Is it possible to upgrade my built in filter to handle more waste for my Fluval Spec 5 gallon?

[Sgooosh]

I think they're there for the bacteria to settle in.

yeah
also you have a really nice tank i love the huge ludwiga
you can cut the plant and then reroot it, making a whole new plant

 

[Tacocat]

you can cut the plant and then reroot it, making a whole new plant

How exactly do I do that? Sorry to keep replying to your messages

Also, would it be bad if, theoretically, I moved the guppies and/or the tetras to somewhere, and I put a hillstream loach or a Pseudogastromyzon Myersi to tackle the algae, as well as one or 2 anchor catfish to be the new main party?

 

[Sgooosh]

How exactly do I do that? Sorry to keep replying to your messages

Also, would it be bad if, theoretically, I moved the guppies and/or the tetras to somewhere, and I put a hillstream loach or a Pseudogastromyzon Myersi to tackle the algae, as well as one or 2 anchor catfish to be the new main party?

its ok, that way i get a notif
probably, hillstream loaches need a big big filter because they like flow
get a nerite or a ramshorn.
the ramshorns will get out of control but tackle algae well

 

[Essjay]

Please do not add any more fish to this tank as it is very overstocked as it is now. But the one piece of good news is that your ruby tetras are Boraras maculatus which stay very small and are suitable for this tank. But they do need to be in a group of at least 10. With just the Boraras and shrimps, it should be OK to have 10 of the fish - would your parents lets you swap the guppies for more Boraras? The single cardinal may as well stay.

Boraras maculatus – Dwarf Rasbora (Rasbora maculata) — Seriously Fish

www.seriouslyfish.com

Adding more media won't grow more bacteria. It's the amount of food that determines the numbers of the two bacteria colonies.
In brief - fish excrete ammonia. In a cycled tank, a colony of bacteria eat this ammonia and turn it into nitrite. This is also poisonous to fish, but in a cycled tank another colony of bacteria eats the nitrite and turns it into nitrate. This is less poisonous than the others two and we remove it by doing water changes.
But in a brand new tank there are virtually no bacteria; it takes several weeks for them to grow. Until there are enough bacteria, we have to do water changes every time ammonia or nitrite are above zero.

You mention testing pH but not whether you can test for ammonia and nitrite. If you don't have testers for these, please get them as soon as you can. Until you can test for them, you need to change at least half the water every day; when you can test, change at least half the water every time ammonia or nitrite read above zero.
If you use strip testers, don't put them into the tank. Take some water out in a small container and test that, then throw the water away.



Once you get the ammonia under control by doing daily water changes, the algae will probably get under control.
How long are the lights on for - too long will also encourage algae.

 

[hansgruber7]

I have this same tank and I love it. You don't need to upgrade the filter, nor can you really. Your only options in my opinion are to add plants like frogbit, reduce the bioload by offloading fish, reduce feeding, increase your water changes, and get some algae eaters like a nerite or maybe some more dwarf shrimp. Good luck! It's a beautiful tank.

 

[Tacocat]

Please do not add any more fish to this tank as it is very overstocked as it is now. But the one piece of good news is that your ruby tetras are Boraras maculatus which stay very small and are suitable for this tank. But they do need to be in a group of at least 10. With just the Boraras and shrimps, it should be OK to have 10 of the fish - would your parents lets you swap the guppies for more Boraras? The single cardinal may as well stay.

Boraras maculatus – Dwarf Rasbora (Rasbora maculata) — Seriously Fish

www.seriouslyfish.com

Adding more media won't grow more bacteria. It's the amount of food that determines the numbers of the two bacteria colonies.
In brief - fish excrete ammonia. In a cycled tank, a colony of bacteria eat this ammonia and turn it into nitrite. This is also poisonous to fish, but in a cycled tank another colony of bacteria eats the nitrite and turns it into nitrate. This is less poisonous than the others two and we remove it by doing water changes.
But in a brand new tank there are virtually no bacteria; it takes several weeks for them to grow. Until there are enough bacteria, we have to do water changes every time ammonia or nitrite are above zero.

