New To Hobby, Need Advice! Day 6 Of 20 Gallon, Was Dumb And Bought Fish!

Dear Fish Lore,

Decided I wanted to try out this hobby (1) for the aura of a tank in my apartment and (2) the rewarding and fascinating challenge of owning fish (and plants).

I did a lot of research and am fairly scientifically literate and educated, but I vastly underestimated this hobby's beautiful complexity. And I really messed up by being impatient!

Got a 20 Tall, made sure it was level, and got all the equipment. Knew about the cycling process... was planning on doing a slow & natural fishless cycle using flakes (and without using TSS+ because I read bad things about it). But then I read some really good things about it, so on I went to the store. I read the back of the bottle and the directions made me feel like I was overthinking the cycling process. According to the back of the bottle... just pour it in and add fish right??! So I told myself, "Okay, I'm gonna go get some plants now for this fishless cycle and get my tank lookin good because this thing is gonna be cycled real soon (maybe in days!)." I told myself I was just gonna LOOK at fish so I could do some research on which species/habitat I wanted. Went to my LFS and... ended up buying $40 worth of plants and 2 Dalmatian Mollies (because, duh, none of the starter fish looked cool enough!). I figured I was up to the task; I had just bought magic potion (AKA TSS+) after all!

That was Day 2... the day after I filled up the tank and conditioned it. Now, it's Day 6 and my plants aren't looking good at all. And I don't want my little buddies to suffer ONE BIT. I need your guys' advice. Are harmful Ammonia/nitrite spikes completely necessary to establish the correct amount of bacteria?




Equipment:
- 20gal "tall" tank (24"L x 13"D x 17"H)
- Fluval AquaClear 30 HOB filter (fit the spare intake tube onto the bottom of the main to make the intake longer. Both are the same size??)
- Aqueon 100 Watt submersible heater
- Fluval Eco Bright LED (7500k, 7 Watts, 18" long)
- Tetra Whisper Air Pump 20 (with long black pumice bubble bar and check valve)
- Black, coated gravel
- 1 big lava rock and 2 pieces of drift wood (both pieces of DW were submerged in store tanks when I bought them)
- Plants: 4x E. Vietnam, 2x Java Fern, and 3x bundles of H. Augustafolia (although I don't think the store/employee labeled it correctly because I can't find any pics online that look like what I have. Also, the dude wrote aNgustafolia on the bag)
- Fish: Dalmatian Molly (1 male, 1 female)




Timeline...

Day 1: Set up tank. Used proper amount of Kordon Novaqua. (Never tested tap water!)

Day 2: Got fish and plants. Temp was 75 and they were staying near the heater. Have had the temp at 79-80 since then (also read that cycling is better at 80+)

Day 3:
In the AM - Started testing the water...
7.6 or 8 pH (couldn't tell because those 2 shades of brown look the same), 0 Amm, 0 Nitrites, 0 Nitrates, 179 ppm KH. *I know it was probably too early to test Ammonia and Nitrites/Nitrates.
In the PM - Hesitantly used TSS+ after more research (full tiny 20gal bottle, poured into tank water not filter).
Used Seachem Flourish for the plants.

Day 4:
Tested Ammonia and it was just slightly slightly yellow-green instead of yellow.

Day 5:
It finally hit me that I should test my tap water. 7.6 or 8 pH (again, can't tell the difference) and 179 KH. No ammonia, nitrites, nitrates. *I think I got lucky and my tap is perfect for Mollies? Mollies need 7.5-8.5 pH and hard water right?

Day 6 (today):
Removed both Java Ferns because they were browning heavily.

Just did my first water change (50%) because my Ammonia was now at the first shade (.25 ppm). *I think I needed to wait though, 10-14 days?

Bought got another bottle of TSS yesterday and added a bit (into the filter this time) after water change.

I would appreciate any advice guys! Am I doing the right things?

Some additional information:
- Fish have been climbing up and down the corner of the tank (but I think because of their reflection?). They haven't been doing it today. They look happy now (especially since the water change)
- I have been feeding my fish a good amount. Don't want them to go hungry just because I was dumb and did a fish-in cycle.
- There are a few tiny white dots on both pieces of DW (noticed them yesterday)

- EVERY leaf on my plant has its edges curling in. They were mostly like that when I bought them (I think the dude sold me old plants)



Thoughts:
- I've been thinking about mixing sand in with my gravel to help my (future) plants?
- How long is this cycle gonna take? You guys think I can do it while keeping my fish stress free? Or do the levels HAVE to spike in order to build bacteria. BTW, I have Kordon Amquel+ in case of an emergency (haven't used any yet).
- Should I remove my dying (I think) plants to avoid overnight Ammonia-induced fish death?

 

Your tank looks nice.

The most important part of the cycle is patience. 0.25 is nothing to worry about. I just finished a 55 gallon cycle and ammonia and nitrate spiked at 2.0. Although some here may disagree with me, I wouldn't do a water change unless you had values above 2.0. My tank finished today and I didn't lose a single of my 7 Tiger Barbs. Just be patient and enjoy the fish.

