Tropical Fish Forum
Tropical Fish Keeping Help and Advice => General Fishkeeping advice => Topic started by: jalot on May 25, 2016, 05:39:58 PM
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hi my names jack and have recently set up my juwel rio 180 and have added 6 harlequin and was wondering what fish would go well in a community tank i have been looking at:
electric blue rams
emperor tetras
platys
mollies
1 green phantom pleco
1 blue phantom pleco
2 silver sharks
dwarf gourmi
and so on please help
I also have a external filter which is a 1000EF< and thats all i know about it? would be very greatful if someone could tell me where to get the media or what not for it?
and sorry if this is on the wrong page i have no idea what im doing on this forum... - See more at: http://www.thinkfish.co.uk/forums/welcome-to-our-tropical-fish-forum-please-read/introduce-yourself!/msg25774/#new
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Hello again! :))
Let's get the cycling bit done with, then we'll be asking questions about water hardness before we talk fish community. i.e. Platies need hard water, Rams need soft water.... but this won't matter as the sharks will eat them anyway!!! ;D
Don't worry, we've all been there and you're in the very best place for help and advice.
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hello its a second hand tank with mature media ive had my water tested was told everything was okay its been up and running around a week and i added my harlequin today and my water is Slightly to moderately hard
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You certainly have a wide spectrum of fish species there Jack. As Colin has pointed out there are already some obvious conflicts... Silver sharks are more of a specialty fish which can only be kept with similarly sized/active/aggressive species. depending on the dimensions of your tank you might find others won;t be happy in your tank. Most plecs need wide a tank of 100cm minimum, usually 120 or 150cm on average.
I myself have a 180litre Aqua One tank which is 80cm wide so I have a Bristlenose plec. You might consider this as an alternative.
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At the top of the page under fish profiles you'll find a data base of loads of fish, it mentions what temperature, water hardness and pH is needed, also it recommends a minimum shoal size. Have a play around and see what you like.
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i know my tank is 100cm wide by 50cm length by 40cm wide with a 1000 litre per hour filter
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At the top of the page under fish profiles you'll find a data base of loads of fish, it mentions what temperature, water hardness and pH is needed, also it recommends a minimum shoal size. Have a play around and see what you like.
+1
The community creator is a brilliant tool to illustrate how compatible the species are with each other and in your specific aquarium capacity and dimensions.
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Hello Jack.
I would suggest spending some time on the community creator. Not only is it actually quite good a good way to while away the time whilst a tank cycles, but it is also very informative. I've spent way too much time on it, especially after going to an aquatics centre and seeing fish that I really like, only to discover on the CC that they are not suitable for the water in this area (darn you hard water), but also to see the huge range of fish that are suitable. This has lead to my purchasing way too many tanks to get even a fraction of the fish I like. ::)
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my water is Slightly to moderately hard
It might help us further to advise on what fish are best if you look at your local water company's website, input your postcode, and see what the exact water hardness is including the unit of measurement. Although that's helpful to know that it's "slightly to moderately hard", we might be able to narrow down your choices further once we know a measure of the hardness more accurately.
Your harlequins share their birthday with mine - it's exactly a year ago today since I got mine. :)
In the meantime, once you've looked at the various Fish Profiles on the Community Creator, I'd also advise looking at YouTube clips of the various species of fish - that can help get an idea of whether you like them or not. You could also "research" LFSs (local fish shops) by deliberately going in minus your wallet (to avoid temptation to buy) and getting a feel for how knowledgeable and helpful they are, where the fish suitable for your tank size and water hardness are located within the shop (and what ones to avoid looking at), what sort of fish you like the look of and might go on your potential list, etc. [For example, last year, I was planning to get some ember tetras but completely fell "head over heels" for the harlequins in the neighbouring tank, attracted by their tight shoaling behaviour - it might be that a similar situation happens for you.]
Hope this helps.
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Happy birthday harlies! ;D
:cheers:
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Thanks, LF! :)
Jack's posted his water hardness readings on the "Introduce yourself" thread - they are:
7.38 (Clark)
10.54 (French)
5.90 (German)
Further advice from folk will follow but this is helpful for us as a "starter for ten".
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I forgot to mention the filter in the 'introduction' thread.
With a name like that I assume it's an All Pond Solutions filter. Looking at APS website, I can't find a manual for the 1000 EF though there is one for the 1000 EF1 (here (http://www.allpondsolutions.co.uk/AllPondSolutions/media/SiteImages/PDF%20files/EF-Instruction-Manual.pdf)).
