Im new here looking for answers

[Tyler777]

Hi, I'm Tyler. I used to have a 75 gall9ns tank 20 years ago but had to sell it due to financial difficulties.
Now I'm trying to start again but I pretty much forgot everything I knew.
Hope this forum n people in it will help me out to re learn everything again.

Thanks

 

[gwand]

Hi, I'm Tyler. I used to have a 75 gall9ns tank 20 years ago but had to sell it due to financial difficulties.
Now I'm trying to start again but I pretty much forgot everything I knew.
Hope this forum n people in it will help me out to re learn everything again.

Thanks

Hi. I would start with how to cycle a tank. Also determine if your water source is hard or soft and make your fish selections based on their tolerability of the hardness of your water. Then keep in mind the number of fish you select should be considered in regards to how many gallons your tank holds. The general rule of thumb is 1 inch of biomass to 1 gallon of tank volume. This relationship should take into account rocks, wood,plants and other objects that displace water.

 

[Back in the fold]

Ah , Captain America ! I am a great fan of your films . But seriously , you will be surprised what you remember . Welcome to The Great TFF Forum and welcome back to The Greatest Hobby In The World . Now if we could just get Bucky a different uniform .

 

[Lcc86]

Welcome! I have found this forum incredibly helpful with any and everything fish-related!

 

[Tyler777]

Hi. I would start with how to cycle a tank. Also determine if your water source is hard or soft and make your fish selections based on their tolerability of the hardness of your water. Then keep in mind the number of fish you select should be considered in regards to how many gallons your tank holds. The general rule of thumb is 1 inch of biomass to 1 gallon of tank volume. This relationship should take into account rocks, wood,plants and other objects that displace water.

Hi there n thank you for answered me.
We have 2 aquariums a 46 gallons bow front running and a 75 gallons not in use yet .
The 46G running has plastic plants n 3 serpae tetras, 1 dwarf gourami, 1 blue cobalt gouramie, 1 small pleco. 2 other small cleaners dunno the names, 3 small mollies, 2 swordtails, 1 Betta male, 8 neons and 2 small angels.
Water looks cloudy we did a 50% water change last Sunday n we poured a tetra water clarifier which made water 3 time more cloudy.
We don't know what to do now but we sure aren't to use that tetra clarifier anymore.
We also lost 2 neons n 2 more disappeared n I found 1 Molly dead this morning.
Petsmart replaces the dead ones but I'm tired of taking dead fishes to get new ones if they keep dying.

Any advice bout these problems going on in my tank ?

 

[gwand]

Have you cycled the tank before adding fish?
What are the levels of ammonia, nitrites and nitrates?
What is the GH of your tank water?
You have mixed together fish where some require soft water and others hard water to thrive. Depending on the GH of your water, some fish will die prematurely.
Male betta should have his own tank. Too aggressive for most community tanks.
This is just a start.

 

[Tyler777]

Have you cycled the tank before adding fish?
What are the levels of ammonia, nitrites and nitrates?
What is the GH of your tank water?
You have mixed together fish where some require soft water and others hard water to thrive. Depending on the GH of your water, some fish will die prematurely.
Male betta should have his own tank. Too aggressive for most community tanks.
This is just a start.

Well I can't remember the ph, ammonia or the others numbers. Ph was fine that I remember but I forgot the others I will have to check again to let you know.
Like I said in my introduction I forgot everything I used to know n after 20 years it's hard to remember. We cycled the tank for 3 days bfore adding fish which I found out yesterday that I should have cycled it for 2 weeks.so a mistake right there.
The Betta isn't aggressive at all he just mind his own business but it was my wife's choice I'm not a big fan of them.
Which fishes i have should be in a different tank ?
I will test the water n will let you know in a little while.

Thank you for helping me

 

[Essjay]

3 serpae tetras,

These are one of the nippiest fish in the hobby. It is usually advised to keep at least 15 of them in the hope they'll keep their nippiness between themselves. This doesn't always work.
Keep an eye out for fish with bits missing; if you find any, suspect the serpaes.

1 dwarf gourami, 1 blue cobalt gouramie,

Is the cobalt blue one of the colour morphs of dwarf gourami? And if it is, are both of these males? It is usually recommended to keep just one of these territorial males per tank.

1 Betta male

Bettas and gouramis are not a good mix as they are related territorial fish which occupy the same region of the tank.

I should have cycled it for 2 weeks.

Cycling usually takes longer than 2 weeks. My fishless cycle took 7 weeks.




