Started ten gallon kit, now what? :)

[AquaMan779]

So impatience got me again, lol. After seeing my nitrites had gone down to 0.0 while ammonia stayed around 2.0, I added more quick start two days ago. The nitrites did not go up and stayed at 0.0 when I tested yesterday, so I decided to do a 50% water change. My tank is on the ground and I had a tough time using the syphon, so I just used the empty water bottle to empty the water. I think if I cut some of the tubing the syphon might be easier to use.

I made sure to use the tap water conditioner and added the water.

I'll test parameters again for a couple of days before I decide if I should dose ammonia and quick start again.

Thanks everyone for your help!

 

[Aiken Drum]

Syphoning from a tank on the ground will be difficult. You can only syphon from a high point to a low point. You might get a little flow if the tank is taller than the bucket, but as more water is taken from the tank and the level drops closer to the level in the bucket, the flow will reduce and eventually stop.

 

[Caliban07]

You can buy a cheap pond pump and put some hosing on it to pump the water in to a bucket. Will need to have good head pressure but thats what I used to do on my 200l tanks

 

[m.j.gomez]

Hello, I was on Facebook & saw this discussion about mixing 2 brands of bottled bacteria. Thought you would be interested. Hope this helps!!!!! Here's link.
https://aquariumscience.org/index.php/2-8-bacteria-in-a-bottle/

 

[AquaMan779]

Syphoning from a tank on the ground will be difficult. You can only syphon from a high point to a low point. You might get a little flow if the tank is taller than the bucket, but as more water is taken from the tank and the level drops closer to the level in the bucket, the flow will reduce and eventually stop.

I have to admit that reading this and the difficulty I had attempting to syphon, along with the water parameters not changing as fast as I wanted them to lessened my enthusiasm a great deal. I got pretty discouraged, but this is my fault because I did not research enough.

I just tried to rush through everything as usual. Good news is that the ph is back up to being light blue (I didn't check the numbers) and the ammonia is finally starting to show some yellow after the water change (thank you for that suggestion!)! I am getting some enthusiasm again, so thank you for recommending the water change! Thank you for your help!

 

[AquaMan779]

You can buy a cheap pond pump and put some hosing on it to pump the water in to a bucket. Will need to have good head pressure but thats what I used to do on my 200l tanks

This made me feel a lot better! I did not know how I'd be able to vacuum my tank and was starting to think I had to plant a whole lot more and make sure I had the cory doras in order to have a chance at keeping the tank clean. I will research the pump and cleaning methods so that I am better prepared. Much appeciated!

 

[AquaMan779]

Hello, I was on Facebook & saw this discussion about mixing 2 brands of bottled bacteria. Thought you would be interested. Hope this helps!!!!! Here's link.
https://aquariumscience.org/index.php/2-8-bacteria-in-a-bottle/View attachment 324701

Definitely does help! Now I wont worry at all about the quickstart because this definitely seems ineffective. The fritz ammonia seems like a good deal though. Thanks for taking the time to post this for me to see!

 

[Aiken Drum]

This made me feel a lot better! I did not know how I'd be able to vacuum my tank and was starting to think I had to plant a whole lot more and make sure I had the cory doras in order to have a chance at keeping the tank clean. I will research the pump and cleaning methods so that I am better prepared. Much appeciated!

There are also gravel vacs with built in pumps that would work for vacuuming out if your tank is too low for a syphon to operate.

For example.

https://fluvalaquatics.com/uk/product/pro-vac-powered-aquarium-gravel-cleaner/

 

[Caliban07]

This made me feel a lot better! I did not know how I'd be able to vacuum my tank and was starting to think I had to plant a whole lot more and make sure I had the cory doras in order to have a chance at keeping the tank clean. I will research the pump and cleaning methods so that I am better prepared. Much appeciated!

You don’t really need to vacuum and you don’t really need to change water but it depends on how your tank is running, how many plants you have, your stocking levels etc. For the vast majority of people though it is a good idea to advise on doing water changes but just know that water changes do not define the success of aquariums.

