Newbie

[Darren5591]

Hi guys,

Me and my girlfriend have just invested in a nice tank and want to start with some small tropicals. Idea is to have about 15/20 mix of neon tetra's and zebra danio's (this is what the man at the aquarium center suggested) along with a male betta to finish it off. Combining about 4 plants, and a 25watt heater (25litre tank). I was wondering if someone could give me some advice on a couple of questions I have.

Do I have everything I need?
25Litre tank with flourescent light
Pump with filter
4 potted plants with 4kg of "roman" harlequin gravel
Stress zyme and stress coat
Thermometer
25watt heater

The second question is:

After about 2 days of putting the gravel and water in, the temperature sat at about 19/20C. The water started to become cloudy, I had left the pump on for that time to settle the filter etc. Along with the adding of stress coat I didn't notice any change. I read up on the internet and people say that the water maybe due to the "decorations", or the gravel that I added. I didn't wash this out before I added it to the tank, is this the cause of the cloudyness?

I have since started fresh, and thoroughly rinsing and washing the gravel to ensure its clean.

Does anyone have any more tips for a couple of eager but unexperienced fish keepers?

Thanks,

#43###

 

[james_fish]

You look pretty prepared and eager to get started

All's that i would suggest is to not to put Neon Tetra's in for a good few months, they are not recommended for tanks at first. Danio's will be fine, maybe add 5 at first then add a shoal of Tetras (maybe Glowlights or Silvertips?) after a couple of weeks.

Make sure you give plenty of time before you add a new shoal of fish. But i would definately by some Danio's first because by my experiance they are very easy to keep and i've been told many times are a good fish to use for cycling.

Hopefully someone else will also help you start off, providing a second opinion

Good Luck

James.

 

[Big_eyes]

I think you'll find that the majority of knowledable peeps will tell you that your 25 litre is really only big enough to house a male betta on its own and even then people will tell you that it is even too small for only a betta.

You'll be known as mary and josephs miracle baby, the son of....(oh yeah swear filter) also known as...(oh yeah swear filter). Ok you'll be known as the saviour if you manage to fit in what you have mentioned stock wise and keep things going without error.

 

[Darren5591]

Thanks for your replies guys, only reason I suggested the figures above is as this is what the shop had in their 25litre example in store but I think they had about 10 neons in rather than 20. Any advice is useful though, I was under the impression that the smaller (hardy?) fish were more suited to this type of tank? What sort of fish would you guys recommend for this setup?

I was thinking to have the single betta and then a shoal of 6 tetra. This would allow enough space for the fish to live comfortably but not making the tank look empty.

 

[james_fish]

Yeah, Neons are very popular. But they really are not suited for new tanks.

But don't worry there are many types of Tetras that will be a good starter like I stated above.
And I do think Zebra Danios will be a good starter fish, they are also very active and cool

Like you said, if your going to get a betta, the shoals of other fish will have to be lowered. But it is up to you!

I've also been told Tiger Barbs are good for a new tank, but because these are bigger than some Tetra's it means you might only have room for another shoal of Tetra's. Also with Tiger Barbs, Betta's are a No-No because they tend to nip fins unless in a large shoal.

James

 

[Darren5591]

Just an update, had my tank set up for a couple of weeks now and had the water tested. It was slightly off but I decided to get a shoal of 6 zebra danio's to see how they get on. I love the little lot, they are really active and seem to be enjoying the tank. I'm going to get a betta in the next few weeks so the bacteria in the tank settles with the recent fish. Tropical fish keeping is definatly something I am enjoying, its just nice to be able to have not only a pet but a nice looking addition in the room (its like a little world on its own!). I'm going to get the betta and update with some pictures etc

#43###

 

[OldMan47]

Welcome to the forum Darren.
Your LFS may have given you some poor advice, in my mind at least. Although you can keep the zebras that you have, you are now in a fish-in cycling situation that will not be made better by adding any fish. The main thing that you need to do now is to start testing at least daily for ammonia and nitrites. If you start to see either one, which it is likely you will, you will need to do a large water change using your dechlorinator, to bring things back under control. There is a link to a detailed discussion of fish-in cycling in my signature area.

 

[Assaye]

Hi guys,

Me and my girlfriend have just invested in a nice tank and want to start with some small tropicals. Idea is to have about 15/20 mix of neon tetra's and zebra danio's (this is what the man at the aquarium center suggested) along with a male betta to finish it off. Combining about 4 plants, and a 25watt heater (25litre tank). I was wondering if someone could give me some advice on a couple of questions I have.

