How many?

[lasm]

Hi there,

I just got a new 20g tank. It is set up with a small castle (empty inside) and a mixture of tropical plants.

By now I have four gouramis, sorry that I forgot the names, but two are like blue with red stripes and the other two have red the back half of the body. I use to have them in a 10g (I little bit more than a year).

Now that I have this new 20g an only 4 fishes on it. It looks kind of empty to me. Do anyone knows how many could I have on it so that I don't mess it up with to many.

By the way... is it right to have different type of gouramis in the same tank?

Thanks

Luis

[squirt_12]

did you cycle the tank before adding the fish????

And well one of them sounds like it is a dwarf but the others i don't know.

[lasm]

It did cycle it two days before I moved the fish in.

Here are some picturures, they are as attachments.

[squirt_12]

you only did a 2 day cycle???? was the amonia, nitrites and and nitries (sp? on them all) fine and where they were supposed to be?

But yeah the one (red one with the stripes) is definatly a dwarf gourami but i have no idea what the other one is.

[lasm]

To be serious... I do not monitor all that. I just do weekly maintenance that includes changing 30% water change and a water conditioner to to reduce all the nit.. and amonia levels.

[squirt_12]

well you should have made sure it was all clear before putting the fish in the tank. Like i would have let it run for about a week or 2 before adding the fish into it.

[MeganL3985]

No such thing as a 2 day cycle......it sounds like the filter and stuff were run for 2 days. In that case there are gonna be problems, do not add any more fish in there.
How long has the tank been running with the fish in it? And have you changed any of your water?

[MeganL3985]

Its a 20 gallon tank, your going to need to do atleast 50% change weekly to keep your ammonia levels down. You also need to start checking your water parameters, b/c if you dont, you don't know how much ammonia and such that your dealing with....you fish could easily die without you knowing.

[gm72]

To be serious... I do not monitor all that. I just do weekly maintenance that includes changing 30% water change and a water conditioner to to reduce all the nit.. and amonia levels.

Then you have the wrong hobby, period. You need to monitor water parameters. If you can't manage to check water parameters, please leave the hobby.

[squirt_12]

Then you have the wrong hobby, period. You need to monitor water parameters. If you can't manage to check water parameters, please leave the hobby.
yes well i think that gm said it all. You may like to look at the fish but you have to take care of them in order for them to live long and to have a good home to live in.

[lasm]

Since you made me feel bad I just went to get a fresh water master test kit.

I 'll let you know the parameters once I have them.

Cheers,

Luis

[gm72]

We didn't mean to make you feel bad, but rather meant to reveal the fact that fish keeping does require some work. Sticking fish in water does not allow them to survive much less thrive.

By getting a test kit you are on the right track. Looking forward to hearing your results so we can move you forward.

[lasm]

Hello there,

I finally have the results,

Ammonia, 0.5 mg/L
Nitrite, 0.25 mg/L
Nitrate, 10 mg/L
Ph, 7.6

What recommendations do you have so that I can low the levels to zero? also, how do I make the ph acid? I do know that Gouramis need acid ph.

Thanks,

Luis

[gm72]

Okay, so we can establish that you are not cycled yet. Ammonia and nitrIte should ideally be at 0.

[calla]

Hello there,

I finally have the results,

Ammonia, 0.5 mg/L
Nitrite, 0.25 mg/L
Nitrate, 10 mg/L
Ph, 7.6

What recommendations do you have so that I can low the levels to zero? also, how do I make the ph acid? I do know that Gouramis need acid ph.

Thanks,

Luis


I didn't know about a fishless cycle either, and made the mistake of putting my favorite fish (my bala sharks) into a tank that had not been cycled, and had only been running for about a week with 3 swordtails in it. LUCKILY I found this place about the same time, and learned enough to save my fish. Now I have a cycled tank, and alive and happy sharks and swords.

my advice, do regular water changes (like every other day) to keep the ammonia and nitrite at tolerable levels for your fish. Do at least 30 percent changes, and make sure you just cyphon the water out, don't clean the gravel, filter, or decor until you are cyled as it hold valuable bacteria.

check your water levels EVERYDAY while you cycle with fish. The parameters change, a lot. My nitrites spiked overnight. If I wouldn't have been monitoring the levels I may have missed it and my fish may have died.

I would worry less about the pH for now and concentrate on cycling the tank... the fish can handle that pH a lot better than ammonia/nirtrite poisoning.

[lasm]

Guys,

thanks for the help. I'll be monitoring the aquarium levels every days until I can say that I have cycle it. Hopefully my fish will not die.

Is it recommended to use ammonia, nitrite and nitrate reducers while trying to cycle the tank?

In a daily basis how much water should I replace while cycling?

Thanks,

Luis

[MeganL3985]

Water changes should reduce the nitrite and nitrates enough...as for the ammonia, sometimes I think it needs some help. I needed the help of some amquel...which leaves it in the water, but neutralizes the ammonias harmful effects on the fish...that way your not messing up your cycle. You might want to try that if you have issues that the water changes aren't helping enough.

As for water changes, I would change out 50% every 3 days. Thats worked for me...just make sure to monitor your water everyday to make sure your okay and don't have to do another water change.

[zackish]

If anything just get ammonia NEUTRALIZER like Megan said, not something that removes the ammonia completely.
Also, just an FIY, the two gouramis you have are called Dwarf Flame Gourami and a Fancy Dwarf Gourami or something of that sort. I think LFS's call them different all the time.
Anyways, you may experience some fighting between them which is normal but probably not the best. Also, you need to determine if they are male or female. This can be done by looking at the top fin, if the back of it near the tail is more rounded it is female, if more pointed it is a male.

[lasm]

Do you have any commercial brand that I could use?

I lately don't trust the guys from the pet store. They do not seem to know very well when to give advice it comes.

Thank you...!!!

Luis