Cloudy Water

[bassbonediva]

Almost. lol. I went back and read it and that was kind of confusing. Sorry very much!

Okay, here's the three options...

1. Buy TSS (it's about $25 for a large bottle, $13 for the smaller). Add it to the tank, then the next day add your fish. Wait seven days and don't do anything to the tank (as per the instructions on the TSS bottle). On the seventh day, do a water change (can't remember the size...I want to say 25%) and test your water.

2. Buy the fish and put them in the tank. Do 50% daily water changes until your parameters reach 0 ammonia, 0 nitrites, and 10-20 nitrates (could take anywhere from 3-6 weeks).

3. Go to your local fish store (or ask a friend who has an established tank) and ask if you can have a piece of their established, cycled filter media, or a nylon stocking with about 1 cup of gravel from one of their established tanks in it. Either insert the media into your filter, or hang the stocking with the gravel in your tank (your choice). Add your fish within a couple of days of doing that.

As for your fish...ouch! That jack dempsey is going to need 55 gallons just for the one fish. Jack Dempsey Fish - Cichlasoma octofasciatum The red oscar is will require 55 gallons for the one fish as well. Fish Profile for Oscar Fish, Common Oscar, Red Oscar, Tiger Oscar, Red Tiger Oscar, Marbled Cichlid, Velvet Oscar, Albino Oscar (Astronotus ocellatus, Acara ocellatus, Cychla rubroocellata, Hydrogonus ocellatus, Lobotes ocellatus ) The general recommendation for the larger plecos (like the hi-fin spotted) is 55gal, however, since they get to be 18-24" and are not an extremely flexible fish, I generally recommend a deeper tank, like a 90 gallon or larger, just so they can turn around comfortably. So, for those three fish alone, you're looking at somewhere around a 250 gallon tank. Also, cichlids and plecos are HUGE waste producers, so you would need to have an insane amount of filtration for just those three fish.

For the tank you have right now, I would recommend a dwarf gourami, some nice colorful tetras (Von Rios are some of my favorites) or harlequin rasbora, and a few pygmy (or one of the smaller varieties like pandas) cories. If you want an algae eater and can find one, get a clown pleco. They only get to be about 2".

Something like this:
1 dwarf gourami
6 tetras or rasbora
4 cories
1 clown pleco

Also note that algae eaters aren't exactly necessary unless you actually have algae. Otherwise you'll have to supplement their diet with algae wafers (which can be messy) and blanched veggies.

 

[Dylandrewsdad]

Why? Do you plan on having lots of algae? LOL The corys will keep the bottom spotless. If you want something that can eat algae, a school of oto's would do nicely. There are some species of Pleco that stay small, like 2-4 inches but they still need at least 30 gallons of water

 

[Mjnorcal922]

Almost. lol. I went back and read it and that was kind of confusing. Sorry very much!

Okay, here's the three options...

1. Buy TSS (it's about $25 for a large bottle, $13 for the smaller). Add it to the tank, then the next day add your fish. Wait seven days and don't do anything to the tank (as per the instructions on the TSS bottle). On the seventh day, do a water change (can't remember the size...I want to say 25%) and test your water.

2. Buy the fish and put them in the tank. Do 50% daily water changes until your parameters reach 0 ammonia, 0 nitrites, and 10-20 nitrates (could take anywhere from 3-6 weeks).

3. Go to your local fish store (or ask a friend who has an established tank) and ask if you can have a piece of their established, cycled filter media, or a nylon stocking with about 1 cup of gravel from one of their established tanks in it. Either insert the media into your filter, or hang the stocking with the gravel in your tank (your choice). Add your fish within a couple of days of doing that.

