I know you'll cringe, but I need help lol

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danben

Aquarium Advice Apprentice
Joined
Mar 26, 2012
Messages
26
Location
Vaughan, Ontario, Canada
So this Saturday I was looking around the LFS just for fun, and decided that I'd get a betta, and probably just keep it in the bowl. BUT as my parents came over (they were at the grocery store just one over) they said why don't we get a tank, and so I'm like sure what the heck, but then we learned they were having a massive sale that day and so we decided we'd come back later and get the (this is where the cringing really starts :S) betta, a ten gallon tank (with a filter/heater/top/light with 8 white LEDS and 2 blue ones for 60 bucks in total), 10 feeder goldies, water conditioner, live bacteria liquid stuff, and some other waste decomposing liquid as well as food and gravel (just the usual starting stuff).
So, I knew enough that I had to let the tank cycle a bit and let the bacteria grow so I didn't put the fish right in, but me, knowing the small amount, thought a few hours was enough time and then I put the goldies as well as the betta in later that night (also turns out they gave me 11 goldies instead of 10). Everything seemed fine for a while and I added 2 rocks, a magnifying glass piece, and some odd amethyst looking rock (they were all boiled prior to insertion). So the fish were happy and the first day was fine.

Sunday morning was when the real trouble hit, first the food slipped when I was feeding them and instead of 10 flakes they got a load of about 100, and trying to get them with a net didn't really do much good. About half an hour after that, my filter stopped working so I took it apart and after a lot of fiddling and trial and error I got it to work, then I had to leave for the day (this was all at about 9 am).
I came back at about 6 that night and seeing as the water got cloudy I went to the closer pet store (not even a fish store just a small corner thing) and got some pleco's (at least I think that's what they are? catfish that eat the leftovers and waste?) cause I figured they would help in getting rid of a lot of the leftover flakes that I couldn't get out.

That night I ended up doing a lot of research and found this site, and then i learned all the tragic mistakes I had made.

So I woke up this morning and one of my goldies was dead (it was small and was stuck to the filter intake when I first saw it) but I freaked out and thought it was definitely some sort of poisoning instead of the intake just being too strong for it to resist. I also read that apparently the API testing kit is really great so I looked for one at the LFS but they only had a different company, and I didn't have much to spend so I wanted to only get the ammonia, nitrite, and a gravel vac, but didn't have enough money for even that so the guy at the counter said I could come back some other time for the gravel vac as it isn't as important (but he got cut off by the lady at the cash who seemed much more knowledgeable and she recommended getting only nitrite as if nitrite is high ammonia is as well, and so I could get the gravel vac)

I went home, tested the nitrite (showed 8 ppm) so I did a partial water change (but forgot to unplug my heater/filter, how bad is this? :S) but nothing terrible happened.

So now I'm here, and that was about an hour ago, everything looks fine, but I feel like I've made too many mistakes for my fish to survive more than a week so I need advice,

Thanks, and apologies for my "noob-iness".

-Ben
 
Wow what a story!!
Ok very first thing you need to do is 50% back to back water changes. Next bag all those goldfish and plecos and return them to the store ASAP. Not even one will be able to live in a 10g tank. They can reach 2 foot a piece.
Now for the good news :)
A 10g tanks is perfect for one Betta! He can stay and you can do a fish in cycle.
 
hi, thanks for the help,
the goldfish are small feeders and I feel it strange that at the LFS there were hundreds (if not more) in what seemed to be no more than a 75 gall, and that's what made me assume they can live in such small quarters, but nevermind that now.
and just for the record, how long does it take for the plecos to grow to a significant size? because I may be upgrading to a larger tank within 3-4 months, and if not then I have a few friends who may want them.

thanks again,
 
danben said:
hi, thanks for the help,
the goldfish are small feeders and I feel it strange that at the LFS there were hundreds (if not more) in what seemed to be no more than a 75 gall, and that's what made me assume they can live in such small quarters, but nevermind that now.
and just for the record, how long does it take for the plecos to grow to a significant size? because I may be upgrading to a larger tank within 3-4 months, and if not then I have a few friends who may want them.

thanks again,

At the LFS the fish are only temporarily housed there until sold so the tanks are over stocked quite significantly. Feeder goldfish are usually commons or comets. They can live for 20 years and reach 1.5-2 foot. They should be pushing a foot long by 3 years old. Not only do they get large they have an incredible amount of waste. Much more than another fish the same size.