Since you have a mixture of both hard and soft water fish, the answer is probably to have one type in in the 46 gallon and the other type in the 75 gallon, then alter the water in whichever is "wrong" for the fish in there. If you have soft water, minerals can be added to make it hard; if you have hard water, pure water such as reverse osmosis can be mixed in to make it softer.

 

[Tyler777]

Well I can't remember the ph, ammonia or the others numbers. Ph was fine that I remember but I forgot the others I will have to check again to let you know.
Like I said in my introduction I forgot everything I used to know n after 20 years it's hard to remember. We cycled the tank for 3 days bfore adding fish which I found out yesterday that I should have cycled it for 2 weeks.so a mistake right there.
The Betta isn't aggressive at all he just mind his own business but it was my wife's choice I'm not a big fan of them.
Which fishes i have should be in a different tank ?
I will test the water n will let you know in a little while.

Thank you for helping me

These are one of the nippiest fish in the hobby. It is usually advised to keep at least 15 of them in the hope they'll keep their nippiness between themselves. This doesn't always work.
Keep an eye out for fish with bits missing; if you find any, suspect the serpaes.


Is the cobalt blue one of the colour morphs of dwarf gourami? And if it is, are both of these males? It is usually recommended to keep just one of these territorial males per tank.


Bettas and gouramis are not a good mix as they are related territorial fish which occupy the same region of the tank.



Cycling usually takes longer than 2 weeks. My fishless cycle took 7 weeks.




Since you have a mixture of both hard and soft water fish, the answer is probably to have one type in in the 46 gallon and the other type in the 75 gallon, then alter the water in whichever is "wrong" for the fish in there. If you have soft water, minerals can be added to make it hard; if you have hard water, pure water such as reverse osmosis can be mixed in to make it softer.

Hi essay n thank you for helping me. My plans for the 75 gallons once I start it is to have angels, gouramies ( dwarf, blue n honey gouramies maybe also pearl gouramies too some clown loaches a pleco n some tetras , would that mix be ok ? Or some of them prefer different kind of water ?

The Betta, was my wife idea

 

[Essjay]

To be honest, it's one gourami species per tank. They don't mix well. They have a spectrum of behaviour with all the colour varieties of three spot at the more aggressive end, closely followed by dwarf gouramis. Honeys and pearls are at the less aggressive end - but they are still gouramis so can still be aggressive.
I would choose just one gourami species and have that in soft water.

And an angel/gourami mix often ends badly.

A few of us have mentioned hardness. Soft water fish kept in hard water develop calcium deposits in their kidneys which reduces their life span. Hard water fish kept in soft water suffer calcium deficiency, which again reduces their life span. This is why we recommend keeping fish which come from water with similar hardness to our tap water as that's easier than altering the water to suit the fish.



Clown loaches are big fish; a 6 foot tank is the absolute minimum for a tank with just these loaches. If there are other fish as well, the tank needs to be bigger. Google "marge clown loach" to see how big they can get. But there are other, smaller loaches which would be suitable.




The best site for research is Seriously Fish. In their profiles they give the size of the fish, the size tank it needs, hard or soft water, fast or slow flowing water, the temperature they need and so on.

 

[Lcc86]

Agree with what others have said, you've got some incompatible fish unfortunately, which is how it goes sometimes as fish stores don't tell us they're not compatible! I know your wife likes the betta but either he or the gourami are likely to end up seriously injured or dead unless you separate them. Personally I'd return the betta and keep either the gourami or the angels, or move the angels into your other tank for example.

 

[Tyler777]

To be honest, it's one gourami species per tank. They don't mix well. They have a spectrum of behaviour with all the colour varieties of three spot at the more aggressive end, closely followed by dwarf gouramis. Honeys are pearls are at the less aggressive end - but they are still gouramis so can still be aggressive.
I would choose just one gourami species and have that in soft water.

And an angel/gourami mix often ends badly.

A few of us have mentioned hardness. Soft water fish kept in hard water develop calcium deposits in their kidneys which reduces their life span. Hard water fish kept in soft water suffer calcium deficiency, which again reduces their life span. This is why we recommend keeping fish which come from water with similar hardness to our tap water as that's easier than altering the water to suit the fish.



Clown loaches are big fish; a 6 foot tank is the absolute minimum for a tank with just these loaches. If there are other fish as well, the tank needs to be bigger. Google "marge clown loach" to see how big they can get. But there are other, smaller loaches which would be suitable.




The best site for research is Seriously Fish. In their profiles they give the size of the fish, the size tank it needs, hard or soft water, fast or slow flowing water, the temperature they need and so on.

