look for it tomorrow while im getting some pop eye remedy. another of my fish has it.


oh ye, i forgot to say that i clean the filter. i have an internal one, so the stray leaves and stuff get stuck in it pretty often. as for the gravel, i absolutely HATE seeing all the fish poo and yucky stuff at the bottom, so i always give it a good vac.


a lot of my plants dont last in the ground because the snail always seems to eat the stems of them so they float to the top. ive tried heaps of different plants and seem to have found a fairly sturdy one. not sure what its called though. it just looks like really thick, tall grass?


i dont know what limescale is? and i havent seen any algae anywhere in my tank yet. i guess i look after it better than i thought