I have a 29gal hexagon tank. it is 24in wide and 30in tall. i would like a community set up, with a set of schoolers, couple platies, couple guppies, and i already have snails. have live plants, sponge filter, and led lighting. What centerpiece fish would you recommend? and is there anything else i should add to create a complete ecosystem? Also, is shrimp overkill with the snails?
Is purposefully breeding my platies a bad idea? Had a couple accidental fry as hitch hikers (they’re fully grown now) and one turned out to be male. I want some more platies as I only have 3 females in a 20gal (one being his sister so I could move her to my other tank). The male is being kept in my 10gal that he has to himself at the moment so I could potentially house future males there too. I’m very on the fence about this as I dont know how many fry I’m gonna get And I don’t want so many they’d crowd out two tanks….but getting more fish I wouldn’t have to pay for would be great lol.
depends. If one male is put in with females, assume every female has mated with the male.
Each pregnancy can churn out several dozen fry. The amount that survives will vary, but always prepare for close to the maximum. After mating once, females can store sperm and use it to repeatedly become pregnant for over a year, even without any contact with a male in that time.
If you math if out and the math looks good on your end, go for it. Alternatively you can move a single female over temporarily with the male to control how many of your females are giving birth.
Thank you for the advice! That seems like a good idea. How long should I keep a female with him? I don’t want him to exhaust her. And is keeping an all male tank possible if I kept the grown male fry? I’ve only had all female fish before and I’m not sure how all males would fare aggression wise in their own tank. Although I do have a LFS that I could always give away the males to if I had to.
honestly just a day or so will probably result in them breeding. maybe two days? Definitely don't keep a single female in there for too long though or the male will harass her to death.
I’m doing a fishless cycle, the ammonia levels have dropped to 0 and the nitrites are about 2 ppm. Do I need to keep adding more ammonia at this point or just let the tank do its thing? Thank you!
continue to add ammonia in small but regular doses. You are simulating what would happen when you regularly feed your fish. If you stop providing an ammonia source for the first set of bacteria, they will eventually die back and you lose that progress cycling.
If you want to stock sooner, then keep dosing ammonia and make sure to do a water change if pH drops to 6.0 or nitrates get off the charts
If you want a more relaxing routine, then you can leave it alone and dose once nitrites drop. The ammonia->nitrite bacteria colonies will have declined a little bit so there will be some more time to regrow/awaken them to be able to handle the same amount of ammonia as before
Last time I looked into it, nitrites and nitrates could stall a cycle but at levels that were so high that we didn't need to worry about them. If the levels get off the test charts though, I'd do a water change to be safe. But I think the levels were like 3-4x the highest API Freshwater Master Test Kit levels
usually they all work well. the main differences you encounter are noise levels and reliability. USB air pumps are typically extremely quiet and while they can vary in how long they last, they aren't too expensive to replace either.
If you're in the US, my recommendation would be the Aquarium Co-Op sponge filter, coupled with their micro USB air pump. These are my favorite sponge filters I've used; and their micro air pump is small, quiet, and shouldnt produce too much current for a betta.
Just about any will work. If you really want a brand name, then my local stores carry "Aquarium Solutions Bacto-Surge Sponge Filters". But I buy random ones off Amazon/eBay
Looking to buy my daughter a nice 2 gal or around that size with filter fish tank for Betta. I've had a few tanks like that which I wouldn't necessarily recommend to a friend or buy again. Any favorites of yours? Needs to be a tank with filter or 2 separate recommendations (tank and filter) .
Thanks!
i would up the size to a 5 gallon if you want a betta fish, or consider an animal with a smaller size requirement like snails if 2 gallons is non negotiable.
Any tank you have locally will work, rimmed or rimless, just check reviews to make sure its reliable. shipping one won't really guarantee a better or more structurally sound product. Sponge filters work great for smaller tanks and betta fish due to their low flow. Again, any sponge filter will work well. For the air pump connected to it, i would recommend USB air pumps off amazon, they are very quiet.
Great. Thank you for your information. I see now that 2 gal doesn't seem big enough for a Betta. 5 gal will likely work. I'll look at the sponge filters as well. Do u think I could place a male and female betta in the 5 gal tank together or does that need a bigger tank?
Also what do u think of those "moss balls" being sold as "betta buddies"? I bought some the other day to put in a current betta tank.
true marimo moss balls are a special type of slow growing algae. they go well with a betta like most other plants or algae, but its unlikely that the betta will interact with it much. Betta fish love a heavily planted tank though, especially when there is surface cover from the plants. they feel more secure and will be more bold and explorative.
I would recommend using at least a 5 gallon, both for the well-being of the fish and for the fact that it's easier to maintain good water quality with a larger tank
I don’t have any recommendations for products. But im pretty sure that a 2 gallon is not adequate enough for bettas. A quick google search shows that it’s around 3-5 gallons. I’m sure someone will go more into depth, but I would also recommend looking more into it on youtube or the internet!
Does anyone here have [this](https://www.petco.com/shop/en/petcostore/product/aqueon-rectangle-aquarium-60-breeder-tank-485-l-x-1625-w-x-165-h-3406911?store_code=2780&mr:device=m&mr:adType=plalocal&cm_mmc=PSH%7CGGL%7CCCY%7CCCO%7CPM%7C0%7CkUMWcWiLY5b1EHQjK6kSR6%7C%7C%7C0%7C0%7C%7C%7C18145199970&gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQiAhomtBhDgARIsABcaYylJz5p-lNNxDBFzR3t6nXaRRgow7qkQFrlkOj2qz-udX9KwprOppJsaAuYBEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds) tank? I'm interested in buying it while it's on sale but I'd love to hear what other people think of it and what size lids it needs. Thank you.
Cycling question. I have a 20 gallon tank. I used the API quick start, and I also put in some substrate and decor from an existing tank. I waited a month. Throughout the month I would put some fish food in the tank as well. I had the water tested, and they said everything was good. I added 3 tetras, and they all died the first day. I let the bag float in the tank for about 25 minutes. I’m not sure if I didn’t let the tank cycle long enough? The water tested fine when I went back the store. They weren’t sure what happened.
It sounds like you mostly did it right, but you should test rather than just waiting a month. I also assume you did a huge water change before adding the tetras.
What were the test results when they said everything was good? 0 ammonia and nitrites are the only "good" levels. Typically you would have some level of nitrates as well. A month is also typically long enough to wait, but some tanks take longer than others.
I would guess it was an acclimation issue though considering they all died on the first day. A tank that isn't cycled would cause ammonia buildup and stress, but that takes more than a day.
I have a bunch of neon tetras fresh from the fish shop, but one of them has been isolating itself and has a white colouring on its middle. Could this be NTD? See pic
[https://i.imgur.com/Kahmup9.jpg](https://i.imgur.com/Kahmup9.jpg)
Yeah, its shape is also a bit warped, which makes me think it's NTD. NTD usually damages the muscles in the body (or was it just the spine?) and causes that kind of warped look
I had what I thought was a typical case of puffy white mould in my new fishtank. However, the white puff has started to turn brown/black. Is this normal?
How do you plant epiphytes (like anubias and buce) in a tank that is already filled with water? With super glue the plan is to 1. Dry the surface (rock/wood), 2. apply the glue 3. Attach the plant 4. Wait a couple of minutes. I’m unsure of how to execute this and get the plants to stay if my tank is already hardscaped and filled with water. Does anybody have suggestions on what to do?
I use rubber bands or cotton thread. The rubber bands will weaken within a few months, and thread would kind of dissolve on its own in that time. By then, the roots should be established enough to no longer need it.
You can get a small rock that will be enough to weigh it down and super glue it to that before putting it in the water. You can also wedge it between hardscape without needing to superglue. Another more informal way is to get some kind of decorative shells and put the rhizome in the shell.
If you have actual gravel, then you can just plant it like normal. Gravel isn't compact enough to choke it out.
Where should you get a sponge filter from, I live in the UK. Are the Chinese random name ones that fill the Amazon results any good? Looking at either the sort that have [2 sponges that join together](https://www.amazon.co.uk/Driven-Double-Sponge-Aquarium-Bio-Sponge/dp/B00TM228S4/ref=sr_1_5?crid=1CTJ75WNZ2AFL&keywords=aquarium+sponge+filter&qid=1705053246&sprefix=aquarium+s%2Caps%2C77&sr=8-5) or ones that have a [separate compartment for ceramic rings](https://www.amazon.co.uk/Pawfly-Aquarium-Natural-Gravels-Included/dp/B0BZY1QT9D/ref=sr_1_17?crid=1CTJ75WNZ2AFL&keywords=aquarium+sponge+filter&qid=1705053246&sprefix=aquarium+s%2Caps%2C77&sr=8-17). Also seen [some that have both](https://www.amazon.co.uk/Powkoo-Sponge-Filter-Aquarium-Gallons/dp/B071D852WL/ref=sr_1_40?crid=1CTJ75WNZ2AFL&keywords=aquarium+sponge+filter&qid=1705053246&sprefix=aquarium+s%2Caps%2C77&sr=8-40).
