Hello, New Member Here!

[scottb]

Hello, New Member Here! Any Advice Welcome/Appreciated!

Hi fellow fish lovers!
I have just begun my journey into the exciting world of fish keeping! I recently purchased a 36 Gallon Aqueon Bow Front Aquarium from my local PetsMart, it came in a kit which included an Aqueon Quiet Flow 30 Power Filter, a 200W submersible heater, and a hood/lamp combo which houses a 8,000K 17W 120V T8 Full Spectrum Daylight bulb. My goal is to have a low tech planted tank, with some river rock as well as a nice piece or two of some Malaysian driftwood.

The first day I purchased the tank, I set it up IMMEDIATELY. I added 75lbs of gravel, bought 3 Jungle Vals, which are being supplemented with Seachem FlourishTabs. The tank is currently running at a temp of 75-76F.

Long story short, I went to an aquatics store near my house and purchased 4 Giant Danio, about 3 days after the initial set-up, to begin my tank cycling (I know not everyone is a fan of this process but I thought they would be fine). The fish were recommended to me, as I was told they are very tolerable fish. I properly acclimated my new fish before placing them into their new home. The next morning I found 2 out of the 4 dead. Of the remaining 2, one would stay at the top, and the other would tread towards the bottom. I put in a little food and suddenly the one at the bottom took a funny dive and went belly up. I noticed that the water is quite cloudy and my last remaining fish doesn't look like he/she will make it till the morning. Don't really know what went wrong...

My plan now is to remove all the water from my tank, re-plant the bottom with a few bags (2 to 3) of Seachem Flourite Plant Substrate, I plan to use this in combination with the FlourishTabs, mixed with the current gravel I have (I won't use all of it). Then I plan to condition my tank using Seachem Prime. I have read many reviews on the success of this product. I also plan to purchase 4 to 5 neon tetras OR harlequin rasboras to put into my tank instead of Giant Danios this time. Hopefully this will have better results with healthy/happy fish.

My concerns are whether or not this would be a good or even an ideal route to take. Any thoughts or recommendations are greatly appreciated. A planted tank is fairly new to me, so I need all the help/advice I can get. Sorry for the long rant!

 

[Mlani]

Hi and welcome! So you're planning on restarting a fish in cycle? Have you thought about doing a fishless cycle? There's also the option if your adamant in starting with fish right away of getting an old filter from your lfs to help seed your tank. (That way your fish will have a better run at staying alive.)

 

[scottb]

The thought of obtaining an old filter from my LFS had not crossed my mind. I wonder if they would give me one. Will have to go ask tomorrow. Also, I have considered a fishless cycle with simply using fish food. Do you know the proper method of doing this? I am strongly considering this route. Do you know if I can fully plant my tank first, with the driftwood/rocks before starting the cycling process?

Update: My last Giant Danio didn't make it....

 

[Mumma.of.two]

Hi and welcome!
http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f15/guide-to-starting-a-freshwater-aquarium-186089.html
Please read this. It contains info on different cycling methods including the safe way to to a fish in cycle.

 

[scottb]

Thank you for the helpful link Mumma.of.two I LOVE how all the questions I seem to have had are all answered in one place! I have done prior research to fishless cycling and after further reading, (thanks to your link), I have decided to go this route. I am going to go to my local hardware store tomorrow to pick up an extra bucket, and see if I can't find some pure ammonia. I also plan to pick up a few more plants and possibly another filter for my tank.

I noticed that it said that I should try and get some "seeding" material to aid in the fishless cycle. If I cannot get any "seeding" material, do you know if this will have a considerable effect on the fishless cycle? Also, I plan to add more plants along my journey. Do you know if I can simply add new plants and driftwood/rocks right away? Thanks in advance for all your help!

 

[Mumma.of.two]

Thank you for the helpful link Mumma.of.two I LOVE how all the questions I seem to have had are all answered in one place! I have done prior research to fishless cycling and after further reading, (thanks to your link), I have decided to go this route. I am going to go to my local hardware store tomorrow to pick up an extra bucket, and see if I can't find some pure ammonia. I also plan to pick up a few more plants and possibly another filter for my tank.

I noticed that it said that I should try and get some "seeding" material to aid in the fishless cycle. If I cannot get any "seeding" material, do you know if this will have a considerable effect on the fishless cycle? Also, I plan to add more plants along my journey. Do you know if I can simply add new plants and driftwood/rocks right away? Thanks in advance for all your help!

