Am i ready for fish?

[Kondoe]

hi guys. my new tank i think might just be ready for me to add fish. i just wanted to make sure with the pros before i go and kill everything

the tank is all running smoothly ammonia level is about 0.03-0.04 my temp is at 29-30 (will lower this to 26/27) NO2 = 0.3 NO3= 25 (needs a big water change right?) and PH=8.0 but i have just added some PH minus i am going to bring it down to about 7.0 any advice please guys im new to the hobby

 

[Hubert90]

hi guys. my new tank i think might just be ready for me to add fish. i just wanted to make sure with the pros before i go and kill everything

the tank is all running smoothly ammonia level is about 0.03-0.04 my temp is at 29-30 (will lower this to 26/27) NO2 = 0.3 NO3= 25 (needs a big water change right?) and PH=8.0 but i have just added some PH minus i am going to bring it down to about 7.0 any advice please guys im new to the hobby

I don't think u are ready! U haven't finished ur cycle! And regarding ur temp. Did u raise it on purpose or is it natural.

 

[Hubert90]

Also be careful using ph down and up, most brands contains phosphate and may lead to algae bloom

 

[Bettababe1011]

hi guys. my new tank i think might just be ready for me to add fish. i just wanted to make sure with the pros before i go and kill everything

the tank is all running smoothly ammonia level is about 0.03-0.04 my temp is at 29-30 (will lower this to 26/27) NO2 = 0.3 NO3= 25 (needs a big water change right?) and PH=8.0 but i have just added some PH minus i am going to bring it down to about 7.0 any advice please guys im new to the hobby

Ammonia and nitrites must be at zero. Nitrates can be to forty before it's a cause for worry. I prefer to have mine at ten or less.

The ph is fine. Most fish will adapt to almost any ph. A stable ph is more important than getting the 'perfect' ph. If your ph is that naturally, then you'll have ph fluctuations every time you do a water change. A fluctuating ph is more likely to kill a fish than a ph of 8.

 

[Kondoe]

i purposly made the water temp higher and water comes out of the tap at about 8.0 but when researching on the internet most of the fish i was looking to get prefer a PH of 6.5-7.5. and the ph down im using is 'sera PH minus'. my tank is in my basement so i don't get any direct sunlight on the tank and very rarely use any other lights other than the ones designed for aquariums. So if algae blooms tend to happen do i have a better chance of avoiding it?

 

[eco23]

Ammonia and nitrites must be at zero. Nitrates can be to forty before it's a cause for worry. I prefer to have mine at ten or less.

The ph is fine. Most fish will adapt to almost any ph. A stable ph is more important than getting the 'perfect' ph. If your ph is that naturally, then you'll have ph fluctuations every time you do a water change. A fluctuating ph is more likely to kill a fish than a ph of 8.

Absolutely agree. Saved me from having to type it out. If it was mandatory to keep a specific type of fish that absolutely needed a lower pH, I would lean towards natural ingredients like peat to lower it. But Bettababe is dead on that it is a major shock to the fish dung a pwc, without taking lots of extra time to prepare the new water before it is ever introduced to the tank.

The rule of thumb in 99% of cases is to find fish that suit your water...don't try to suit your water to your fish.

 

[Kondoe]

Absolutely agree. Saved me from having to type it out. If it was mandatory to keep a specific type of fish that absolutely needed a lower pH, I would lean towards natural ingredients like peat to lower it. But Bettababe is dead on that it is a major shock to the fish dung a pwc, without taking lots of extra time to prepare the new water before it is ever introduced to the tank.

The rule of thumb in 99% of cases is to find fish that suit your water...don't try to suit your water to your fish.

i think thats what i might have to do although at the moment my tank is empty so i am playing around with the water to get a bit more familiar with things and im thinking now i have a large rock in my tank could this be raising the PH? last night i added the PH minus and it dropped to 7.4 but this morning it's back up again so i can only think the rock is raising the PH level. i have taken it out now and will leave it that way for a couple of days and see if i get any change. i also have a few pieces of mango wood in the tank, i hear this lowers PH levels. i have also heard that tea lowers PH levels and i was told to try adding some tea. but this sounds silly to me but if you guys know anything about this would be a great help.

1 more thing we have a swimming pool so we always have a large stock of PH down but it is designed for swimming pools, i would think this is definetly not suitable for freshwater aquariums but i would be pleased to find i am wrong

 

[eco23]

i think thats what i might have to do although at the moment my tank is empty so i am playing around with the water to get a bit more familiar with things and im thinking now i have a large rock in my tank could this be raising the PH? last night i added the PH minus and it dropped to 7.4 but this morning it's back up again so i can only think the rock is raising the PH level. i have taken it out now and will leave it that way for a couple of days and see if i get any change. i also have a few pieces of mango wood in the tank, i hear this lowers PH levels. i have also heard that tea lowers PH levels and i was told to try adding some tea. but this sounds silly to me but if you guys know anything about this would be a great help.

1 more thing we have a swimming pool so we always have a large stock of PH down but it is designed for swimming pools, i would think this is definetly not suitable for freshwater aquariums but i would be pleased to find i am wrong

I'm not familiar with the specifics of how rocks affect pH, but I know they have to be prepared and sanitized before they are ever added to a tank. Without proper preparation they can leech things into the water as well as bringing in all sorts of nasties like fungus, parasites, mold, algae, etc... Same with wood. Driftwood contains tannins that leech out and will lower pH if also not properly prepared.

Personally I wouldn't worry about experimenting too much and just focus on creating a stable environment without using any chemicals or changing pH.

Have you cycled your tank? Judging by your parameters it doesn't appear to be complete. Check out the link in my signature, it'll give you some needed info.

 

[Kondoe]

the cycle isnt complete. and both the mango wood and rock has been thorughly boiled. the wood no longer tans the water i boiled everyday twice for about a week and kept the wood in water all the time. i also used a powerful jet wash on the wood and scrubbed them.
the fish i plan on keeping are rainbow shark tiger barbs golden nugget plecos ( or other plecos will do) red wag platy, dwarf gourami, clown and kuhli loaches,koi swordtail. maybe a few others but not 100% decided. my tank is 107 US gallons by the way.