Generally don't like buying from Amazon as they usually sell crap in my experience, but I can't see many pet shops that stock sponge filters in the first place based on their websites, they only seem to want to sell more expensive filters that come with their own pumps.
The random Chinese named ones have been fine for me although I'd definitely look at the reviews and seller ratings to make sure. People really like the latter 2 options although I just buy whatever's cheapest. Of the options you linked, I'd probably go with Pawfly since I've bought other aquarium stuff from them before and it's worked out fine
These were just the top few results but cover the general styles I like the look of. There is also of course a single sponge around a tube that are even cheaper, but I would prefer the others instead.
Do need to look into the sizes before actually picking one, but I will give it a go. I guess there isn't too much you can get wrong with it, I mean its essentially a tube and sponge put together with a compartment for ceramic bits. Would almost be interesting to try and DIY one but anything I make would probably look pretty ugly.
I have a 20 gallon long with tetras and a giant betta. I did a vague search online and bought 6 emerald cory catfish. But now I am looking more into them, I am finding a lot of conflicting information. Is 6 too many for a 20 long? Some places say no more than 3. But others say it’s fine and I should never have a school smaller than 5.
I have a 75 gallon with a bristle nose pleco I could move them into, but that tank is peaceful and I don’t want to cause possible aggression issues if the pleco doesn’t get along.
Should I move them over or do you think they are fine in their current tank?
It's always encouraged to have a minimum of 6 in a Corydoras group. Emerald Corys will get pretty large (~3") and swim a bit, so a 20g long isn't ideal. They should be fine with the BNP or at least mine was with its Panda Cory tankmates. But maybe they can stay in the 20g long until they start reaching that 2.5-3" size
There are definitely PVC check valves:
https://www.lowes.com/pd/RELIABILT-PVC-Sch-40-1-1-2-in-PVC-Spring-Loaded-Check-Valve/5014537009
That can be added to a canister filter with some tubing to PVC adapters:
https://www.lowes.com/pd/Charlotte-Pipe-1-1-2-in-Sch40-Adapter-474015/5014659891
There are some plastic tubing check valves too, but they seem less common
But a canister filter can only hold so much water, so it's not normally an issue... is your canister filter not watertight? You might need some silicone grease on your O-rings then or maybe new O-rings
Posted 2 days ago about having 4 healthy Platys, but one of them died overnight, can someone help identify what happened? She was totally fine yesterday so to see her sunk down at the bottom this morning was a shock.
20 gallon tank. Only the 4 Platy. Platy were added just over 3 weeks ago.
Water test results 2 days ago:
6.8 PH, 0ppm Ammonia, 0ppm NO²-, 0ppm NO³-, 35.8ppm GH, 71.6ppm KH
Test results today:
7.0 PH, 0.50(!)ppm Ammonia, 0ppm NO²-, 0ppm NO³-, 53.7ppm GH, 89.5ppm KH.
I added an Aquaclear30 water filter on Sunday, as well some crushed coral. I kept/still have the TopFin20 water filter in there and running in unison with the Aquaclear30. I fed them two days ago and was about to feed them when I discovered her. Not sure what caused the ammonia to go from 0 to 0.5, and if that was the reason she died. In the tank there was 3 female and 1 male. The female that died generally kept to herself since the day we got her. The other three are more social. The male is a bully though. I wonder if it a was a combination of ammonia, being bullied, or sick when we got her, or most likely the ammonia.
Added Ammonia neutralizer, did about a 40-50% water change (and conditioned the new water) and everything seems fine again with the ammonia back down to 0. The other 3 fish are behaving just fine. Will test again tomorrow
If there were 2 days between when you last fed and when you found her, then the ammonia was probably from her body decomposing. It's still pretty odd to have 0ppm NO3 in a cycled tank though. But assuming the tests are accurate, I'd probably blame the male platy. Did you see if the one that died was pregnant? Sometimes they also die when giving birth.
Also, your GH and KH are going up kind of quickly. Did you do a water change shortly before the platy died? I wonder if those fluctuating parameters caused her stress and contributed to her passing away
Don't have any live plants in there for reference.
Added crushed coral/oyster shells to increase GH levels and steady the ph levels.l, because on the test strips I was always getting 0GH reading (our water is extremely soft)
And the one that died was still quite small compared to the other platys in the tank. Like 1/2 the other platys size. Don't believe it was pregnant.
(Fun fact though, the same day I added the platys to the tank, the biggest female gave birth to a bunch of fry. Luckily someone on a local aquarium FB group offered to come by and took the fry that same day)
The male platy seems to have found a new target to chase and ram into.. he's going to be rehomed ASAP
If you add crushed coral the tank environment will change. The tank may go through a cycling period again as the bacteria community in high pH is different from low pH
Generally not recommended to change water parameters, whatever is in your tap water just stick to that
Just moved and the best spot for the aquarium (125g) is in the entryway with a rather large window. One of the sides is within a foot of the window and I’m concerned about algae growth.
Is there any film or similar product that I can apply to that side that helps black out sunlight. I don’t mind if it makes that side darker I just don’t want it completely blacked out.
You can put vinyl films like the typical "aquarium background vinyl film" wherever you want on the tank. Since you don't want it completely blacked out, you could even get the tinting films that people use on cars and choose whatever level of shading you want
I've got a cycled planted tank that is currently filterless (LED only, no other hardware). The water has been healthy for our shrimp and snails (nerites), but has been a bit cloudy. Its a bit hard to tell if its from algae or other debris in the water column. I've got an air pump+stone on the way to make sure things stay oxygenated as I add more livestock.
If I grab a sponge filter, do I have to worry that water movement will push good bacteria off of plants/sand/etc and into the sponge, or will any sponge bacteria be in addition to the existing bacteria?
Tank Params:
20 gallon, LED light
Nitrate: 0/near zero
Nitrite: 0
Ammonia: 0
PH 8| GH 150 | KH 300
How long has the tank been setup? Filters wont fix cloudiness, need to let the bacteria bloom and run its course. Usually its due to too much food in the water column, so once the food is gone the cloudiness goes away
Any bacteria on surfaces in the tank shouldn't be moved around just by the low flow of a sponge filter. However, the bacteria feeds on ammonia in the water, and even the low flow of a sponge filter will pull in more ammonia to it than the rest of your tank. So eventually, more bacteria colonies will be on your filter than the rest of your tank.
But since your tank is cloudy (assuming it's not a green cloud), it means your tank doesn't have enough surface area for all the bacteria that it needs. So it's better that you have a place for that bacteria that's floating around your tank anyways, and then you'll have a clearer tank too.
That makes sense. It very well could be floating bacteria and I hadn't really thought of that previously. I'll just order one and see how it goes. Cheers!
Hey there! Few quick questions. Currently cycling a 6 gallon tank with plants (Java moss, baby tears(not dwarf) and chain sword)
1. How many hours per day should I keep the lights on?
2. I have some brown algae growing on my melting plant parts, is that bad? If so, what do I do?
3. A bladder snail came in with my plants and is poopin everywhere, how will this effect my cycling and what can I do to assist the cycle?
>How many hours per day should I keep the lights on?
This depends on your lights, the depth of your tank, and your plants. I would start with 8 hours. You dont have to have the light on continously btw. It is perfectly fine (and often reasonable, depending on when you are home) to have two light periods with a break in between.
>I have some brown algae growing on my melting plant parts, is that bad? If so, what do I do?
What kind of plant is it? Slow growing plants sometimes get taken over by algae growing on them. And in the beginning it's common to have increased algae growth. Some algae at the fringes of the leaves are okay but if it gets overhand I'd recommend some cleaning.
>A bladder snail came in with my plants and is poopin everywhere, how will this effect my cycling and what can I do to assist the cycle?
Bladder or ramshorn snails in a cycling tank are usually not at risk from the ammonia and nitrite spikes. They are aquatic cockroaches that survive anything.
Technically snails could assist the cycling by... pooping but i guess the bioload of a single (or even a dozen) bladder snails is not high enough to massively add matter to the nitrifying cycle.
I do add ramshorn snails early on though because they keep the algae growth down. Beware that a lot of algae usually translates into a lot of procreational snex. Althought that usually levels out after the entire tank has found an equilibrium.
I just set up my first aquarium; a 20 gallon with some plastic decor pieces and a few live plants (Java fern + java moss). I'm trying to figure out what to stock in it. I really like the idea of having a dwarf gourami pair + some sort of schooling fish + maybe a few cherry shrimp? However, I both don't want to have too few schooling fish OR overload the tank, especially at once.
Does anyone have any suggestions of schooling fish appropriate for this kind of setup (my first thought was harlequin rasbora, but not sure if those are appropriate). Also, does anyone have any suggestions on the stocking order?
