paulmorphine
Aquarium Advice Newbie
Hello all,
I am a middle school life science teacher who a week ago, couldn't have told you the difference between a molly and a goldie. After a week of teaching fish + amphibians and researching your info-packed site, I now have 4 tanks (a 20 and three 10's) running in my home + classroom =)
So thanks! So here's what I have + how long they've been cycling:
10-gallon warm FW (2 week cycle) - 2 guppies, 2 tadpoles
10-gallon cold FW (2 week cycle) - 1 black moor, 3 baby comets
10-gallon cold FW (3 day cycle) - 1 white cloud (the other got his tailfin stuck in the filter last nite R.I.P. lil' guy)
20-gallon warm FW (4 day cycle) - 2 zebra danios, 1 rainbow or ruby shark
2 days ago, I tested the 20 gallon and here were the results:
Ammonia 0.75, Nitrite 0, pH 7.5, Hardness 161.1 ppm
My rainbow shark seems to acclimating just fine. His nickname is "Heater-boy" because 50% of the time he's hiding under the 200watt Whisper heater. Or he's exploring the 3-way PVC tubing and wading through the patch of breeding grass, then back to the ol' heater (at times, he seems to be sucking on the backside of it like an upside-down catfish - very very weird indeed but awfully endearing)
So anyways on to my questions:
1) How hardy are rainbow sharks? Mine's just a baby @ only 1.5 inches and I worry the upcoming ammonia + nitrite spikes will hurt him. I'm thinking about moving him temporarily to the 10-gallon warm FW tank w/ the guppies + tadpoles...
2) How durable are Whisper heaters? Granted, it's been cold in New Orleans the past week, but I put mine on the + setting and it's still swung down to nearly 70 while I made sure it was on 78 last night =\
3) How often should I check for ammonia/nitrite on all my tanks? The 2 week warm FW is clearing up but the nitrite level of the goldie tank was I believe at 4.0 a few days ago...
4) How often should I do PWC's? I don't care how long it takes to cycle - but I don't want to damage my little fishies and I would like to know the upper limit for ammonia + nitrite content.
Sorry for all the questions but I'm a newbie after all + if I lose another fish I might just return them all and do a fishless cycle. I've really appreciated the countless hours I've spent surfing your informative site...here's to many enjoyable years in this wonderful hobby!
I am a middle school life science teacher who a week ago, couldn't have told you the difference between a molly and a goldie. After a week of teaching fish + amphibians and researching your info-packed site, I now have 4 tanks (a 20 and three 10's) running in my home + classroom =)
So thanks! So here's what I have + how long they've been cycling:
10-gallon warm FW (2 week cycle) - 2 guppies, 2 tadpoles
10-gallon cold FW (2 week cycle) - 1 black moor, 3 baby comets
10-gallon cold FW (3 day cycle) - 1 white cloud (the other got his tailfin stuck in the filter last nite R.I.P. lil' guy)
20-gallon warm FW (4 day cycle) - 2 zebra danios, 1 rainbow or ruby shark
2 days ago, I tested the 20 gallon and here were the results:
Ammonia 0.75, Nitrite 0, pH 7.5, Hardness 161.1 ppm
My rainbow shark seems to acclimating just fine. His nickname is "Heater-boy" because 50% of the time he's hiding under the 200watt Whisper heater. Or he's exploring the 3-way PVC tubing and wading through the patch of breeding grass, then back to the ol' heater (at times, he seems to be sucking on the backside of it like an upside-down catfish - very very weird indeed but awfully endearing)
So anyways on to my questions:
1) How hardy are rainbow sharks? Mine's just a baby @ only 1.5 inches and I worry the upcoming ammonia + nitrite spikes will hurt him. I'm thinking about moving him temporarily to the 10-gallon warm FW tank w/ the guppies + tadpoles...
2) How durable are Whisper heaters? Granted, it's been cold in New Orleans the past week, but I put mine on the + setting and it's still swung down to nearly 70 while I made sure it was on 78 last night =\
3) How often should I check for ammonia/nitrite on all my tanks? The 2 week warm FW is clearing up but the nitrite level of the goldie tank was I believe at 4.0 a few days ago...
4) How often should I do PWC's? I don't care how long it takes to cycle - but I don't want to damage my little fishies and I would like to know the upper limit for ammonia + nitrite content.
Sorry for all the questions but I'm a newbie after all + if I lose another fish I might just return them all and do a fishless cycle. I've really appreciated the countless hours I've spent surfing your informative site...here's to many enjoyable years in this wonderful hobby!