CakeRevolution

Firstly I must say lots of respect for all users of this forum, and especially to all the moderators. Everyone is really helpful.

Back on Topic

I recently decided to get back into keeping an aquarium as I had one when I was really small and enjoyed the sound of soft bubbles and being able to watch my fish when I studied.

So before I get myself into anything, I did as much research as possible, and ended up getting a 70 Litre tank or 18.7 Gallon tank for my US friends :P I then got what I think what is called on this forum a power filter that sits inside the tank, a heater, thermometer, some plants, Some drift wood.

I then set up my tank, washing my gravel **** thoroughly, putting in the gravel, adding water to half way, putting in plants and drift wood and filling the rest of the way. I then proceeded to add chemicals that the shop assistant recommended for me to dechlorinate my water, and start the nitrogen cycle.

Note: Plants are silk, not real :P

Though after about 5 days, my water has gone greenish. So after some googling and reading other users topics on this forum, I've pretty much got an algae problem, but here are my questions.

Does this happen when breaking in a new tank?
What are the Cheapest methods of solving this problem?
When doing water changes must I dechlorinate the water before I put it in the tank?
Also I still haven't got test kits, are they vital? In your opinion which is the best type? Digital?Chemical?
The temperature of the tank is currently 28 degrees Celsius or 79 Fahrenheit, but my heater is set on 26.5 Celsius.
I've researched that also that 25% water changes should be made weekly.

Any suggestions on starting fish will be welcome, One fish I will probably get is neons, about 10 or so

Thats all I can think of, Any help is much appreciated.

aquarist48

Hello CakeRevolution Welcome to Fish Lore and back to the hobby!

It is very common for newly set up tanks to have algae problems. To start I would like to suggest that you don't leave the tank lights on more than 11 or 12 hours per day. Make sure the tank isn't getting any direct sun light. Aquarium Algae Control
The link may help you some.

All of your new water for water changes should have the chlorine removed before it goes into your tank. This will help prevent the chlorine from destroying your good bacteria that the tank needs to process ammonia.

Having a test kit "IS" vital to fish keeping. If you can find it in your area what is most recommended on this site is the API (liquid) Master Test Kit. It tests for everything needed for The Aquarium Nitrogen Cycle (Paper test strips can be inaccurate and unreliable)

Acclimating Tropical Fish to Your Fish Tank I suggest that Neons go into an established tank, at least a few months old. They can be very sensitive to new water conditions.http://www.fishlore.com/Profiles-NeonTetra.htm

Your temperature is fine. Changing out 25% weekly should be fine as well.

Best of luck and by all means keep us posted on your progress. Glad to have you on board!
Ken

iloveengl

Ken seems to have you covered - great information!

I just wanted to welcome you to FishLore. We always love a friendly new member on board.

A big school of neons will look really great once the tank has had time to settle in. I agree with Ken, add them too soon, and you're likely gonna lose many of them.

Maybe a single Dwarf Gourami to compliment the colors of the neons, but add a different look.

peacemaker92

WELCOME TO FISHLORE!

Agree with Ken and ilovee. Don't add the neons just yet. You could add a Dwaft Gourami first as ilovee suggested. But the neons you can add maybe a few months later.

About your algae problem, doing a tank blackout like mentioned in the article given by Ken should work. But maintain daily water changes and you should be fine. Hope you can get the test kit as soon as possible. Keep us posted Good luck!

bolivianbaby

Welcome to Fishlore! Great advice above!

Shawnie

welcome to fishlore!!!! cant wait to see your pics! great help from ken as always

jdhef

Welcome to FishLore!

What method are you using to cycle your tank? You really do need a test kit so that you will know when your tank has cycled and you can start adding fish. A cycled tank as zero ammonia, zero nitrites and some nitrates.

Okay to answer a couple of your unanswered questions, if the ambient temperature is higher then the temperature that your thermometer is set for, your tank water will become higher that what you set your thermometer for.

Also, it is really immpossible to know if 25% weekly water changes are what will be required. As you know in a cycled thak ammonia-->nitrites-->nitrates. So the more ammonia on the front end, the more nitrates on the back end. So you really need to let your nitrate reading be your guide for water changes. You want to change enough water often enough that your nitrates stay under 20ppp. So it could be 25% every two weeks of 50% twice a week depending on how stocked you are. With the stocking list you have proposed, I think 25% per week would be a good place to start.

Okay, I gotta run...I need to do my weekly 50% water change.

CakeRevolution

Thanks for all the great tips.

My tank doesn't get any direct sunlight from the window, but my room does get a lot of natural light. I also don't have a light yet so that factor doesn't play any role. I think I will try a tank black out for 5 days, then I defiantly know its a light problem.

Though what I will do is go visit my local shop and check out fishes and their prices, and then research them a little more. I'll defiantly go and get a test kit.

I'll keep you guys updated on the developments, as my tank gets fuller.

Thanks a lot

Blub

Welcome to fishlore!

Remember: get a liquid test kit! They are much, much more accurate than test strips. Most members here use and reccomend the API range of liquid test kits.

I think with the stocking list you have proposed you have a little room more for a few 5-8cm fish in there... Maybe a couple of mollies, some small gouramis (Honey or Dwarf would be good), or a few Dwarf cichlids like Bolivian Rams.

Good luck - remember we're here if you need us!

CakeRevolution

Quick update

I got a few test kits for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate.

