Yet More Questions

[TiffanyJayne]

Right my first questions...has anyone tried Evo Aqua bacteria balls? I've got 2 tanks that could do with being set up very, very quickly as not time for proper cycling so I nipped into a big shop and they said use these and stick fish straight in, doesn't sound right to me but maybe there magical.

I had 2 males rams....took on 2 female rams it seems a M and F have paired up they don't leave each others side and if anything gets close to her, he chases it away. The other male is happy swimming around on his own and knows he's the best looking fish in the tank but my other female seems to have a very clamped tail (all other fins fine) she sticks herself next to the filter and either enjoys being pulled/pushed by the current or finds it hard to get away (but goes back anyway) and she's not looking happy, I've had a horrible out burst of white spot on my corys and male rams but the last treatment was 3 days ago, I've since done a water change but all tests are fine, is she just an unhappy lady or could it be more serious?

and finally I'm picking up a moustache catfish?? next week (either that or he becomes cat food) he's already about a foot long but can anything else go in his tank? I have a 4 foot for my pang but it seems a waste having 2 large tanks with 1 fish in each as it's a cat fish other than him being heavy handed because he's big is he a major threat to slightly small fish?


Thanks in advance for help and sorry to be a pain and keep posting so many questions, I'm very inquisitive.

 

[OldMan47]

You could try some fairy dust too I suppose. It would probably work as well as your magic balls. I would use a start from the pang tank to get the rams tank started cycling. That way you won't end up doing quite as many water changes to control the chemistry before your new tank gets cycled.

 

[TiffanyJayne]

You could try some fairy dust too I suppose. It would probably work as well as your magic balls. I would use a start from the pang tank to get the rams tank st6arted cycling. That way you won't end up doing quite as many water changes to control the chemistry before your new tank gets cycled.

The rams are already in a tank, it's a 3 foot that's been going 3 months they don't really need moving but the female just isn't looking good. The pang tanks fairly new but the filters been going a few weeks and he's pretty hardy but it's full of snails!!, i've got a couple of pregnant fish and a poorly one so i've trying to get two small tanks set up to move them to be more comfortable and after a big issue with some nasty fish my normal hospital tank has been taken up by unwanted fish, the only tank i have thats due a big enough water change has just suffered white spot and although it's cleared up im not much for taking the risk.

 

[helen1207]

Hi,quite new on here myself but noticed you asked about the Evo Aqua balls.I havent seen anyone else on here talking about them but i have just started using them!

I had a total disaster with my new tank,i did a fish in cycle and they got ill within a week,i tried everything i could but 3 months later they all died.

I decided to try again, disinfected the tank, bought new gravel,ornament and new filter media.At this point i had found a new fish shop and the guy in there was very good, he told me about these aquarium balls and said they had set up their very large tank with them last year so im giving them a go!

I have used the balls and the accelerator for a week as instructed then went back and have bought 4 platys. The fish have been in the tank now almost 2 weeks and are doing great! The balls are at the bottom of the tank, think they must dissolve very slowly over a number of weeks/months.

I am still checking the Ammonia,Nitrite and Nitrate every day and at the moment everything is on 0ppm! I think the thing is this isnt a quick fix to cycle the tank but i`m having a much better result this time! Not sure what actual ingredients are in them but the tank is crystal clear, the fish are healthy and eating fine and the stats are all on 0ppm so im happy with them!

Let me know if you decide to try them it would be interesting to see someone elses take on them!

Good luck Helen.

Theres lots of great help and info on this site.

 

[drobbyb]

You say everything is at 0ppm? If the tank was truly cycled you would see a slow rise in nitrates. Nitrates are removed with water changes.

 

[Curiosity101]

The rams are already in a tank, it's a 3 foot that's been going 3 months they don't really need moving but the female just isn't looking good. The pang tanks fairly new but the filters been going a few weeks and he's pretty hardy but it's full of snails!!, i've got a couple of pregnant fish and a poorly one so i've trying to get two small tanks set up to move them to be more comfortable and after a big issue with some nasty fish my normal hospital tank has been taken up by unwanted fish, the only tank i have thats due a big enough water change has just suffered white spot and although it's cleared up im not much for taking the risk.

So surely at least 1 tank is fully cycled? If so then remove a bit of media from the filter (30-50%) and put this in the new tank you're moving the female too. This will speed up the cycle considerably... meaning it will hopefully take days and not weeks.

Don't forget to replace the media you take out of the cycled tank with fresh stuff.

All these 'magic' liquids and balls and such are no substitute for a little bit of mature media. By the sounds of it these balls are balls of zeolite. They don't help your tank get cycled, they just absorb ammonia like a sponge until one day it stops working (without you noticing more than likely) and the first thing you notice is the fish have all started gasping at the waters surface...

 

[helen1207]

Hi, yer i know the tank isnt `cycled` yet, what i mean is at the moment everything is on 0ppm, as things go up i will do water changes to bring them back down again. I was just saying that this time im not having the problems i had last time which may or may not be anything to do with the aquarium balls...BUT i dont see them as a `quick fix`! As long as the fish are healthy and im checking the stats everyday i think this is the right thing.
Just thought i would say what i was doing as different ways work for different people (and fish). Not offering advice as im certainly a newbie but thought i would mention im trying them.

 

[arobinson1984]

I think what curiousity is saying is that these 'magical balls' which are just basically a con, are not doing anything apart from delaying the start of the cycle, the tank is clearly not cycled at the moment due to the lack of nitrates. I fail to see why you would just delay the inevitable, the tank is going to need cycling one way or another.


Andy

 

[helen1207]

point taken..my appologies.

 

[arobinson1984]

No need to apologise, no one is having a go at you

Just trying to give you some advice, as you said yourself you are fairly new to the hobby.


Andy

 

[helen1207]

no problem all advice is greatly received! (i was replying to drobbyb about the stats but it posted after curiositys post)

 

[TiffanyJayne]

the only tank that's due a water change (as all others were done 2 days ago and i really don't like stressing them any more than needed) has white spot, most of my tanks are 2 foot but the tank i'm filling is a 5 foot by 2 foot by 3 foot, thus meaning i need a whooooole lot of water, It all seems a little much add 3 balls on day one and some accelarater than acc and 1 ball every day for a week, then once a month there on....that's a lot of money on some clear balls that don't seem to do a great deal...my main worry is the guy in the shop said i could add fish straight after the balls.

I'm using an external filter and with the suck on it i don't think the balls would last too long before there sucked up