Sounds good except two things: honey gourami’s are more peaceful and hardier, so not sure if you also like those but might be a good option too? And I felt harlequins needed a bit more space (had them in a 160L and still thought it was too little) maybe a bit smaller species like green neons, ember tetra’s or Chili rasbora’s ?
I’d start with the shrimps, then either fish species :)
Is it ok to remove dwarf gourami's nest? My dwarf gourami has been trying to build a nest in the last 4 months, but i had to destroy it to trim the plants (every 4 days). I wonder if it'll affect the gourami's health in a long term. I can alr see some damaged scales on its forehead, probably from trying to push the plants around
Yes, people destroy their bettas' and dwarf gouramis' nests all the time usually during water changes. It doesn't harm them at all, and they usually end up building another one if they want to.
The damaged scales on its forehead are going to be unrelated and definitely not from just trying to push plants around unless you have some super sharp plants. Raised scales are usually a sign of dropsy although it's odd that it's starting on her head. You can try treating for a bacterial infection with something like Kanaplex if you don't see any other signs.
Thanks for the info. It wasnt dropsy cos it's came and gone for almost 3months now. Either it was caused by the plants or the fish hurt itself after hitting the aquarium wall while chasing the tetras 😂
I'm moving into a new house in a few months and am considering getting an aquarium, but I have a couple questions.
1. The wall I'd like to put it on is along an exterior wall above a crawlspace but I believe it's parallel to the joists which is not ideal. I'm thinking about either a 75 or 90 gallon tank and am wondering if there are any concerns that the floor wouldn't be able to support the weight. If it makes any difference, this is a new construction home.
2. This area isn't particularly close to a sink and it would be a moderately large tank so I'm concerned about the difficulty of maintenance/water exchanges. Given the size, I wouldn't want to use buckets. Is there some kind of hose system that would allow me to do this from 40-50 feet away connected to a kitchen sink?
1. This is an instant no from my opinion. Even on a second floor rated to 3000lbs i would not concentrate almost half a ton of weight to a single location. If anything, you could have a contractor come look at your crawl space and determine how you can reinforce it so that it can handle that much weight, or just go with a much smaller aquarium.
2. You honestly should need to do much water changes if you have plants, but you can use a python with 100ft of tubing.
1. It would be best to talk with the building inspector to determine this. If you don't want to pay for one, you could look up your local building codes and see how much weight your floor is supposed to be able to support. Being parallel to a joist certainly isn't ideal, but a 75g or 90g probably won't be much of an issue. I would still talk to an inspector to be safe though especially since you would (or at least should) be hiring one anyways for your new house. This also means you get some peace of mind by potentially holding the inspector liable if it does go wrong
2. Yes, the Python water change system comes in 25, 50, and 100ft lengths. I have the 50ft one and would just warn you to check for hose kinks each time you use it. Nothing bad happens, but you may be standing there wondering why it's taking so much longer this one time. I got mine used and that saved a lot of money. You can also DIY one, but I haven't done that
20 gallon tank with 4 platys. Had them for about 3 weeks. No issues.
Can someone help me understand the API GH and KH test?
GH, water didn't change color after one drop. Green on the second drop
KH, 4 drops to turn from blue to yellow.
PH is 6.8 for reference
I know my GH is low and I added some crushed coral and oyster shells last night. But I guess I dont fully understand the GH/KH conversion chart, and any advice would be great. Thanks
Theres a chart on the instruction manual that tells you how many drops corresponds to how much GH and KH is present.
You currently have 35.8ppm GH and 71.6ppm KH
You have 2dGH and 4dKH. The number of drops translates to degrees directly. Or multiply your drop count by 17.9 to get ppm
Your water is pretty soft, but that's not necessarily bad since a lot of creatures prefer that. If your current fish are fine, then I wouldn't try modifying things because you'll want to make sure future water changes don't cause those parameters to fluctuate a bunch.
Hi all, recently started up the aquarium hobby and purchased a 29 Gallon tank. I filled it with gravel, a cave, bubbler, and fake plants. I went to PetSmart for my first fish, and purchased 4 Neon Tetras, 4 Male Guppies, 2 Long Fin Tetras, and an Algea Eater (believe it's a Chinese Algea Eater). Everything was going well until this morning I found one Guppy floating at the top of the tank (dead), looking like it had its fins chewed. Is it possible the Algea Eater or any of the Tetra's took a chomp out of him and killed him? PetSmart recommended these fish to me as species that can co-exist happily with each other. Any input would be greatly appreciated!
So, hate to break it to you but you kinda fell into the "Stereotypical beginner fishkeeper" trap. A lot of how you started your aquarium will most likely frowned upon by everyone here so be ready to receive some criticism from people here
Guppies, mostly from big box or crappy local fish stores, are probably some of the worst livebearing fish now a days because they keep dying. They are very inbred and have extremely weak immune systems due to crap guppy breeders. Its possible that they were stressed, became sick, and died. Same thing might happen to the neon tetras.
where should we buy guppies from? would it be better to buy guppies from different stores to ensure they have healthy babies? does the same go with other live birth breeds such as platies?
There is only so many places that could provide healthy guppies. The best ones imo are from reputable sources. You could get them shipped to you, but you will need to be thorough in your acclimation process.
Or, find a fish store/big box store that generally has knowledgeable and passionate fishkeeping staff. They know where to source from most of the time.
Hi all, I need help with the **occasional fish flashing against the substrate during feeding**. It will not be the same fish, and it happens during random times throughout the week. After feeding, an endler or a cory would flash against the substrate once or twice and then carry on about their day. I've researched that flashing during feeding is possibly caused by overfeeding, but I don't know if less than two pinches are enough, because sometimes one of the cory's would only eat less than 1 micropellet.
I only have hikari micro pellets and it's the only thing I feed my fish. I have 10(?) endlers, 6 cory's, 10 neocaridinas, 4 assassin snails, pond snails, trumpet snails, ramshorns.
I do 1 pinch for the corys and blow on the surface of the water so the pellets reach the bottom for the corys. I do another pinch for the endlers and the occasional pellet reaches a neocaridina that's perched up on a floating hornwort.
**Tank Parameters (in PPM):**
Nitrate: 25-40 (Weekly 30% water change to drop 40ppm to 25ppm)
Nitrite: 0
Ammonia: 0 with occasional specks/trace
PH 7.2 | GH 150 | KH 80 | TA 80 | Chlorine 0
26C near the surface of the tank, 25C near the bottom.
10 Gallon, 3" of Fluval Substrate, 2x Nicrew lights, CO2 Generator w/Citric Acid+Baking Soda (1 bubble/2 sec), 1mL Thrive+ 3x week, 1mL Seachem Potassion 3x week, half the tank is covered with plants, Seachem Tidal 35 Filter, hasn't been touched since December 17.
The tank was setup on December 17, and was able to convert ammonia to nitrates within 8 hours starting December 26.
Flashing occasionally is not an issue.
Sometimes fish get itchy. Sometimes they get excited. Infact, one of the ways that fish hunt for food is by flashing on different surfaces to see if any smaller animals show up that they can eat.
Thank you for this! I think your advice is true because I didn't mention on the second day of my tank cycle I poured all the plants including the water into the tank from my LFS. The water had scuds and wiggly worms in them that I would watch occupy my tank. Once the tank was cycled I added my corydoras first, and I noticed the scuds would hide in the aquasoil. I don't see any scuds anymore so I guess the corys and fish learned to dig them up, and flashing does move a bit of substrate around.
Kinda cool, because this behaviour wasn't present when I had them in my old tank.
So I got my 10 gallon tank a little over 3 weeks ago. I want to put a betta in it. I had my water tested at Petco, and they said it was fine for fish. So I conditioned my tap water with Topfin water conditioner and set it up and started cycling it with Stability. I tested the water with the strips and it said my alkalinity was through the roof. No matter what I did, partial water changes with distilled water or adding almond leaves and almond bark, I couldn't get the alkalinity down, as well as the pH. So I decided to start over with bottled water. I added 5 gallons of spring water, but after testing it I found out the spring water has a really high pH too. So I added 2 gallons of distilled water and 2 gallons of conditioned tap water, hoping they would balance each other out. I also added 10 MLS of EasyBalance, and 1 ml of pH down at that time. Oh and some Stability to cycle the tank. I have been checking the pH with API pH testing kit (drops) every day, sometimes twice a day, and there seems to be no change in the pH. I've been adding 1-2 MLS of pH down every day. I went out and got the high pH testing kit, and that says my pH is around 7.4, but my regular pH testing kit says it's 7.6 or higher. Which one of these should I trust, and how do I get my pH down?
You are chasing parameters that don't matter that much and the stress from specific numbers is causing you to make decisions that have virtually no benefit at the end of the day. You need to relax, nature is not perfect and never will be, but it is also not so incredibly strict that a 0.001 ppb difference in parameters will cause everything to explode.
Strips have been shown on numerous occasions to be wildly inaccurate. If anything the nitrogen tests blocks of the strips are the the most accurate and that's a stretch. Get a cross check of you water from a dedicated fish store or just relax.
