New guy, new tank

[Videonut85]

Hey guys and gals, I've been lurking here for a while and finally registered! I got a 29G tank the other day and set it up. This is my first aquarium so I'm still figuring things out. I read the "fishless cycling for dummies" thread which was very helpful.

So I have my tank set up in place, full of water, it's around 78 degrees now (that is slowly increasing.) I put ammonia in, I tested my water and the ammonia is around 7 to 8 ppm. I may have gone a bit overboard. Should I be doing a PWC to try and reduce that? I also noticed a development since last night which is that there is some sort of white substance that is floating around the top of the tank. I skimmed most of it out but I'm not sure what it is. The ammonia has only been in for about 10 hours. Everything I put in the tank was washed with plain water before I put it in the tank, except for the air tubing. I also notice that the water has turned slightly cloudy since the water was put in about 50 hours ago.

Just some info about my new tank and water parameters.

Ammonia 7-8ppm
Nitrites 0ppm
Nitrates 0ppm
GH 100ppm
KH 80-120ppm
pH 7.2

29 Gallon Tank
100W heater
Aqueon Quiet Flow 20
Tetra Whisper Air Pump with 2 outputs
30 lbs of gravel
10 inch tall volcano with 2 air stones inside
2 small plants
4 medium plants
2 large plants
a large castle (about 3 inches shy of the top of the tank)

Also, I have a back flow preventer on each airline.


What advice can you give me about this white floating stuff, the clouds and my aquarium equipment? If it is inadequate, please tell me. I got a 29 gallon starter kit with the tank, hood, light, filter, heater, a net, and food for $69, so I know I got a good deal on this stuff. If the heater is insufficient, or the filter should be bigger, I have no problem getting a larger one.


Oh yeah! The whole purpose to a fish tank is the fish, right? The fish I'm looking at now are...

Really Want:
Glo Fish
Cardinal Tetra
A balloon belly molly

Maybe:
Black Skirt Tetra
Neon Tetra
Zebra Danio

I have a bigger list around here some where of maybes... That's just what I remember off the top of my head. Any recommendations on these fish? Which one would be best to start with out of the "Really Wants" I want to keep small fish. I'd prefer more activity and more fish swimming around than a larger fish. Thanks in advance for all of your help!

 

[itsgracia]

I would do a PWC and try to lower your ammonia to 4 ppm. I would suggest getting a bugger filter. From what I know the Aqueon 20 is for 30 gallons. I usually just double the size of my tank or more. Like my tank is a 29 and I have a filter for 70 gal. Also I run two heaters in my tank just so if one fails I have a back up.

I started my community tank with zebra danios. They are crazy little hyper fishes and hardy.

 

[Fishguy2727]

You should get a bigger filter. You want something rated for about three times the actual volume of the tank. On a 29 I would do something like an AquaClear 70, a Penguin 350, or an Emperor 280. I prefer the AquaClear but I don't like their intake strainer. For the two with biowheels I don't like their dinky slide-in cartridges and I don't like to use carbon all the time. The biowheel is the best form of biological filtration.

I prefer to let things run their course. Are you adding ammonia daily? If so you may want to decrease the amount to get the ammonia down to 5-6, then keep that dose going until fully cycled (ammonia and nitrite 0, only nitrate detectable).

IME it is better to stick with fish that are better adapted to your water. If you have hard water then stick with hard water fish. If you have soft water then stick with soft water. Although water quality is more important than exact parameters, IME fish tend to do much better when in water similar to their natural habitat. So if you have hard water I would avoid tetras, if you have soft avoid danios.

 

[Videonut85]

I haven't added any extra ammonia yet.

I will look into one of those biowheel filters you suggested. Those water parameters I gave were from the tap. I have a well so there is no chlorine. I am going to try and stick to fish that are good in the water that comes out of my tap so I don't have to play with chemistry.

 

[momo]

hmm, it seems like ive seen this thread befor!

Have any pictures of your tank?

 

[Fishguy2727]

Your tap has 8ppm ammonia?