You mention testing pH but not whether you can test for ammonia and nitrite. If you don't have testers for these, please get them as soon as you can. Until you can test for them, you need to change at least half the water every day; when you can test, change at least half the water every time ammonia or nitrite read above zero.
If you use strip testers, don't put them into the tank. Take some water out in a small container and test that, then throw the water away.



Once you get the ammonia under control by doing daily water changes, the algae will probably get under control.
How long are the lights on for - too long will also encourage algae.

Later, I will probably go to the lts to purchase a test kit for this reason. Which ones do I need?
IS it the ammonia, calcium, and nitrate and nitrites?
Problem is, my parents are really focused on my getting through my exams, and say that they don't want to do much to the fish until I finish my exams, so the things I can do right now are limited.

 

[Tacocat]

Also, as I have mentioned earlier, there is one prolific ramshorn that's laying eggs left and right. I'm tempted to leave it be, so I can get more snails, but I'm afraid that they might get out of control, as everyone we've talked to has horror stories about snail infestations, and I've seen a fish tank that had an out of control mystery snail population that made the tank so bad there were as many snails as rocks.

 

[Tacocat]

But in a brand new tank there are virtually no bacteria; it takes several weeks for them to grow. Until there are enough bacteria, we have to do water changes every time ammonia or nitrite are above zero.

My tank already had a bacteria ampoule that was sitting for a few days while the dust settled, so I'm guessing that the bacteria got in the filter and has been doing its work.

 

[Sgooosh]

Also, as I have mentioned earlier, there is one prolific ramshorn that's laying eggs left and right. I'm tempted to leave it be, so I can get more snails, but I'm afraid that they might get out of control, as everyone we've talked to has horror stories about snail infestations, and I've seen a fish tank that had an out of control mystery snail population that made the tank so bad there were as many snails as rocks.

theres 2x as many rams as rocks in my tank
but i dont wanna kill them all cuz there is one huge one that i really like she's beautiful

 

[Essjay]

Despite what store workers tell you, bottled bacteria products do not cycle a tank instantly. The best ones speed up a cycle, the worst ones do nothing.

Test kits - you need a minimum of ammonia and nitrite. These are the things that can kill fish so it is important to know if there is any in the water. Nitrate and pH are useful to know.
You don't need a calcium tester.
It is important to know GH (hardness) and KH (carbonate hardness) but as these don't usually change it is expensive to buy a tester you'll only use once. If you get mains water, your water provider's website should have your hardness and KH on there - they'll use the word alkalinity for KH. Or take a bit of your tap water to a fish store and ask them to test it for GH and KH.

 

[Tacocat]

Despite what store workers tell you, bottled bacteria products do not cycle a tank instantly. The best ones speed up a cycle, the worst ones do nothing.

Test kits - you need a minimum of ammonia and nitrite. These are the things that can kill fish so it is important to know if there is any in the water. Nitrate and pH are useful to know.
You don't need a calcium tester.
It is important to know GH (hardness) and KH (carbonate hardness) but as these don't usually change it is expensive to buy a tester you'll only use once. If you get mains water, your water provider's website should have your hardness and KH on there - they'll use the word alkalinity for KH. Or take a bit of your tap water to a fish store and ask them to test it for GH and KH.

Ok, I'll keep that in mind!

Also, if you scroll up a bit, I have exams coming up, and because of that my parents are reluctant for me to transport or trade fish until the exams have passed and the summer has arrived. What should I do until then to keep the fish alive and healthy?

 

[Tacocat]

And also how many dwarf rasboras should I have to have a breeding population?

 

[Kolykaf]

I'd recommend some fast growing plants. They are the most beautiful filters.

 

[Essjay]

I agree with the plants.
Plants tank up ammonia and they turn it into protein not nitrite so they help to keep the ammonia in the water down low.


You need testers for ammonia and nitrite and test the water every day. If there is any ammonia or nitrite, do a big water change. Since the tank is 5 gallons, this won't take long so your parents shouldn't worry about taking time away from studying.