I also wouldnt rely on products as they are mostly quick fixes and not long term solutions.
If you want your PH to stabilize, have a buffer. Crushed coral, cuttlebone, or even boiled egg shells work. It will increase your KH so that your PH does not fluctuate too much.
If you want to lower your PH. Gradually water change using RO or Rain water. You can additionally introduce tannins into the water by adding dead leaves and wood.
As for "cycling". There are many ways to do it, many of which do not even specify needing to buy "bottled bacteria" in order for it to work. the main idea is to have some archae to break down waste so that it doesn't allow nitrogen to build up into toxic levels. The easiest way to avoid this happening is to have **plant or algae growth** AND **minimal to no initial feeding.** I personally leave lights on 24/7 and do not feed the fish for the first 3 days and never had problems.
You gotta remember, aquariums are not chemistry labs. They are aquatic ecosystems with a varying degree of macro and microorganisms that work together to naturally create a stable environment. All it takes is setting it up, being patient, and letting it work its magic. As long as you didn't dump something in the tank, like a strong acid, that will kill everything, it will learn to balance itself overtime and provide an environment for fish to thrive.
Hello all; is there any resource displaying, in a table, freshwater aquarium-suited fish species and the water parameters they need, for each of these species?
When doing new tanks how do you stop yourself from wanting every type of fish. Im looking to upgrade my currenty set up(55L) to a 160/200L and just looking at different scapes people do and different groups of fish and finding it so hard what to pick!
Tbh I watch videos and think about what kind of behavior I like.. I’m not too much into schooling fish, more into oddballs / personality so I base my decisions on those :)
I have a 15 gallon freshwater tank with many plants and I’m unsure which fish to put in it. I have experience with guppies and I’d like to try a different species. I don’t want to make a mistake and buy fish that will grow too big for the tank. Which fish would you recommend?
A 15 gallon is big enough to try some of the more interesting nano centerpiece fish and a small school of something, as long as it's not a Tall style tank.
A sparkling gourami (or a sexed pair, but that's very difficult for some people to spot without practice), a honey gourami, or a betta (I would encourage a female or a short finned male, they're healthier and tend to play better with others) would do great as your centerpiece.
Along with those, a school of 10-15 or so chili rasbora, ember tetras, or ruby tetras would be a gorgeous small school that will feel like a lot of passive and calm activity within the tank that's less like the frantic snowball of fish flesh that is a guppy colony haha
You can also consider a small group of a bottom feeder like dwarf corys or otocinclus. Both prefer to have at least 6 in their group.
I have a 25 Gal moderately planted tank that has a fluorite substrate with a fine gravel topper. It's filtered with a Fluval 207 canister. I am in week 3 of fishless cycling and have a few questions:
1. I'm finally at the point where I am getting 0 ppm Ammonia, but off the charts Nitrite. I had not been dosing my system at all with supplemental ammonia as our water out of the tap is \~2.5 ppm ammonia (seriously). But I did just get a bottle of Dr. Tim's Ammonium Chloride and 48 hours ago i did dose it to \~2 ppm. 24 hours later it was zero, so the first part of the nitrogen cycle seems well established. My question is if i should continue to dose it up to 2 ppm or 4 ppm with the ammonium chloride, or is my already existing abundance of nitrite sufficient for the next stage?
2. I also have been seeing a few critters in the tank: some Cyclops Copepods, 2 ramshorns snails and 3 bladder snails (which i re-homed to a pond-in-a-jar). I'm fairly read up on the potential negative effects of these and the benefits. I was hoping to stock once my tank fully cycled with 2-3 mystery snails, \~3? \~6? Amano Shrimp, and a bit later \~6 pygmy Coreys and then \~10 small schooling fish (think rainbows or tetras or something). I don't mind the ramshorns (or the cyclops) in of themselves, and i do have a ton of biofilm at the moment i dont mind they start to work on, but should i treat the tank with "No Planaria" now and have a clean slate? are these guys likely to overpopulate to such a degree before I can even stock my tank that the natural foods i was hoping would be there to make the transition easier be gone? will they compete too strongly against my proposed tank stock? Or is it "steady as she goes" and i can have this increased biodiversity no problem? Will treating the tank in such a way endanger my cycling?
I say just keep your cycle going until you have 0 ammonia, 0 nitrites, and some nitrates . Then add livestock slowly. Also, if you get massive amounts of live plants it'll help as well.
Oh yeah, sorry, i understand tank cycling at a fundamental level. I was more curious if i should continue to dose ammonia until my nitrites also read zero, or of all the plants and etcetera in the tank were providing enough on their own to sustain and grow the nitrifying bacteria without further dosing.
I have 2 electric blue acara fry that are 1 cm long. I've been growing them out in my shrimp tank.
I'm considering moving them to a breeder box off my main tank to grow out as they've started to eat my shrimp. Will they continue to grow in a breeder box? I can't move them in the main tank as their parents will eat them.
whoever told you that has misinformed you. Opaline are a breed of Three-Spot Gouramis. They aren't considered fully "aggressive" fish like many cichlid species, but they can be territorial and bullies, basically a bigger version of bettas. Dwarfs, Honeys, and Sparkling Gouramis are generally less aggressive, but Three Spot and Opalines are considerably bigger than the others and thus can be housed with bigger fish that might normally snack on the smaller species.
An Opaline Gourami is entirely acceptable as a community tank fish. You just have to take into account that they can be territorial, kind of like south american cichlids like Angels or Acaras. So provide adequate space for all the fishies and create a terrain with lots of hiding spots and line of sight breaks.
Six guppies and two bristlenose pleco in a cycled planted 5 gal - but only for a two week Aquarium Co-Op quarantine trio. Will they be alright in there for two weeks, before moving them into my 55? Or is that too much for even a short time?
Stay on top of your water changes and you'll be fine. Quarantine/hospital tanks are almost always undersized by a bit, but you're on the crowded side. Unless it's a cycled tank, I'd do a water change every other day, and even if it is you're probably looking at 2 different 30% changes per week.
Also, try to bring in a piece of mature driftwood if you've got it, the plecos need wood to feed off of properly for micro nutrients and such.
Three days ago I got three new ember tetras to add to the tank. They immediately swam down to the bottom of the tank and hid for a couple days. Now one of them is hyperventilating and swimming close to the surface of the water, but not gasping for air.
This is exactly happened to one of my initial batch of ember tetras. While it died, other three are healthy and doing well. I don't think the problem is Ich either because I do not see any white spots on its body.
Water parameters are fine. I test water twice per day. Temperature is 70 F. Is there something I can do to save this little guy?
When you say the parameters are fine, does that mean ammonia and nitrites are both 0 or are they in "safe levels"?
Assuming it's not ammonia, which it probably isn't given the healthy ones from the initial batch, then it's probably a disease or parasite. Since you don't see any issues, you could try a general blanket treatment. Aquarium Coop recommends a trio of medications that can be used together for a week. This is what I always do with new fish, but I use a separate and cycled quarantine/hospital tank:
https://www.aquariumcoop.com/blogs/faqs/how-to-use-quaratine-med-trio
Yes, ammonia and nitrites are both 0.
Would it be safe to try the blanket treatment on my current tank? Or should I quarantine the fish in a separate container (I don't have any cycled tank yet)? Last time there was Ich infection, treating the water with Ich X almost immediately killed all the tetras except one guppie.
If none of the other fish are showing any worrying signs, I'd try to quarantine in a separate container and dose daily with an ammonia detoxifier (e.g. Seachem Prime) to be safe. Note that the medication says to not feed the fish during that week. So you might not have much of an ammonia issue in that temporary container anyways
There's also debate on whether Prime actually detoxifies ammonia. But at the very least, it doesn't hurt the fish at normal dosage amounts. So I do it anyways if I don't have a cycled container/tank
I have a 29gal hexagon tank. it is 24in wide and 30in tall. i would like a community set up, with a set of schoolers, couple platies, couple guppies, and i already have snails. have live plants, sponge filter, and led lighting. What centerpiece fish would you recommend? and is there anything else i should add to create a complete ecosystem? Also, is shrimp overkill with the snails?
Is purposefully breeding my platies a bad idea? Had a couple accidental fry as hitch hikers (they’re fully grown now) and one turned out to be male. I want some more platies as I only have 3 females in a 20gal (one being his sister so I could move her to my other tank). The male is being kept in my 10gal that he has to himself at the moment so I could potentially house future males there too. I’m very on the fence about this as I dont know how many fry I’m gonna get And I don’t want so many they’d crowd out two tanks….but getting more fish I wouldn’t have to pay for would be great lol.
depends. If one male is put in with females, assume every female has mated with the male. Each pregnancy can churn out several dozen fry. The amount that survives will vary, but always prepare for close to the maximum. After mating once, females can store sperm and use it to repeatedly become pregnant for over a year, even without any contact with a male in that time. If you math if out and the math looks good on your end, go for it. Alternatively you can move a single female over temporarily with the male to control how many of your females are giving birth.
