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New member, new fish-keeper, my story, questions and future log

4K views 38 replies 9 participants last post by  Aashenfox 
#1 ·
Hi every1,

I'm really sorry for the wall of text, but hey, you guys get to know me, I get to write EVERYTHING in terms of the info you might need to help me, and hopefully I can make it an interesting and fun read at the same time :) It will also serve as a nice history and log thread for me :) I'll be able to look back in a year or so and laugh at my noobiness :)

I'm a mature hobbyist, over 30, and whenever I get into something new, I read vigorously about it. I'm well aware that a newbie with a little knowledge is more dangerous than a newbie with none at all, most subjects seem to go that way. So I shall attempt to dazzle you with what I've learned so far, and shock you with the scope of my first mistakes (which arguably I can blame on the pet store).

So here's the story so far... I bought my girlfriend a Juwel 120l aquarium for her birthday, she had said she wanted one. I'm quite prepared to maintain it for her, no strings attached, she's not someone that likes to get into technical details, whereas I am, so that's settled :) I'm really looking forward to it actually, I like the fish more even than I thought I would, especially the pleco, which my GF doesn't like 'cos he's ugly'...women, what ya gonna do!? lol ;)

Within a short time, we populated the tank with a light coloured (almost white) fairly fine substrate (I know plecos don't like light coloured substrate, but she wants white, very adamantly, he has a couple of dark caves, he'll have to deal with it). It's not sand or anything, but it's fine for substrate, 1mm grains I'd say. This is covering the bottom of the tank about 2-3 inches deep. There's a large and expensive ornament, which is a very beautiful (but fake) rockery with a couple of caves underneath it and a large (fake) bonsai tree growing on top of it (I'll post a pic of the tank later). We also put several different (fake) plants in the tank, it actually looks very nice for a newbie effort I think.

I have read almost everything there is to read on the net about cycling, but unfortunately, neither I nor my GF have the patience for the cycling using rotting food method. So, on the recommendation of our local pet store, we went the Nitrivec route for cycling (Nitrivec for those that don't know, is a Sera bacteria product, claiming to populate your surfaces and filter with the beneficial bacteria to process ammonia into nitrites, and nitrites into nitrates, as well as 'conditioning' the water for fishkeeping, whatever that means).

Having no fish of course, we started by dosing the tank with the recommended amount, which clouded the water for a full 24 hours. It was so cloudy still the following day, that I did not want to follow the instructions and add another dose, fearing it would never clear. I called the pet store and they said I had not caused a problem by not redosing the next day and that I should continue with roughly half the recommended dosing each day for the next 5 days, with the filter and heater running normally, then add a few fish. The 5th day came, and I started testing the water with Sera liquid tests, I kinda liked this actually, felt like being a scientist. So I did all the tests, pH, Ammonia, Nitrite and Nitrate. Results were as follows...

pH=8!!!!
Ammonia=trace amounts (remember, tank had never seen a fish at this point, so I can only assume the Nitrivec logically contains trace ammonia as the food the bacteria need to develop, this is merely a guess though), barely darker than the yellow representing '0', but markedly greenish tinted, while not being anywhere near the green of the next color block. There is definitely a 'tiny' amount of ammonia in the water, more than none)
Nitrite=0 as expected
Nitrate=0 as expected

I figured I should add at least a fish or two at this point to get things started, but I was worried about the high pH. I've read so much on the subject, I think I'm ready to lead a seminar on water chemistry. I've now tested my KH and GH, which for reference, according to the paper test I used, are bang on perfect. Right in the middle of the green 'good' zone (incidentally the same paper test also does pH and rated 7.5. Interesting. I'm told I should trust the liquid test more, which read 8). OK, so I figure since the water isn't rammed with buffers, that it will lower naturally with some fish and waste and stabilise later, maybe at 7.5 or so, which I would be happy with. I also checked the temperature of the water, 26 as I had been advised.

So, confident my water could accept at least a few hardy fish, I grabbed the visa and headed to the pet store. My research had led me to the belief that a common pleco would be my absolutely ideal first fish. Very hardy fish, algae eater, very peaceful and easy to look after. So the first thing I told the fish store guy was all my water parameters and the history that I describe above. He didn't seem to really agree or disagree that the pleco was a good choice, but I know it is, so I moved on to ask what his suggestions for a few other community fish were. Here's where the trouble begins.

