Beta died potential issue?

[Byron]

@Byron
I see thank you for the info, should I just do this I was thinking, get a 20 Gallon, let it cycle for a month or two helping it ofc, then moving the tetras into it and then in the 5-gallon one just add a betta, later on, would that be a good idea/thing to do? As for the plants they are kinda big, they are potted plants that's how I got them.

Yes on the 20g for groups of small fish, and 5g betta alone. BTW, if a 20g is in the thinking, the basic or "high" is 24 inches in length, but the "long" is 30 inches which can make quite a difference. If you have the footprint space (30 by 12 inches, as opposed to 24 by 12 inches) the "long" is a better choice for fish. The basic 29g has the same footprint, might consider that?

Plants take up ammonia, and this will "cycle" the tank. Provided they are showing signs of growth. Using ammonia when plants are in the tank is not advisable, it is too easy to harm and even kill them. And you don't need it anyway, provided the plants are growing. I believe there is an article on "silent cycling" using plants in the cycling section...yes, found it.

Planted/silent cycling

So ya got yourself a fish tank, and now you're wondering how to cycle it. You have a few options: 1) Fishless cycle: Set up your substrate and filter (decorations and plants are optional), buy pure ammonia, add enough to your tank to read 3ppm, wait. Full instructions here...

www.fishforums.net

 

[Play99s]

@Byron so the tank if it is longer is better, is that right? I guess I'll do the cycling with ammonia and no plants then later when I add the fish and add the plants if I understand this correctly? Thank you for all you guy's advice.

 

[Byron]

@Byron so the tank if it is longer is better, is that right? I guess I'll do the cycling with ammonia and no plants then later when I add the fish and add the plants if I understand this correctly? Thank you for all you guy's advice.

A longer tank gives you more options for fish because the surface are of both the substrate and the water surface is greater than it would be with a shorter length of the same volume. This is also important for fish that like to swim. To put it another way, you can usually get more fish in a 20g long than in a 20g high, depending upon the fish species, but a longer tank does give more options.

I do not recommend adding any ammonia if live plants are in the tank. "Silent cycle" involves setting up the tank with substrate, decor and plants (no fish). Once it is obvious the plants are growing, then fish can be added. Fast-growing plants are needed, and floating plants provide this best of all.

 

[Play99s]

@Byron I see ok thank you I am gonna do one of the above for the new tank when I am ready to get it. I added a few pictures as I did my water change with my measurements and the tank itself are the levels ok or do I need to change something?
1 more thing I saw and notices was some snails developing in the tank I am assuming they were on the plants, I read I need to remove them as they can overtake the tank so I did are they bad in general?

 

[Byron]

The liquid test results look fine with respect to ammonia, nitrite and nitrate. Not sure what the strip colours refer to.

Some aquarist like the small "pest" snails, some do not. But the fact is they are harmless, and can be considered beneficial. They do not harm fish, or live plants. They will graze every surface eating algae (not problem algae) and other micro foods, dead/dying/decaying plant matter, dead fish obviously, and any uneaten fish food. This helps with the biological system in the aquarium. They will reproduce in proportion to the food supply, so if you see hundreds, it means they are finding food proportionally, and that could suggest less feeding, or an overstocked tank, or other issues.

I have very soft water which is not conducive to snails, but somehow my pond snails seem to survive, for over a decade now, and I like to see them (few as they usually are) as I know they are part of a healthy tank.

 

[Play99s]

Oh I see , I thought the snails are something bad and you need to remove them right away silly me well, the strip is the same as the other stuff just plus the water hardness.

 

[Play99s]

Well, I am not sure what is going on during this last week 2 of the oldest tetras that I had remaining from the old bunch just died 1 after the other 1 on Tuesday and one on Friday... I am not sure what I am doing wrong I measured the water right after I saw them and it was all good nothing out of the ordinary and before they went flippers up they were eating and swimming with the other 4, can it be the food, the snails that seem to be developing in the tank tho I try to remove them to not over popular the tank with snails? Do they just happen to suddenly die? Do I have too many plants in there for them, or too much decoration or maybe the brand of the filter is not good?

 

[Bruce Leyland-Jones]

Is that a high pH reading?

 

[Play99s]

@Bruce Leyland-Jones no it's 7 or 7.2 that's what it was and that's what it is now I just measured it again.

Also as a side question how much time should I have the light ON on the tank ? a few hours? a half a day? all night? I am still not sure about this

 

[Byron]

Well, I am not sure what is going on during this last week 2 of the oldest tetras that I had remaining from the old bunch just died 1 after the other 1 on Tuesday and one on Friday... I am not sure what I am doing wrong I measured the water right after I saw them and it was all good nothing out of the ordinary and before they went flippers up they were eating and swimming with the other 4, can it be the food, the snails that seem to be developing in the tank tho I try to remove them to not over popular the tank with snails? Do they just happen to suddenly die? Do I have too many plants in there for them, or too much decoration or maybe the brand of the filter is not good?

We need more data to assess this issue. Reading through this thread I assume these neon tetras are the ones mentioned earlier? What tank are they in now (volume, date set up, plants, etc).

 

[Byron]

Also as a side question how much time should I have the light ON on the tank ? a few hours? a half a day? all night? I am still not sure about this

Generally, you want six hours minimum of tank lighting for plants. This is the "daylight" period, and it can be longer, depending upon circumstances. Problem algae can occur if the light in on for too long a period, so most of us use that as our guide. My tanks have seven hours of lighting during each 24-hour period, and I have worked this out to prevent problem algae. The daylight period has to be continuous, but it can be any time you like, so use a timer and set it to be on when you are home to enjoy the tank. You also need a period of total darkness, when there is no ambient light in the room (daylight, room lighting). Plants need this rest period, as do fish.

Use a timer so the "daylight" is the same period each day. This is more important for fish than plants. For example, my tank lights come on at 10 am and go off at 5 pm, and being retired I am home most days to work on and enjoy the tanks. When I was working, the tank lights came on at 2 pm in the afternoon and went off at 9 pm because during the weekdays I was not home during the day so the evening had to be the "day" period for the tanks. There has to be ambient light in the room, whether daylight or artificial light, when the tank light comes on and goes off, to avoid startling the fish.

 

[Play99s]

@Byron thanks for the info about the light, I will try and make a schedule for that. About the others I said in my first post but I can state that again. 5 Gallon tank (20 Litters), it's been running since March 2021 I only had problems since last month or so, plants got 3 in them now- echinodorus mixed, hemiographis colorata, hygrophila guanensis) I got 2 neon tetras left in it atm, what else would you like 2 know, I do a water change of 40% each Saturday, I clean the filter once every 2-3 weeks so I don't harm the bacteria in it. If you need anything else let me know and I will post.

 

[Byron]

@Byron thanks for the info about the light, I will try and make a schedule for that. About the others I said in my first post but I can state that again. 5 Gallon tank (20 Litters), it's been running since March 2021 I only had problems since last month or so, plants got 3 in them now- echinodorus mixed, hemiographis colorata, hygrophila guanensis) I got 2 neon tetras left in it atm, what else would you like 2 know, I do a water change of 40% each Saturday, I clean the filter once every 2-3 weeks so I don't harm the bacteria in it. If you need anything else let me know and I will post.

Not much shows up here. The tank as we've noted previously is really too small for a group of neons, but that is certainly not the issue with the two deaths. Neons are not particularly hardy fish these days, at least not the tank-raised or commeercially bred fish; wild fish are considerably stronger [but getting wild neons is very difficult unless your fish store has direct importation].