Do I have everything I need?
25Litre tank with flourescent light
Pump with filter
4 potted plants with 4kg of "roman" harlequin gravel
Stress zyme and stress coat
Thermometer
25watt heater

The second question is:

After about 2 days of putting the gravel and water in, the temperature sat at about 19/20C. The water started to become cloudy, I had left the pump on for that time to settle the filter etc. Along with the adding of stress coat I didn't notice any change. I read up on the internet and people say that the water maybe due to the "decorations", or the gravel that I added. I didn't wash this out before I added it to the tank, is this the cause of the cloudyness?

I have since started fresh, and thoroughly rinsing and washing the gravel to ensure its clean.

Does anyone have any more tips for a couple of eager but unexperienced fish keepers?

Thanks,

#43###

Heya!

It's great that you have found this forum, you'll get a lot of fantasitc advice here and you'll also learn that many people working in fish stores are not to be trusted.

Lets start with your list of items:

25Litre tank with flourescent light - fine, lights are good because you can properly replicate a day/night cycle for fish and will have more luck with hardy plants
Pump with filter - an absolute must
4 potted plants with 4kg of "roman" harlequin gravel - if you want plants, you need about an inch of gravel
Stress zyme and stress coat - Stress Coat is great stuff, Stress Zyme is a waste of money IMO. Most of these "bacterial starter" products are just a soup of dead organic matter. They don't survive being on shop shelves very well!
Thermometer - a must
25watt heater - a must for trops and pretty useful for cold water as they keep temp steady

Some stuff I would recommend in addition:

New bucket - essential for water changes! I like to have a couple knocking around. Never use one that has been used for cleaning chemicals, as the residues will harm fish.
Gravel syphon - essential for cleaning gravel (should be done once a week) and makes water changes super easy.
Net - there will be times when you need to remove fish or scoop out bits of plants. Always have a 3x3 inch net handy. The smaller they are, the harder they are to use.
Basic meds - you'll want at least an anti-fungal, anti-bacterial (try to get one that does internal and external bacterias) and a wormer/anti-internal parasite med.

Now, onto the fish you want:

Neon tetras - awful for newly set up tanks (whatever the shop tells you) and IMO should only be kept in 40+ litres. They are small, but they are not hardy and they do need plenty of swimming room!

Danios - get to about 2.5 inches and need even more room than the tetras. Wouldn't like to see these in less than 50-60 litres.

Male betta - would be nipped by the danios and maybe by the neons. Suitable for 25 litres if kept on his own or with a couple of dwarf frogs, or something else very small and unassuming.

Shops are very well known for recommending any-old small fish for small tanks, whether or not it is actually a good idea. A lot of people think small fish = small tank but this is often not really the case. A single betta is much better suited tp a 20-30 litre tank than a shoal of neon tetras.

If you want tetras, go for something super small like green neon tetras or ember tetras. Anything that gets bigger than 1 inch will be too big, if you want shoaling fish.

Now, finally, read this link, especially the bits on cycling a tank and setting up a new tank. If you look, there is also a section about cloudy water. This information is so important and for profit-making reasons, shops rarely tell you about it. After all, the more dead fish you have and the more you need their advice, the more money they make!

EDIT - one final thing! It is essential that you have your own liquid test kits for at least ammonia and nitrite. Getting your water tested once a week or whatever at the shop is no-where near enough - with new fish in a new tank, you want to be testing once or twice daily. If you don't your fish can (and probably will) get exposed to some very dangerous chemicals. You also NEVER want to add fish to a tank with even slightly bad water. This is their entire environment - if you don't do it right, they get sick and might even die.

Good luck!

 

[Darren5591]

Wow cheers for the replys guys, very useful. Since flushing and washing any gravel/ornamants, there is no cloudness at all. I have a couple of other issues now I'd like to address

There is a white "slime" which has appeared on the the suckers of the pump and on the heater. Is this anything to be worried about? I think it might be linked to another issue I have.

One of my little zebra danio's has got some of this "slime" on its lower half of the body, this makes it hard for him/her to swim and it is clear he is struggling. Any help asap would be greatly appreciated. See the picture below to give you an idea of what I see.

 

[Big_eyes]

Well after a long debate with a mod I have had to alter my earlier post in this thread. I have to apologise to all none of you who complained about my use of the name of mary and josephs son in a context that was no way in the slightest bit offensive. But you know, me not being a muslim an all I don't see how gut wrenching it is to read that word spoken in a perfectly moral term.

The name in question had to be removed due to being defamatory, vulgar and profane apparently. But you know, we're all just doing our job correctly