As far as the temperature goes, I'd set it more towards what the fish like vs what would speed up the cycle. Check out to see what different fish like.

As far as the plants go, what is your lighting situation? Some browning or die off is common depending if the plants were grown submerged. I cycled with Java Fern, Java Moss, S. Repens, Dwarf Hairgrass and Amazon Sword. I didn't use ferts outside of fish waste until today as I didn't want to stress the fish out. They all made it through the 6 weeks.

Have fun, enjoy and be patient.

 

Be patient , with TSS+ you add the whole bottle, add 1 or 2 fish like you did and don't do any water changes for 2 weeks. You could test your water every so days just to see but with tss+ it's supposed to be safe for your fish to be in the water. And for healthy plants you need liquid fertilizers a good brand seachem. And if their heavy root eaters you could get root tabs since you have gravel.

I would set your temp to 78 F

BTW tank looks great

 

- Fish have been climbing up and down the corner of the tank (but I think because of their reflection?). They haven't been doing it today. They look happy now (especially since the water change)
- I have been feeding my fish a good amount. Don't want them to go hungry just because I was dumb and did a fish-in cycle.
- There are a few tiny white dots on both pieces of DW (noticed them yesterday)

- This constant climbing motion is known as 'glass surfing', and can be a sign of stress.
- Feed less! You will NOT starve your fish! Mollies are massive waste producers compared to other fish of a comparable size, so less food equals less ammonia. Fish can go a very long time without food - about 2 weeks, in fact. You would do well to feed them once a day, no more than they can eat in 2-3 minutes time.
- Driftwood spotting is pretty common from brand new pieces. Some species of fish or shrimp will feed off it and keep it in control, but from what I know, it is mostly harmless. Scrape it off if it is unsightly to you.

- I've been thinking about mixing sand in with my gravel to help my (future) plants?
- How long is this cycle gonna take? You guys think I can do it while keeping my fish stress free? Or do the levels HAVE to spike in order to build bacteria. BTW, I have Kordon Amquel+ in case of an emergency (haven't used any yet).
- Should I remove my dying (I think) plants to avoid overnight Ammonia-induced fish death?

- Mixing sand and gravel COULD cause your substrate to compact and form anaerobic pockets that can become deadly to your tank. You would need to stir up the substrate often, which can be difficult if it is rooted. Your plants will be just fine with gravel only.
- The cycle, as the bottle of TSS+ says, should take exactly 2 weeks. It is very important to leave your water completely alone in these two weeks, no matter the readings you get in your chemistry kit! Mollies are hearty, just let everything be and trust in the product!
- Remove any definitely-dead leaves, but do not remove the roots. It is incredibly common for most plants to go through a 'melt', or a period of time where they shed all their growth for fresh new leaves. Understand that these plants were used to growing in very specific conditions/water parameters, and now their environment has changed drastically. As long as their root system is in place, there should not be any problems!

Bought got another bottle of TSS yesterday and added a bit (into the filter this time) after water change.

I would advise to add the entire bottle.
The bacteria within these TSS bottles are a carefully balanced blend of suspended ammonias and bacterias, and to use only a small portion of it could throw of that equilibrium. This is why waster changes can cause the TSS to fail - you're removing parts of the carefully blended solutions, and what's left behind may no longer be the proper makeup needed to establish the cycle anymore!
No more water changes! In fact, it is recommended not to test AT ALL in the two weeks it takes the TS to work, so that you do not get the temptation to act in a way that will cause it to fail!

 

I would add that maybe using Seachem root tabs for your plants are a good idea since they are root feeders and mainly get their nutrients from their roots and not so much in the water column.

I use regular liquid fertilizer's and root tabs In my planted tank.

Seachem - Flourish Tabs

Here is a picture of my tank when I first set it up. I have fish in it because I used water from their old tank plus all the old Bio media I had. I personally use Seachems Stability which I like but it's a preference thing. And if you ever use Purigen in your filters it's good idea to read up on Purigen, because certain stress coats can foul your Purigen. If you don't know what Purigen is it's a ....ahh try and read this....

Seachem - Purigen






Good Luck!

BTW..... your tank looks very nice! It looks like you put some thought into your placement and not, just ohh ill just put this here and put this there.

 

Forgot to add -

H. Augustafolia (although I don't think the store/employee labeled it correctly because I can't find any pics online that look like what I have. Also, the dude wrote aNgustafolia on the bag)

Correct spelling is angustifolia

 

I agree with all that's been stated. Patience is your friend. I might have a reason why the java ferns turned brown, what it looks like in the pictures is that they are buried. Java ferns get their nutrients from the water column, mostly from the rhizome (the part where the roots and stem originate). You can bury the roots, as they are only to hold the plant in place, or you could tie them to your driftwood or lava rock with monofilament fishing line or cotton thread.

Good luck with your tank and most of all enjoy it!

 

Thanks guys!!