As for your fish...ouch! That jack dempsey is going to need 55 gallons just for the one fish. Jack Dempsey Fish - Cichlasoma octofasciatum The red oscar is will require 55 gallons for the one fish as well. Fish Profile for Oscar Fish, Common Oscar, Red Oscar, Tiger Oscar, Red Tiger Oscar, Marbled Cichlid, Velvet Oscar, Albino Oscar (Astronotus ocellatus, Acara ocellatus, Cychla rubroocellata, Hydrogonus ocellatus, Lobotes ocellatus ) The general recommendation for the larger plecos (like the hi-fin spotted) is 55gal, however, since they get to be 18-24" and are not an extremely flexible fish, I generally recommend a deeper tank, like a 90 gallon or larger, just so they can turn around comfortably. So, for those three fish alone, you're looking at somewhere around a 250 gallon tank. Also, cichlids and plecos are HUGE waste producers, so you would need to have an insane amount of filtration for just those three fish.

For the tank you have right now, I would recommend a dwarf gourami, some nice colorful tetras (Von Rios are some of my favorites) or harlequin rasbora, and a few pygmy (or one of the smaller varieties like pandas) cories. If you want an algae eater and can find one, get a clown pleco. They only get to be about 2".

Something like this:
1 dwarf gourami
6 tetras or rasbora
4 cories
1 clown pleco

Also note that algae eaters aren't exactly necessary unless you actually have algae. Otherwise you'll have to supplement their diet with algae wafers (which can be messy) and blanched veggies.

ok so in the first steps your saying add fish, like i get a few fish at a time? im sorry about all these questions its just im new to this and i really dont know alot. what would be the best food to feed all of these fish u listed??

 

[bassbonediva]

Actually, I believe with TSS, you can add all the fish at once if you want. I would definitely add the gourami last, if you decide to get one, though. They are related to bettas and can be territorial, so having everyone else established in the tank before adding the gourami will cut down on any territorial chasing.

-1 on Dylandrewsdad (sorry!) about the otos. Otos require a well established tank with a constant, steady source of algae. They also require perfect water parameters (that 0 ammonia, 0 nitrites, 10-20 nitrates thing I talked about). They are all wild-caught in rivers in South America using cyanide thrown into the water, so many of them aren't exactly at the peak of health anyway. Throw them into a tank with unstable parameters and you're going to lose most (if not all) of them quickly.

Here's what AqAdvisor has to say about the stocking list I suggested (including the clown pleco):
http://www.aqadvisor.com/AqAdvisor....AqSpeciesWindowSize=short&AqSearchMode=simple
Note that the clown pleco does need real driftwood to aid in its digestion.

 

[Mjnorcal922]

Why? Do you plan on having lots of algae? LOL The corys will keep the bottom spotless. If you want something that can eat algae, a school of oto's would do nicely. There are some species of Pleco that stay small, like 2-4 inches but they still need at least 30 gallons of water

No i dont plan on having lots of alage but i think that the pleco look cool

 

[Mjnorcal922]

Actually, I believe with TSS, you can add all the fish at once if you want. I would definitely add the gourami last, if you decide to get one, though. They are related to bettas and can be territorial, so having everyone else established in the tank before adding the gourami will cut down on any territorial chasing.

-1 on Dylandrewsdad (sorry!) about the otos. Otos require a well established tank with a constant, steady source of algae. They also require perfect water parameters (that 0 ammonia, 0 nitrites, 10-20 nitrates thing I talked about). They are all wild-caught in rivers in South America using cyanide thrown into the water, so many of them aren't exactly at the peak of health anyway. Throw them into a tank with unstable parameters and you're going to lose most (if not all) of them quickly.

for the small bottle of that TSS is that all i need?

 

[bassbonediva]

I believe the smaller bottle of TSS would be right for your tank.

And the clown pleco would fit perfectly into your tank, just make sure you have driftwood.

Here's a pic of a clown pleco (not mine):
http://addicted2cichlids.com.au/L168 Clown pleco.JPG

 

[Dylandrewsdad]

No problem Bass (I'll remember that though...LOL)

I still would not recommend adding all the fish at once, however having never used TSS I am not so sure what it is. One thing fish keeping has taught me is patience! As far as the Oto's I have never had an issue, but my LFS is very good about making sure the fish are healthy before he sells them!

