Hi, I got a lovely new 20gallon tank, about a month ago. I set it up and planted some hygrophillia and an anubis (sorry about the spelling) adding a little fertiliser to the water since the tank was brand new. Then 2 weeks ago I added 4 platys.
...I did everything the lfs told me to....so I now know, that was a pretty niave thing to do for starters ;-)
I tried fishless cycling with frozen prawns and "nothing" seemed to happen. I also added some bacteria balls that the lfs sold me. And I've been keeping close watch on the water parameters since adding the fish, using strips, and still "nothing" seems to be happening. First up, I'm going to get a liquid test kit tomorrow, because I think the strips are inaccurate, or I am not good at reading them, or both.
My parameters show a little ammonia, somewhere in between 0 and 0.5 on the strips. But it seems possibly that is what my tap water has naturally. Water changes don't really seem to be making much difference. I've been doing partial changes every 3 days, with conditioned water. The Nitrates came down after the 1st water change, as I guess I took out what the fertiliser had added - but the hygrophillia is still growing like mad and making a nice backdrop.
The fish seem absolutely fine, they are swimming around great, showing off their personalities and eating well. (I am feeding every other day, as I was told to do by lfs). They now come up to see me when I approach the tank.
I was expecting to get some more typical readings on the water levels (ammonia rising, nitrites showing) - to be able to identify a cycle starting. Am I being too impatient - what should I be seeing after 2 weeks in a partially planted tank with 4 platys? What kind of things might I expect to see if the fish were in any way distressed? (I am scared I'm not noticing that all is not well, despite me thinking it is ok)
And finally, one of them gave birth, so actually I have 5 fish now One fry seems to have survived. I see him occasionally pop his head out, but I don't often see him - I guess that's part of how he's survived. He's about 1cm long now, and 12 days old. I'm thinking that if the fry is ok, then the water parameters can't be too off. I keep reading that he'll be safe once he's too big to fit in the parent's mouth - but I've no idea how big an adult platy's mouth is! I'm wondering how long he will stay in hiding, and when I might expect to see him venturing out more often?
Any more advice, other than patience? I love my little guys, and I really want them to have a nice life. I am worrying that I'm doing it all wrong.
Thanks.
...I did everything the lfs told me to....so I now know, that was a pretty niave thing to do for starters ;-)
I tried fishless cycling with frozen prawns and "nothing" seemed to happen. I also added some bacteria balls that the lfs sold me. And I've been keeping close watch on the water parameters since adding the fish, using strips, and still "nothing" seems to be happening. First up, I'm going to get a liquid test kit tomorrow, because I think the strips are inaccurate, or I am not good at reading them, or both.
My parameters show a little ammonia, somewhere in between 0 and 0.5 on the strips. But it seems possibly that is what my tap water has naturally. Water changes don't really seem to be making much difference. I've been doing partial changes every 3 days, with conditioned water. The Nitrates came down after the 1st water change, as I guess I took out what the fertiliser had added - but the hygrophillia is still growing like mad and making a nice backdrop.
The fish seem absolutely fine, they are swimming around great, showing off their personalities and eating well. (I am feeding every other day, as I was told to do by lfs). They now come up to see me when I approach the tank.
I was expecting to get some more typical readings on the water levels (ammonia rising, nitrites showing) - to be able to identify a cycle starting. Am I being too impatient - what should I be seeing after 2 weeks in a partially planted tank with 4 platys? What kind of things might I expect to see if the fish were in any way distressed? (I am scared I'm not noticing that all is not well, despite me thinking it is ok)
And finally, one of them gave birth, so actually I have 5 fish now One fry seems to have survived. I see him occasionally pop his head out, but I don't often see him - I guess that's part of how he's survived. He's about 1cm long now, and 12 days old. I'm thinking that if the fry is ok, then the water parameters can't be too off. I keep reading that he'll be safe once he's too big to fit in the parent's mouth - but I've no idea how big an adult platy's mouth is! I'm wondering how long he will stay in hiding, and when I might expect to see him venturing out more often?
Any more advice, other than patience? I love my little guys, and I really want them to have a nice life. I am worrying that I'm doing it all wrong.
Thanks.