Hello, General information needed and a little bit about cycling my tank.

[TomRadford12354]

Hi,
I have recently looked into getting some fish and have done a ton of research on my tank along with some great help form an online store. But I was wondering if I could ask some questions.

Firstly I was made aware about having to keep your tank running for a period of time (2 weeks I was told ) with some plants or even food in the tank without any fish. I have gone ahead with and got my tank and got everything set up. I am going away for 2 weeks or so and thought I could but some plants in there and a very little amount of Quickstart just to give it boost. Will this work? can I but my fish in when I return?

Secondly I was looking for a centre piece fish that would be a head turner. I have been told Discus, Angelfish and Bettas . I can say they are lovely fish. But I was hoping to keep Some Shrimps and at least two killifish. They seem timid do killi fish from what I have read and don't want to put them with anything dangerous same for the Shrimp. Any Ideas? I have seen a lovely Angelfish would it work?

Any advice you can provide would be a huge confidence booster to getting my fish. Looking forward to some of the replies.
Tom

Extra Info:
Tank size: 60x 30 x30 ( 55 litre tank )
More than happy to provide some screenshots of the fish I am interested in .

 

[PheonixKingZ]

Have you read this? https://www.fishforums.net/threads/cycling-your-new-fresh-water-tank-read-this-first.421488/

That really helped me with my tank cycle.

And no, do not mix those 3 fish you mentioned. Bettas are not community fish and shouldn't be kept as such.

a 55L tank is way to small for angelfish.

We also need to know your pH, GH, and KH. You can find this information out by going to your local water providers website, or by calling them. We need actual numbers. (Ex. dGH or ppm)

 

[TomRadford12354]

I will take a look!
OK I did think that Angelfish would not fit in my tank .

PH: Around 7.5 ( to hard to predict due to distance etc)
GH : Soft ( 1.68)
KH : 1.68

Hopefully that's all you need

Tom

 

[Byron]

Welcome to TFF.

The easiest method to use in starting a new tank is a "silent cycle" with live plants. So you are on the right track with setting up the tank with plants, but I would suggest holding off on planting until you return. Plants need light and nutrients, and in just a few days there could be a disaster if the light were too strong, or the nutrients too plentiful, or the opposite. It takes a bit of tweaking initially. Once you have plants that are relatively fast growing species, showing signs of growth, you can then add fish without worry. But getting the plants established is the first step.

If you do not have the plants yet, and are going away now, I would drain the tank and wait until you return. Fresh water, plants, and some comprehensive plant food (which type depends upon the plant species) can be added when you return, and as soon as the plants show growth, fish can be added.

Your water is very soft which is very good because there are far more options for small tanks with soft water than hard. Angelfish and Discus are much too large, and they are shoaling so they need a group, for this tank. A single Betta is one option (Bettas are not community fish), but most of us like more than one solitary fish so groups of "nano" sized shoaling fish species is worth looking into. Killifish can work, with other species or alone depending upon the killifish species. Just to throw out some species, you could have groups of one of the dwarf rasboras in the genus Boraras (Boraras brigittae is one species), a group of one of the dwarf cory species like Corydoras pygmaeus or C. habrosus, a couple of the pencilfish species in Nannostomus would work, some of the freshwater shrimps, etc.

 

[TomRadford12354]

Thanks for getting back to me and for the brilliant advice.

Yes the store I was buying off recommended that. I have got my and placed them around the tank, not planted. I have got some Plant food already as I thought I would need it down the line. Also Is moss relatively easy to keep? I would like to add some to the rocks I am getting.
I will look into some fish that have been suggested
Tom

 

[Byron]

Thanks for getting back to me and for the brilliant advice.

Yes the store I was buying off recommended that. I have got my and placed them around the tank, not planted. I have got some Plant food already as I thought I would need it down the line. Also Is moss relatively easy to keep? I would like to add some to the rocks I am getting.

Tom

Be careful with rocks. Some are calcareous, and will slowly dissolve calcium and raise the hardness which can be a death knell to very soft water fish. Rounded "river rock" in various sizes is usually granite and safe, and can be effective. Chunks of bogwood are advisable as all the fish suited to this tank and soft water will come from habitats with wood and often dried leaves.

There is the question of the tank light to sort out, the spectrum, intensity and duration all factor in.

