Help! I need some advice....

[sarah5775]

A few days ago I posted about the new tanks and things I was getting because the lfs are going out of business. Well...ok...

Now I have a bunch of filters, fish and tanks and I don't know what combination to put them in. This is kind of long and involved and, well, its asking a lot to ask you to even follow this, but I really am a bit overwhelmed and at a loss.

These are the filters I have:

- An AquaClear 50 running for two years (cycled)

- An Elite Stingray 5 running for three years (cycled)

-An AquaClear 70, that the fish store guy took right off the tank and handed to me- (cycled- yes)- I put it in my tank as soon as I got it home

- Another Aqua Clear 70, also used, dont' know how long it was dry- (cycled ?)

-- An AquaClear 110 also used, but don't know how longs its been dry- (cycled ?)

-- 2 Whisper 10s that have been running for a while (cycled- both yes)

-- 1 other Whisper 10 (cycled - probably not, only running a week)

-- 1 Whisper 10, brand new, in wrapping (not cycled no)

-- running in my ten gallon a small box filter which is submerged and runs on an air pump- has been there six months- got it at a lfs, (cycled, but I don't know wth it is)

-- another filter of this type, still in its box- a square cube that sits on the bottom, has filter floss, is attached to a pump wiht a tube???

-- A Tetra Whisper (so it says) which is filter that submerges in the tank with a clip that clips it on the back- it came with a five gallon tank (not cycled)

-- A Whisper 10-60 (Huge) Which was on my friend's 55 gallon tank Has been dry for four or five days now, don't know if its still cycled

OK- these are the tanks I have:

-- 1 55 gallon with cichlids- not cycled, but running the Aqua 70 that is- the cichlids need to stay there

-- 1 29 tank, (cycled,)

-- 1 5 gallon tank (cycled)

-- 1 10 gallon (cyled)

-- 1 10 gallon (cycled- ?)

-- 1 10 gallon (cycled)

-- 2 20 gallon longs, not cycled- but I'm not sure- they came used, with dirty gravel and an inch of water. Should I thoroughly clean them and rinse the gravel? Or should I just drain and refill? I think I should clean them thoroughly , or I should I try to save some of that bacteria?

-- 1 29 gallon that is in the same condition but can't be set up until I get a stand, may be a few weeks- obviously, it has to be cleaned, I'm planning on doing it in the morning

Ok. These are the fish-

--In the 55 gallon, cichlids, which have to stay there. discussed on another thread, so forget them for now

--3 goldfish, looking for a new home, still small and currently in a 20 gallon

These need to stay. As for the rest:

--5 black skirt tetras, 5 bloodfin tetras, 3 gold barbs, 3 checkered barbs (in the 29 gallon)

-- 5 guppies (in the 5 gallon) 1 platy fry in breeding net

-- 3 platies, 3 rasboras (one 10 gallon)

-- 2 balloon belly mollies (in another 10 gallon)

That leaves one empty ten gallon, currently with a few feeder fish for the frog, and two empty 20 gallons, and the empty 29 that has to sit for a while

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Ok. Now...the questions.

1. How should I distribute the guppies/platies/mollies/barbs/tetras

2. Which filter(s) should go in which tank?

 

[thominil]

Not sure if there is a correct way to answer this......

If the filter has been dry, the bacteria is dead, thus, not cycled.

Clean the dirty gravel entirely, for that matter, clean everything with/in the 20g longs and just start over. Seed them with filter media from established tanks. HTH.

 

[Etunes]

God the research i did for you.

Ok
#1 i would put all the barbs in a 20g long with the AquaClear 50 on it.
#2 I would transfer ALL the tetras to the other 29g long with the aquaclear 70 if you could manage it.
#3 I would put the mollies and the guppies in a 10g tank with a Whisper 10 on it.
#4 i would put a extra filter on a couple tanks to keep cycled so that i could use one or 2 of those 10g as a QT tank.

Thats what i do. Also i wish i could have founded such a gold mind like you. Also make sure to REALLY clean those 20g tanks, even the gravel. Don't skip on cleaning. Don't want all those fish dead. Just like thom said.

 

[sarah5775]

Not sure if there is a correct way to answer this......

If the filter has been dry, the bacteria is dead, thus, not cycled.

Clean the dirty gravel entirely, for that matter, clean everything with/in the 20g longs and just start over. Seed them with filter media from established tanks. HTH.

