Water changes in understocked tanks.

[mickeyrom]

I have two active tanks. One ten gallon tank has one Betta Splendens. The other one is a 40 gallon breeder and has 8 small fish. 3 neons, 2 corries,1 zebra and 2 male guppies. My water changes are as following. The 10 gal gets a 20% change once every 4 weeks, and the 40 gal tank about 8% every week, and sometimes twice. I had a site which gave stocking and WC advice but my computer crashed and I lost it. If anyone knows which site I am referring to, I would appreciate a link. I also am interested on exchanging posts with Betta owners who are serious Betta keepers with lots of experiences with them. I am not interested in breeding.

 

[claudio1]

i use this one http://aqadvisor.com
hope it is the one you want...


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[mickeyrom]

i use this one AqAdvisor - Intelligent Freshwater Tropical Fish Aquarium Stocking Calculator and Aquarium Tank/Filter Advisor
hope it is the one you want...


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Thank you, I will check it out.

 

[Andy Sager]

I have two active tanks. One ten gallon tank has one Betta Splendens. The other one is a 40 gallon breeder and has 8 small fish. 3 neons, 2 corries,1 zebra and 2 male guppies. My water changes are as following. The 10 gal gets a 20% change once every 4 weeks, and the 40 gal tank about 8% every week, and sometimes twice. I had a site which gave stocking and WC advice but my computer crashed and I lost it. If anyone knows which site I am referring to, I would appreciate a link. I also am interested on exchanging posts with Betta owners who are serious Betta keepers with lots of experiences with them. I am not interested in breeding.

Test results are a better way of knowing when to do water changes than a website. Whether you are fully stocked or barely stocked will show up in your Nitrate tests so that really should be your guide as to when to change water. That being said, your fishy pets will always enjoy some new fresh water anytime you give it to them so doing a small weekly water change is a good habit to get into and will go a long way in preventing problems in the long run. Poor water quality tends to creep up on ya and once it gets bad enough, the fish get stressed and sick and it's a whole bunch of things to fix. Routine preventative practices will stop a lot of bad things from happening. I suggest investing in the API master liquid test kit so that you can test your water quality yourself and not depend on a store or someone else for the results. A good test kit can save you a lot of fish in the long run, especially when problems arise after the store has closed or your friend with a test kit has gone out of town. Like the right tank and right equipment for the fish, a good test kit is a smart investment for the serious fish keeper.

 

[claudio1]

Test results are a better way of knowing when to do water changes than a website. Whether you are fully stocked or barely stocked will show up in your Nitrate tests so that really should be your guide as to when to change water. That being said, your fishy pets will always enjoy some new fresh water anytime you give it to them so doing a small weekly water change is a good habit to get into and will go a long way in preventing problems in the long run. Poor water quality tends to creep up on ya and once it gets bad enough, the fish get stressed and sick and it's a whole bunch of things to fix. Routine preventative practices will stop a lot of bad things from happening. I suggest investing in the API master liquid test kit so that you can test your water quality yourself and not depend on a store or someone else for the results. A good test kit can save you a lot of fish in the long run, especially when problems arise after the store has closed or your friend with a test kit has gone out of town. Like the right tank and right equipment for the fish, a good test kit is a smart investment for the serious fish keeper.

i agree,i use the website just to have an idea,even so i do a 30-40% weekly water change...


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[mickeyrom]

I do use the API testing "kit". Ammonia and Nitrate are 0 and nitrate is at 2. According to the charts even higher is good. Sometimes I wonder if the water changes in a tank that is not fully stocked is a good idea. When I do the changes, I usually clean the gravel too.
We had a Betta die just recently after being with us for 3 years, the others are our guests for less than a year. Initially there more zebras, guppies and neons, but sadly several died, so I hesitate to add more since these are doing so well.

 

[mickeyrom]

i use this one AqAdvisor - Intelligent Freshwater Tropical Fish Aquarium Stocking Calculator and Aquarium Tank/Filter Advisor
hope it is the one you want...


Sent from my iPhone using Aquarium Advice

Yes, that is the one. I can't thank you enough. It is very useful, especially when adding fish.

