Hi All! New To This So A Few Questions!

[Skins]

Ok so the questions:
1. water flow - how much water movement do fish actually like? they dont want to be fighting a current all the time obviously....

As long as they arnt getting blown around then they should be fine. Most of the fish we stock come from rivers or lakes & they all have moving water. So the fish are quite happpy to be swimming in a current.

Ive just been home for lunch, did a 20% water change and altered the angle of the pump output, i must say they seemed to actually enjoy the current, especially the tetra, they sat there fighting it on purpose! I guess its like being on a tread-mill in the house if you cant get out.....

by the way, as its a big amount of water to change, im pre-warming the water to what feels about the same as the tank to avoid big temperature variations, i assume this is good practice? (i have a hot water on demand water heater so its fresh water, not from a immersion heater)

Matching temp Your best to use boiled water to mix with your cold tap water.

 

[Aqua Tom]

Use boiled water from a kettle to adjust the tempreature, no chance of germs that way.

 

[Darkcat]

Well im happy to report that all seems to be going well at the moment, still a tiny bit of ammonia in the system, around 0.25 this morning. All the fish seem quite happy, rather hyperactive actually! one of the gourami keeps shooting up the tank at what it obviously thinks is food on the surface, quite funny to watch! the tetra keep chasing eachother about..

The plants have gone mad, which is nice, though one has nearly died, ill pull it out soon if it doesnt pick up.

oh and ive been invaded by snails, wont bother about them for now...

 

[Aqua Tom]

It sounds like you are doing all the right things, just remember to keep up the BIG water changes. Good Luck

 

[the_lock_man]

oh and ive been invaded by snails, wont bother about them for now...

If it becomes a problem, an assassin snail or 2 will get rid of them, slowly but surely and without chemicals.

 

[Rynofasho]

Just as an FYI, Tetras do have a bit of a sensitivity to light, so if you are going to leave a light on for 8 hours a day, you may want to have a floating plant somewhere in the tank to give them a place to escape to if they choose.

 

[golfzzin]

Hi im new so not much help, but i got my fish and tank before i joined here, ended up doing a fish in cycle, i had to do big water changes ever day, sometimes 90%

It has took 6 weeks but im finally there

I had 8 neons and only lost one during all this

Hope it works out well for you