The descriptions of both filters say they should have ceramic rings, bio balls, activated carbon and fine filter foam. What is inside the filter now? Ceramic rings and bio balls are bio media, that is they are home to the filter bacteria. The bio balls are black ridged spheres; the ceramic rings are small white hollow cylinders. It's possible the previous owner may have changed them for something else. They should only be changed when they start to disintegrate.
The filter foam looks like white fluffy pads to by the photos on APS website. If that's what they are, they catch the fine particles to 'polish' the water. This stuff gets clogged easily so does need replacing. If you don't want to buy their own brand, you can get filter wool by the metre (Ebay, pond supply shops) and use a branded pad as a template to cut the sheet up.
Activated carbon is black pellets. You don't actually need to run carbon full time, but keep some in the cupboard as its main use is removing medication after treatment has finished. Again you don't need to buy APS carbon, any make will do. If the filter does have carbon, leave it there till the tank has settled, then think about swapping it for more ceramic rings or bio balls.
I've seen your water company stats on the other thread. The figure you want is "hardness german" at 5.9. This is actually quite soft and means that mollies and platies won't be happy, especially mollies. Your pH is just below 7, which platies and especially mollies won't like either. But everything else on your list will be fine with those figures.
When you look at fish profiles on sites like Seriously Fish and Fishbase, they use one of two units for hardness. One is degrees German (aka dH), the figure in your table; the other is ppm (or mg/l). 5.9 German deg = 105 ppm. So you need to look at fish that are happy in 6 german deg (dH)/105 ppm.
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I really don't understand this hard/soft water stuff. I always thought fish were just, well, not picky. You put water in, put your aquasafe in, get it up to temperature and, done. You can put fish in. But there is a lot more to it. So is there any chance you could help me out by giving me a list of good community fish for a Juwel Rio 180 tank. And, because my filter already had mature media, does this mean I can add more fish than just my 6 Harlequin?
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It depends how many fish were in the tank when the previous owner had it. Fish make ammonia as their version of urine. Bacteria grow in the filter, and on other surfaces, which use this ammonia as food. But there will only ever be the amount of bacteria that there is enough food for. So if the previous owner had 20 harlequin sized fish, there will be the right amount of bacteria to eat all the ammonia made by 20 harlequins, in which case you could get more fish straight away. If he had 40 harlequin sized fish, you could get even more fish. But if he had just 3 harlequin sized fish, you have too many fish at the moment for the amount of bacteria. But this does not mean you can never have more fish. These bacteria will multiply if there is more ammonia than the current number can eat, you just have to take it slowly and not get too many fish at one go. This is one reason for getting a test kit so you can monitor the levels of ammonia and nitrite whenever you get more fish to make sure the bacteria are coping.
The ammonia eating bacteria turn the ammonia into nitrite, and there is another type of bacteria which eat that and turn it into nitrate. Both ammonia and nitrite should never go above zero, but they will if you get a lot more fish than the bacteria can cope with.
The difference between hard and soft water is the amount of minerals dissolved in the water. Fish from soft water rivers and lakes have evolved to cope with few minerals; they have problems if they are put into water with a lot of minerals. And fish from hard water areas have evolved to cope with lots of minerals and they suffer in water that doesn't have enough minerals. Fish cope better and live longer, healthier lives if the tank water is similar to that in the river or lake they originated in.
So with a GH of 6 (5.9 is near enough 6) virtually all of the fish from South America would be fine, as would most fish from Asia. The fish that would have problems are those from Central America and the Rift Lakes in Africa (Lake Malawi and Tanganika mainly)
The fish on your first list - blue rams and emperor tetras are South American; harlequins and gouramis are Asian. But platies and mollies are Central American.
Look at the fish profiles in the menu at the top of the page. Virtually all the fish in the Tetra section with the word tetra in the name would be suitable from a water point of view, though some of them would need bigger tanks than yours.
Most of the fish in the Barb section would suit your water as would those in the Catfish and Loach sections.
The section to avoid is the livebearer section and some of the fish in the cichlid section (Central American and Rift Lake cichlids). But there are plenty of South American cichlids to chose from.
With softish water, you have a much bigger choice than those with hard water.
With so many fish to choose from, it is hard to draw up a list for you. You may not like the fish I like. The best way to go about it is to visit some local shops and see what they have that catches your eye BUT DON'T BUY ANYTHING. The first rule of fishkeeping is don't trust the shop. Too many of them will sell you the most unsuitable fish just to make a sale. Make notes, then research. Come here and tell us what you like the looks of and between us we can help you make a good selection. Between all the members on here we have experience of a lot of fish :)
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Fish have evolved to thrive in specific habitats, and hard/soft water is part of it.