 

[Andy Sager]

i agree,i use the website just to have an idea,even so i do a 30-40% weekly water change...
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Not to nit-pik but that's not what you said in your opening post ( posted below). 8% is not even close to 30%-40%. If you want honest help, you need to offer honest information.

The fact that you had more fish but they died while the other fish in the tank are doing okay sounds like the problem was either stocking amounts or water quality. The fish you lost are mostly pretty hardy fish so unless they were weak at the start, they are an indication that you are not doing something right.
Here's how I was taught , long before there were websites and internets, how to keep fish alive for a long time. If the water quality goes bad in less than 7 days after doing weekly 10%- 20% water changes, you are either under filtered, over stocked or over feeding. The test kits show you what's happening. What's considered "bad" is subjective to the fish varieties. For example, Tetras don't like higher Nitrates while some Livebearers can tolerate them. So what the test kit says is "Good" is not equal for all fishes and should not be the comparison value. If the fish are alive and doing well, the water quality is good and doing a refreshing water change will not harm the fish. If the fish are doing poorly or dying, the water quality is not good and steps should be taken to prevent the water quality from getting to that stage again. That could mean increasing filtration, changing feeding amounts or times or keeping the tank "under stocked".
Hope this helps. thumb:

I have two active tanks. One ten gallon tank has one Betta Splendens. The other one is a 40 gallon breeder and has 8 small fish. 3 neons, 2 corries,1 zebra and 2 male guppies. My water changes are as following. The 10 gal gets a 20% change once every 4 weeks, and the 40 gal tank about 8% every week, and sometimes twice. I had a site which gave stocking and WC advice but my computer crashed and I lost it. If anyone knows which site I am referring to, I would appreciate a link. I also am interested on exchanging posts with Betta owners who are serious Betta keepers with lots of experiences with them. I am not interested in breeding.

 

[claudio1]

Not to nit-pik but that's not what you said in your opening post ( posted below). 8% is not even close to 30%-40%. If you want honest help, you need to offer honest information.


i only posted the link that i though he was looking for...


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[Andy Sager]

Not to nit-pik but that's not what you said in your opening post ( posted below). 8% is not even close to 30%-40%. If you want honest help, you need to offer honest information.


i only posted the link that i though he was looking for...


Sent from my iPhone using Aquarium Advice

My sincerest apologies. I didn't catch that the 2 posts were from 2 different people. (I need to read the posts a bit more thoroughly. ) But the rest of the info is still relevant and valid.

 

[claudio1]

My sincerest apologies. I didn't catch that the 2 posts were from 2 different people. (I need to read the posts a bit more thoroughly. ) But the rest of the info is still relevant and valid.

? no problems...all good...?


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[rlederer]

I have two active tanks. One ten gallon tank has one Betta Splendens. The other one is a 40 gallon breeder and has 8 small fish. 3 neons, 2 corries,1 zebra and 2 male guppies. My water changes are as following. The 10 gal gets a 20% change once every 4 weeks, and the 40 gal tank about 8% every week, and sometimes twice. I had a site which gave stocking and WC advice but my computer crashed and I lost it. If anyone knows which site I am referring to, I would appreciate a link. I also am interested on exchanging posts with Betta owners who are serious Betta keepers with lots of experiences with them. I am not interested in breeding.

Your betta should do fine on that water change although I'd recommend a 5% change every week instead. That way there are minimal problems with a significant change in water chemistry. Bettas are easy to keep and easy to breed for that matter. I've given away probably fifty bettas that I raised. The 40 gallon should be fine with the water changes considering the light load of fish you have.

 

[rachelives]

If I were you, I would look into getting more of each kind of fish, since you have room! Corys and Neons I know for sure should be in a group of at least 5, and feel much happier in groups. I'm not sure about the other fish because I don't have much experience with them. Good luck with your tank!

 

[Barliman]

The 10 gal gets a 20% change once every 4 weeks,...

I love bettas, and though I don't have on now, I have kept them in a 10g, like you. (nicknamed "The Betta Palace") If you don't mind a suggestion, 20% once a month seems like too little. Bettas respond really well to fresh water: I use to do 20% each week, and the benefits were noticeable.