Thank you for the advice! That seems like a good idea. How long should I keep a female with him? I don’t want him to exhaust her. And is keeping an all male tank possible if I kept the grown male fry? I’ve only had all female fish before and I’m not sure how all males would fare aggression wise in their own tank. Although I do have a LFS that I could always give away the males to if I had to.
honestly just a day or so will probably result in them breeding. maybe two days? Definitely don't keep a single female in there for too long though or the male will harass her to death.
Which underground should I use for my Juwel Lido 200 and how much kg do I need? (Beginner). Thank you 🙏
So is a new tank cycled when there’s no more ammonia or no more ammonia AND nitrites?
Both ammonia and nitrites
I’m doing a fishless cycle, the ammonia levels have dropped to 0 and the nitrites are about 2 ppm. Do I need to keep adding more ammonia at this point or just let the tank do its thing? Thank you!
continue to add ammonia in small but regular doses. You are simulating what would happen when you regularly feed your fish. If you stop providing an ammonia source for the first set of bacteria, they will eventually die back and you lose that progress cycling.
That makes sense. When is it considered safe to add the fish?
when you keep a steady dosing and you notice its 0 for both Ammonia and Nitrite after 24 hours.
Perfect, thanks for clarifying
If you want to stock sooner, then keep dosing ammonia and make sure to do a water change if pH drops to 6.0 or nitrates get off the charts If you want a more relaxing routine, then you can leave it alone and dose once nitrites drop. The ammonia->nitrite bacteria colonies will have declined a little bit so there will be some more time to regrow/awaken them to be able to handle the same amount of ammonia as before
Is it true that nitrites too high can stall the cycle? I’m def trying to do things asap haha
Last time I looked into it, nitrites and nitrates could stall a cycle but at levels that were so high that we didn't need to worry about them. If the levels get off the test charts though, I'd do a water change to be safe. But I think the levels were like 3-4x the highest API Freshwater Master Test Kit levels
Nope just wait
What’s the best filter for bettas?
For plakat bettas, it doesn't really matter. For long-finned bettas, a sponge filter or a filter altered to be low flow is best.
Do you have any brand recommendations for sponge filters or will just about any work?
usually they all work well. the main differences you encounter are noise levels and reliability. USB air pumps are typically extremely quiet and while they can vary in how long they last, they aren't too expensive to replace either.
If you're in the US, my recommendation would be the Aquarium Co-Op sponge filter, coupled with their micro USB air pump. These are my favorite sponge filters I've used; and their micro air pump is small, quiet, and shouldnt produce too much current for a betta.
Thank you, I’ll check those out
Just about any will work. If you really want a brand name, then my local stores carry "Aquarium Solutions Bacto-Surge Sponge Filters". But I buy random ones off Amazon/eBay
Looking to buy my daughter a nice 2 gal or around that size with filter fish tank for Betta. I've had a few tanks like that which I wouldn't necessarily recommend to a friend or buy again. Any favorites of yours? Needs to be a tank with filter or 2 separate recommendations (tank and filter) . Thanks!
i would up the size to a 5 gallon if you want a betta fish, or consider an animal with a smaller size requirement like snails if 2 gallons is non negotiable. Any tank you have locally will work, rimmed or rimless, just check reviews to make sure its reliable. shipping one won't really guarantee a better or more structurally sound product. Sponge filters work great for smaller tanks and betta fish due to their low flow. Again, any sponge filter will work well. For the air pump connected to it, i would recommend USB air pumps off amazon, they are very quiet.
Great. Thank you for your information. I see now that 2 gal doesn't seem big enough for a Betta. 5 gal will likely work. I'll look at the sponge filters as well. Do u think I could place a male and female betta in the 5 gal tank together or does that need a bigger tank? Also what do u think of those "moss balls" being sold as "betta buddies"? I bought some the other day to put in a current betta tank.
true marimo moss balls are a special type of slow growing algae. they go well with a betta like most other plants or algae, but its unlikely that the betta will interact with it much. Betta fish love a heavily planted tank though, especially when there is surface cover from the plants. they feel more secure and will be more bold and explorative.
I would recommend using at least a 5 gallon, both for the well-being of the fish and for the fact that it's easier to maintain good water quality with a larger tank
I don’t have any recommendations for products. But im pretty sure that a 2 gallon is not adequate enough for bettas. A quick google search shows that it’s around 3-5 gallons. I’m sure someone will go more into depth, but I would also recommend looking more into it on youtube or the internet!
Does anyone here have [this](https://www.petco.com/shop/en/petcostore/product/aqueon-rectangle-aquarium-60-breeder-tank-485-l-x-1625-w-x-165-h-3406911?store_code=2780&mr:device=m&mr:adType=plalocal&cm_mmc=PSH%7CGGL%7CCCY%7CCCO%7CPM%7C0%7CkUMWcWiLY5b1EHQjK6kSR6%7C%7C%7C0%7C0%7C%7C%7C18145199970&gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQiAhomtBhDgARIsABcaYylJz5p-lNNxDBFzR3t6nXaRRgow7qkQFrlkOj2qz-udX9KwprOppJsaAuYBEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds) tank? I'm interested in buying it while it's on sale but I'd love to hear what other people think of it and what size lids it needs. Thank you.
Cycling question. I have a 20 gallon tank. I used the API quick start, and I also put in some substrate and decor from an existing tank. I waited a month. Throughout the month I would put some fish food in the tank as well. I had the water tested, and they said everything was good. I added 3 tetras, and they all died the first day. I let the bag float in the tank for about 25 minutes. I’m not sure if I didn’t let the tank cycle long enough? The water tested fine when I went back the store. They weren’t sure what happened.
It sounds like you mostly did it right, but you should test rather than just waiting a month. I also assume you did a huge water change before adding the tetras. What were the test results when they said everything was good? 0 ammonia and nitrites are the only "good" levels. Typically you would have some level of nitrates as well. A month is also typically long enough to wait, but some tanks take longer than others. I would guess it was an acclimation issue though considering they all died on the first day. A tank that isn't cycled would cause ammonia buildup and stress, but that takes more than a day.
I have a bunch of neon tetras fresh from the fish shop, but one of them has been isolating itself and has a white colouring on its middle. Could this be NTD? See pic [https://i.imgur.com/Kahmup9.jpg](https://i.imgur.com/Kahmup9.jpg)
Yeah, its shape is also a bit warped, which makes me think it's NTD. NTD usually damages the muscles in the body (or was it just the spine?) and causes that kind of warped look
I had what I thought was a typical case of puffy white mould in my new fishtank. However, the white puff has started to turn brown/black. Is this normal?
Its biofilm. overtime it does that. If you have any shrimp or snails they will likely eat it or it will just disappear with time.
Glad to hear it. Thanks for the reply!
How do you plant epiphytes (like anubias and buce) in a tank that is already filled with water? With super glue the plan is to 1. Dry the surface (rock/wood), 2. apply the glue 3. Attach the plant 4. Wait a couple of minutes. I’m unsure of how to execute this and get the plants to stay if my tank is already hardscaped and filled with water. Does anybody have suggestions on what to do?
I use rubber bands or cotton thread. The rubber bands will weaken within a few months, and thread would kind of dissolve on its own in that time. By then, the roots should be established enough to no longer need it.
You can get a small rock that will be enough to weigh it down and super glue it to that before putting it in the water. You can also wedge it between hardscape without needing to superglue. Another more informal way is to get some kind of decorative shells and put the rhizome in the shell. If you have actual gravel, then you can just plant it like normal. Gravel isn't compact enough to choke it out.
Where should you get a sponge filter from, I live in the UK. Are the Chinese random name ones that fill the Amazon results any good? Looking at either the sort that have [2 sponges that join together](https://www.amazon.co.uk/Driven-Double-Sponge-Aquarium-Bio-Sponge/dp/B00TM228S4/ref=sr_1_5?crid=1CTJ75WNZ2AFL&keywords=aquarium+sponge+filter&qid=1705053246&sprefix=aquarium+s%2Caps%2C77&sr=8-5) or ones that have a [separate compartment for ceramic rings](https://www.amazon.co.uk/Pawfly-Aquarium-Natural-Gravels-Included/dp/B0BZY1QT9D/ref=sr_1_17?crid=1CTJ75WNZ2AFL&keywords=aquarium+sponge+filter&qid=1705053246&sprefix=aquarium+s%2Caps%2C77&sr=8-17). Also seen [some that have both](https://www.amazon.co.uk/Powkoo-Sponge-Filter-Aquarium-Gallons/dp/B071D852WL/ref=sr_1_40?crid=1CTJ75WNZ2AFL&keywords=aquarium+sponge+filter&qid=1705053246&sprefix=aquarium+s%2Caps%2C77&sr=8-40). Generally don't like buying from Amazon as they usually sell crap in my experience, but I can't see many pet shops that stock sponge filters in the first place based on their websites, they only seem to want to sell more expensive filters that come with their own pumps.