The levels are:
Ammonia: 0.5 mg/L
Nitrite: 0.5 mg/L
Nitrate 10mg/L

Also looked at fish I would possible get, but I havent done my research yet, so easy on the CnC plz This is just a an intial list

Angels
Black Widows
Platies
Tiger barbs
Albino tiger barbs
Golden Barbs
Guppy
bala shark
Neons

I haven't tested for pH yet, didn't realize how much these tests costed, but I realize they are a major investment and will last a lot longer than the strips.

Also my algae problem seems to have sorted it's self out some how, I hadn't even started the Tank Black out

click

I'm sure you will get help in fish compatibility from the ones with more experience than me.

Just sharing my train of thought, when I made my list of future fish, I took into account my water hardness (I don't want to keep adjusting that with every water change) and made a list with fish that could cope with my hard water. You can test your water hardness at the local pet store, they do almost any aquarium water test...for free

Edit: just noticed you're on a different continent, so not sure about the free water testing in your area

Melissawater

Welcome to Fishlore
I love the tetras and guppies, just be careful with the guppies they recommend 3 females to 1 male to give the females a break and trust me they need it lol! With the bala shark I believe you can only get one and I'm not sure about an angel in a tank your size, but there are more experienced members here who can really fill you in.
Congrats on the new tank and happy cycling!!

bolivianbaby

Is your tank a 20 long or a 20 high? Angels need depth because with their fins, they can get to 12" top to bottom. The depth of your tank will help decide if angels would be happy in your tank.

A bala shark needs much more space than a 20 gallon and they like to be kept in schools. I believe they need at least 100 gallons. They are gorgeous, though

Barbs and angels aren't compatible, barbs like to nip fins. To be honest, I'm not sure who tiger barbs can actually be kept with. They're not the friendliest, but they are pretty.

Other than those few items, your stocking thoughts look good.

Could you tell us what you want the most and maybe we can help you figure out your stocking from there? You've chosen some absolutely gorgeous fish!

CakeRevolution

I've done my research, and have altered the list a little bit.

Two fish I would defiantly love to have is Neons, and angel fish, even if it's 2 angels or something.

Other fish That I did research on that looked good are:

Golden barbs
Guppy
Platy
Black widow.

My tank is 35cm deep or 13.78 inches for my American friends.

Any stocking suggestions are welcome, This is where I really need the most advice.

Also another thing I forgot to add is the local shop was actually stocking new fish when I was there so not everything was labeled, so I might go back tomorrow and take another look.

bolivianbaby

That looks like a wonderful colorful stocking list. IMO, angels would be happier in a deeper tank. I've got four in a 55g and they swim all over the tank.

My advice would be to pick two species of schooling fish out of the neons, golden barbs, and black widows, have 6 each of those, and a couple male guppies and a couple male platys.

If you see rummynose tetras at your LFS, those would be a colorful addition as one of your schooling fish.

I'm sure other members will be along shortly as well.

CakeRevolution

I think I made a error in my thinking about the nitrogen cycle. I used Nutrafin Cycle to start it, and seems to be working as shown above. Now though do I need to keep adding weekly amounts of "Ammonia" producing stuff. Or once it started I can just wait till levels of ammonia and nitrite are 0, and then get the fish?

I also did a water change (25% which is 18L of my tank) without dechlorinating it but then added the dechloranating stuff later.

Should I be worried, or should I just wait longer.

Fundamental errors are :/

Thanks a lot bolivianbaby for all the help

Blub

pH is not usually a problem - most captive bred aquarium fish adapt well to fairly neutral pH's, and I don't think you should have a problem.

Angels may feel a bit too cramped in your tank - they are beautiful but I don't think 35cm is deep enough for a fish than can get that tall.

Black widows would be a great choice! They are lovely tetras and do well in a commuity. Platys would also be great - make sure you only get males though, as if you have females they will breed like crazy and overstock you. Don't worry about males fighting - they won't fight if there are no females! The same would go for guppys. Neons are lovely and peaceful - they can be a bit fragile though.

I think Balas would be a bad choice - they get big (35cm odd I think it is) and they need a massive tank (100gal+) because they are so active and like to school (so you need multiple Balas!).

Tiger barbs have a reputation for being aggresive - although this aggression towards other fish is not as apparent if you have a large school of Tigers.
I've got to say Gold barbs (and any barb for that matter) sometimes get branded as aggresive because of their striped cousins, but they are acctually a peaceful species what would make a nice group for your tank.

I think, going from that, you could have either 8 Neons and 3-4 male Platys or male Guppys, 5-6 Gold Barbs and 3 male Platys, 6 Black Widow tetras an d the aforementioned platies or guppies, 6 Black Widows and 6-8 Neons or 5-6 Gold Barbs and 6 Neons. But obviously, there are thousands of other combinations you could chose from whit hall the fish out there! (I love stockign suggestions...)

mommybaby295

Others, especially JDHEF, have explained this better than I can, but apparently, Cycle contains terrestrial, rather than aquatic bacteria. That means that the bacteria cannot survive without weekly additions of Cycle. It is not a good product to use to cycle your tank. The only known product that is effective is Tetra Safe Start, which can be difficult to find.

I think it is wonderful that you are doing this research first, rather than jumping into it all like I did. I think you should stop adding the product Cycle, and let your tank cycle without fish. If you add an ammonia source, such as fish food or a small piece of raw shrimp, you should have the appropriate readings within a few weeks.