 

[AquaMan779]

There are also gravel vacs with built in pumps that would work for vacuuming out if your tank is too low for a syphon to operate.

For example.

https://fluvalaquatics.com/uk/product/pro-vac-powered-aquarium-gravel-cleaner/

Did not even know that these existed! Makes things much easier for my mind now. I think I was also upset because I bought a Hyggar water changer for around $50 US and it did not fit on my faucet. Then when I rushed to try to vacuum without researching how, I got frustrated thinking I wasn't going to be able to clean my tank.

I feel much better now because I'm starting to see positive changes in the water parameters! The ammonia came back at anywhere from 0 - 0.50 ppm today (I couldn't really tell but I am happy that the levels are lowering without me doing any water changes) and the nitrites are around .25 ppm. Nitrates are in the orange area, but I didn't really pay too much attention because I know those results may not be accurate at this stage of the cycle. The pH is around 6.4 or 6.6 ppm so I'm happy that the levels are still readable. I'm able to see now that I'm almost there!

Thank you for your help, chap!

 

[AquaMan779]

You don’t really need to vacuum and you don’t really need to change water but it depends on how your tank is running, how many plants you have, your stocking levels etc. For the vast majority of people though it is a good idea to advise on doing water changes but just know that water changes do not define the success of aquariums.

Thanks, man! When I was unsure of whether or not vacuuming was possible with my set up, I was thinking about doing lots and lots of plants because of your heavily planted aquarium as well as some that I saw on YouTube over the years where water changes, vacuuming and even filtration were not necessary. I still would have kept the filter, and I may try this sort of setup eventually as I gain more experience. The whole independent ecosystem thing seems so cool to me.

I've been wanting an aquarium and researching tanks since maybe late 2017 or early 2018, so I am really happy to finally be moving so far along on this journey now.

Thanks your kind words and help, Caliban! You helped get me to where I am today. Much appreciated!

 

[AquaMan779]

Hello, I was on Facebook & saw this discussion about mixing 2 brands of bottled bacteria. Thought you would be interested. Hope this helps!!!!! Here's link.
https://aquariumscience.org/index.php/2-8-bacteria-in-a-bottle/View attachment 324701

Wanted to thank you again for this chart, because I stopped putting so much pressure on myself when I saw this data. All this talk about having an aquarium ready in a couple of weeks because of these bottled bacteria made me want to reach that unattainable time table.

Now I'll have my own established tank filter material for my next tank which will actually help in making the process much faster.

Very grateful that you thought of me when you saw this info. Much appreciated!

 

[AquaMan779]

So after over two months I believe I am finally cycled!

I noticed some brown fuzzy stuff on the glass and my research told me it was algae. I then saw that people said a nerite snail would clean that up. I also saw a couple of people saying that this is a sign that a cycling tank may be finished cycling.

I read all that last night and then decided this morning to buy another plant and a nerite snail. I put both in there today after I tested for ammonia and nitrites, which both came back as 0 ppm.

I plan on getting algae wafers, crushed coral, and possibly a calcium supplement to make sure the snail stays as healthy as can be.

Funny how once I "forgot" about the tank it cycled soon after.

I'm waiting for the site that I found to get pygmy corys again. Then I'll order them and some emerald dwarf rasboras.

Thanks for all your help, friends!

 

[Aiken Drum]

The crushed coral needs acidic water to disolve and your post #1 indicates your pH is 7.4 so its unlikely the coral will do anything. Im not sure what the calcium supplement you mention is, but if its a block of calcium carbonate, again that needs to disolve and it wont do that in high pH water.

Higher pH is often (but not always) caused by calcium carbonate in the local water, so you may not need to do anything to supply enough calciu.. Do you know if you have hard or soft water? Do you get limescale build up on your kettle? If you dont know your water company should be able to tell you. With a high pH you don't have to worry about acidic water disolving the snails shell and you can supply calcium through feeding foods like blanched cucumber or zucchini. Ive got a tank full of nerites and ive never had to provide them with any calcium.

Did you continue to dose ammonia while you "forgot" about the tank?