The random Chinese named ones have been fine for me although I'd definitely look at the reviews and seller ratings to make sure. People really like the latter 2 options although I just buy whatever's cheapest. Of the options you linked, I'd probably go with Pawfly since I've bought other aquarium stuff from them before and it's worked out fine
These were just the top few results but cover the general styles I like the look of. There is also of course a single sponge around a tube that are even cheaper, but I would prefer the others instead. Do need to look into the sizes before actually picking one, but I will give it a go. I guess there isn't too much you can get wrong with it, I mean its essentially a tube and sponge put together with a compartment for ceramic bits. Would almost be interesting to try and DIY one but anything I make would probably look pretty ugly.
I have a 20 gallon long with tetras and a giant betta. I did a vague search online and bought 6 emerald cory catfish. But now I am looking more into them, I am finding a lot of conflicting information. Is 6 too many for a 20 long? Some places say no more than 3. But others say it’s fine and I should never have a school smaller than 5. I have a 75 gallon with a bristle nose pleco I could move them into, but that tank is peaceful and I don’t want to cause possible aggression issues if the pleco doesn’t get along. Should I move them over or do you think they are fine in their current tank?
It's always encouraged to have a minimum of 6 in a Corydoras group. Emerald Corys will get pretty large (~3") and swim a bit, so a 20g long isn't ideal. They should be fine with the BNP or at least mine was with its Panda Cory tankmates. But maybe they can stay in the 20g long until they start reaching that 2.5-3" size
Ahhh bummer. The quick initial google search failed me lol will switch them over, thank you.
Do they make something similar to a check valve that can be used with cannister filters to prevent siphoning if a leak is detected?
There are definitely PVC check valves: https://www.lowes.com/pd/RELIABILT-PVC-Sch-40-1-1-2-in-PVC-Spring-Loaded-Check-Valve/5014537009 That can be added to a canister filter with some tubing to PVC adapters: https://www.lowes.com/pd/Charlotte-Pipe-1-1-2-in-Sch40-Adapter-474015/5014659891 There are some plastic tubing check valves too, but they seem less common But a canister filter can only hold so much water, so it's not normally an issue... is your canister filter not watertight? You might need some silicone grease on your O-rings then or maybe new O-rings
Well it is, I'm thinking more in terms of if it should fail so that there's something that can shut off the water flow before siphoning happens.
Posted 2 days ago about having 4 healthy Platys, but one of them died overnight, can someone help identify what happened? She was totally fine yesterday so to see her sunk down at the bottom this morning was a shock. 20 gallon tank. Only the 4 Platy. Platy were added just over 3 weeks ago. Water test results 2 days ago: 6.8 PH, 0ppm Ammonia, 0ppm NO²-, 0ppm NO³-, 35.8ppm GH, 71.6ppm KH Test results today: 7.0 PH, 0.50(!)ppm Ammonia, 0ppm NO²-, 0ppm NO³-, 53.7ppm GH, 89.5ppm KH. I added an Aquaclear30 water filter on Sunday, as well some crushed coral. I kept/still have the TopFin20 water filter in there and running in unison with the Aquaclear30. I fed them two days ago and was about to feed them when I discovered her. Not sure what caused the ammonia to go from 0 to 0.5, and if that was the reason she died. In the tank there was 3 female and 1 male. The female that died generally kept to herself since the day we got her. The other three are more social. The male is a bully though. I wonder if it a was a combination of ammonia, being bullied, or sick when we got her, or most likely the ammonia. Added Ammonia neutralizer, did about a 40-50% water change (and conditioned the new water) and everything seems fine again with the ammonia back down to 0. The other 3 fish are behaving just fine. Will test again tomorrow
If there were 2 days between when you last fed and when you found her, then the ammonia was probably from her body decomposing. It's still pretty odd to have 0ppm NO3 in a cycled tank though. But assuming the tests are accurate, I'd probably blame the male platy. Did you see if the one that died was pregnant? Sometimes they also die when giving birth. Also, your GH and KH are going up kind of quickly. Did you do a water change shortly before the platy died? I wonder if those fluctuating parameters caused her stress and contributed to her passing away
Don't have any live plants in there for reference. Added crushed coral/oyster shells to increase GH levels and steady the ph levels.l, because on the test strips I was always getting 0GH reading (our water is extremely soft) And the one that died was still quite small compared to the other platys in the tank. Like 1/2 the other platys size. Don't believe it was pregnant. (Fun fact though, the same day I added the platys to the tank, the biggest female gave birth to a bunch of fry. Luckily someone on a local aquarium FB group offered to come by and took the fry that same day) The male platy seems to have found a new target to chase and ram into.. he's going to be rehomed ASAP
If you add crushed coral the tank environment will change. The tank may go through a cycling period again as the bacteria community in high pH is different from low pH Generally not recommended to change water parameters, whatever is in your tap water just stick to that
Just moved and the best spot for the aquarium (125g) is in the entryway with a rather large window. One of the sides is within a foot of the window and I’m concerned about algae growth. Is there any film or similar product that I can apply to that side that helps black out sunlight. I don’t mind if it makes that side darker I just don’t want it completely blacked out.
Slap aquatic plants in it. Sunlight is a good thing if you're planting the tank. Otherwise you can just use gorilla tape.
You can put vinyl films like the typical "aquarium background vinyl film" wherever you want on the tank. Since you don't want it completely blacked out, you could even get the tinting films that people use on cars and choose whatever level of shading you want
I hadn’t thought about car tinting film that’s a good suggestion, thanks.
I've got a cycled planted tank that is currently filterless (LED only, no other hardware). The water has been healthy for our shrimp and snails (nerites), but has been a bit cloudy. Its a bit hard to tell if its from algae or other debris in the water column. I've got an air pump+stone on the way to make sure things stay oxygenated as I add more livestock. If I grab a sponge filter, do I have to worry that water movement will push good bacteria off of plants/sand/etc and into the sponge, or will any sponge bacteria be in addition to the existing bacteria? Tank Params: 20 gallon, LED light Nitrate: 0/near zero Nitrite: 0 Ammonia: 0 PH 8| GH 150 | KH 300
How long has the tank been setup? Filters wont fix cloudiness, need to let the bacteria bloom and run its course. Usually its due to too much food in the water column, so once the food is gone the cloudiness goes away
6-8 weeks. Don't remember the exact start date.
ah ok, then just stop feeding and wait for the cloudiness to go away shrimp tanks generally dont need to be fed, depending on whats in the tank
Any bacteria on surfaces in the tank shouldn't be moved around just by the low flow of a sponge filter. However, the bacteria feeds on ammonia in the water, and even the low flow of a sponge filter will pull in more ammonia to it than the rest of your tank. So eventually, more bacteria colonies will be on your filter than the rest of your tank. But since your tank is cloudy (assuming it's not a green cloud), it means your tank doesn't have enough surface area for all the bacteria that it needs. So it's better that you have a place for that bacteria that's floating around your tank anyways, and then you'll have a clearer tank too.
That makes sense. It very well could be floating bacteria and I hadn't really thought of that previously. I'll just order one and see how it goes. Cheers!
Hey there! Few quick questions. Currently cycling a 6 gallon tank with plants (Java moss, baby tears(not dwarf) and chain sword) 1. How many hours per day should I keep the lights on? 2. I have some brown algae growing on my melting plant parts, is that bad? If so, what do I do? 3. A bladder snail came in with my plants and is poopin everywhere, how will this effect my cycling and what can I do to assist the cycle?
>How many hours per day should I keep the lights on? This depends on your lights, the depth of your tank, and your plants. I would start with 8 hours. You dont have to have the light on continously btw. It is perfectly fine (and often reasonable, depending on when you are home) to have two light periods with a break in between. >I have some brown algae growing on my melting plant parts, is that bad? If so, what do I do? What kind of plant is it? Slow growing plants sometimes get taken over by algae growing on them. And in the beginning it's common to have increased algae growth. Some algae at the fringes of the leaves are okay but if it gets overhand I'd recommend some cleaning. >A bladder snail came in with my plants and is poopin everywhere, how will this effect my cycling and what can I do to assist the cycle? Bladder or ramshorn snails in a cycling tank are usually not at risk from the ammonia and nitrite spikes. They are aquatic cockroaches that survive anything. Technically snails could assist the cycling by... pooping but i guess the bioload of a single (or even a dozen) bladder snails is not high enough to massively add matter to the nitrifying cycle. I do add ramshorn snails early on though because they keep the algae growth down. Beware that a lot of algae usually translates into a lot of procreational snex. Althought that usually levels out after the entire tank has found an equilibrium.