After much discussion, he recommended that I picked up a couple of Red Tail Black Sharks (tbh, the chaos in the tank with 15 or so of them in there should have set off alarm bells, but it didn't), and 3 (female I believe, maybe one of them is male, despite knowing 'how' to tell, I'm having trouble being sure) Blue Ram Cichlids. The Rams are very pretty and I wanted something colorful for my GF to admire, and despite the fact that I already KNEW cichlids were generally aggressive, I took his word for it that they wouldn't be a problem and more importantly (and more tragically, incorrect as it turns out) would be a good choice for my new, uncycled tank. I can already hear some of you groaning in your swivel chairs, as I did when I started reading about the fishes.

So I now know that it is ill advised keeping two Red Tails in the same tank. DOH! I also now know that Blue Rams prefer soft acidic water and a higher temperature than my aquarium is currently set to provide. My water is hard and alkaline and a degree too cold. DOH! I also hear they shouldn't be added to a cycling tank, only a well established one, and that they shouldn't really be kept with other aggressive fish, since they are 'all bark and no bite'. Our first moment of entertainment came when one of the sharks tried to eject the pleco from his newly adopted cave, and was roundly beaten for his trouble. :) I should point out that's not the only cave in the aquarium, there is no need for them to fight over it, the shark was just trying his luck I think.

I did the acclimation quite slowly, adding a cupful of my water to the bag water while it floated in the tank, every ten minutes for about an hour, til I had doubled the volume of the bag. I then very carefully fished them out and introduced them to their new home. It was dusk outside and the room was poorly lit (I am told this is good for acclimating fish), but I was able to see the fish. The pleco immediately started investigating everything, what a character! I fed them straight away (I don't know if this was a good idea or not tbh, but I didn't want them going hungry and getting used to a new environment). The pleco devoured his algae pellet with gusto. In the meantime the sharks were also exploring and doing this headbanging thing (they swim alongside each other and thrash, like a test of dominance), the one that is fractionally larger and clearly more confident in the tank wins every time, and occasionally chases the weaker one round the tank a bit, but no actual bites are occurring yet. Also, they both leave the three cichlids pretty much completely alone.

All the fish 'seem' quite happy. The pleco is having a riot in his new home, sucking on everything. The cichlids spent their first 90 minutes or so huddled together in a corner of the tank, kind of standing on their fins on the substrate, that was unexpected, but very interesting. I'd never seen a fish 'stand' on its fins before. I was a bit worried at first, but they have now starting swimming about, moving around the tank, then returning to that spot for a while, then venturing out again (usually on their own, one at a time, and one is definitely bolder than the other 2). Their behaviour appears as though they are not stressed or depressed, though obviously I have little experience of this. They are tending to stick to that part of the tank, and not move around a lot (I just went to check on them and all three were in different areas of the tank after being left alone in the dark for a while, so I guess they are ok, for now).

So, I'll bullet point my immediate concerns...

* Should I even try to leave those two red tails to coexist, or will it inevitably be trouble in the long run? Does it matter what gender they are? I'm aware they will need a bigger tank in a few years, as will the pleco.

* Do you think that the red tails chasing behaviour is early signs of bullying? After a little chase, they go their separate ways in the tank, until maybe later they will cross paths again, and may or may not then instigate more 'headbanging' and chasing.

* Have I made a huge mistake with the Rams? Is there anything I can look out for in their behaviour that indicates they might not be doing well? They ate when I fed them, which I suppose is a good sign. The bold one was particularly hungry, venturing into the mid tank to catch as many falling flakes as he could.

* Have I put too many too large fish in the tank considering it probably only has a sprinkling of bacteria at the moment? The sharks are very small, 3 inches, the cichlids about 2 inches, and the pleco is about 4 inches nose to tail.

* Is my assumption that the pH will probably drop a little by the time cycling is complete correct?

Please feel free to give me any other advice you think it sounds like I might need! And thank you very much for reaching the end of this essay!
 
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#37 ·
Just read through this post, that is a beautiful tank. I didnt see anyone else suggest this, but when you had a uncycled tank w/ fish in it, you could have considered live plants. Not sure if you want to go that route, but they help absorb ammonia and mitigate the effects of a cycle. Just a little tip in case you want to give that a try for the 55g.

Good luck!
 
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