New Tank Journal!

[Assaye]

More results:

28/09 - 1.5-2 ppm ammonia, 1.5-2 ppm nitrite, 40 ppm nitrate

At this rate I'll probably re-dose this evening or tomorrow morning.

 

[Assaye]

29/09 - 0-0.1 ppm ammonia, 5 ppm nitrite, 40-80 ppm nitrate

Redosing with 3ml ammonia!

 

[waterdrop]

 

[Assaye]

I've re-dosed four times now - the tank is just eating through the ammonia! Nitrates are up, probably 80-100 now. Nitrite is going between 1.0 and 5.0. Just need to wait for the nitrite to clear and then it'll be into the qualifying period.

Tbh, I could stock now as I'm just going to start with 10 tiger barbs and I know the tank can handle that but I want to complete it 'by the book'

 

[waterdrop]

This is where we're supposed to remind you to be patient. (you're to set an example now, right? )

 

[Miss Wiggle]

tempting isn't it assaye, we're in the same boat just waiting for all the nitrite to go but considering we're going to significantly understock the tank to start out we could probably get away with putting fish in now. but gonna hold off and be patient!

anyway the other tank you put a pic up of looks really good so looking forward to seeing pics of the new one too

 

[Assaye]

Still at the stage of re-dosing the ammonia every 24 hours and waiting for the nitrite to drop. HURRY UP! I am being patient, though. 7 of the tiger barbs have just been moved from the Q tank into my 60 litre with the other tiger barbs, so I don't want to move them again too soon and I know that once the tank is ready, I'll want to put the stock straight in so I need to make sure the cycle is complete. I won't be able to resist moving the kribs and catfish as well as the barbs when the time comes!

Got the tank planted with the plants from the Q tank (which I've converted into a newt tank for my anorexic newt). It's looking pretty good, I think. No photos yet as I don't have a decent camera but it's got three rocks in a kind of igwami style, a cabomba forest in the far left corner, crypts around the rocks and some tall stem plants near the filter on the right. Still fairly bare and I'll get some more plants when I take cuttings from the 4 foot tank. I think I'll put some java fern in there.

Still a few bits I need for the new tank before I can say it's done - need a new light fitting and a new condensation tray.

 

[waterdrop]

I do get a feeling of a bit of magic in that third stage of fishless when the nitrite drops hard and the nitrate similarly jumps up in the other direction. I just feel it gives you the option of this more calm and pristine tank for the new introduction that does not involve the water changes that are keeping things down - that it feels somehow better to have the bacteria doing it. I know this is probably psychological but hey! WD

 

[Assaye]

Finally got double zero! Re-dosed again to see how long it'll take the clear a second time. Hopfully quite close to the qualifying period.

 

[Assaye]

Disaster has struck! The tank seems to have a leak. I've had to put the filter in a bucket and run it there. Still topping up the ammonia daily. The filter is cycled but I can't do anything now until I have a new lighting unit and a fixed tank. I hope it's just a seal and not a crack in the glass =(

 

[Timmy_Bee]

was this a new tank? gutted!

Also, the bumblebee cats? are they Corys? i have seen the in a LFS and am tempted. Almost look like little puffers...
What are they like? how big to they grow?

 

[Assaye]

Bumblebee catfish are not corys, no. Their size depends on their species - here is a list of some of the species referred to a bumblebee catfish.

Here are a few more:

Bumblebee Jelly Catfish

African Bumblebee Catfish

Giant Bumblebee Catfish AKA Jelly Catfish

South American Bumblebee Catfish (these are the ones I have)

And a list of the Pseudopimelodidae family.

As you can see, there are a lot of fish that are referred to a bumblebee catfish, ranging in size from 2" to 20". It's really important to get the right one (or at least be sure yours are not going to get too big) and many lfs don't label them properly. The ones I got were labeled just "Bumblebee Catfish" and I had to do loads of research to be sure they were not a species that would get huge! Identifying them can be tricky as some of the species are very similar.

I believe mine are the South Americans however while they look similar they seem to have grown too large. At the moment they are around 3 inches, possibly bigger. They are very shy during the day, being nocturnal fish, but are very willing to feed. They'll dart out, grab the food and dark back away again. Had a little trouble settling them in and one of them was not fed properly in the shop and thus very skinny. I was worried he wouldn't make it as he didn't seem well but he has pulled through and is going very strong now. They are a lot of fun to watch at night as they zoooom around the tank and play in the water flow. They even do weird loop-the-loops up against the glass. Great catfish!

They have very big mouths and WILL eat smaller fish. They are best in a soft bottomed tank (sand or very smooth gravel) that has fish that are the same size as them in it. They'll eat live, frozen and pellets. Lots of decor and places to hide are necessary. I have a piece of wood and a skull that they hide in, as well as quite a few java fern.

 

[waterdrop]

yuk! My tank broke too when I was cycling.. not fun!

 

[Assaye]

I've found the leak . . . there is a huge crack along the base!

I've got a base pad for the tank now and I've sealed the crack with silicone, but will it be usable now? With the pad to disperse the weight of the water properly (yeah, I know I should have had one before) and with the crack sealed, will the tank hold water or is it irrepairably damaged?

This is now good news =(