Glad it helped!
You don't NEED seeded material but if you do have some it can speed your cycle up considerably if you have enough. An average cycle will take 4-8 weeks but with a good amount of seeded media you can cut it down to as little as a few days. I've instantly cycled a tank with seeded media. Added it to the filter and added fish then and there. No ammonia or nitrite seen at all.
Plants love a cycling tank so you can add them at any time. They actually consume ammonia, nitrite and nitrate. Any decor can be added anytime. BB will grow on it so it can be used to seed a tank.

 

[scottb]

Waiting for the cycle to finish won't be all that bad. If anything, it will give me more time to research my fish wishlist haha. Are you pretty knowledgeable on fish breeds? I would like to know which fish I should add first as I would ideally like to have a community tank.

 

[Mumma.of.two]

Well that depends what your interested in! I like to suggest you have a look at the LFS around you and see what takes your fancy. Then you can research and ask on here to see if it's suitable. Look at my profile. I've got a couple of community tanks.

 

[scottb]

Well there are a few fish I already know I want to invest in. I want to get 2 German Blue Rams, probably a pair if I can find them, otherwise two females, a bushynose albino pleco, and possibly a black one as well (not sure if the GBR are compatible, pretty sure they are), a couple Red Rili Shrimp (to help with the pleco in algae eating), 2-3 Angelfish (not sure on the sex), and some breed of schooling fish, but not sure which ones. Do you have any suggestions? I want something that's a mid-level swimmer to balance out my tank as well as have some nice color. I don't know how the shrimp will do with the Angels, or other fish, or if I even want to invest in Angels as I hear they can be a bit difficult to maintain. Also, I was searching for pure ammonia for the fishless cycling, and saw cleaner with the only ingredient being either water and ammonium hydroxide, or just ammonium hydroxide. Will these work? They are a local pharmacy's all purpose cleaner. Let me know what you think of my fish list, so far, and I appreciate all your help!

 

[Mumma.of.two]

Well there are a few fish I already know I want to invest in. I want to get 2 German Blue Rams, probably a pair if I can find them, otherwise two females, a bushynose albino pleco, and possibly a black one as well (not sure if the GBR are compatible, pretty sure they are), a couple Red Rili Shrimp (to help with the pleco in algae eating), 2-3 Angelfish (not sure on the sex), and some breed of schooling fish, but not sure which ones. Do you have any suggestions? I want something that's a mid-level swimmer to balance out my tank as well as have some nice color. I don't know how the shrimp will do with the Angels, or other fish, or if I even want to invest in Angels as I hear they can be a bit difficult to maintain. Also, I was searching for pure ammonia for the fishless cycling, and saw cleaner with the only ingredient being either water and ammonium hydroxide, or just ammonium hydroxide. Will these work? They are a local pharmacy's all purpose cleaner. Let me know what you think of my fish list, so far, and I appreciate all your help!

A pair or two female GBR will work well.
One or two bristlenose plecos should be ok with the rams they usually don't get picked on by other fish.
The angels and the rams will make very short work of the shrimp so I wouldn't suggest them.
I would suggest a single angel. If you have two you risk bullying or them making a pair then picking on other fish. With three, if you get a pair one can be bullied by the other two. That being said some have success with multiple angels.
You want to avoid any fish that will fit into the angels mouth because they will be eaten. So that rules out neons, cardinals, etc. I'm not sure about danios or rummynoses tetras but if an angel was big enough it could eat them. I'd look into larger bodied tetras like black skirts, bleeding hearts, etc. You don't want anything nippy like serpaes or tiger barbs.
The ammonia sounds ok to me but I have never done a fishless cycle so I'm not 100%.
When doing a fishless cycle your setting your tank up to take a full bioload of fish so technically you can add all the fish at once.

 

[scottb]

I am leaning more and more towards NO Angels haha. I feel like they are going to be too much of a hassle for me. Maybe they will be a breed I get into later, when I'm more experienced. So now I'm thinking 2 female GBR, 6-8 cardinal tetra, 1-2 bristlenose pleco, and I want to add 1 or 2 more fish, but not sure which ones. Any ideas? What do you think is the max number of fish I should have for them to be comfortable? And I know I can add all the fish at once, but I read that it's best to add new fish slowly because some species tend to be more territorial. That being said, I will probably add the cardinal tetra first.

 

[Hholly]

Hey, since you decided to go fishless, check this out.
http://www.aquariumadvice.com/artic...-Guide-and-FAQ-to-Fishless-Cycling/Page1.html

It's how I started and worked very well.
Good luck!

 

[Mumma.of.two]

I am leaning more and more towards NO Angels haha. I feel like they are going to be too much of a hassle for me. Maybe they will be a breed I get into later, when I'm more experienced. So now I'm thinking 2 female GBR, 6-8 cardinal tetra, 1-2 bristlenose pleco, and I want to add 1 or 2 more fish, but not sure which ones. Any ideas? What do you think is the max number of fish I should have for them to be comfortable? And I know I can add all the fish at once, but I read that it's best to add new fish slowly because some species tend to be more territorial. That being said, I will probably add the cardinal tetra first.

