A little Guidance

binaryjripper

Ok I need a little guidance on two things. First off I have all the equipment for my 10g fishtank from, the tank, digital thermometer, heater, filter, gravel, and lid with light.

I was in Petco today and I knew I needed to get the testing chemicals so I can check to see when my tank is done being cycled.

BUT I have no idea which test to get because there are millions of them.

Then my tank is at 80 degrees Faranhite. Is this a good temperature if I live in San Diego California?

So all in all I'm not sure what my temperature should be at and I don't know what chemicals to get.

Age of Aquariums

What kind of fish do you want?

binaryjripper

Like 3 corries, 2 of those white catfish bottom feeder fish, and maybe one or 2 other fish.

Age of Aquariums

Your tank should be about 75 degrees. Any liquid test kit will work. I use a tetra test kit, just don't get the test strips. Your ammonia and nitrite should be 0, and you should have a little bit of nitrates, (unless the tank isn't cycled) but below 40ppm.

Andyandsue

Yup, test your water with a liquid test kit. I use the API Master kit.

I have albino corys, they are really cool. They are bottom dwellers, so you can have others in your tank too. I would stick to smaller fish in a small tank. Neons, other tetras, danios, etc.

I keep my tank at 76. It seem most tanks here are between 72-80. Is your 80 with the heater on or just your water alone? It would probably be ok at 80, just make sure you get fish that like it warm, which the corys are ok with.

Do NOT cycle with corydoras though! They are a scaleless fish, which makes them a bit sensitive, and not hardy enough to be a recommended fish for cycling.

fish_4_all

pH, nitrAtes, nitrItes, ammonia are the basic tests to get. If you want to have plants then you need KH and GH tests although they can be useful for snails and for certain fish pspecies.

I keep my tanks at 78-80 F and have had no problems.

binaryjripper

Is there a specific API Master kit that I should get? Like a specific brand? Also where should I get it online.

Andyandsue

API is the brand. Aquarium Pharmaceuticals. The master kit contains pretty much everything you'll need. It is available just about anywhere. Google it and you'll be able to find it on line for sure.

fish_4_all

Master Test Kit

That is one of the most recommended kits I have seen. It is a little overboard but if you really want to experiment and have a lot of thngs you can test this is the one.

Also, the Red sea test for Phosphates is recommended a lot because it is supposed to be more accurate. Iron tests are washy at best from what I have been told but could be fun to play with. If you can get a good test kit, get one that has the sample color test tubes that show a reference color so you can actually see the actual colors you should be looking for. Makes it a lot easier to tell more accurate numbers.

Big al's does have a lot of others to choose from so this is not the only option and they have some of if not the best prices on the net.