First Time Fishy Parent

We have a 20 gallon tall, looking for some tips and advice.

First got the tank Sept 29 2018, no fish were added, Oct 3 2018 got BIOBOOST and added to the tank.
October 6 2018 Fish were added to the tank.

3 Gouramis, one Gold, Flame, Pearl (were aware the gold will get big) The water temp is 75f with lots of plants(fake) and a cave to hide in. Check profile for photos. Chemicals in the tank as of today go...

PH- 6.5-7 , NH3NH4- 0-0.1mg , NO2 and NO3 - 0mg

I'm a little nervous because when I did a chemical check this morning the ammonia was showing around 2 which with my PH was in the normal range, showing a 0-0.1,Is that correct. (we know the tank needs to cycle which I don't believe it has yet since our NO2 and NO3 have yet to spike). Have not changed the water yet since we first got the tank, should we have been doing some, we have been keep the lights on for 8 hours a day (1pm-9pm) been feeding them two times daily, once in the a.m and again the the p.m (getting the hand of how much to feed) really excited to see these guys grow up but also nervous, thanks for any tips.

 

Okay you've got some big stocking issues. The gold gourami and the pearl gourami are gonna get too big for a 20 gallon tall, and housing three different types of gourami together is not a good idea. That's asking for a lot of fighting, especially in a tank as small as a 20 high. I would rehome the Pearl and the gold, keep the flame, and get some hardier schooling fish and try to cycle your tank. Remember to do water changes so your ammonia doesn't build up, and dose with something like seachem Stability every day to speed the process along

 

Okay you've got some big stocking issues. The gold gourami and the pearl gourami are gonna get too big for a 20 gallon tall, and housing three different types of gourami together is not a good idea. That's asking for a lot of fighting, especially in a tank as small as a 20 high. I would rehome the Pearl and the gold, keep the flame, and get some hardier schooling fish and try to cycle your tank. Remember to do water changes so your ammonia doesn't build up, and dose with something like seachem Stability every day to speed the process along

I forgot to mention the flame and pearl are dwarf gouramis, do water changes daily or weekly, ive been reading mixed reviews online

 

I forgot to mention the flame and pearl are dwarf gouramis, do water changes daily or weekly, ive been reading mixed reviews online

I've never heard of a pearl dwarf gourami before. I would still remove the gold and one the others, since there will inevitably be aggression issues in the future, even if there aren't right now. It is unhealthy for the fish to be kept together because of the fact that they will constantly be stressed by the fact that there are other gouramis in their "territory".

 

Since you are doing a fish in cycle protecting the fish is more important than getting the cycle done. The cycle will happen but we don't want the fish suffering.

The cycle needs an ammonia source. In your case that ammonia source is your fish. They are in there eating, breathing and pooping. All those things produce ammonia. That ammonia is food for your cycle.

A cycle is simply growing ammonia eating bacteria. That bacteria grows mostly on your filter media but also grows on every surface in your tank.

It takes time for the bacteria to start growing. The first bacteria is one that eats ammonia. The waste from the ammonia eating bacteria is nitrite. The second bacteria is one that eats nitrites. Then the waste from the nitrite eating bacteria is nitrate. There usually isn't another bacteria to eat the nitrates so they have to be removed with water changes.

Right now the most important thing you can do to protect your little guys is to keep the ammonia and nitrites as low as possible with water changes. Water changes should not hurt your fish as long as you use a water conditioner in the water you are replacing and making sure the temp is close to the same as what you took out.

The ammonia can build up pretty fast so it is possible you will have to do water changes every day to keep it as low as possible.

If you don't already have it I highly suggest you get a bottle of SeaChem Prime. It is first and foremost a water conditioner but it has the added benefit of neutralizing low amounts of ammonia thus protecting your fish from its damaging affects.

I also recommend the API Master Freshwater Test Kit. You can't know what is going on without a way to test it. This test kit will allow you to know exactly what is happening as it is happening so you can head off small problems before they become big problems and kill your fish.

 

If you’re cycling your tank with fish in, you need to be dosing the right amount of prime for the amount of ammonia in the water every day. Ammonia/nitrite is harmful to your fish, you’ll need to dose prime and do frequent water changes accordingly, otherwise risk doing permanent damage to your fish.

 

Since you are doing a fish in cycle protecting the fish is more important than getting the cycle done. The cycle will happen but we don't want the fish suffering.

The cycle needs an ammonia source. In your case that ammonia source is your fish. They are in there eating, breathing and pooping. All those things produce ammonia. That ammonia is food for your cycle.

A cycle is simply growing ammonia eating bacteria. That bacteria grows mostly on your filter media but also grows on every surface in your tank.

It takes time for the bacteria to start growing. The first bacteria is one that eats ammonia. The waste from the ammonia eating bacteria is nitrite. The second bacteria is one that eats nitrites. Then the waste from the nitrite eating bacteria is nitrate. There usually isn't another bacteria to eat the nitrates so they have to be removed with water changes.

Right now the most important thing you can do to protect your little guys is to keep the ammonia and nitrites as low as possible with water changes. Water changes should not hurt your fish as long as you use a water conditioner in the water you are replacing and making sure the temp is close to the same as what you took out.

The ammonia can build up pretty fast so it is possible you will have to do water changes every day to keep it as low as possible.

If you don't already have it I highly suggest you get a bottle of SeaChem Prime. It is first and foremost a water conditioner but it has the added benefit of neutralizing low amounts of ammonia thus protecting your fish from its damaging affects.

I also recommend the API Master Freshwater Test Kit. You can't know what is going on without a way to test it. This test kit will allow you to know exactly what is happening as it is happening so you can head off small problems before they become big problems and kill your fish.

Thank you for the help, that cleared a lot of our questions, we have the water conditioner and that same kit, I was reading the instructions and the tank seemed it was ok, ill do water changes daily until it stablizes, thanks again

 

Thank you for the help, that cleared a lot of our questions, we have the water conditioner and that same kit, I was reading the instructions and the tank seemed it was ok, ill do water changes daily until it stablizes, thanks again

You are very welcome. As long as the total amount of ammonia and/or nitrites is less than 1ppm just add enough Prime to treat the full volume of your tank daily. If the numbers are one or more do a water change to get them back below one and add Prime to neutralize what is left.