Some breeds of fish that have been captive bred for many generations can often deal with a wider range of parameters than the original wild fish, but in much the same way as temperate fish may not survive in high tropical temperatures, and brackish water fish may not survive in freshwater, so the fish that thrive in very hard water wont survive in very soft water.
Have a look at the information on the fish profiles, and also have a look at the community creator, as this will help to put together a community of fish that you like and that will do well in the conditions that you have.
As for the filter, it's great that you had mature media, but it is always worth going by the the results of your water tests.
I'm not very experienced with softer water as the stuff here is very hard, so it's worth waiting for the more experienced keepers to give you advice on fish suitable for your water. ;D
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so these are the fish that me and my family like... but I don't want a bristle nose plec I want a green phantom
and I couldn't find electric blue rams?
would these be okay in my water?
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Electric blue rams are a colour variant of ram, which you'll find in the profiles. (Not Bolivian rams, they are a different species)
Galaxy rasboras (aka celestial pearl danios) are quite small, shy fish and would probably spend most of their time in hiding with bigger fish in the tank.
Guppies are livebearers; they prefer hard water.
Siamese fighting fish (aka bettas) of either sex don't make good community fish. They are better kept alone in smaller tanks. And they don't get on with gouramis.
The rest of the list is fine :)
With dwarf gouramis, get 1 male, 2 females as males will fight and harass females so more females spreads the 'attention' between two of them.
And you could always get more than 6 of the shoaling fish if you miss out the galaxy rasboras, guppies and siamese fighting fish :)
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okay i think i have fixed my list but please be gentle as you tear it apart
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I've just looked at your list. Wow - what a really lovely tank you would have with harlequin rasboras, rummynose tetras and cherry barbs. I know you have others on your list too but a shoal of each of these 3 species would be stunning.
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and what fish shoal the best and are the tightest shoalers as i have one male harlequin to 5 females and the male keeps wondering off on his own
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and what fish shoal the best and are the tightest shoalers as i have one male harlequin to 5 females and the male keeps wondering off on his own
Harlequins shoal well but you'll find that, as they become more familiar with their environment, fish will disperse in the tank rather than shoal closely together. I do love the way my harlequins shoal up late in the evening just before "lights out", with the tetras slightly more dispersed just below them.
What you'll also find is that fishes' behaviour changes over time. I had a loner tetra in his first few months but now he spends his time equally with the others, on his own, and cosying up with one of the females. Similarly, there's currently a gang of 3 harlequins that hang out together but I don't necessarily see that as being a permanent arrangement.
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thats not that bad then i just can't understand with he would go with all them ladies ???
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and what i was asking before about how many fish i could put in my tank now... ive just spoke to the woman who had my tank before me said she had 6 swordtails in there before she gave it me so what does that mean
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It should mean that you have an active bacteria Colony that supports approximately 66cm of stock. I have worked that out based on 3 male and 3 female swords, since the females are larger than the lads.
With 6 harlequins at the moment you have 30cm of stock so I think you're good to get another 30cm of stock right away before the bacteria colonies go dormant from not having as much ammonia to deal with as before. Please allow Sue or one of the other more experienced members to confirm this as I'm quite new to this myself.
Once you have your initial stock of fish, it's recommended to allow the community to settle for a month to 6 weeks before increasing stock. And even then, only add one third of current stock ie. If you're at 60cm stock, add up to 20cm.
I recently had my first top-up stock and added just over a third of my stock at the time. This was an impulse buy since I spotted a tiny bristlenose plec that I wanted and couldn't resist (you'll find this yourself) and my ammonia and nitrite levels never rose from zero. I also have an external filter with up to 1250l/hr flow rate.
Hope this helps you :cheers:
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Shoaling is a response to danger so fish in a tank don't tend to shoal very much 'cos they're not in danger. On the odd occasion where I've bumped in to the tank thare's a sudden clumping of fish as they shoal up, only to disperse a few seconds later.
From your list of fish you'll get better shoaling and more natural behavior from larger numbers of the same species. I've seen some lovely shoals of Rummynose Tetras when there were around 15. Same with Harlequins and Panda cories.
Check the temperature requirements of your chosen fish. You'll notice Rams like a minimum of 25ºC while Panda cories like a maximum of 25ºC. Bolivian Rams might be a better choice, they're tougher and like cooler temperatures.
