Well i now pronounce shark bait dead :(

[OrangeCones]

i HAVE to leave tommorrow and wont be back till sunday

I'd do a good water change before you go and don't worry about feeding him while you're gone. Less food = less waste while you can't be there to monitor it. Fish beyond the fry stage do not need to eat every day and most can go a week or more with no problems.

 

[Newman]

I wouldnt leave anything other than a few algae wafer in the tank while youre gone. and only leave them if you KNOW he will eat them. my old common pleco used to like them. yours should accept them .

 

[Mjnorcal922]

I wouldnt leave anything other than a few algae wafer in the tank while youre gone. and only leave them if you KNOW he will eat them. my old common pleco used to like them. yours should accept them .

i didnt put any in the tank ill try them when i get home this weekend i just let him eat the cucumber my mom changes them every day and i got 20 bucks to spend while im outta town but im not going to spend it so i can get my test kit from walmart DDDD i was also talking to a friend that lives here in so*cal this walmart still has a live fish center soooooo she said they most likely have a discounted master liquid test kit that they sell DDD im sooo happy right now you dont even know DD
This is the one im gonna get but i see the reviews on it and people say it doesnt test nitrates....is that bad or is it true?? the link is right here Walmart.com: Tetra Laborett Master Aquarium Water Test Kit: Fish


or should i save up 10 more bucks and get this one? Walmart.com: Freshwater Master Test Kit: Fish



Update! i just found the cheapest one and its top of the line its only 25 bucks its cheaper then both because shipping to my house on walmart is like 3 bucks plus tax and all that good stuff! API Freshwater Master Test Kit NIB *Best Deal* - eBay (item 260666041771 end time Nov-16-10 16:25:15 PST)

 

[Newman]

lol thats impressive it contains so many random and useful tests! except nitrate lol. you can buy the API nitrate test separately i guess. i'd be careful with why they discontinued the kit. maybe its bad? but its a good deal.

 

[Mjnorcal922]

lol thats impressive it contains so many random and useful tests! except nitrate lol. you can buy the API nitrate test separately i guess. i'd be careful with why they discontinued the kit. maybe its bad? but its a good deal.

the last one on ebay they didnt discontinue it but you would think if they did they wouldnt sell it @ pets marts

 

[Thyra]

I would buy the last one you mentioned for $25. You need the nitrates. And I read all the replies on the other test kit and while only one was very negative, many mentioned the smaller bottles and it sounded like 18 tests were a lot. I have had mine for 5 months and I have started two tanks and am testing something almost every day. I would really consider the cost in the long run.

 

[ValRasbora]

that's great about the test kits! Have you considered what you will do stocking-wise, once you get it all cycled?

 

[Mjnorcal922]

that's great about the test kits! Have you considered what you will do stocking-wise, once you get it all cycled?

well since i am getting the liquid test kit tomorrow hopefully its cycled...
Then since i have a full bag of cichlid pellets im going to see if my aunt will buy me another oscar to go into the tank, this time im going to get a small one but this time im going to make sure the water is good and that i dont feed him too much

 

[OrangeCones]

I would rethink adding another oscar to a 15gallon tank. They will grow (if given the proper care) about 1" per month. I had one grow from a newly hatched fry to 13" in 14 months.

 

[Mjnorcal922]

I would rethink adding another oscar to a 15gallon tank. They will grow (if given the proper care) about 1" per month. I had one grow from a newly hatched fry to 13" in 14 months.

these oscars in this pets mart have like stunted growth my friends oscar did grow hardly at all for more then two months then he started to feed it blood warms and some heavy protein stuff and it got HUGE!

 

[Newman]

you dont want to buy stunted fish. you also dont want to raise stunted fish, make sure you give your fish room right from birth (in case you breed stuff in the future)

 

[Mjnorcal922]

well what i heard on here is that you should have 1 gallon for each inch of each fish, well right now my pleco is 2 inches and an oscar would be 1.5 inches...so i need approx a 5 gallon tank? so i think 15 gallon would last me 3 months until i got my 55 gallon

 

[Mjnorcal922]

Spent over 50 Bucks @ Pets Mart and Walmart Today...

API Liquid Master Test Kit: 32.99
Top Fin Small Magnetic Cleaner: 6.99
Marina Plant Decoration: 3.99
Walmart Bubbler: 3.99<< I got this one because as you can see its coated with plastic and the one at pets mart that i bought last week just snapped in half!

 

[Newman]

so you went with the API after all

 

[OrangeCones]

well what i heard on here is that you should have 1 gallon for each inch of each fish, well right now my pleco is 2 inches and an oscar would be 1.5 inches...so i need approx a 5 gallon tank? so i think 15 gallon would last me 3 months until i got my 55 gallon

I disagree with the 1" of fish for 1 gallon of water unless you are talking about slim bodied fish like rasbora or tetra. I can't keep a 10" oscar in a 10gallon tank, but by the inch-rule method, I could? Could a 10" oscar even turn around in a 10gallon tank?

I still think you should wait until you have the 55 gallon tank, but you will do what you want. I hope your 2nd oscar lasts long enough for the tank upgrade. Good luck with your fishtank.