New ten gallon Aquarium

[Chelseachuy]

Hi I just started my 10 gallon fishtank I have 5 tiger barbs 4 albino barbs 1 Cory 1 dwarf honey gourami and 1 Bolivian ram... Any advice? In interested in plants not exactly sure how to get started on that.. I am feeding them tetra pro and blood worms and a Corey feed pellet when will there colors start to come out more ? Thanks!!

 

[siva]

Hello and welcome to AA

I must say, your tank is hideously overstocked. Tiger barbs get about 3" a peice and are highly active schooling fish. They are not ideal tank mates for the mellow ram and gourami. I'm not sure the minimum tank size they need, I would recommend a 55 gal.

Most cories also get much too large for a 10 gal tank. They also need to be in groups of 4-6. One cory by himself is one depressed little dude. I had just one in quarantine for a while and let me tell you, that's not their natural behavoir when they have a group of buddies. Depending on the type of cory you have, it likely needs a 20-30 gal minimum. It's possible that it is one that some would say will stay small enough for a 10 gal tank, it's hard to say because their are so many.

Bolivian rams are generally considered 20 gals minimum.

The dwarf gourami is the only fish in there that is generally considerd acceptable for a 10 gal tank. I would strongly suggest you consider how to give these fish proper homes. If you are not upgrading them to a larger tank yourself in the immediate future, I would find new homes for the majority of them

 

[Chelseachuy]

I'm just starting out and I'm going by what the petstore is saying. My little Cory is pretty happy actually

 

[siva]

Yeah unforutunately petstores just want to make money and rarely care about making fish happy

One cory is not happy. I have experience with cories in different size groups and in different size tanks and I can tell you one cory in a small tank is not happy.

I'm just trying to help because your tank is not set up for success.

 

[siva]

The very best thing you can do when just starting out is talk over things with more experienced hobbyists on a forum like this. You are going to get reliable information that comes from real research and experience and not someone trying to make a buck.

 

[Chelseachuy]

I been doing so much research it's making me crazy they tried selling me a German blue ram and ofcourse I bought but I took it back bc it didnt look happy that's how I ended up with so many tiger barbs in the exchange! I use to have a 55 gal with my dad but I'm doing this all on my own!

 

[MABJ]

I'd say the tiger barbs are your biggest issue, try sending them back.

 

[Chelseachuy]

Any advice on amonia levels ur probably all gonna yell at me for having to many fish [moderator edit]! I did a water change twice today but doesn't seem to make a difference on test kits .. Any effienicent easier ways to do a water change without making to much of a mess!! Lol

 

[MABJ]

Well hopefully you have the API master liquid test kit, but yes. The advise is get a good filter, a gravel vac and an appropriately stocked aquarium. You'll only have to do about a 20% change a week

 

[Chelseachuy]

I'd say the tiger barbs are your biggest issue, try sending them back.

Ugh and my dad told me they make out for a bad neighborhood lol

 

[Chelseachuy]

Well hopefully you have the API master liquid test kit, but yes. The advise is get a good filter, a gravel vac and an appropriately stocked aquarium. You'll only have to do about a 20% change a week

How much is that exactly ? Just so I know in doing this right

 

[MABJ]

How much is what?

 

[Chelseachuy]

I don't want to sound silly but 20% water change ...

 

[MABJ]

20 percent of your water out, and then replace it. Really simple. Eyeball it. It's 1/5 of your tanks water.

 

[siva]

Opinions on the pwc vary. I do 30% - 50% on my appropriately stocked tanks once a week so your overstocked tank will need atleast 50% at a time. Did you cycle your tank before adding fish or fill it with water and add them?

 

[Chelseachuy]

Opinions on the pwc vary. I do 30% - 50% on my appropriately stocked tanks once a week so your overstocked tank will need atleast 50% at a time. Did you cycle your tank before adding fish or fill it with water and add them?

yes when u mean by cycle u mean add the chemicals and stuff. because i did that. the stress coat and stress zyme. they didn't come into the tank straight from tap water lolol

 

[rain87]

yes when u mean by cycle u mean add the chemicals and stuff. because i did that. the stress coat and stress zyme. they didn't come into the tank straight from tap water lolol

You laugh when he says did you cycle the tank, but what we mean when we say cycle the tank is in referance to the nitrogen cycle. Did you do a fishless cycle to build up the bacteria that converts ammonia into nirites and then into nitrates? Because if not unless you want the fish to die you need to take them back and do one or check the water everyday and make the necessary water changes until you have completed the cycle. Do some research on cycling a fish tank and you can find step by step processes to do it either way.

 

[Chelseachuy]

i know i been researching everyday i still cannot comprehend the hole cycling but yes i had it running for three days and then i had the water tested at pets smart and they said it was ready for fish. but i been doing water changes doesn't seem to make a difference in the ammonia. but i cant take them back so i guess im doing the fish cycle so what exactly am i up against.

 

[siva]

Oh no, it is NOT cycled. It would take probably more like 6 weeks..not three days.

All of these fish will likely die. If I can stress one most important thing to you here, let it be to not listen to the staff at the fish store. What needs to happen here is you need to take the fish back to the store, and purchase the API liquid master test kit. Read here: http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forum...guide-and-faq-to-fishless-cycling-148283.html
Your time and effort will be well spent. The ram and the gourami aren't going to live through a cycle. And the barbs and ram can't be kept in a 10 gal tank anyway.

 

[Chelseachuy]

how often does the tank go through the cycle? ugh i wish they would of told me this.