caitlynn21

I am new to the fish world but and starting to get very interesting in my fish and how to care for them. I have very little knowledge, and I need information on how to take care of them, and if what I am doing is ok or if essentially I will need to do more to keep them healthy and happy. Right now I have a 10 gallon tank with 8 mollies and two Otocinclus. I have two small different plants. Not sure what they are. I have a filter that is a aqua tech that came with the starter kit from walmart. I also just have a standard heater. I change my filters once a month but i also wash it out a little bit after it builds up periodically during the month. I also take about half of the water out and add new water once a month with the filter and of course treat the new water with the start right before I put it in. I also just feed them generously tetrafin tropical fish food twice a day. Could someone please give me some advice on what else I need to do for them and what I will need to keep them healthy and happy. I want to make this a hobby and eventially expand my tank and goodies for them. Can i keep the ph and the balance of my water ok for them with this little bit I am doing? I need all the info anyone can give me!! Thank you

caitlynn21

I think that the plants I have are called wisteria and bacopa. Are those plants ok?

sirdarksol

http://www.fishlore.com/NitrogenCycle.htm
This article talks about the nitrogen cycle. This is really, really important to your fish.

Now, on to more specific information:
First of all, that tank is, unfortunately, overstocked. The general guideline is one inch of adult fish per gallon of water. Depending on the breed of molly, their adult size is between 2-4 inches. The otos get to be about 2 inches, so we're talking about between 20 and 40 gallons of water needed to keep these fish healthy in the long term.

Second, "feeding generously" is not necessarily good for fish. Being cold-blooded, they use much less energy than a mammal of a similar size. They only need to be fed what they can eat in a minute or so, twice a day. The otos will need to eat more regularly. A lot of people give them slices of cucumber or a piece of algae wafer at lights out.

Third, water wysteria is an excellent plant (though it spreads like a weed). Not sure about bacopa.

Are you doing water changes? If you have not yet cycled your tank, daily water changes of about 25% of the tank's water will be needed to keep the fish (especially the otos) healthy. Once your tank fully cycles, you should be doing a couple of water changes a week (normally one, but with an overstocked tank, I suggest two), with enough to keep your nitrate levels below 20ppm.

Do you have a mix of male and female mollies? If so, you are likely going to have more mollies soon. They breed like rabbits, and are capable of seriously overpopulating a tank, especially when there is space for the fry to hide, such as in wysteria foliage.

Now that I've given you a ton of info, I'll say this: Your best bet is to find new homes for your fish and start over with a better stock for a 10g tank. Often, a fish store will take fish off your hands. A couple of male mollies, platies, or guppies, or a betta, or a school of neon tetras would be a better match for a 10g tank.

If you can afford a bigger tank, that would work, too (in many ways, larger tanks are easier to keep healthy).

Keep the questions coming and keep us posted.
Good luck with everything and Welcome to Fishlore!