soo yea i messed up

[freak45]

soo i got a 10gallon tank i did some research but i think i'm gonna kill my fish i'm trying not too
i forogot to do a cycle without my fish and being in a apartment alone was kind of lonely soo i rushed it..so now i'm doing fish in cycling but i'm doing 20% water changes everyday to combat my ph and scooping out unused food...i also messed cuz i got the test strips when i should have bought the api tester no petsmart in my area soo i'm doing a massive online order in a few days plus i'm getting a 20 gallon tank with stand for my glofish aka my danios i have 8 of them and a pleco..which i just read that i should rehome my pleco beause he needs a 55gallon tank ..last time i every get fish at walmart..sorry for being a rookie..but now i'm starting to learn

i guess my question is am i doom or do you think i'll be ok till i get my 20 gallon and cycle that when i get it and then transfer my fish over...and do i feed my pleco its algea tabs at night..and my danios everyday?

 

[librarygirl]

Hi and welcome! I would do 50% water changes daily until you can get a test kit (make sure to dechlorinate the water first). Don't try to mess with the PH; it can cause more harm than good and the fish will adapt to your PH as long as it's stable. It's the ammonia and nitrite levels in the tank now that you want to be concerned about.

What kind of pleco is it, do you know? If it's a common, yes they grow very large and will need a larger tank as it matures. How large is it now? The danios could use a larger tank too. I'd get the 20 gal now and move the fish in and continue the fish in cycle with the fish you have now (when you get the larger tank, move the filter from the 10 gal to the new tank too and run it with the filter for the 20 gal). The larger volume of water will dissipate the toxins more than doing a fish-in cycle in a 10 gal. In the meantime, keep up with the water changes until you can get your test kit. You may have seen these already but here are a couple of guides that may help if you haven't:
I just learned about cycling but I already have fish. What now?! - Aquarium Advice
Guide to Starting a Freshwater Aquarium - Aquarium Advice

 

[freak45]

He's about inch and a half I think he's a common.....I have the test strips but gonna get the API kit.... 50% seems like a lot should I do it a day before and condition it day before I add it everyday so it's room temp

 

[freak45]

to be honest i'm getting paid this week and heading off to petsmart this weekend..should i just get a bigger tank then a 20gallon i was looking maybe at a 55gallon its on sale and but or was thinking 40gallon

 

[93MSB]

get the biggest tank you can afford/fit into your home. The larger the volume of water the more "stable" your water conditions will be. As librarygirl said the more water the more the toxins will dissipate. You will still need to do large water changes until the tank has become cycled, but they will be a little less frequent.

When i do water changes I fill up a couple buckets and add prime, i usually let them sit for an hr or two just to make sure the prime did its thing. A lot of people will add 2x the dosage needed to the tank and put tap water straight in. Either way works, just make sure you dose the tank before you add water. Its best to have the water the same temp, however a cpl degrees difference isnt bad imo.

 

[librarygirl]

I agree, get the biggest tank you can afford and can fit in your space. The dechlorinators work instantly, so no need to let the water sit out. If you're using tap water, just mix hot and cold until you get it about the same temp as the tank (doesn't have to be exact, just feel both with your hand).

 

[freak45]

Since my new tank is coming this week should I add the 10 gallon water to the new as well or new water to the 40 gallon

 

[Slade]

The water doesn't matter as long as you use a dechlorinator. Move the filter to the new tank, it has the beneficial bacteria (BB)

 

[freak45]

Well I told my friend about my pleco and he has a 150 gallon so he took the lil guy man did I learn my lesson

 

[freak45]

Ok so I researched and decided a 36 or 40 gallon would be just right for my apartment I'm heading off to pet smart later today to get my API test kit and tank..I'm not gonna get more fish because I'm still doing my fish in cycle...now do I just plop on the 10 gallon filter to my bigger tank for the filter media...and I wanna do some plants in my set up so is it ok to add plants to my fishin cycle I was just gonna get 3-4..what do you guys think

 

[freak45]

Nvm slade answer the filter question thanks slade

 

[93MSB]

Im assuming your going to get a bigger filter for your bigger tank. So, the safest thing to do is to just move the filter to the new tank, and run it alongside the new filter. You will need to wait for the new filter to catch up before you remove the old one. Your other option is to move the media from the old filter to the new filter, the only downside is you might disturb the bb a little, which could cause your cycle to take longer.

OR

If your buddy has a healthy established 150gal and he is willing to give you some of his filter media you could have your tank cycled a lot faster.

also, add as many plants as you want, they only help (assuming they are healthy and not dying)

 

[freak45]

yea i'll ask him ok cool thanks 93 made my day

 

[freak45]

Also is it possible to transfer my gravel to the other tank

 

[93MSB]

yes absolutely! keep it wet with the de-chlorinated tank water, but dont rinse it off with tap water. it also has bb growing on it.

 

[freak45]

So I got a 30 gallon tank put my 10 gallon filter with the new filter attach got the API test kit and my readings are my ph is at 7.6 0 nitrates and nitrites 0 ammonia I know it's a week and still doing my fish in cycle added some plants as well.....FYI the fish love the new tank soo do I water change everyday or once a week

 

[librarygirl]

Depends on what the test kit reads. As the fish are in there the ammonia is going to rise, and then nitrite, so you want to keep those <.25 with water changes. I just learned about cycling but I already have fish. What now?! - Aquarium Advice

 

[freak45]

is it normal for PH to go up and down? went from 7.6 to almost 6.3 but i am in my 2nd week of cycling also when i should i remove the 10 gallon filter media when i start getting ammonia?

 

[freak45]

Nvm it's at 7.6 whew was worried

 

[93MSB]

you want your ph to stay as stable as possible.

the fish put off ammonia, after there is ammonia in the tank the bb will start to grow and consume the ammonia. the bb then excretes nitrite, another colony of bb will start to grow and consume the nitrites. once the nitrites show up you should see nitrates start to show up. once you have 0pmm ammonia, 0ppm nitrites, and 10-20ppm nitrates your cycle is done.