Next Steps- 10g with Beta

[AmeliaB]

Thank you everyone for all of your comments. It has been awhile, but I have my 10 gallon set up and I almost finished with the fishless cycle. I have some more questions about my next steps.

1. I dose my aquarium up to 4ppm ammonia, and within 24 hours I am back to 0 ammonia, 0 nitrites, but my nitrates are off the chart. Should I do like a 90% water change and then see where it is at in 24 hours?

2. Once my nitrates are stabilized I am thinking about stocking with the following items:

-6 tetras
-2 African dwarf frogs
-1 African sword plant
-1 Hornwort plant

Then, after everyone has settled in, I will but my Beta fish in. What do you think of the stocking and how long do you think I should wait before adding the Beta?

3. Are there directions on how to add fish? (I've heard of drip acclimating but I don't actually know what it is.

4. The reason I said I would vacuum the gravel is that I thought that the good bacteria grew on everything. therefore, I don't want to vacuum the gravel because I will loose the good bacteria. Thoughts?

Thank you for all of your help. This site is awesome and I will continue to read.

Amelia

 

[librarygirl]

Thank you everyone for all of your comments. It has been awhile, but I have my 10 gallon set up and I almost finished with the fishless cycle. I have some more questions about my next steps.

1. I dose my aquarium up to 4ppm ammonia, and within 24 hours I am back to 0 ammonia, 0 nitrites, but my nitrates are off the chart. Should I do like a 90% water change and then see where it is at in 24 hours?

2. Once my nitrates are stabilized I am thinking about stocking with the following items:

-6 tetras
-2 African dwarf frogs
-1 African sword plant
-1 Hornwort plant

Then, after everyone has settled in, I will but my Beta fish in. What do you think of the stocking and how long do you think I should wait before adding the Beta?

3. Are there directions on how to add fish? (I've heard of drip acclimating but I don't actually know what it is.

4. The reason I said I would vacuum the gravel is that I thought that the good bacteria grew on everything. therefore, I don't want to vacuum the gravel because I will loose the good bacteria. Thoughts?

Thank you for all of your help. This site is awesome and I will continue to read.

Amelia

If your tank is clearing 4 PPM in 24 hours and your nitrite is 0 (did you already have the spike?) I'd say your cycled. Test it a few more days to be sure but it looks like you're good to go (as long as nitrites have already spiked and came down). Nitrates willl keep climbing, that's what they do; the only way to get rid of them is through water changes (hence the weekly water change you'll need to do to keep the nitrates below 20 once you get fish). Since they are so high you may need to do a couple of large water changes to get them down. The night before you get fish: do 1-2 100% water changes and test nitrates after, be sure they are as low as you can get them (<10 is good, <5 is best), turn your heater down, and don't add any more ammonia.

As for your stocking, I'm not sure about the ADF in that tank, particularly with those fish. ADFs are nearly blind and would need to be target fed. Also they zip up for air and come back down quickly; something I doubt the betta would appreciate. The Tetras may be too busy/small for the ADFs too depending on what type they are. I woudl suggest sending Siva a private message; she's a member here with ADF experience. There's also an Amphibian Care forum you could ask on.

For adding fish, the drip method is best (link to some info; youtube also has some good how-to videos). Alternatively you could float the bag on your tank and every 20 minutes or so add some tank water to the bag and do this until the volume of the water in the bag has doubled. Some even pour out water and do it again (don't let the bag water get into your tank though). Then pour the bag of water with the fish into a net to catch the fish and net them into your tank.

You should vacuum the gravel regularly; a lot of uneated food and waste can build up which could cause unhealthy water, toxin spikes and fish illness. Most of the bacteria are in the filter media. Vacuuming the gravel won't remove any BB from the substrate.

 

[steez]

I am in no way saying that what librarygirl said is wrong, but with the ADF thing.. I had 2 ADF's with a Betta for several months. Never a single issue. But the betta hated Ghost Shrimp, and killed them off. Some Betta's just have a bigger attitude than others. Just adding my personal experience with it! GL!

 

[WhiteWolf]

I have a Betta with two ADFs in a 10 gallon. Mine has also killed all of the ghost shrimp I have tried to keep with him. I don't think he would ever tolerate living with another fish, but he is fine with the frogs. I'm sure it depends on the personality of the fish, but mine is pretty aggressive.

I am not going to add anything else to the tank because there is a Nerite Snail in there as well. I feel like you would be overstocked with all of those fish in there, but I am fairly new at this.

 

[librarygirl]

Thanks everyone, it probably depends on the demeanor of the fish. The Betta and frogs might be OK in there, or a Betta and the Tetras, but probably not all three. Also I'd just be prepared and have another tank ready just in case the mixture doesn't work out, then you could separate the ADFs into their own tank. Read up on feeding them though; they have different food requirements than the fish (H&H Tadpole Bites I've read are good for them, as well as some meaty foods) and you'll need to target feed them to ensure they are being fed.