Hi there, new here and fairly new to the hobby. I've got a 5.5 gal tank with a betta, 5 ghost shrimp, and live plants doing very well.... So of course I need another tank. My new tank is more ambitious so I'd like to get some eyes-on from the pros in case I'm doing anything seriously wrong.
- 20 gallon long tank, hood, upgraded the lamp to some blue-spectrum thing that looks nice and is supposed to be better than the stock aqueon one.
- Flourite sand substrate. Rinsing it was hell but I think I got it.
- Tetra 20 filter. Is it enough?
- Fairly heavily planted to start, intending on adding even more plants. I have a large gnarly piece of driftwood that I tied java moss onto. I also added pennywort, dwarf pearlgrasss pieces to hopefully spread out as a carpet, a tiny clipping of crypt something from my betta tank, a moss ball, and a couple pieces of anubias.
- The local fish store (serious hobby store not a chain) had a deal on rainbowfish so I got 2 madagascars, 5 threadfin. They're juvenilles, about 1.5-2 inches each. A couple of the female threadfins are just 1 inch.
- Using liquid CO2. I'm half-dosing the CO2 as per the fish store guy's advice. Can anyone recommend this strategy?
- And I'm using Seachem Flourish tabs... Is the liquid better?
- Today is day three of cycling with Seachem Prime. Haven't tested anything yet.
- The fish are schooling nicely and are active except for one threadfin who hides alone. I'm worried about him. He did that from the moment I got him so it's not a chemical thing I don't think.
CONCERNS:
1) The betta did fine when I cycled with Prime, however I'm worried that maybe the rainbows will not. Should I have used cheaper/fewer fish?
2)The guys at the fish store said that madagascar rainbowfish will get about 4" in length but websites I'm reading day 5-6 inches. That seems too large for my tank.
3) They're new and still adjusting, but the madagascars are voracious eaters and the threadfins are very timid and not really eating. And they have such tiny mouths, I had to put shrimp food (that dusty sinking stuff) in there, and even then they only ate a bit. And once food hits the substrate they don't seem interested in it. In my betta tank the ghost shrimp gobble up anything that falls but in this tank so far it's looking like a problem. I'm going to need a strategy here.
4) I'm planning on adding some red cherry/crystal shrimp at some point after the tank cycles. How long should I wait in order for the tank to get "dirty" enough for them?
5) I'm looking at other fish after the cycle, Dwarf Kameka Rainbowfish, maybe some neons or something. Right now there's a lot of open space.
6) Is liquid CO2 okay or do I need a diffuser system?
7) I live in an area with hard water. Do I need to do anything about that? I'm just using tap water with seachem prime.
Advice? Is there anything I'm doing wrong? Thanks!
- 20 gallon long tank, hood, upgraded the lamp to some blue-spectrum thing that looks nice and is supposed to be better than the stock aqueon one.
- Flourite sand substrate. Rinsing it was hell but I think I got it.
- Tetra 20 filter. Is it enough?
- Fairly heavily planted to start, intending on adding even more plants. I have a large gnarly piece of driftwood that I tied java moss onto. I also added pennywort, dwarf pearlgrasss pieces to hopefully spread out as a carpet, a tiny clipping of crypt something from my betta tank, a moss ball, and a couple pieces of anubias.
- The local fish store (serious hobby store not a chain) had a deal on rainbowfish so I got 2 madagascars, 5 threadfin. They're juvenilles, about 1.5-2 inches each. A couple of the female threadfins are just 1 inch.
- Using liquid CO2. I'm half-dosing the CO2 as per the fish store guy's advice. Can anyone recommend this strategy?
- And I'm using Seachem Flourish tabs... Is the liquid better?
- Today is day three of cycling with Seachem Prime. Haven't tested anything yet.
- The fish are schooling nicely and are active except for one threadfin who hides alone. I'm worried about him. He did that from the moment I got him so it's not a chemical thing I don't think.
CONCERNS:
1) The betta did fine when I cycled with Prime, however I'm worried that maybe the rainbows will not. Should I have used cheaper/fewer fish?
2)The guys at the fish store said that madagascar rainbowfish will get about 4" in length but websites I'm reading day 5-6 inches. That seems too large for my tank.
3) They're new and still adjusting, but the madagascars are voracious eaters and the threadfins are very timid and not really eating. And they have such tiny mouths, I had to put shrimp food (that dusty sinking stuff) in there, and even then they only ate a bit. And once food hits the substrate they don't seem interested in it. In my betta tank the ghost shrimp gobble up anything that falls but in this tank so far it's looking like a problem. I'm going to need a strategy here.
4) I'm planning on adding some red cherry/crystal shrimp at some point after the tank cycles. How long should I wait in order for the tank to get "dirty" enough for them?
5) I'm looking at other fish after the cycle, Dwarf Kameka Rainbowfish, maybe some neons or something. Right now there's a lot of open space.
6) Is liquid CO2 okay or do I need a diffuser system?
7) I live in an area with hard water. Do I need to do anything about that? I'm just using tap water with seachem prime.
Advice? Is there anything I'm doing wrong? Thanks!