tanks set up and waiting on test kit..

[angel4335]

im gonna order the test kit from bigal's but i noticed they den't test for chlorine? i've heard many mentions on this site that mention dechlorinators, but do you need another type of test to make sure its working? is it possible to put too much in?
and on the same topic sorta.. my tank from walmart came with a trial size of a water conditioner called AquaSafe made by Tetra, anyone know if this is any good?

also, i was trying to read more into the cycleing process, cuz well, i think i understand what happens during the nitrate cycle, i have to say i find the adding ammonia method a bit intimadating.. i've heard mentions in other posts about using shrimp or fish food, does this work as well? or any differently for that matter? i cant seem to find any solid information on either method.

also, im still very undecided on fish. the closest store that sells any kind of fish is a walmart, with some basics. has anyone had any experance buying fish from walmart?
the next closest store would be in another town, maybe 30min to an hour away im not sure. but theres a store there that deals mainly in fish. how long do you think fish can go between store and your tank?

more questions to come im sure.. but i'll go read some more posts

Edit - Oh and we now have ALOT of bubbles in our tank.. we went to walmart cuz i wanted A bubble stone.. and of course my boyfriend came too, so now we have 3 bubble stones in my 29 gallon tank, the back wall.. well its actually like 2 inches maybe from the back wall, is covered in bubbles, it is indeed amazing to sit and watch, especially concidering we havent gotten any fish yet. but will this be a problem when we do get fish? will it be too much for them?

Sorry for such a long post!

 

[jcarlilesiu]

ok lots of questions...

first of all.. you are seeing lots of bubbles sticking to the glass, because its a new tank and there isn't a "slime coat" on the glass yet that sheds the bubbles. I will go away in time. As far as having too many bubbles, I don't think that will be a problem unless you are planning a live planted tank with CO2 injection, otherwise it is just keeping the water very oxygenated for your fish, which they like.

I use the same water treatment you do. When ever i do a water change, i treat the WHOLE tank volume per the instructions not just the what i changed out. I don't believe that there is any test kit for chlorine because it would be pointless. If you left a glass of water out overnight, the chlorine would mostly disipate from the water over night. If you don't have any fish in the tank yet, its really not worth your time to add any of the water treatment to my knowledge until right before you add fish.

If you want to cycle using a RAW shrimp, that shouldn't be a problem. Just pick one up at the store and drop it in. Make sure to get a test kit which measures ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate plus PH as you will need this to know when your cycle is complete. Check out the stickies at the top of the forum as there is alot of information regarding the cycling.

As far as transporting fish. I wouldnt think that 30 minutes to an hour would be harmful to the fish in the bag. Just don't go shopping on the way home . Also beware that the cycle will take anywhere from 4-8 weeks to complete, so you shouldn't really add any fish until then.

HTH

 

[ringfinger]

I drive 45 minutes to get my fish, and haven't had any problems. It is well worth the effort to drive farther and pay more for quality fish. All it takes is one sick fish from Walmart to screw up the tank you have worked so hard for.

 

[quitters]

i think you should still add dechlorinator because chloriine kills the good bacteria as well as fish from what i hear

 

[Mazdaman]

correct, use dechlor right from the start. With most dechlorinators there is no harm with overdosing. You also don't need to treat for whole tank, just the amount of water you are adding. You are openeing a small can of worms by asking about walmart and the fish dept. Alot of folks on here don't care for the way walmart keeps their fish and the lack of fish keeping knowledge by most of the staff.
A few tips for buying fish from anywhere: lok closely at the tank and the fish in tank you are buying from. Look form any dead fish or fish parts, if you see any avoid that tank. Any sign of disease or fish gasping from air, don't buy from that tank. Look for white spots or growths on any of the fish, see any, don't buy. Last always pick your fish, don't settle for just whatever ends up in the net, try and get the most active and largest in the tank, they are usually the oldest and healthiest. Use a QT if possible, if not do not dump any of the lfs water into your tank. Good luck

 

[7Enigma]

Angel, the only thing I'd add is that if going to the far away fish store (which I recommend as well) bring along a styrofoam container to put them in. You didn't put your location in your profile so if your in an area that is colder or warmer than your tank (most likely), you want to adjust the temperature of the fish as SLOWLY as possible. Going from tropical temps (~78F), into a cold car, then driving home and plopping them into a tropical temp again can cause stress even if you slowly acclimate by floating the bag in the tank. Bringing along a styrofoam container and putting the bags of fish in will make it much less stressful. But that's a ways off since you need to complete your cycle.

Personally I'd go the ammonia route since its the easiest and most accurate way to cycle the tank (not to mention the cleanest ). As long as you have the liquid test kit from Big Al's (Aquarium Pharmaceuticals Master Freshwater Test kit is a GREAT one), you cannot mess up the cycle. Just make sure its pure ammonia without any additives and you can just add a small amount and test the water. When you've added enought to get close to 5ppm, your all set; just sit back and wait for the cycle to get going.

Oh, and since you doing this fishless, bump the tank temp up to the low-mid 80's as this will speed up the cycle as well. Do keep the water level slightly below full if you have a HOB filter so that the bacteria get enough oxygen.

Goodluck!

justin

 

[Macrosill]

If you go the shrimp route take the shell off it, it will decompose faster. I learned this the hard way and it is not really mentioned often.

As far as the condition of the fish in the tank at the lfs look closely but remember that most lfs, in my area anyway, have all there tanks connected to a main filtration system. If something is in one tank then it is in all of them. There will always bee a dead fish in a lfs no matter how good they are. What matters is how fast they remove it and if they know what caused it and fix the problem. If they just let the carcass float in the tank then I would avoid the store all together.

Good Luck,
Brian

Good Luck,
Brian