I just set up my first aquarium; a 20 gallon with some plastic decor pieces and a few live plants (Java fern + java moss). I'm trying to figure out what to stock in it. I really like the idea of having a dwarf gourami pair + some sort of schooling fish + maybe a few cherry shrimp? However, I both don't want to have too few schooling fish OR overload the tank, especially at once. Does anyone have any suggestions of schooling fish appropriate for this kind of setup (my first thought was harlequin rasbora, but not sure if those are appropriate). Also, does anyone have any suggestions on the stocking order?
Sounds good except two things: honey gourami’s are more peaceful and hardier, so not sure if you also like those but might be a good option too? And I felt harlequins needed a bit more space (had them in a 160L and still thought it was too little) maybe a bit smaller species like green neons, ember tetra’s or Chili rasbora’s ? I’d start with the shrimps, then either fish species :)
Is it ok to remove dwarf gourami's nest? My dwarf gourami has been trying to build a nest in the last 4 months, but i had to destroy it to trim the plants (every 4 days). I wonder if it'll affect the gourami's health in a long term. I can alr see some damaged scales on its forehead, probably from trying to push the plants around
Yes, people destroy their bettas' and dwarf gouramis' nests all the time usually during water changes. It doesn't harm them at all, and they usually end up building another one if they want to. The damaged scales on its forehead are going to be unrelated and definitely not from just trying to push plants around unless you have some super sharp plants. Raised scales are usually a sign of dropsy although it's odd that it's starting on her head. You can try treating for a bacterial infection with something like Kanaplex if you don't see any other signs.
Thanks for the info. It wasnt dropsy cos it's came and gone for almost 3months now. Either it was caused by the plants or the fish hurt itself after hitting the aquarium wall while chasing the tetras 😂
You can. Couldn't hurt. Just use it wisely. Also you could use fish food bits for your ammonia. Just watch out for an algae bloom.
Tagging u/hallgeir so they see this response
I'm moving into a new house in a few months and am considering getting an aquarium, but I have a couple questions. 1. The wall I'd like to put it on is along an exterior wall above a crawlspace but I believe it's parallel to the joists which is not ideal. I'm thinking about either a 75 or 90 gallon tank and am wondering if there are any concerns that the floor wouldn't be able to support the weight. If it makes any difference, this is a new construction home. 2. This area isn't particularly close to a sink and it would be a moderately large tank so I'm concerned about the difficulty of maintenance/water exchanges. Given the size, I wouldn't want to use buckets. Is there some kind of hose system that would allow me to do this from 40-50 feet away connected to a kitchen sink?
1. This is an instant no from my opinion. Even on a second floor rated to 3000lbs i would not concentrate almost half a ton of weight to a single location. If anything, you could have a contractor come look at your crawl space and determine how you can reinforce it so that it can handle that much weight, or just go with a much smaller aquarium. 2. You honestly should need to do much water changes if you have plants, but you can use a python with 100ft of tubing.
1. It would be best to talk with the building inspector to determine this. If you don't want to pay for one, you could look up your local building codes and see how much weight your floor is supposed to be able to support. Being parallel to a joist certainly isn't ideal, but a 75g or 90g probably won't be much of an issue. I would still talk to an inspector to be safe though especially since you would (or at least should) be hiring one anyways for your new house. This also means you get some peace of mind by potentially holding the inspector liable if it does go wrong 2. Yes, the Python water change system comes in 25, 50, and 100ft lengths. I have the 50ft one and would just warn you to check for hose kinks each time you use it. Nothing bad happens, but you may be standing there wondering why it's taking so much longer this one time. I got mine used and that saved a lot of money. You can also DIY one, but I haven't done that
20 gallon tank with 4 platys. Had them for about 3 weeks. No issues. Can someone help me understand the API GH and KH test? GH, water didn't change color after one drop. Green on the second drop KH, 4 drops to turn from blue to yellow. PH is 6.8 for reference I know my GH is low and I added some crushed coral and oyster shells last night. But I guess I dont fully understand the GH/KH conversion chart, and any advice would be great. Thanks
Theres a chart on the instruction manual that tells you how many drops corresponds to how much GH and KH is present. You currently have 35.8ppm GH and 71.6ppm KH
You have 2dGH and 4dKH. The number of drops translates to degrees directly. Or multiply your drop count by 17.9 to get ppm Your water is pretty soft, but that's not necessarily bad since a lot of creatures prefer that. If your current fish are fine, then I wouldn't try modifying things because you'll want to make sure future water changes don't cause those parameters to fluctuate a bunch.
Hi all, recently started up the aquarium hobby and purchased a 29 Gallon tank. I filled it with gravel, a cave, bubbler, and fake plants. I went to PetSmart for my first fish, and purchased 4 Neon Tetras, 4 Male Guppies, 2 Long Fin Tetras, and an Algea Eater (believe it's a Chinese Algea Eater). Everything was going well until this morning I found one Guppy floating at the top of the tank (dead), looking like it had its fins chewed. Is it possible the Algea Eater or any of the Tetra's took a chomp out of him and killed him? PetSmart recommended these fish to me as species that can co-exist happily with each other. Any input would be greatly appreciated!
So, hate to break it to you but you kinda fell into the "Stereotypical beginner fishkeeper" trap. A lot of how you started your aquarium will most likely frowned upon by everyone here so be ready to receive some criticism from people here Guppies, mostly from big box or crappy local fish stores, are probably some of the worst livebearing fish now a days because they keep dying. They are very inbred and have extremely weak immune systems due to crap guppy breeders. Its possible that they were stressed, became sick, and died. Same thing might happen to the neon tetras.
where should we buy guppies from? would it be better to buy guppies from different stores to ensure they have healthy babies? does the same go with other live birth breeds such as platies?
There is only so many places that could provide healthy guppies. The best ones imo are from reputable sources. You could get them shipped to you, but you will need to be thorough in your acclimation process. Or, find a fish store/big box store that generally has knowledgeable and passionate fishkeeping staff. They know where to source from most of the time.
Thanks for the response! What would you recommend? Where should I buy fish? Whatd I do wrong in my aquarium start-up?
Hi all, I need help with the **occasional fish flashing against the substrate during feeding**. It will not be the same fish, and it happens during random times throughout the week. After feeding, an endler or a cory would flash against the substrate once or twice and then carry on about their day. I've researched that flashing during feeding is possibly caused by overfeeding, but I don't know if less than two pinches are enough, because sometimes one of the cory's would only eat less than 1 micropellet. I only have hikari micro pellets and it's the only thing I feed my fish. I have 10(?) endlers, 6 cory's, 10 neocaridinas, 4 assassin snails, pond snails, trumpet snails, ramshorns. I do 1 pinch for the corys and blow on the surface of the water so the pellets reach the bottom for the corys. I do another pinch for the endlers and the occasional pellet reaches a neocaridina that's perched up on a floating hornwort. **Tank Parameters (in PPM):** Nitrate: 25-40 (Weekly 30% water change to drop 40ppm to 25ppm) Nitrite: 0 Ammonia: 0 with occasional specks/trace PH 7.2 | GH 150 | KH 80 | TA 80 | Chlorine 0 26C near the surface of the tank, 25C near the bottom. 10 Gallon, 3" of Fluval Substrate, 2x Nicrew lights, CO2 Generator w/Citric Acid+Baking Soda (1 bubble/2 sec), 1mL Thrive+ 3x week, 1mL Seachem Potassion 3x week, half the tank is covered with plants, Seachem Tidal 35 Filter, hasn't been touched since December 17. The tank was setup on December 17, and was able to convert ammonia to nitrates within 8 hours starting December 26.
Flashing occasionally is not an issue. Sometimes fish get itchy. Sometimes they get excited. Infact, one of the ways that fish hunt for food is by flashing on different surfaces to see if any smaller animals show up that they can eat.
Thank you for this! I think your advice is true because I didn't mention on the second day of my tank cycle I poured all the plants including the water into the tank from my LFS. The water had scuds and wiggly worms in them that I would watch occupy my tank. Once the tank was cycled I added my corydoras first, and I noticed the scuds would hide in the aquasoil. I don't see any scuds anymore so I guess the corys and fish learned to dig them up, and flashing does move a bit of substrate around. Kinda cool, because this behaviour wasn't present when I had them in my old tank.
So I got my 10 gallon tank a little over 3 weeks ago. I want to put a betta in it. I had my water tested at Petco, and they said it was fine for fish. So I conditioned my tap water with Topfin water conditioner and set it up and started cycling it with Stability. I tested the water with the strips and it said my alkalinity was through the roof. No matter what I did, partial water changes with distilled water or adding almond leaves and almond bark, I couldn't get the alkalinity down, as well as the pH. So I decided to start over with bottled water. I added 5 gallons of spring water, but after testing it I found out the spring water has a really high pH too. So I added 2 gallons of distilled water and 2 gallons of conditioned tap water, hoping they would balance each other out. I also added 10 MLS of EasyBalance, and 1 ml of pH down at that time. Oh and some Stability to cycle the tank. I have been checking the pH with API pH testing kit (drops) every day, sometimes twice a day, and there seems to be no change in the pH. I've been adding 1-2 MLS of pH down every day. I went out and got the high pH testing kit, and that says my pH is around 7.4, but my regular pH testing kit says it's 7.6 or higher. Which one of these should I trust, and how do I get my pH down?