 

[siva]

I have the same filter on the same tank and my water is always perfect. I guess bigger is always better though

 

[TraceyB4602]

Hey guys and gals, I've been lurking here for a while and finally registered! I got a 29G tank the other day and set it up. This is my first aquarium so I'm still figuring things out. I read the "fishless cycling for dummies" thread which was very helpful.

So I have my tank set up in place, full of water, it's around 78 degrees now (that is slowly increasing.) I put ammonia in, I tested my water and the ammonia is around 7 to 8 ppm. I may have gone a bit overboard. Should I be doing a PWC to try and reduce that? I also noticed a development since last night which is that there is some sort of white substance that is floating around the top of the tank. I skimmed most of it out but I'm not sure what it is. The ammonia has only been in for about 10 hours. Everything I put in the tank was washed with plain water before I put it in the tank, except for the air tubing. I also notice that the water has turned slightly cloudy since the water was put in about 50 hours ago.

Just some info about my new tank and water parameters.

Ammonia 7-8ppm
Nitrites 0ppm
Nitrates 0ppm
GH 100ppm
KH 80-120ppm
pH 7.2

29 Gallon Tank
100W heater
Aqueon Quiet Flow 20
Tetra Whisper Air Pump with 2 outputs
30 lbs of gravel
10 inch tall volcano with 2 air stones inside
2 small plants
4 medium plants
2 large plants
a large castle (about 3 inches shy of the top of the tank)

Also, I have a back flow preventer on each airline.

What advice can you give me about this white floating stuff, the clouds and my aquarium equipment? If it is inadequate, please tell me. I got a 29 gallon starter kit with the tank, hood, light, filter, heater, a net, and food for $69, so I know I got a good deal on this stuff. If the heater is insufficient, or the filter should be bigger, I have no problem getting a larger one.

Oh yeah! The whole purpose to a fish tank is the fish, right? The fish I'm looking at now are...

Really Want:
Glo Fish
Cardinal Tetra
A balloon belly molly

Maybe:
Black Skirt Tetra
Neon Tetra
Zebra Danio

I have a bigger list around here some where of maybes... That's just what I remember off the top of my head. Any recommendations on these fish? Which one would be best to start with out of the "Really Wants" I want to keep small fish. I'd prefer more activity and more fish swimming around than a larger fish. Thanks in advance for all of your help!

Where did you get this ammonia? Is it pure? I'd it's not it might be causing the film your seeing. Your ammonia is high I would suggest a 50% PWC.

Definitely need a different filter as stated before. I prefer aquaclear have used them all and the aquaclear is the quietest and has lasted.... Well forever in my case without a change.

If your cycling without fish you really don't need to worry about what to put in first after it's cycled. It will be safe for all fish, that will fit your tank. All the fish you have on your lists would be fine together in your tank.

Sent from my iPhone using Aquarium

 

[Videonut85]

I put ammonia in initially, but I haven't added any since. I did a 50% PWC and let the tank settle for about 2 hours. Ammonia tested again is reading about 4 to 5 ppm. The stuff floating at the top was cleared up when I removed it when doing the PWC and it hasn't come back. I guess maybe it was from too much ammonia. The ammonia is pure (ammonium hydroxide) Austin's Clear Ammonia.

The filter I have is quiet, seems to move a decent amount of water around, and I have the volcano on one side blowing air and the filter on another which seems to keep the tank circulating pretty well. I can see the bit of cloudiness in the tank and the water is all moving around. Nothing seems stagnant.

I've got a picture of my tank, but how do I go about posting it? Do I need to use an external site? Any recommendations?

Also, do I NEED to have fish on the bottom of the tank? My wife doesn't care for any of the cories, and the cats get too big for what I want in the tank. Plus, the cories all seem to have to be in a school. I wouldn't mind one sucker on the bottom somewhere but I'd want him to be small as to keep the numbers of fish up.

So here is what I'm thinking so far as my fish plan.

5 Glo Fish
5 Cardinal Tetra
1 Balloon Belly Molly

I would like a Topsail or Red Platy but their alkalinity requirement seems to far off from the rest of the fish. I'm also a bit confused on this because I was looking at fish through liveaquaria.com, and their alkalinity ratings are something like KH 2-6, where as I have ppm... is there some kind of conversion I'm missing?


