mikedj - 20 Gallon Journey

[jlk]

My guess? Its really zero but compare it to distilled- if the distilled matches the spring (which matches your tank) then its reading zero. There isnt an exact explanation for this but I remember a lengthy post in respect to what is actually zero on one of my goldfish forums. Do you have any level of ammonia in your tap? It could just be trace residue from rinsing the tubes. I would not be very concerned.

 

[mikedj]

I do recall some ammonia in my tap water, but I don't remember the amount (I didn't log it). I'll measure it again.

Mike

 

[mikedj]

We picked up some distilled water today and made some more measurements.

Distilled water ammonia - 0.1 ppm
Spring water ammonia - 0.1 ppm

Tap water ammonia - 1.0 ppm

So it looks like we're probably cycled (woohoo!!). The only common element in our testing is the test tube, which is always rinsed in tap water. It is certainly conceivable that our tap water could be contaminating our results. I may try rinsing the tube with distilled water and see if the reading changes. I've also used up quite a bit of my ammonia testing solutions over the last three months, so I can also check it when we replace them and see if our results are different.

Now I'm reviewing procedures for adding fish. Our stocking plan at the moment is:
2 dwarf gourami
6 lemon tetra
6 celestial pearl danio (if we can find them)
1 albino long fin bristlenose pleco

We thought we'd start with the 2 gourami and see how that goes before adding anything else.

Thoughts?

Thanks,
Mike

 

[jlk]

Its zero! Rinsing the tubes well with distilled is a good idea! If you have been steadily dosing to 4ppm, your tank can handle a full bioload right now with ease but you can just as easily stock slowly if you want. If your looking for specific fish and your stores do not have them right now or they are unwell, dont worry about it as your bacteria will adjust both up and down as the stocking level changes (not necessarily in one day though!).

 

[mikedj]

Great info. I thought we'd start slow just to see how it goes, but a trip to the lfs may change our minds!! In any event, we're excited - my daughter can hardly believe it's true - we can actually get fish now!

I want to thank you for all of the help so far. You have really made our issues so much easier to deal with and it is much appreciated.

Thanks,
Mike

 

[mikedj]

WE HAVE FISH!!!!! After some more research and suggestions in a thread I started about male vs. female gouramis, we decided to start with the lemon tetras. I promised my daughter we would get fish today, but, unfortunately, most of the stores around here get their fish on Wednesday, so pickings were slim. We ended up finding 3 lemon tetras at Richmond Aqaurium and also got 3 bloodfin tetras. It is a very nice store and the folks there are very helpful. We'll probably add one or two more of each, but for now, we finally have inhabitants.

It's been a long road to this point, and I want to thank you all again for all of your help. We couldn't have done it without you!

Thanks,
Mike

 

[Fishperson]

Were you intending to get bloodfin tetras?
If not, you did the same thing I did. I fishless cycled my 20H 2 weeks ago, and decided to add fish slowly. I went into the store thinking about glowlights, but walked out with 5 bloodfins. I plan on getting 2 more soon, then eventually having:
7+ Bloodfin
7+ Rummynose tetras
1 Bolivian ram
Bloodfins are great fish, they are active, so I recommend feeding them 2-3 times a day. It sounded crazy at first, but it is true. Keep the temp around 75-80 for them to keep their true bright red fin color.

 

[redsea]

Congrats on your new fish Mike!

 

[mikedj]

Were you intending to get bloodfin tetras?
If not, you did the same thing I did. I fishless cycled my 20H 2 weeks ago, and decided to add fish slowly. I went into the store thinking about glowlights, but walked out with 5 bloodfins. I plan on getting 2 more soon, then eventually having:
7+ Bloodfin
7+ Rummynose tetras
1 Bolivian ram
Bloodfins are great fish, they are active, so I recommend feeding them 2-3 times a day. It sounded crazy at first, but it is true. Keep the temp around 75-80 for them to keep their true bright red fin color.

No, the bloodfins were not on the list. It was a last minute decision, but I think turned out to be a good one. They add a different dynamic than the lemons, more active, and yet get along well with the lemons. There's one lfs that should have some more lemons today, so I will probably pick up three more lemons and three more bloodfins. I didn't intend to replace our planned celestial pearl danio school with bloodfin tetras, but I may have to rethink that. We'll take it slow, do some more research and see how it goes.

We're running about 77° right now, lfs recommends targeting 78°, so I think we're good. And I actually TRUST this lfs. With most I'm, well, at the very least, skeptical.

Thanks for the info.

Mike

 

[mikedj]

Congrats on your new fish Mike!

Thanks.

Mike

 

[Fishperson]

Well, I hope you like them. I saw them in a tank at my lfs and just decided to get them. (but I researched first obviously)

 

[mikedj]

We definitely like the them. I just got back from the lfs to get some more.

Unfortunately, we lost one of our Lemon Tetras this afternoon. Not sure what happened, but it was the smallest of the group and stayed pretty inactive since we got it. The truth is, when I originally went to the lfs yesterday she had four, but one died before I got to the store, so we ended up with only three. Again, not sure what's up with all that.

The good news is new fish arrived at the other lfs (Fin & Feather) this afternoon, so we added to our schools. We now have 7 each of Lemon and Bloodfin Tetras. So far, they seem to be doing fine getting acquainted.

Mike

 

[redsea]

Congrats on more new fish! Do you have pictures?

 

[mikedj]

Soon...

 

[mikedj]

As promised, some photos. The tank was designed mostly by my 10 year old daughter.

Mike

 

[mikedj]

A couple more...

 

[redsea]

I love the fish, very nice!

 

[mikedj]

I love the fish, very nice!

Thanks,
Mike

 

[jlk]

Your daughter must be so happy to finally have fish!! Great job and I must commend you guys for your perseverance!

 

[mikedj]

Your daughter must be so happy to finally have fish!! Great job and I must commend you guys for your perseverance!

Yes, we're all very glad to have fish. Thanks for the kudos, it feels great to have it working now.

Unfortunately, we lost another lemon tetra today. He was swimming in circles, laying on the bottom, etc. I isolated him this morning and was researching what to do, but he didn't make it. Looks like maybe it was a swim bladder issue. This was #2 of the 3 we got the first day from the first lfs. I'm watching the third one closely for issues. He was on the less active side, but seems to be hanging with the others a little more today.

Mike