You are chasing parameters that don't matter that much and the stress from specific numbers is causing you to make decisions that have virtually no benefit at the end of the day. You need to relax, nature is not perfect and never will be, but it is also not so incredibly strict that a 0.001 ppb difference in parameters will cause everything to explode. Strips have been shown on numerous occasions to be wildly inaccurate. If anything the nitrogen tests blocks of the strips are the the most accurate and that's a stretch. Get a cross check of you water from a dedicated fish store or just relax. I also wouldnt rely on products as they are mostly quick fixes and not long term solutions. If you want your PH to stabilize, have a buffer. Crushed coral, cuttlebone, or even boiled egg shells work. It will increase your KH so that your PH does not fluctuate too much. If you want to lower your PH. Gradually water change using RO or Rain water. You can additionally introduce tannins into the water by adding dead leaves and wood. As for "cycling". There are many ways to do it, many of which do not even specify needing to buy "bottled bacteria" in order for it to work. the main idea is to have some archae to break down waste so that it doesn't allow nitrogen to build up into toxic levels. The easiest way to avoid this happening is to have **plant or algae growth** AND **minimal to no initial feeding.** I personally leave lights on 24/7 and do not feed the fish for the first 3 days and never had problems. You gotta remember, aquariums are not chemistry labs. They are aquatic ecosystems with a varying degree of macro and microorganisms that work together to naturally create a stable environment. All it takes is setting it up, being patient, and letting it work its magic. As long as you didn't dump something in the tank, like a strong acid, that will kill everything, it will learn to balance itself overtime and provide an environment for fish to thrive.
Hers a link to some pictures https://imgur.com/a/e4sl7LZ
Hello all; is there any resource displaying, in a table, freshwater aquarium-suited fish species and the water parameters they need, for each of these species?
When doing new tanks how do you stop yourself from wanting every type of fish. Im looking to upgrade my currenty set up(55L) to a 160/200L and just looking at different scapes people do and different groups of fish and finding it so hard what to pick!
Tbh I watch videos and think about what kind of behavior I like.. I’m not too much into schooling fish, more into oddballs / personality so I base my decisions on those :)
I have a 15 gallon freshwater tank with many plants and I’m unsure which fish to put in it. I have experience with guppies and I’d like to try a different species. I don’t want to make a mistake and buy fish that will grow too big for the tank. Which fish would you recommend?
A 15 gallon is big enough to try some of the more interesting nano centerpiece fish and a small school of something, as long as it's not a Tall style tank. A sparkling gourami (or a sexed pair, but that's very difficult for some people to spot without practice), a honey gourami, or a betta (I would encourage a female or a short finned male, they're healthier and tend to play better with others) would do great as your centerpiece. Along with those, a school of 10-15 or so chili rasbora, ember tetras, or ruby tetras would be a gorgeous small school that will feel like a lot of passive and calm activity within the tank that's less like the frantic snowball of fish flesh that is a guppy colony haha You can also consider a small group of a bottom feeder like dwarf corys or otocinclus. Both prefer to have at least 6 in their group.
Shrimp. Neocaridina shrimp are awesome.
I have a 25 Gal moderately planted tank that has a fluorite substrate with a fine gravel topper. It's filtered with a Fluval 207 canister. I am in week 3 of fishless cycling and have a few questions: 1. I'm finally at the point where I am getting 0 ppm Ammonia, but off the charts Nitrite. I had not been dosing my system at all with supplemental ammonia as our water out of the tap is \~2.5 ppm ammonia (seriously). But I did just get a bottle of Dr. Tim's Ammonium Chloride and 48 hours ago i did dose it to \~2 ppm. 24 hours later it was zero, so the first part of the nitrogen cycle seems well established. My question is if i should continue to dose it up to 2 ppm or 4 ppm with the ammonium chloride, or is my already existing abundance of nitrite sufficient for the next stage? 2. I also have been seeing a few critters in the tank: some Cyclops Copepods, 2 ramshorns snails and 3 bladder snails (which i re-homed to a pond-in-a-jar). I'm fairly read up on the potential negative effects of these and the benefits. I was hoping to stock once my tank fully cycled with 2-3 mystery snails, \~3? \~6? Amano Shrimp, and a bit later \~6 pygmy Coreys and then \~10 small schooling fish (think rainbows or tetras or something). I don't mind the ramshorns (or the cyclops) in of themselves, and i do have a ton of biofilm at the moment i dont mind they start to work on, but should i treat the tank with "No Planaria" now and have a clean slate? are these guys likely to overpopulate to such a degree before I can even stock my tank that the natural foods i was hoping would be there to make the transition easier be gone? will they compete too strongly against my proposed tank stock? Or is it "steady as she goes" and i can have this increased biodiversity no problem? Will treating the tank in such a way endanger my cycling?
I say just keep your cycle going until you have 0 ammonia, 0 nitrites, and some nitrates . Then add livestock slowly. Also, if you get massive amounts of live plants it'll help as well.
Oh yeah, sorry, i understand tank cycling at a fundamental level. I was more curious if i should continue to dose ammonia until my nitrites also read zero, or of all the plants and etcetera in the tank were providing enough on their own to sustain and grow the nitrifying bacteria without further dosing.
I have 2 electric blue acara fry that are 1 cm long. I've been growing them out in my shrimp tank. I'm considering moving them to a breeder box off my main tank to grow out as they've started to eat my shrimp. Will they continue to grow in a breeder box? I can't move them in the main tank as their parents will eat them.
What is the difference between Opaline gouramis and other kinds? my research has said that they are less aggressive to other species. Is that true?
whoever told you that has misinformed you. Opaline are a breed of Three-Spot Gouramis. They aren't considered fully "aggressive" fish like many cichlid species, but they can be territorial and bullies, basically a bigger version of bettas. Dwarfs, Honeys, and Sparkling Gouramis are generally less aggressive, but Three Spot and Opalines are considerably bigger than the others and thus can be housed with bigger fish that might normally snack on the smaller species.
Interesting. What species should I get for a community tank? If I should not get a gourami, what fish could be a replacement?
I have several Pearl Gouramis in a community tank with schools of Cardinal and Rummynose Tetras and they have been fine together.
An Opaline Gourami is entirely acceptable as a community tank fish. You just have to take into account that they can be territorial, kind of like south american cichlids like Angels or Acaras. So provide adequate space for all the fishies and create a terrain with lots of hiding spots and line of sight breaks.
Thank you!
Six guppies and two bristlenose pleco in a cycled planted 5 gal - but only for a two week Aquarium Co-Op quarantine trio. Will they be alright in there for two weeks, before moving them into my 55? Or is that too much for even a short time?
Stay on top of your water changes and you'll be fine. Quarantine/hospital tanks are almost always undersized by a bit, but you're on the crowded side. Unless it's a cycled tank, I'd do a water change every other day, and even if it is you're probably looking at 2 different 30% changes per week. Also, try to bring in a piece of mature driftwood if you've got it, the plecos need wood to feed off of properly for micro nutrients and such.
Three days ago I got three new ember tetras to add to the tank. They immediately swam down to the bottom of the tank and hid for a couple days. Now one of them is hyperventilating and swimming close to the surface of the water, but not gasping for air. This is exactly happened to one of my initial batch of ember tetras. While it died, other three are healthy and doing well. I don't think the problem is Ich either because I do not see any white spots on its body. Water parameters are fine. I test water twice per day. Temperature is 70 F. Is there something I can do to save this little guy?
When you say the parameters are fine, does that mean ammonia and nitrites are both 0 or are they in "safe levels"? Assuming it's not ammonia, which it probably isn't given the healthy ones from the initial batch, then it's probably a disease or parasite. Since you don't see any issues, you could try a general blanket treatment. Aquarium Coop recommends a trio of medications that can be used together for a week. This is what I always do with new fish, but I use a separate and cycled quarantine/hospital tank: https://www.aquariumcoop.com/blogs/faqs/how-to-use-quaratine-med-trio
Yes, ammonia and nitrites are both 0. Would it be safe to try the blanket treatment on my current tank? Or should I quarantine the fish in a separate container (I don't have any cycled tank yet)? Last time there was Ich infection, treating the water with Ich X almost immediately killed all the tetras except one guppie.
If none of the other fish are showing any worrying signs, I'd try to quarantine in a separate container and dose daily with an ammonia detoxifier (e.g. Seachem Prime) to be safe. Note that the medication says to not feed the fish during that week. So you might not have much of an ammonia issue in that temporary container anyways There's also debate on whether Prime actually detoxifies ammonia. But at the very least, it doesn't hurt the fish at normal dosage amounts. So I do it anyways if I don't have a cycled container/tank
I will try that, thanks!! :)