Any opinions on the Endler's Livebearer? They only grow to 1" which I really like as I could have more of them. I just realized though that their alkalinity requirements are also far off from the other fish mentioned.

How many more fish can I reasonably have beyond those 12?

 

[siva]

Platy and Endlers should adjust fine to a wider range of alkalinity. I've definitely seen Endlers larger than that..especially the females. Bottom dwellers are not a must. Platties will be all over the tank, snacking on any scraps they can find. Maybe you'd like to try some dwarf shrimp..they hang out mostly on the bottom. Plus with your smaller fish selection you won't have to worry about them becoming snacks. For a long time I couldn't see the appeal of cories but I ended up falling inlove with the julii's. They stay about 1.5" and have the prettiest pattern on them. Maybe your wife will think they're pretty. The way they zip around the tank is really cute

 

[cinnamaldehyde]

So here is what I'm thinking so far as my fish plan.

5 Glo Fish
5 Cardinal Tetra
1 Balloon Belly Molly

I would up the cardinal tetras to at least 6, preferably 8. They like to shoal, and are stunning when they swim as a group.

IIRC, Glofish are zebra danios with a fluorescent gene, so they too would do better in a bit larger group.

In any case, I would go with larger groups of fewer species, rather than a few of a whole bunch of species.

Any opinions on the Endler's Livebearer? They only grow to 1" which I really like as I could have more of them. I just realized though that their alkalinity requirements are also far off from the other fish mentioned.

I am a huge fan of Endler's. In my experience, they are quite a hardy little fish. They like to be in M:F ratios of 2:3 or so. The females are drab but the males totally make up for it. A pH of 7.2 is just fine for them, and just fine for your other fish. One thing I've learned never to mess by using boosters or whatever with is pH. Fish prefer a stable pH over a "correct" pH that is swinging up and down.

 

[Videonut85]

Ok, so we'll update that plan to:


6 Glo Fish
8 Cardinal Tetra
1 Balloon Belly Molly
1 Topsail Platy

And lets say suppose I go with those Julii Cory and add 6 of them (could I go with less or is that not recommended?)

What else do I have space for?

 

[ejaramillo01]

Yes Cory can do fine in smaller groups, like 4 Inthis case for the size of your tank.

 

[siva]

I keep 4 of the Julii. They seem happy..often all together and they also split up into pairs. If you decide to skip the corydoras another bottom dweller you might like is khuli loaches. I'm looking for a pair of the striped variant which I can't seem to find One cool thing about them is they would prob hang out in your castle. The cories would prob play in that volcano though and that's always cute. You might want to think about algea eaters. I have a hillstream loach in my 29 and it's by far my favorite fish, just based on looks alone. He's always stuck to something..glass, plants, or decor. So he wouldn't be crowding anyone. Between him and few different really cool looking nerite snails algea is annihilated. Best part is they only get up to like 2.5" max (commonly sold as a butterfly pleco, but they aren't a pleco at all). If you want a centerpeice fish that still is pretty small because I know you want as much as possible, my neon blue dwarf gourami and gardneri killifish always get noticed

 

[Videonut85]

I keep 4 of the Julii. They seem happy..often all together and they also split up into pairs. If you decide to skip the corydoras another bottom dweller you might like is khuli loaches. I'm looking for a pair of the striped variant which I can't seem to find One cool thing about them is they would prob hang out in your castle. The cories would prob play in that volcano though and that's always cute. You might want to think about algea eaters. I have a hillstream loach in my 29 and it's by far my favorite fish, just based on looks alone. He's always stuck to something..glass, plants, or decor. So he wouldn't be crowding anyone. Between him and few different really cool looking nerite snails algea is annihilated. Best part is they only get up to like 2.5" max (commonly sold as a butterfly pleco, but they aren't a pleco at all). If you want a centerpeice fish that still is pretty small because I know you want as much as possible, my neon blue dwarf gourami and gardneri killifish always get noticed

The dwarf gourami is definitely cool. From what I'm reading about them, they like to have plants that float on the surface and require a heavily planted tank? I have plants, but I wouldn't say my tank is heavily planted. I like the way it is set up now, and don't really want to add more plants to the mix. Is this something that is necessary?

