I want to do it right this time...

[Cloverleaf1985]

Ok so my mum has decided she wants a tank. We have been given a 30L tank.

It has a Fluval 2 plus filter which i have had to buy new sponges for.
Yesterday i added sand (rinsed well first), a live plant and some decorations. I have filled it with water and treated with water conditioner.
My own filter has 2 sponges and is mature so i put one of my sponges into the filter and set it running and have put one of the new sponges in my filter and have the other new one floating in my tank....

Now, i read somewhere i can put fish food in a stocking and hang in the new tank to create ammonia for the bacteria as i don't want to do a fish in cycle again and pure ammonia isn't easily available. Would this work?
How long roughly do you guys think it would take to cycle?
I have liquid test kits for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate so can monitor.

And finally....

Here is the plan for fish.....Mum would like 6 Cardinals, 6 Rummy Nose Tetra, 6 Guppies and a few Cherry shrimp. Does that sound like an OK number/combo of fish (obviously we'd add 1 'group' at a time)

Thanks!

 

[achase]

So 30L is about 7.9 gallons?

You could do that cycling method I personally have never used it because I was able to find ammonia locally and then I just followed this article: http://www.thepufferforum.com/forum/library/water-filtration/fishless-cycling/. But I'm sure you could find an article online about that method of cycling or someone on here could fill you in.

It took my 16 gallon tank with some gravel (from my established tank), established filter media and plants just under a month to cycle.

As for fish combination's and such I would check out this site: AqAdvisor - Intelligent Freshwater Tropical Fish Aquarium Stocking Calculator and Aquarium Tank/Filter Advisor. It is really helpful and I know quite a few people on this forum use it.

 

[lauraf]

Yeah, check Aqadvisor - I'm afraid you will be surprised at how overstocked that selection of fish would be for a 30L. And you might want to consider adding a couple otos for algae control.
But it's super that you are ready to do a fishless cycle!

 

[achase]

oh ya.... kodo's (word?) on doing the fishless cycle!
Much nicer for fish!

 

[lauraf]

Kudos
Ancient Greek.

And BTW, if one is going to try to use decaying food matter as an ammonia source, I'd use bloodworms or brine shrimp, as they should decay faster than a flaked or pelleted food.

 

[bassbonediva]

I wouldn't recommend otos until your tank has been up and running for at least 4-6 months. They require an established algae source and are inherantly delicate because of the way they are caught in the wild and transported (the humans dump cyanide in the river or stream, collect the stunned otos, ship them to the states where they're stuck in small overcrowded tanks and then usually sold at random to people who don't have an established food source for them and/or don't have a well-established tank, who then get angry because the poor little otos die on them soon after getting them home). In a new tank, if your parameters are right, you shouldn't have to worry about algae. If you do have algae, get some nerite snails. They're easier and cheaper than otos. Don't get me wrong...I LOVE my otos, but they aren't the easiest fish to accomodate.

As for your stocking, I agree with checking AqAdvisor to see what's compatible and what'll fit in your tank. It's a very valuable resource.

 

[riseabovethesun]

I also one up checking with AqAdvisor for compatibility and what not and of course "overstocking" ultimately depends on the fish and the tank (and the person) I've read such conflicting things everywhere about what is considered overstocked..

 

[lauraf]

Paige, good point about the otos. Add them later down the line if needed, or nerites do the job too.

 

[bassbonediva]

I've gotten several from Petsmart (really the only place that carries them consistantly around me) and some have died within a day, others are still alive and well almost a year later. I even have one female who is missing an eye. No clue how it happened. I noticed it when I went to upgrade from my 18gal Eclipse 1 tank to my 46gal bowfront. She's the queen of the tank. But then I've had other otos who seemed big and fat and healthy in the store that have died within hours of me getting them home to my fully-cycled, well-established tank (I overfeed on purpose to give the otos plenty of diatoms to feed on, which seems to be their favorite).

 

[lauraf]

I had a few otos when I first populated my cycled tank. Between them, the nerites, the apple snail and me not knowing to supplement with veggies, I had very little algae and I think mine might have starved to death, which makes me sick to my stomach now. I also didn't have MFT in my life then! But given what I have since learned about how sensitive those little guys are, maybe it wasn't totally my negligence . . . .
Anyway, you were totally right about them not being the best for a new tank or one with potentially unstable water conditions. I was looking at cloverleaf's wishlist and thinking, gack, not all those fish will fit in, and something small that is a bottom feeder or other kind of swimmer would be a good thing to try to add to the tank. My gut would be something like one school of small tetras, three guppies, three dwarf cories, and that's max - actually even that might be overstocked!
Anyway, sorry cloverleaf for taking over your thread. Let's get your tank properly cycled and we'll talk about the fun stuff later.

 

[Cloverleaf1985]

Ok, the tank is cycling nicely, but there are snails! ARGH!! They must have come on the plant. Other than picking them out as i see them, what else can i do to get rid of them? Bearing in mind there are no fish to harm and i can easily remove the plant.

 

[Cloverleaf1985]

Bump! Anyone?

 

[OrangeCones]

There are a lot of chemicals to kill snails available, but its easier to just collect them and get them out if you don't want them.

Since there are no fish in the tank yet, just put a wilted piece of lettuce on the tank (weigh it down with gravel or a rock) when it gets dark. In the morning, you should be able to catch a lot of them on the lettuce. Repeat until you see no more.

I would not remove the plants now as they likely carried in snail eggs and removing the plant and then reintroducing it later may cause more eggs to hatch out and start the process over.

If you do remove the plant, snails must eat so if you don't feed them, they will take care of their population for you, given time.