One fish I would strongly advise you to remove from your list is the Hillstream Loach. They live in hill streams, so the water is very fast flowing and highly oxygenated, and they need a set-up to imitate this. I think they're great, but they are totally unsuitable for a community tank. Have a read of this (http://www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/content.php?sid=5455) for lots of hillstream lovelyness.
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Hi Jack. Welcome aboard. :wave:
There's a good article on shoaling here: http://www.thinkfish.co.uk/article/why-fish-shoal-or-group-in-a-fish-tank
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Rummynose tetras even when they've settled in shoal quite a lot, it's one of the reasons I have them. If you like the shoaling effect the best way to achieve it is get a lot of one species rather than lots of small shoals of different types. As i said somewhere recently 20+ cardinal tetras in a tank look amazing.
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Please help this morning I had 6 harlequins and now I have 5 I've check the external filter not there I've checked every where under all ornaments/plants he's not floating at the top and not sunk to the bottom just vanished? Please help
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Please help this morning I had 6 harlequins and now I have 5 I've check the external filter not there I've checked every where under all ornaments/plants he's not floating at the top and not sunk to the bottom just vanished? Please help
Oh no! That's never something you want! Is the tank open topped ie could the fish jump out of the tank??
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There little gaps where the inlet and the outlet are that's it?
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Highly unlikely it would be so unlucky as to jump through a small hole... If one has definitely gone missing it has to be somewhere... Have you definitely looked in every nook and cranny in the tank?
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Fish have been known to get through small holes, so besides checking in/under everything in the tank, check the floor as well. Though if you have a cat or dog any fish that gets out of the tank might well end up inside the other pet.
It is unfortunately quite common to lose a fish shortly after purchase. They've been through a lot in the last few weeks on their journey from the breeder to your tank - wholesalers, retailers, transport between them, being chased on a regular basis whenever someone buys a fish from that tank etc etc.
I agree about the rams. These fish do like water a tad warmer than other species. But Bolivian rams, Apistogrammas (look at cockatoo dwarf and agassizi dwarf in the fish profiles) or nannacaras (which aren't in the profiles, just substitute flag cichlid instead in the community creator).
And yes, hillstream loaches need specialist hillstream tanks - cooler, fast flowing water.
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i checked the floor and i mean i check absolutely every where but he was under warranty so he was replaced and 6 cherry barbs were added.
and i also have a 22 litre tank and have been told a Siamese Fighting Fish and 6 Cardinal Tetra but the community creator keeps saying my tanks to small for the Siamese Fighter?
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That tank is fine for a siamese fighter but it is too small for cardinal tetras. My siamese fighter (betta) is in a 26 litre tank, and was in a 24 litre before I got a new tank (the old one had a crushed corner and I was worried it might leak). And I just checked with the CC and that too says it is too small for cardinals.
Bettas (siamese fighters are usually called bettas nowadays as people of a certain mentality say 'oooh fighting fish, lets get some and fight them') are not good community fish; they are best kept alone. Anything above 5 American gallons is fine for them, that's 19 litres. These fish like slow moving water because of their big fins so make sure the filter in the tank has adjustable flow or use a sponge filter powered by an air pump. They need 'things' in the tank to swim through so lots of plants, either real or silk but not plastic as sharp edges can cut their fins.
To give you an idea (and to show off ;D ) I've attached a photo of my betta's tank. It does have more plants now. And you can see the sponge filter at the back.
22 litres sounds as though it should be fine for half a dozen cardinal tetras because of their size. But fish need swimming room and cardinals need a tank at least 60 cm long.
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so can i not have anything in with him?
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like shrimp
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I have panda cory in with my betta, if that's any help.
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I have panda cory in with my betta, if that's any help.
But not in 22 litres.
I have a nerite snail in with mine.
The problem with shrimps and bettas is that the shrimps can end up as very expensive fish food. I managed to get a woodlouse in the tank with my last betta and he went mad trying to dismantle it. He only stopped when it played dead. I wouldn't have trusted him anywhere near a shrimp.
22 litres is too small for the vast majority of fish except the so called micro fish - but a betta would either eat those or chase them and they'd get so stressed they'd probably die.
Bettas are tricky fish to find tank mates for. Some are so aggressive they attack anything that moves - including biting the feelers off snails. Others are so laid back they get bullied by their tank mates. Fish that are not known for nipping often just can't help themselves when faced with those big fins. It is much safe to keep them alone or with snails - once the tank has grown enough algae to feed snails.
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Fair point, my tank is 34L.
Doh. ::)
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Not liking this is have a dead harlequin and can't work out why I've done all my test and here's the results please help
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And this
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And this
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And this
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I meant this one
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Sorry to hear that a harlequin has died - is that the missing one that you've found dead or is it another one that has died?
