Tropical Fish Keeping banner

test results

3K views 11 replies 4 participants last post by  Lupin 
#1 ·
well ive had my tank up and cycling with fish (zebras) for a week and here are the results


pH-7.6
high range pH-7.8
ammonia-0
nitrite-2.0
nitrate-5.0

i kinda need some help :oops: dont really know how close i am to a fully cycled tank
 
#5 ·
hi
i wouldn't at the moment,i know it's tempting.
your filter is getting it's colany together,and you have
a lot of toxins in there at the moment,and to add more
fish to the soup will do you no favours,JMHO
i hope i'm not being harshly negative here.
i soooo know what it's like to have to wait for the cycle
to end,however you will get there.
:)
 
#7 ·
Well 7 in a 90 gallon tank is good but could be bad. What fish do you plan on putting in there when the cycle is done? If they are larger fish then I would actually consider putting another 5-10 of them in there so that when you puit the larger fish in the biolaod can handle it. But wait until you get 0 ammonia for another couple days. Maybe add some extra food to boost the cycle a little higher without adding fish.

That is why I like the fishless cycle so much with the prawn. once the ammonia and nitrites drop 0 for a eeek you can pretty much add any fish you want to because the beneficial bacteria should be able to handle any normal fish load.
 
#9 ·
Those are some pretty big boys to be putting together in the same tank. I know, when they are young they will have plenty of room but the Bichir get up to 12 inches and the loaches up to 18 inches. That would be one hell of a fight for bottom territory, if there was one. The challenge would be to get them the same size and keep them the same size or close to it so they don't try to bully each other. Clown do like larger groups though so I am really thinking they are not the best choice.

The rams wouldn't stand a chance against any of them. Barbs or groumis might work for upper level fish.

As for cycling, if you really want to add the fish together you may need to get more danios to cycle the tank with. I hate to say it because they will suffer but I would hate to see the more delicate and susceptible fish suffer even more because of a cycle when you add them. Not to mention more expensive. If you plant to get the bichir and still decide to get clown loaches I would get quite few more danios, maybe a total group of 20-25 just to make sure the bacteria can support the larger fish.

I know those that will disagree with me but I can't think of a better way to do short of switching to a fishless cycle. Hopefully someone will chime in here and give an idea of how many danios would be needed to support 2 bichir senegalese and 5 small clown loaches.

Also remember, you will want a LOT and I mean a TON of hiding places for them on the bottom as they are territorial or at least can be and all of them like caves. Maybe Kuhli loaches would be a better choice if they are big enough that the bichir can't eat them.

Keep those questions coming, we will get there sooner or later. And if you are willing to and your LFS will do so you can always raise Clown loaches to a bigger size but smaller enough for the tank and trade them for smallers ones down the road.
 
#10 ·
fish_4_all said:
Maybe Kuhli loaches would be a better choice if they are big enough that the bichir can't eat them.
All serpentine loaches should never be mixed with bichirs. The bichirs will eat them with ease. Deep-bodied loaches such as CLs however will be fine. Bichirs will eat anything that will fit their mouths and these are generally peaceful predators that can ambush their prey.
 
#11 ·
maybe then panda corys over loaches? or would the bichirs still try to eat them? i wasnt planning on adding any of the nice fish until my tank was fully cycled and i wasnt goin to add them all at once. but i could always buy more zebras cause there really cheap at my lfs and they just got a new shipment of them in. how many more should i buy?
 
#12 ·
cullens089 said:
maybe then panda corys over loaches? or would the bichirs still try to eat them?
I was only referring to serpentine loaches which look a lot like eels. Deep-bodied loaches, provided they are large and fat enough, will not be easily eaten by the senegal bichir.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top