Stocking my tank and a few other things

[wheelsondown]

I'm new to the world of fish keeping. I am going into my first week of no fish cycling. I was able to get some seed material from a family member on Thursday as well as the needed ammonia so I've been feeding the filter. The test kit I bought doesn't test for ammonia so I have no idea where those levels are at right now. I told my family member the kit I bought, and they immediately got online and bought me the kit with the test tubes for better results.

Over the past week we have been experiencing warmer weather. My apartment doesn't have great air flow so it can get warm and stuffy in here when I have noticed that the temp. I have one of those thermometers that stick on the inside of the tank and it has been ranging between 70 degree F and 80 degree F. Does anyone know of a good way to keep the tank cool? Is the thermometer I'm using a good one of should I invest in something different?

While I'm waiting for my tank to cycle I'm trying to find the best fish to put in there. I have found these might be a good choice:

http://www.aqadvisor.com/AquStockIm...201002091344:,4:200909300008:,5:201004272033:

I'm looking for easy to care for fish that don't require a water change of over 30% weekly. I'm also concerned that the water temp might be an issue if I'm not able to find a way to regulate it because at times it can get above 85 degree F in my apt.

Any thoughts and feedback would be helpful.

 

[elephantnose]

I've heard of people opening windows and putting fans near their tanks to keep them cooler. My house is always super hot and especially during summer on the second floor (live in Florida). At times my tank is at 86 but usually stays at 84 during summer. I just went and bought fish that prefer warmer temps. What size is your tank?

 

[Ulrichsd]

I have a friend who went out of town for a few days and turned off the ac without thinking and came brack to dead fish.

Just finished my cycle and I think the things that helped the most were positioning my return filter to generate ripples and using seachem prime. After that I finished in a week.

Sent from my SPH-L710 using Aquarium Advice mobile app

 

[wheelsondown]

I've heard of people opening windows and putting fans near their tanks to keep them cooler. My house is always super hot and especially during summer on the second floor (live in Florida). At times my tank is at 86 but usually stays at 84 during summer. I just went and bought fish that prefer warmer temps. What size is your tank?

It's a 36 gallon bow front tank. What would be good fish for warmer water?

 

[Caliban07]

Welcome to AA

I don't see anything wrong with the stocking in terms of compatibility and it's always better to under stock, especially if you want to do smaller water changes a week. Plants will also help slow nitrates from building up and feeding sensibly will help but you will need to create a stable environment for the plants too. If you have hard water with plenty of minerals you can add plants now. If your water is soft like mine you can add a little crushed coral and a liquid fertiliser to help the plants on their way.

As for the temperature I'm not really sure what you can do about this. I would think the danios prefer cooler water. Higher temps also speed things up like fish metabolism and chemical reactions in the body. Higher temps mean that the water holds less oxygen too and will make ammonia more toxic.

I wouldn't worry too much about the above it's just good information to be aware of. I would be more worried about temperature fluctuations. If the temp has to be on the high end of the scale try to keep it stable although the fish may appreciate slightly cooler waters being added once a week.

 

[elephantnose]

Angelfish, german blue rams, and silver hatchetfish all like warmer waters. There are more but I can't think of them off of the top of my head.

 

[wheelsondown]

Angelfish, german blue rams, and silver hatchetfish all like warmer waters. There are more but I can't think of them off of the top of my head.

I am looking at getting some Amaro shrimp to help with clean up. Are they going to be ok with the warmer waters?

 

[elephantnose]

Yes. I'd say so.

 

[wheelsondown]

Yes. I'd say so.

Using AQAdvisor it looks like the Angelfish may eat the shrimp. Are there other good clean-up sea life you would recommend?

 

[elephantnose]

Corys help to clean up the bottom. There is a ton of different types as well.

 

[Angelmom2]

Welcome wheelsondown!! Good luck with your new tank! Here is a link that can provide some very helpful info on fish compatibility , water temps, etc

http://www.liveaquaria.com/general/fwcompatibility_chart.cfm

 

[UABsleeperSRNA]

My angelicus Botia loach does a great job of cleaning up the bottom also.. Constantly digging in the gravel to pull out the scraps.. It is recommended you keep several of them though and they can be a little expensive..