 

[Scoutcast]

Hi Tacocat,
I don't think those are ruby tetras; I think they are actually one of the little dwarf rasboras, possibly Phoenix Rasboras. I have a school of 15 of these little rasboras including Pheonix, Strawberry, and Chilli rasboras. I understand that you cannot upgrade your tank and are trying to look for the best solutions for the situation you are in now. Your filter is fine, but just make sure you occasionally squeeze out your sponge in dirty tank water that you've removed from your tank during a water change to keep it from getting gunked up and unable to filter as well. You don't want to rinse it or squeeze it in newly treated or tap water. Use your dirty water to preserve any growing bacteria colony. You are going to have to do a fish-in cycle. I had to do the same, unfortunately, because I didn't know about the nitrogen cycle at all. I don't want to assume anything, but if you need a good website to learn about the nitrogen cycle, please say so and I will find the one that helped me the most. First, you will need a water conditioner like Seachem Prime or even Seachem Amguard since you're trying to help your fish survive the presence of ammonia and nitrites. Those bacterias-in-a-bottle should not be allowed to be marketed as such. They are not miracles in a bottle and do not cycle your tank the way the labels promise. You need a good test, not those strips, and you also don't want to soak the strips anyway if you happen to have them and want to use them tonight; you want to follow the instructions exactly. I suggest Salifert, but API is more easily obtained. If money were no object, I would suggest the Hanna checkers, but it sounds like you may need to get the API Master Test Kit. This is because those test strips are not anywhere near accurate enough for monitoring your fish-in cycle. You will need to know your exact parameters and you will be trying to neutralize the ammonia and nitrites that can kill your fish in even the smallest amounts. The good water conditioners like Prime or Fritz Complete, even Seachem AmGuard, when used every 24 hours (Prime or Complete) or up to 72 hours with AmGuard, can help you keep your fish alive by neutralizing (not removing) ammonia and nitrite. You will also need to do regular water changes. Watch your pH too because the development of the BB (beneficial bacteria) colony also caused a drop in pH in my tanks, and I needed to do water changes to maintain stable parameters, and this actually helps the BB colony to continue to develop as well. If you have other water conditioners, they are very unlikely to be ones that can neutralize ammonia. It is really urgent that you get your hands on one that does. The plants will help with cycling your tank, but they're not enough on their own. They help most with nitrates in my tanks. Providing good filter media helps BB colonies by providing surfaces for the BB to grow in your filter. You can also use air-driven sponge filters or put a sponge over your intake tube- this all provides extra oxygenated and porous places for the BB to grow. It does not float in the water, so water changes do not kill your BB colony. It grows on surfaces, even in your substrate. It’s important to know that the bacteria will not grow in excess of what your tank requires. You can’t develop reserves or extra bacteria by providing more surfaces for it to grow. It will grow and shrink in response to the levels of ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate in your water. You have an adequate filter, and though you don’t have a good way to customize your media, you do have some choices if you want to upgrade your media. While your tank is cycling, what you will see in your tests is first a rise in ammonia, with your nitrites and nitrates reading zero. Then you will start to see your nitrites develop. Eventually, you will start to see your ammonia drop to 0, and you will see a nitrite reading, and your nitrate readings will start to develop too. When your tank is cycled, your ammonia and nitrite readings will both be 0, but you will have a nitrate reading. Nitrate is toxic to fish, but not the same way ammonia and nitrite are. You will be removing nitrates through your water changes, and plants really help with this. Plants also help with oxygenation in your tank. You want to use Prime/AmGuard/Complete to neutralize the ammonia and nitrites, but you will still see readings in your tests, and you want this to happen! You just don't want your fish to die while this is going on, which they will unless they're extremely hardy or you use these water treatments that are designed to help with this. They can also be used in emergencies to neutralize ammonia, nitrite, nitrates, chlorine, chloramines, and heavy metals. You do want to know your pH, because cycling a tank results in a drop of pH for a lot of us, and your fish can be killed by fluctuating pH. You want to keep it around the same level of alkalinity that your fish require or that your treated tap water produces. Your fish can adapt to steady pH readings better than they can adapt to swings in pH. GH and KH are helpful because some fish need harder and some need softer water, and your hardness can change based on things you put in your tank (like rocks or different substrates). KH (calcium) actually helps keep your pH stable, but that's something you can learn more about after cycling your tank first. I hope this helps. Best of luck getting through this! It's takes diligence and patience, but it is doable with the right supplies, monitoring, and water changes.