 

[AquaMan779]

The crushed coral needs acidic water to disolve and your post #1 indicates your pH is 7.4 so its unlikely the coral will do anything. Im not sure what the calcium supplement you mention is, but if its a block of calcium carbonate, again that needs to disolve and it wont do that in high pH water.

Higher pH is often (but not always) caused by calcium carbonate in the local water, so you may not need to do anything to supply enough calciu.. Do you know if you have hard or soft water? Do you get limescale build up on your kettle? If you dont know your water company should be able to tell you. With a high pH you don't have to worry about acidic water disolving the snails shell and you can supply calcium through feeding foods like blanched cucumber or zucchini. Ive got a tank full of nerites and ive never had to provide them with any calcium.

Did you continue to dose ammonia while you "forgot" about the tank?

Sorry for the late reply, Mr. Drum!

I dosed ammonia once, but put too much in. Went to 4.0 ppm. That's when I "forgot" about the tank because I should have just let it sit and do its thing instead of testing every day, adding chemicals all the time, and things like that.

I ended up going to my LFS last week and was going to ask if I could get some filter media. The guy stopped me before I even got to ask the question because I told him I was cycling my tank for two months. He said I didn't have to do it that long, etc. Afterwards, I thought maybe he said that so I could start buying stuff, but I don't know.

Either way, what he said stayed with me and I decided to test for ammonia and saw none, so I decided to get another plant and the nerite snail to if the tank was livable.

The pH was good at the start of the tank, but for whatever reason went down to undetectable levels after close to a month or so. That's why I got the crushed coral. The calcium is from those Wonder Shells. I got both today and immediately put them in.

I also ordered my pygmy corydoras today! Hopefully they'll be here next week. I got twelve so they can have a big shoal for a ten gallon tank and be happy. I want to get more plants before they arrive so that they have plenty of spaces to hide if they want. I just hope the crushed coral is not going to be too sharp for them.

Oh, and I plan on feeding the nerite snail blanched spinach because I always have some. I will give zucchini and cucumber from time to time as well.

Any suggestions you may have would be appreciated as always, my friend.

 

[Aiken Drum]

Cycling takes as long as takes. The guy in the store doesn't understand how to do a fishless cycle and is trying to get you to buy things.

To be cycled sufficiently to moderately stock a tank you need to be able to cycle out 2ppm of ammonia in 24 hours. You have no idea if you are at that stage. Cycling out 4ppm of ammonia in however long it took is not the same as cycling out 2ppm ammonia in 24 hours. You may or may not have water quality issues when your fish arrive, and you may need to complete your cycle with fish.

12 fish in a 10 gallon is a lot of bioload to add to a tank that might not be cycled. Adding a snail wont really tell you anything. The amount waste produced by 1 snail is not the same as the amount of waste produced by 1 snail + 12 fish.

 

[AquaMan779]

Cycling takes as long as takes. The guy in the store doesn't understand how to do a fishless cycle and is trying to get you to buy things.

To be cycled sufficiently to moderately stock a tank you need to be able to cycle out 2ppm of ammonia in 24 hours. You have no idea if you are at that stage. Cycling out 4ppm of ammonia in however long it took is not the same as cycling out 2ppm ammonia in 24 hours. You may or may not have water quality issues when your fish arrive, and you may need to complete your cycle with fish.

12 fish in a 10 gallon is a lot of bioload to add to a tank that might not be cycled. Adding a snail wont really tell you anything. The amount waste produced by 1 snail is not the same as the amount of waste produced by 1 snail + 12 fish.

I read a comment somewhere when I was researching what the brown fuzzy stuff was that the algae was a sign of a tank being cycled. I read what I wanted to see and didn't want to see any contradictory information so I didn't search for any. I wanted animals in the tank so I got the snail. He seems to be doing fine.

The place I got the fish from only sell in groups of six, so I got twelve because I wanted them to be comfortable. I don't think I can get any other fish now, but that's fine. I also knew that I might have to do a fish-in cycle now, but I got a new pump so that should help with water changes if I need to.

