spitfire
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Post by spitfire on Nov 15, 2006 21:12:43 GMT
i filled my tank today with water and turned on the filter and heater
what shud the temp be?on saturday i will be buying some bala sharks
and what else will go with them?
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Post by karen on Nov 16, 2006 9:40:13 GMT
100 litre tanks will not be suitable for bala sharks they need much bigger,before you go to buy fish you need to cycle your tank.
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Post by spitfire on Nov 16, 2006 16:30:54 GMT
Cycle? whats that?
bala sharks dont grow big
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Post by mralgae on Nov 16, 2006 20:14:51 GMT
cycle: is allowing the filter in the tank to get rid of different poisions from the water i.e. ammonia,nitrAte,nitrItes etc.of which you need test kits to check these on a req basis. if this is not done and you allow you water to go unchanged and unchecked you will poision the fish you have. the cycle also builds up friendly bactiria in the filter.
compatibility: is if you intend to put different species of fish together as to if they will get on together or not, there are a lot of fish that should not be put together as they will fight or even one will kill the other. like i have posted earlier to you, you should start reading up on even the basics of fish keeping before you put anything in the tank.
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Post by spitfire on Nov 17, 2006 18:25:24 GMT
ok so how do i cycle and how long will it take and where would i get a kit and how much will it cost?
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Post by jackpike on Nov 18, 2006 0:41:43 GMT
U don't have to buy a kit, all u need is some time. Leave your aquarium running with no fish in it for 3-4 weeks at the very least, longer the better. A test kit to test for ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate would be a good buy. After the 3-4 weeks have past u test for ammonia and nitrite making sure the test reads zero for both. u should be safe to introduce a small amount of fish. After a couple of weeks test again and if all is good u can add some more fish. Gradually build up your stock of fish. Be careful not to overstock your tank. If there is any ammonia or nitrite present they will poison your fish and nitrate is also considered toxic if it reaches over 50ppm. Once u have fish in the tank, U should do a 20% water change a week to keep nitrate in check.
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Post by ORCA. on Nov 18, 2006 7:34:17 GMT
Bit of info on fishless cycling. With this I am going to promote fish less cycling. Typically, people use fish to cycle the tank but the whole process of cycling is highly stressful to fish and IMO a catalyst for disease. This is no way to start off a new tank. Record your tanks progress daily thru a water test kit to monitor its progress.
Be certain your tank is up and running and the heat is roughly 82 degrees. The heat speeds up the process slightly. Be certain you have a good air source running during cycling. Air is vital to the beneficial bacteria ( nitrosomonas and nitrobacter) as they develop.
First you need to get ammonia into your water which can be done in a few ways. You can add cut shrimp/fish to your tank and as it decomposes it will create ammonia. Adding fish food to the water (Flakes) will also add ammonia to the water as it decomposes. Using 100% pure ammonia will also work but be SURE it is 100% pure. No additives of any kind. Add roughly 4-5 drops for every 10 gallons. Whether you end up with ammonia or ammonium all depends on your PH. Under 7 it is ammonium. Over 7 and it is ammonia. At this stage you should notice only high levels of ammonia. It is only the begining. nothing to worry about.
Soon bacteria will develop over the next week or two called nitrosomonas oxidizing the ammonia/eliminating it. The byproduct of this is called nitrites which is just as toxic as ammonia, but all a part of the process. You should notice your ammonia levels decreasing and you nitrite levels skyrocketing. Fear not.
The next step in the process bacteria called nitrobacter will develop and turn the nitrites into nitrates. Nitrates are much less harmful that ammonia or nitrite's but still harmful in large amounts. From this point on regular routine water changes will be the best for the removal of the nitrates. At this point it is safe to add your new aquarium fish, acclimating them as you normally would. At this level you should notice your ammonia and nitrite levels decreasing and your nitrate levels rising. This is good!
A few ways to speed things up in this process are the addition of rock/gravel from an established tank. In well cycled tanks bacteria is present on nearly everything. The addition of a sponge filter from an established tank or old filter media is also a great way to help this along. Hope that helps :happy:
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spitfire
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Post by spitfire on Nov 18, 2006 22:33:49 GMT
well i kinda understand that.
which wud be the quickest cycling? with ammonia?
the tank has been on for a week with filter and heater
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Post by jackpike on Nov 19, 2006 10:46:08 GMT
spitfire, Do you have a test kit for ammonia and nitrite?
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Post by spitfire on Nov 20, 2006 19:50:08 GMT
i have a test kit for amonia thats all i cud get
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Post by jackpike on Nov 20, 2006 20:27:47 GMT
Do u know if your water is hard or soft because the would affect the choice of fish u would get for your aquarium
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Post by spitfire on Nov 20, 2006 20:32:04 GMT
we are supposed to have hard water but im not sure
how will i find out?
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Post by mralgae on Nov 21, 2006 18:34:47 GMT
one quick way of finding out if you have hard water is to see if when you wash your hands is, if the soap lathers right away, if it does it is proberbly soft water, if it takes a lot of rubbing for the soap to lather it is prob hard.
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Post by karen on Nov 21, 2006 20:50:31 GMT
one quick way of finding out if you have hard water is to see if when you wash your hands is, if the soap lathers right away, if it does it is proberbly soft water, if it takes a lot of rubbing for the soap to lather it is prob hard. thats a good idea i didnt know that
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Post by spitfire on Nov 22, 2006 18:44:45 GMT
i will try that
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