2 GBR
2 BNP
8 cardinals (I'd even do 10-12 they look great in large numbers)
1 or 2 CP (centre piece) fish
Sounds good. Look into gouramis. Three spot, golden, opaline. You could do a single one or a m/f pair of those IMO. There should be I picture of my gold in my profile (270L tank).
Stocking a tank is more than just what number of fish. There is no set rule because there are too many factors. Aggression, compatibility, adult size, swimming space, etc.
Cardinals first sounds good. Then I'd do BNP then the CP fish and the GBR last. They are the most sensitive and territorial.

 

[scottb]

Thanks Hholly for the post! I am going to follow those guidelines as well. It's nice to know that you had success with it, only makes me more optimistic!

Mumma.of.two - the more I look at my fish wishlist, the more I am loving it. Went and saw the GBR again today, wanted to take them home! haha. I actually was looking at a few gourami today, funny that you mention them. I agree with adding the GBR last as well. The guy at my LFS said that I should get 1M and 2F. Any thoughts on this?

A little update. Went to my LFS and purchased two 20lb bags of FloraMax to add with my gravel, so my substrate is a 50/50 mixture. I purchased a nice piece of driftwood, and just ordered a beautiful medium sized branchy piece as well (hope it isn't too big). I bought a Coralife 50/50 bulb to replace my current stock bulb which came with the kit. I also purchased another filter which is made for tanks up to 20 gallons.

I couldn't find pure ammonia today, will have to check other places. Since I do not have the ammonia right now to begin my cycle, is it okay that I simply leave tap water in my tank with my heater/filters running? I did not even bother to add any dechlorinator yet. I plan to add it once I get the pure ammonia. However, I have 3 Jungle Val in my tank right now. Will tap water kill them? Also, any negative drawbacks to this? Should I add the dechlorinator now even though I will not begin the fishless cycle?

Thanks for your inputs!

 

[Mumma.of.two]

Thanks Hholly for the post! I am going to follow those guidelines as well. It's nice to know that you had success with it, only makes me more optimistic!

Mumma.of.two - the more I look at my fish wishlist, the more I am loving it. Went and saw the GBR again today, wanted to take them home! haha. I actually was looking at a few gourami today, funny that you mention them. I agree with adding the GBR last as well. The guy at my LFS said that I should get 1M and 2F. Any thoughts on this?

A little update. Went to my LFS and purchased two 20lb bags of FloraMax to add with my gravel, so my substrate is a 50/50 mixture. I purchased a nice piece of driftwood, and just ordered a beautiful medium sized branchy piece as well (hope it isn't too big). I bought a Coralife 50/50 bulb to replace my current stock bulb which came with the kit. I also purchased another filter which is made for tanks up to 20 gallons.

I couldn't find pure ammonia today, will have to check other places. Since I do not have the ammonia right now to begin my cycle, is it okay that I simply leave tap water in my tank with my heater/filters running? I did not even bother to add any dechlorinator yet. I plan to add it once I get the pure ammonia. Are there are drawbacks to this? Should I add the dechlorinator now even though I will not begin the fishless cycle?

Thanks for your inputs!

1 male 2 females will work IMO
Try looking on amazon for ace ammonia.
The tank is fine to sit for a while with just tap water. Won't harm anything. You can add dechlorinator now or just before you start the cycle.

 

[scottb]

Thanks! I was worried about not dechlorinating. I will wait until I begin my cycle. Do you know if Ace Ammonia is what they carry at Ace Hardware? I believe it is the "Ace Janitorial Strength Ammonia" or something like that. I did some research and a lot of people seemed to use this.

 

[Mumma.of.two]

Thanks! I was worried about not dechlorinating. I will wait until I begin my cycle. Do you know if Ace Ammonia is what they carry at Ace Hardware? I believe it is the "Ace Janitorial Strength Ammonia" or something like that. I did some research and a lot of people seemed to use this.

Yep that's the one.

 

[redsea]

Welcome!

 

[Hholly]

Why not go ahead and dechlorinate? Just makes it inviting for all those beneficial bacteria, doesn't it?

 

[scottb]

I actually went ahead and added some Seachem Prime to my tank. I am currently soaking my first piece of driftwood to remove all the excess tannins. I found an Ace Hardware near my house so I plan to pick up some pure ammonia tomorrow to begin my fishless cycle. Oh, wait.....I have to wait for my API Master Test Kit to arrive. fail.