 

[bassbonediva]

TSS is basically a cycle in a bottle. It contains live bacteria that jump-start your cycle. I have heard of people adding all their fish at once using TSS and not having any issues.

The only place around me that sells otos is Petsmart. I have gotten several from there and have some that haven't even made it home from the store. I've had others (like my one-eyed female) that lasted through the cycling of two different tanks.

 

[Dylandrewsdad]

That sucks...I am lucky I have two very good LFS with in 10 min of my house. One is pricier then the other and I like the cheaper one better. He ordered me some oto's, told me they would be in on a Tuesday, I went in Tuesday night and he said he wanted to watch them for 3-4 days first. Now he knows I have been doing this for a few years and have 4 completely cycled tanks, but he just wanted to make sure they were OK.

Was TSS called something else before?

 

[prsturm]

If you want a general janitor fish, the American flagfish is a good choice. In a 15 gallon tank, the flagfish will clean all levels, from top to bottom, and doubles as a "pretty" fish as well. My tank was growing a lot of stringy algae, and I got a flagfish and he took care of it. Every day he checks his spots for new growth and does his rounds. They aren't slow, and they don't have sucker mouths. It won't make the tank cleaner, they'll produce waste, but they do get rid of "unsightly" algae, and your bio-filter can handle the waste as with any other fish.

 

[bassbonediva]

Good point, prsturm.

Dylandrewsdad...I think TSS is a completely new product. Here's the Tetra website's blurb on it: Product Catalog

 

[Dylandrewsdad]

I also always have extra filter media on all my tanks "just in case" I need to start a new tank in hurry!

 

[bassbonediva]

Me too. That's why I love having the canister filter on my 55gal. I toss extra media in there and if/when I need to start up another tank, I just grab a piece out of the canister and VIOLA! Instant cycle. However, I think TSS is a good product for those people who are setting up a brand new tank and get set about it wrong to begin with. Or, if you have smaller children (like my 6yo son) who want fish NOW and don't want to wait the 3-6 weeks for the tank to cycle.

 

[ValRasbora]

for extra media, I squish an extra sponge in each of my filters, so if I'm going to cycle another tank I can just toss all the sponges in

 

[Dylandrewsdad]

In my AC's I have no carbon so I add an extra bag of bio media to all of them (I have at least one on all of my tanks!)

 

[Mjnorcal922]

well in my tank im running the 4 different filter media :Ammonia, Activated Carbon, Bio Max and the foam. Is that Correct??

 

[bassbonediva]

You don't have to have the carbon or the ammonia thing, really. Carbon needs to be changed out every four weeks or so and all it really is useful for is removing meds and tannins from the water. Not sure about the ammonia thing. I have an AquaClear 50 and just used the media that came with it (removed the carbon after a few weeks and replaced it with blue filter pad), which didn't include the ammonia thing you're talking about (can't for the life of me remember the name). The ammonia thing is another one of those products that only lasts so long (like the carbon) and they get you in the wallet because you have to keep replacing it when it isn't absolutely necessary. What you need the most is surface area for your bacteria to colonize, which is done best on sponges, filter pad, Bio-Rings and the like.

 

[Dylandrewsdad]

There is only space for 3 things. Carbon is a waste pretty much (there are a few reasons to use it) Did you have the water tested yet know if you have high ammonia, Since you just started probably not. Also if you are going to use the TSS, I think I read some where you should not use anything that binds ammonia (IE: Prime).

 

[Mjnorcal922]

the ammonia thing, i guess it keeps out the ammonia. my friend went to go get me some of the TSS because he said he had some. I heard the carbon is just used to cover up signs of bad water and stuff like that. But when i get the TSS will the cloudy water go away??