Gift Of A Filter And Fish Now What

[nermin79]

So I was setting up a new tank and in the process of choosing a filter and heater when I friend brought me her filter and 2 fish. They had been living in a very small tank ( maybe 5g) so they love the bigger 10 g tank. I was not thinking a throw out the filter and but in a clean one before setting it up and adding the fish.( When I got home from work the fish where there and had been in a small container for a few hours I wanted to get them in to the tank as quickly as possible. ) It the tank going to need to be cycled? I don’t want to add any more fish till I know these are ok and the tank is cycled ok. Also I think I was given two Barbs, what would be a good addition to this sparsely stocked tank? Oh I also don’t have a heater and live plants are these necessary?

 

[Aquaman2009]

So I was setting up a new tank and in the process of choosing a filter and heater when I friend brought me her filter and 2 fish. They had been living in a very small tank ( maybe 5g) so they love the bigger 10 g tank. I was not thinking a throw out the filter and but in a clean one before setting it up and adding the fish.( When I got home from work the fish where there and had been in a small container for a few hours I wanted to get them in to the tank as quickly as possible. ) It the tank going to need to be cycled? I don’t want to add any more fish till I know these are ok and the tank is cycled ok. Also I think I was given two Barbs, what would be a good addition to this sparsely stocked tank? Oh I also don’t have a heater and live plants are these necessary?

I think it might be a good idea to use the old filter as it will contain some of the good bacteria which will help cycle your 10g tank, or you could buy a new filter if the old one is on it's way out and simply put the old media into the new filter, the tank might still need to be cycled if it's brand new but the old filter should help speed it up, as far as I'm aware barbs don't necessarily require a heater as they can live in cold water, I keep my tiger barbs in a heated tank myself at approx 26 but I did read somewhere that they can live in cold water, maybe someone here could confirm that just to be on the safe side? Just be careful which fish you put in with the barbs as their very fond of nipping the fins of other fish, why not add a few more barbs to start off with? It's recommended that they are kept in a group of 6 or more...

 

[nermin79]

sorry what the media and what is the fliter, I throw out the fliter catridge( that is what the boxs says) and put in a new one. befor I set up the filter?

 

[OldMan47]

If you have already thrown out the old filter cartridge, you have removed most of the good bacteria in that filter. If you still have the old filter element, give it a quick rinse in dechlorinated water and put it back into the filter. A couple of small fish in a 10 gallon are not much of a biological load so you may not have too much trouble maintaining a fish-in cycle. Even that would be better for the fish than trying to hold the fish in isolation in a small container while fishless cycling the new tank.

 

[cowboy507]

if you keep the old filter, which the media (the sponge looking thing in it) then you wont have to cycle, this filter should have the good bacteria and has already been established for your small amount of fish. but when you add more, do so slowly, 2 or 3 at a time, then wait. test the water after the addition of new fish for a few days, once you are getting a reading or 0 for ammonia and nitrite for a week, then you can add more.
but if you have thrown away the old filter, then you will need to start a cycle, read about it in the beginner section on here.

 

[mickspark81]

just a note

Getting your hands on old filter media is a perfect way to greatly speed up the cycling process. Just remember to keep the media wet in the old tank water or even declorinated water and get it into your tank asap as the bacteria will die if dried out and chlorine will also destroy it

If you cant get any filter media, using substrate, plants, wood etc is also a really good way to kickstart the process (check out the health of the fish in the tank you are getting the material from tho as you dont want disease coming into your new tank)