I picked up a bottle of test strips yesterday that tests for pH, Nitrite, Nitrate, Hardness, and Alkalinity, so I need to get him an ammonia test kit as well if I am understanding correctly, which I will do tomorrow.

We added 6 neon tetras today, I didn't know about the cycling without fish heck I didn't know about cycling a tank at all before tonight. We set the tank up about a week and a half ago and dechlorinated the water with the packet included in the fish tank and let the filter and therometer run after we set it up.

Now if we are to change the water using non-chlorinated water do we need to buy distilled water or get the stuff to add to the tap water proir to putting it in the tank?

Are we adjusting the pH each time we test if need be or are we only looking at ammonia and nitrites?

Oh we have a 10 gallon tank with silk plants not real ones. The guy at the pet store said we didn't want live plants because that meant special lighting and more testing and such so we got the fish, silk plants, and Tetra Starter for freshwater tanks (which we put in the tank when we put the fish in the tank). He did tell my son to wait a month before getting another species of fish because the neons would do better if they could get their territory established first.

I am hoping this process goes well since it has been started as a 4H project and my son wants to have more fish. He is actually reading about fish and tanks.