Ok I guess I will choose honey red gouramie then cause I like those the most.
What k8nd of fish would do good with gouramies n what kind would do good with Angel's?
Cause I guess I'm gonna have to have an angels tank n a gouramie tank.

Agree with what others have said, you've got some incompatible fish unfortunately, which is how it goes sometimes as fish stores don't tell us they're not compatible! I know your wife likes the betta but either he or the gourami are likely to end up seriously injured or dead unless you separate them. Personally I'd return the betta and keep either the gourami or the angels, or move the angels into your other tank for example.

Thank you I was thinking bout the same

Hi. I would start with how to cycle a tank. Also determine if your water source is hard or soft and make your fish selections based on their tolerability of the hardness of your water. Then keep in mind the number of fish you select should be considered in regards to how many gallons your tank holds. The general rule of thumb is 1 inch of biomass to 1 gallon of tank volume. This relationship should take into account rocks, wood,plants and other objects that displace water.

This is the test I just took. Can anybody read it for me cause like I said after 20 years of not having an aquarium not only I forgot how to do things but also I'm feeling too dumb n frustrated to even read this thing.

Thanks in advance

Hi. I would start with how to cycle a tank. Also determine if your water source is hard or soft and make your fish selections based on their tolerability of the hardness of your water. Then keep in mind the number of fish you select should be considered in regards to how many gallons your tank holds. The general rule of thumb is 1 inch of biomass to 1 gallon of tank volume. This relationship should take into account rocks, wood,plants and other objects that displace water.

Hi. I would start with how to cycle a tank. Also determine if your water source is hard or soft and make your fish selections based on their tolerability of the hardness of your water. Then keep in mind the number of fish you select should be considered in regards to how many gallons your tank holds. The general rule of thumb is 1 inch of biomass to 1 gallon of tank volume. This relationship should take into account rocks, wood,plants and other objects that displace water.

This is what the last test shows

Total hardness 260
Total chlorine 0
Free chlorine 0.5
Ph 7.8
Alkalinity 240
Cyanuric acid 0

Are the readings good or bad ?

 

[emeraldking]

Hi, I'm Tyler. I used to have a 75 gall9ns tank 20 years ago but had to sell it due to financial difficulties.
Now I'm trying to start again but I pretty much forgot everything I knew.
Hope this forum n people in it will help me out to re learn everything again.

Thanks

Welcome back to the hobby and welcome to our forum...
As you can see, sufficient replies have been given by others to help you out.

 

[Lcc86]

Ok I guess I will choose honey red gouramie then cause I like those the most.
What k8nd of fish would do good with gouramies n what kind would do good with Angel's?
Cause I guess I'm gonna have to have an angels tank n a gouramie tank.

Thank you I was thinking bout the same


This is the test I just took. Can anybody read it for me cause like I said after 20 years of not having an aquarium not only I forgot how to do things but also I'm feeling too dumb n frustrated to even read this thing.

Thanks in advance
View attachment 341019



This is what the last test shows

Total hardness 260
Total chlorine 0
Free chlorine 0.5
Ph 7.8
Alkalinity 240
Cyanuric acid 0

Are the readings good or bad ?

Not familiar with these tests as I use liquid kits but it seems you have water on the harder side. Your best bet is looking up which fish go well with hard water and plan your tank around that. I'm not sure how you ended up with your original stocking but if the shop misled you about compatability and water hardness you could ask to return most fish and get something more suitable. Eg gourami, betta and angels are soft water fish so not ideal for your water (as well as not being compatible more generally). Aside from this, as the tank is still not fully cycled I'd get a test kit that can read for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate as you need to be really on top of these during cycling.

 

[Tyler777]

Not familiar with these tests as I use liquid kits but it seems you have water on the harder side. Your best bet is looking up which fish go well with hard water and plan your tank around that. I'm not sure how you ended up with your original stocking but if the shop misled you about compatability and water hardness you could ask to return most fish and get something more suitable. Eg gourami, betta and angels are soft water fish so not ideal for your water (as well as not being compatible more generally). Aside from this, as the tank is still not fully cycled I'd get a test kit that can read for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate as you need to be really on top of these during cycling.

Yeah I found out last nite that the water test my wife got is for our pool not for aquariums. That explains why I didn't have tubes n tests for nitrites n nitrates.
I will see if I get a new test kit today.
Bout the fishes after 20 years of not having an aquarium I forgot bout doing a research of compatibility instead of just choosing the pretty ones.
Would it be too late to buy n pour that bottle that has bacteria to help with the cycle?