Oxygen levels

[benharrison1uk]

today i brought some bronze corydoras and a hillstream loach for my aquarium. the corydoras keep darting up to the top of the tank then swimming back down again. does that mean i have low oxygen levels? my comet and shebunkin seem to be hanging round at the top lots as well. i have 3 plants and some weed floating about in the tank, but is this enough? would an aeration stone be worth buying? i have been told by the pet shop that they aren't totally necessary but i don't know how much knowledge they have really.

 

[Tiffi]

How big is the tank? What is your complete fishlist? How much surface agitation does the filter cause? How warm is the water?

 

[Fishyfanatic]

Cories like to dart to the top and take a gulp of air from the surface. It's nothing to worry about. You could try an air stone if you wanted, but they are not necessary. As long as you have surface aggitation, you will be fine. I use airstones because if the heater ever malfunctions and I don't realize it, the fish will at least have air at the higher temps.

 

[benharrison1uk]

i have 1 shebunkin, 2 goldfish, a comet, 2 bronze corydoras and a hillstream loach with 3 plants and some weed in a 60 litre tank. the temprature is about 22-24C(72-75F) because my mum has to have the house so fucking hot otherwise she gets cold my pump sucks water in through the bottom of the tank, and pumps it out at the top (its a rekord 60 tank) so i think there is some surface agitation but i wouldn't know if its enough or not

 

[benharrison1uk]

oh by the way i think 60 litres is 20 gallons, i keep forgetting most people use different measurements on this site, sorry

 

[Tiffi]

Your tank is a little fulll, but as long as your filter produces some surface agitation, plus you have some plants you should be fine. The water temperature is also not so high as that it would cause a low oxygen level. If the corys swim up and down the wall of the tank or just swim up shortly and go back down to the bottom you're fine.

Goldfish are just big waste producers, so you got to keep an eye on the water quality and make frequent water changes, that also brings oxygen into your tank .

 

[benharrison1uk]

ok thanks. for your help how frequently do you think i should make these changes and how much do you think i should replace everytime?

 

[Fishyfanatic]

Weekly at least 25%. Since you have a hefty bio-load going, be sure to do gravel vacs everytime you do water changes.

 

[benharrison1uk]

ok will do, thanx