 

[TomRadford12354]

I never thought about the rocks im using. Any idea how long some of the rocks degrade? as im thinking I might upgrade from the tank and completely change it in the distant future .

All I could find about the light is it is a 8w LED. Seems quite bright but I couldn't find a lumen calculation.

Tom

 

[TomRadford12354]

Side note Any one got any idea about bumble bee or peacock Gobys? is brackish water a must for the Bumble bee

 

[Essjay]

Peacock gudgeons/gobies would be OK size-wise according to Seriously Fish, but I have some in a larger tank and would not like to see them in a tank as small as SF suggests.
But there is another issue. Their hardness range is given as 5 to 10 dH and your hardness is lower than this. My GH at 5 dH is really a bit on the low side for them.



I used to have a tank the same size as yours. I kept Boraras brigittae, pygmy cories and cherry shrimp in this tank, together with a tangle of hornwort wrapped around the branches of some spikey wood.

 

[TomRadford12354]

Peacock gudgeons/gobies would be OK size-wise according to Seriously Fish, but I have some in a larger tank and would not like to see them in a tank as small as SF suggests.
But there is another issue. Their hardness range is given as 5 to 10 dH and your hardness is lower than this. My GH at 5 dH is really a bit on the low side for them.



I used to have a tank the same size as yours. I kept Boraras brigittae, pygmy cories and cherry shrimp in this tank, together with a tangle of hornwort wrapped around the branches of some spikey wood.

Ok thank you. IF they are not suitable for the water softness of my area then I will not go for them. Do you know if Killifish can live in my GH? Specifically Aphyosemion Australe Killifish.

I will search up some of the fish you have mentioned as im struggling to find fish that are compatible with my tank and shrimp.
Thanks.

 

[Essjay]

The best site for research is https://www.seriouslyfish.com/knowledge-base/ The people who run this site are experts. I would trust this site more than any other as anyone can set up a website regardless of their level of knowledge.
SF tells you the minimum tank size, water requirements in terms of hardness and pH, the temperature needed by any species, and so on. Hardness is more important than pH, so look for fish which have your hardness in their range even if pH is slightly outside the quoted range. Some profiles give hardness in ppm and your 1.68 dH converts to 30 ppm.

 

[TomRadford12354]

The best site for research is https://www.seriouslyfish.com/knowledge-base/ The people who run this site are experts. I would trust this site more than any other as anyone can set up a website regardless of their level of knowledge.
SF tells you the minimum tank size, water requirements in terms of hardness and pH, the temperature needed by any species, and so on. Hardness is more important than pH, so look for fish which have your hardness in their range even if pH is slightly outside the quoted range. Some profiles give hardness in ppm and your 1.68 dH converts to 30 ppm.

Thank you very much. You have been a huge help .

Tom

 

[PheonixKingZ]

Thank you very much. You have been a huge help .

Tom

I agree SF is my go-to site for looking up fish profiles.

 

[Essjay]

I forgot to mention - some profiles on Seriously Fish use deg C while others use deg F for temperature; some use US gallons, others use litres for tank volume; and cm or inches for tank dimensions.
There is a calculator on here to convert whichever way round you might need to https://www.fishforums.net/aquarium-calculator.htm

 

[Byron]

I never thought about the rocks im using. Any idea how long some of the rocks degrade? as im thinking I might upgrade from the tank and completely change it in the distant future .

Rock that is calcareous, meaning composed of minerals like limestone, marble, and similar primarily-calcium rock, along with coral and shells, will very slowly dissolve over hundreds of years. Such rock is usually found in the earth, and water that flows over or through it picks up the dissolved minerals which is what makes the water "hard" to some degree. If you have calcareous rock in your aquarium, it will still be slowly dissolving long after you and I are no longer here. There is a test to determine if rock is calcareous or not. This involves using a strong acid with a few drops on the rock, and the degree to which is fizzes tells you it is calcareous.

Rounded "river rock" which you can buy in landscape supply places and quarry outlets should generally be safe as it will usually be granite.

All I could find about the light is it is a 8w LED. Seems quite bright but I couldn't find a lumen calculation.

The intensity is likely OK (maybe even too bright, but floating plants can help with that) but what is the spectrum? Is there any data on the unit, the package, or the manufacturer's online site that gives the Kelvin for this light? Anywhere between 5000K and 6500K is ideal light.