Got it. Thank you.

 

[thominil]

Mollies get too big for the 10g IMO, way to big of a bioload as well.

 

[sarah5775]

They are balloon bellied mollies. They stay small, don't they?

Also, what about the platies?

 

[mgamer20o0]

a general rule is to cut what they claim the filter is good for in half. i agree with the mollies even if they are balloon type. they dont get quit as large as regular ones. they are selective breed to be stunted and odd shape. poor fish....

platies are fine in a 10 though i would put them in a 20 gallon they do breed often.

 

[sarah5775]

a general rule is to cut what they claim the filter is good for in half. i agree with the mollies even if they are balloon type. they dont get quit as large as regular ones. they are selective breed to be stunted and odd shape. poor fish....

platies are fine in a 10 though i would put them in a 20 gallon they do breed often.

Platies and guppies should be fine in a ten, after all if they have too many fry there is still the second 29 gallon down the road....but is the whisper 10 enough for them? That would be five guppies and three platys. BTW, I forgot to mention, in that tank the platis are in I also have a little filter that was in my 2 gallon tank- tiny, but its something. So it would be that and the whisper 10

Could the mollies go in with the barbs or the tetras? They are both males so no need to worry about babies.

 

[spoonman]

The whisper 10's are only good to add to a tank. They are not enough to filter a 10 gallon tank unless you use 2 of them.

 

[Etunes]

Mollies get too big for the 10g IMO, way to big of a bioload as well.

I did a typo and meant to put 20g not 10g, i completely agree.

The whisper 10's are only good to add to a tank. They are not enough to filter a 10 gallon tank unless you use 2 of them.

Didn't think of that. I agree though.

 

[sarah5775]

Are you serious? Everyone at the store told me they'd be fine, and that is what CAME with the two tanks. Of course, these are the same stores that sell 'betta barracks" that are half a gallon sized and "goldfish tanks" that come with goldfish food but are 5 gallons.

It's not you I'm frustrated with, its the Petco and Petsmart, where I bought each tank. Why do they put those filters in with the ten gallon tanks if they aren't sufficient for them? Why do they call them whisper 10s if they can't filter a 10 gallon tank?

 

[spoonman]

If we could get our fish to not poop, the estimates of these filters would probably be accurate!! LOL

 

[mgamer20o0]

like i said they over rate the filters. the flow is also the max the amount of water the filter can pump not including the media. its one of the reasons why i hate kits. i am very selective in what i use. might be ok if you under stocked clean very well do large water changes. the world wont come to a end just using one but it would be better if you use two of those on one 10 gallon.

The Whisper 10 Power Filter provides quiet and reliable filtration for clear and healthy water. The Whisper 10 provides mechanical, chemical and biological filtration for for 5 to 10 gallon, salt or freshwater aquariums. The filter performs at 90gph. It is economical and easy to use.

 

[runninwoof]

the aquaclear 70 is good for a 55 but is imo a bit too big for a 29g. use the 50 for the 29g. or you could always add a bunch of 10g filters together.

u should try a paladarium with ur 29

 

[sarah5775]

I was going to use the AquaClear 70 on the 29 gallon I have and the Whisper 10-60 on the other 29 gallon I set up. I'm using both a Aquaclear 70 and an Aquaclear 110 on the 55.

I think the tanks are going to be overfiltered by most people's standard.

Oh, and one more thing. I have a ten gallon tank that is in the living room where anybody can see it. It's kind of a showpiece tank, and it has to be occupied. At least, I want it to be. I would put in the guppies but the filter it has would suck any fry right down. It' too big to cover with pantyhose,l which is what I usually do n my liverbearer tanks. Same with the platies. Don' t I have ANYTHING that could go in that tank? Barbs, tetras? I don't really want to buy anymore fish. That is why I bought the two male mollies.

Does everyone agree that two balloon mollies can't go in a 10 gallon? They seem awfully small.

 

[severum mama]

the aquaclear 70 is good for a 55 but is imo a bit too big for a 29g. use the 50 for the 29g. or you could always add a bunch of 10g filters together.

u should try a paladarium with ur 29

Gotta disagree here.

I've used the AC 70 on several different incarnations of a 29 gallon. It's not overkill, it's a great size for a 29. For a 55, I'd use two AC 70s.

 

[mfdrookie516]

If we could get our fish to not poop, the estimates of these filters would probably be accurate!! LOL

haha i like that