Common plecos grow slightly slowler than goldfish. They can still grow 1/2 an inch a month if kept healthy. How big are yours now? You could probably keep them for a few months if need be. An adult common pleco can reach 2 foot long and requires a 125g tank just do the fish has adequate room to turn around. They also have high waste outputs. They eat and poop constantly.
 
my plecos (or at least like i said i'm pretty sure that's what they are) aren't even an inch as of now, so they should be fine for a while, however the issue with the goldies are that i can't return them to the store, so if worst comes to worst, i'll probably end up dumping them in the local pond
also, do you recommend getting a plant?
 
danben said:
my plecos (or at least like i said i'm pretty sure that's what they are) aren't even an inch as of now, so they should be fine for a while, however the issue with the goldies are that i can't return them to the store, so if worst comes to worst, i'll probably end up dumping them in the local pond
also, do you recommend getting a plant?

Don't just dump them somewhere. Make sure you have permission and they will be taken care of. Most stores have return or adoption policies. You might not get your money back but at least they won't be swimming in the toxic soup they have created in your tank.

Another thing I didn't mention is bettas require temperatures it 80F/27C and goldfish need cooler water in the low 70Fs/20Cs. They simply are not compatible.

How many plecos do you have? I really think you should return them with the goldfish unless you or a friend is getting a 125g tank in the next year.

Whats your lighting? What lighting you have will decide what plants you can have. One plant won't make much difference in water conditions.

Can you post a picture of the plecos?
 
Might not do it justice, but I can't get another picture atm, as for the lighting, the tank came with a cover that has 10 bright LED's, (8 white 2 blue)
I did another nitrite test after the pwc and got less than .1 ppm compared to the .8 I was getting before so that seemed to be at least one good thing

The thing with the tanks is that I may or may not be getting a much larger one, but if I decide not to later down the road, would a pet store adopt a maturing pleco?

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danben said:
Might not do it justice, but I can't get another picture atm, as for the lighting, the tank came with a cover that has 10 bright LED's, (8 white 2 blue)
I did another nitrite test after the pwc and got less than .1 ppm compared to the .8 I was getting before so that seemed to be at least one good thing

The thing with the tanks is that I may or may not be getting a much larger one, but if I decide not to later down the road, would a pet store adopt a maturing pleco?

That sir, is a bronze corydora. They only get 3 inches max and don't eat algae. They are bottom scavengers and like to be in groups of 6 or more. 20g Long tank minimum. Most definitely not a pleco! :) good news for you!

Keep up the water changes twice a day until you can get a proper liquid test kit. That way you know there aren't enough toxins to harm the fish.

As for the light it will be enough for moss and *maybe* anubias.
 
O thank goodness... I had a feeling something was off, but I wasn't sure because they kinda looked like mini versions to a beginner like me
So yeah hopefully I'll get the rest of the kit (nitrate, ammonia, iron, ph) soon but until then I'll keep up the pwc's
 
danben said:
O thank goodness... I had a feeling something was off, but I wasn't sure because they kinda looked like mini versions to a beginner like me
So yeah hopefully I'll get the rest of the kit (nitrate, ammonia, iron, ph) soon but until then I'll keep up the pwc's

I bit if a relief :) They will be fine in the 10g for now but will need a bigger tank in a few months. They aren't the fastest of growers.
I suggest getting the API master test kit. It's the best for the money. It's cheaper online (amazon) about $20. Make sure you get a liquid test kit not strips. They are cheaper now but the liquid lasts longer and is a lot more accurate. The strips can read 0 but really have high ammonia and nitrite.
 
I may not have said this earlier but I saw the tester kit ( not API, but nutrafin, still liquid) at my lfs for 40 bucks but you could buy the testers for each chemical separately so I did just that and got nitrite, I learned enough about strips when checking ph in chem to know they're not very great
So yeah hopefully everything's going to be fine for now, and I'll definitely do some more research as I go on
 
Well your almost all sorted! :)
All you need is the test kit, new home for the Goldies and some time to do a water change or two each day. :) read the articles I posted above and they will explain the cycling process.
 
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