I'm thinking of getting another nerite snail, but am uncertain because I don't want eggs all over the place. I may get a couple of cherry shrimp too.

 

[Aiken Drum]

You have cycled out 4ppm of ammonia over however long it took. So will be cycled to some degree. The only way to know if you are sufficiently cycled to fully stock a tank would be to either dose it with ammonia and see how long it takes to cycles out (this would probably kill your snail) or to stock the tank and see what happens to the water quality and the fish.

It would have been far safer to gradually add fish. This would put less waste in the tank in one go and if your tank isnt sufficiently cycled you wouldn't overload the system.

The brown algae is diatoms. These are organisms that are feeding on nutrient imbalances, most notably nitrate in the water and silicates from the substrate. They tend to die off once the silicates die off. They are a sign the processes in the tank are establishing, but not a sign you are cycled.

A 10g tank with 12 pygmy corys is pretty much fully stocked. I wouldnt recommend any more fish. If you wanted to keep some other fish too i would cancel the order for 6 of the 12 corys.

Female nerite snails will lay eggs. Male nerite snails wont. They dont need a male and female for the female to lay eggs, she just will. You have a 50/50 chance of nerite snail eggs with the one snail you have. Their eggs will look like little white sesame seeds, and they will get laid on any driftwood you have, rocks, any artificial decorations and the tanks glass. They are a PITA to remove. I used to pick them off driftwood with a dental scalpel, but now just accept have them in the tank because its too much effort to remove them.

The eggs wont hatch in freshwater, but unless you remove them they will stay there for the duration.

 

[AquaMan779]

You have cycled out 4ppm of ammonia over however long it took. So will be cycled to some degree. The only way to know if you are sufficiently cycled to fully stock a tank would be to either dose it with ammonia and see how long it takes to cycles out (this would probably kill your snail) or to stock the tank and see what happens to the water quality and the fish.

It would have been far safer to gradually add fish. This would put less waste in the tank in one go and if your tank isnt sufficiently cycled you wouldn't overload the system.

The brown algae is diatoms. These are organisms that are feeding on nutrient imbalances, most notably nitrate in the water and silicates from the substrate. They tend to die off once the silicates die off. They are a sign the processes in the tank are establishing, but not a sign you are cycled.

A 10g tank with 12 pygmy corys is pretty much fully stocked. I wouldnt recommend any more fish. If you wanted to keep some other fish too i would cancel the order for 6 of the 12 corys.

Female nerite snails will lay eggs. Male nerite snails wont. They dont need a male and female for the female to lay eggs, she just will. You have a 50/50 chance of nerite snail eggs with the one snail you have. Their eggs will look like little white sesame seeds, and they will get laid on any driftwood you have, rocks, any artificial decorations and the tanks glass. They are a PITA to remove. I used to pick them off driftwood with a dental scalpel, but now just accept have them in the tank because its too much effort to remove them.

The eggs wont hatch in freshwater, but unless you remove them they will stay there for the duration.

You are very knowledgeable!

I am thinking about changing my order to six thanks to your suggestion. I wanted to make the $12.99 shipping worth it and order more than six fish, but I know it's better to add the fish slowly. I'm thinking of getting some red cherry shrimp to replace the six less pygmy corydoras. I don't think the bioload will be too bad. I'd have to buy ten at minimum.

I said that I lucked out with my nerite snail because I haven't seen any eggs yet. I'll refrain from dosing ammonia in fairness to him.

Do you have any stocking ideas for other fish that can get along with corydoras, snails, and possibly shrimp?

Thanks, man!

 

[Aiken Drum]

Id give it a couple of months before deciding whether its M/F. Ive heard of people keeping nerites in isolation for 2 or 3 months and if they lay eggs, let's be kind and say they returned them to the pet store and got another and tried that one in isolation. Only adding them to their display tanks once they are sure they have a male.

As to other fish to add. For a 10g tank, how about 4 or 5 guppies? All males if you want to be 100% of no babies. Or some females if you might like to try breeding in the future. They come in a variety of colours etc.