The hillstream loach is also pretty neat. I'll have to take them into consideration. There are so many cool fish, it's hard to pick a certain few to put in a tank.

 

[siva]

The gouramis breathe from the top like their cousin the betta so, they wanna feel safe hanging out up there. Floating plants or planting heavily would be more important in a smaller tank or a tank with other larger tank mates. In your set up I think he will feel pretty secure and it shouldn't matter much. A plant or two that come atleast close to surface height would be nice though. There's also little fake floating plants designed for bettas bowls and such that you could use if you want. I'd reco when you add a gourami to add no other fish at the same time. Water quality is really important for them, especially while they are getting adjusted, so this will help keep things top notch. I take a bit more time acclimating them then just floating their bag. I don't go as far as to do a drip, but while they are floating I use a turkey baster to remove bag water and add tank water every few minutes or so until I feel like they are in mostly tank water (the same method I use on neon tetras, bettas, and anything ordered online). I would also take a good few minutes observing the gouramis at the store before you pick your specimen. Anyone just hanging out at the bottom or darting around like crazy or showing a brownish spot on them is out. They are a little more sensitive then some but as long as you choose a good specimen, acclimate slowly, and keep the tank reasonably clean they are not hard to keep

 

[Videonut85]

I do have two tall plants that reach the surface of the water that would seem like good enough hiding spots for the gourami. I just may have to get one.

I still need to decide on what I want to do at the bottom of the tank. Between the hillstream loach, Julii, and the cory what are the ups and downs? Is one much dirtier than another? More likely to be aggressive? Harder to care for?

 

[siva]

The hillstream loach won't be at the bottom...I see him on a plant or decor now and then but almost always on the glass. He is not aggressive at all he just tries to stay out of everyones way. And cories must be the most gentle fish out there. My cories try to socialize with my hillstream but he just scoots off as fast as he can. Both are super easy to care for. Because the hillstream feeds on algea I'd wait until the tank was established for I'd say a couple months before adding him. Neither of them seem to have a large bio-load for their size, but I'm no expert on the subject. The Kuhli loaches I mentioned before..they are scavengers and get up to 4" each and I'd want atleast 2 so I'm guessing they would be pumping out more waste than say 4 julii cories would. Kuhlis are also very peaceful. My very favorite bottom dwellers are my dwarf crays. They are so cool, bright orange and never get bigger than 2".

 

[siva]

Did you see the thread about this site: AqAdvisor - Intelligent Freshwater Tropical Fish Aquarium Stocking Calculator and Aquarium Tank/Filter Advisor ? Of course it's not perfect but I think it's pretty accurate. Might help you make sure you are fully stocked without overstocking..atleast not too much

 

[Videonut85]

Did you see the thread about this site: AqAdvisor - Intelligent Freshwater Tropical Fish Aquarium Stocking Calculator and Aquarium Tank/Filter Advisor ? Of course it's not perfect but I think it's pretty accurate. Might help you make sure you are fully stocked without overstocking..atleast not too much

That's and awesome tool right there. Thanks for that! So it seems like with the setup:

8 Cardinal Tetra
6 Glo Fish
4 Julii Cory
1 Balloon Molly
1 Highfin Platy
1 Neon Blue Dwarf Gourami

I'm just about at capacity at 97%

According to this calculator The Glofish are not compatible as far as temperatures go. Elsewhere though, I see the glo fish have a slightly higher temperature range available to them making them at the lowest acceptable temperature for the rest of the fish.

It also says I need more filtration and I'm at 70% of the filtration capacity required. The wife is upset that I want to get a better filter when we just got this one. I guess I can stock everything (slowly, not all at once) but the glo-fish, and if she wants those in the tank I'll tell her we have to get a bigger filter.

Out of the fish I listed, which do you think would be best to stock the tank with first? Does the order matter? Could I do just the cardinal tetra? Or the platy, molly, and gourami all together?