To summarise your test results, PH is 8.0, ammonia is either 0 or 0.25 (the former, I think), nitrite is 0, and nitrate is 0. You have to give the bottles (the second one, I think) and test tube a really good shake with the nitrate test as 0 is not a "normal" reading, so I'd advise repeating that one.
If the ammonia is 0.25 rather than 0, that could possibly the result of the addition of the cherry barbs, and the filter possibly not being sufficiently able to cope with it, or it could be as a result of the dead or missing harlequin(s). It might also account for why one harlequin went missing and one has died.
If the ammonia is 0, there may not be an explanation for the dead/missing harlequin(s) other than that the fish have been through a lot of stress in recent weeks before arrival at the shop and the stress has finally taken its toll, unfortunately.
Others may have other suggestions.
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One dead new fish out of six is not uncommon. If you mean a second one has died, that is less common.
There is always the possibility they were sick when you got them. Fish are very good at hiding the fact they aren't well as that makes them easier for predators to pick off, and other members of the shoal will also likely pick on sick fish so they don't attract predators to the shoal. So it is in a fish's interest to look fit and healthy right up to that last minute.
Did the dead fish show any symptoms eg white spots or botches, disintegrating fins, bloated body, bloody streaks on the fins or body? Though a fish that has been dead a while may have been partially eaten by its tank mates.
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All the bottles were shaken well and left for the time it said an what is a normal nitrate and nitrite level then?
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Nitrite should be 0 - anything above that is toxic to the fish. It's normal to have some nitrate - usually 20ppm although many folk have trouble keeping it under 40ppm due to their tapwater having high levels. What do you get for nitrate when you test the water straight from the tap?
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Just done a test straight from the tap and this is the nitrate
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That is a good nitrate level for tap water. The UK allows up to 50 ppm, and a lot of people have almost that level in their tap water.
Nitrate in an aquarium should be kept as low as possible, and with your tapwater level, you should aim to keep it below the 20 ppm that fcmf said.
Nitrate is the end product of the nitrogen cycle. Fish excrete ammonia, one set of bacteria turn that ammonia into nitrite; another set of bacteria turn that nitrite into nitrate. In fish tanks, there are no bacteria to remove nitrate, though plants do use it (and ammonia) as fertiliser. This is one reason we do water changes, to remove nitrate and other things like hormones secreted by the fish.
When a tank is fully stocked, nitrate should go up between water changes by no more than 20 ppm, and since your tap water is virtually zero, that means the maximum it should go up between water changes is from 0 to 20. My tanks are fully stocked, and nitrate doesn't increase by that much.
Because your tank is lightly stocked at the moment, the fish you have won't make much ammonia for the tank size, so you won't get much nitrate. As you get more fish and your stocking level reaches the maximum, you should see some nitrate at the end of the week just before a water change.
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Blimey serious grats on the zero nitrates, I'm well jel ;)
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Blimey serious grats on the zero nitrates, I'm well jel ;)
And to think I get pulled up for the odd grammar error..... at least I speak recognisable words! ;D
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Blimey serious grats on the zero nitrates, I'm well jel ;)
And to think I get pulled up for the odd grammar error..... at least I speak recognisable words! ;D
I knew what I meant :P
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Having a bit of a crisis with the harlequins 4 in total have died but my water levels are still all at 0.
I have found my missing shrimp he randomly appeared again and all of my cherry barbs are fine it's getting to the point where I'm finding 1 dead harlequin a day so please help
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And are lead plant weights safe for an aquarium as I've just bought some to hold my air pump under the gravel as it keeps popping up
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Generally lead that is used to weight plants down should be removed so I wouldn't use it in a tank. I hope you don't mean you have the air pump inside the tank, just the air stone or some such ???
If the cherry barbs are OK I would suggest a batch of sickly harlequins. Did you get the barbs from the same shop? if you did, what were the harlequins like in the shop tank? If they were from a different shop maybe go back and see if the shop's harlies are OK.
And as the shrimps are OK there is nothing wrong with your tank. Shrimps are more sensitive to iffy water than fish are.
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So don't put the lead in and both the harlequins and barbs were from pets at home they seemed fine in the tank there and we're very active... but there still very active here and I find it odd as I only seem to be loosing the females I had one male from the start and he's fine but I've been getting the dead ones replaced as they were all under warranty but there all been female and I just keep finding them dead bobbing round the bottom of the tank I've checked my water and so have pets at home and it's all come back fine? The dead fish have no indication of disease so I have no idea ... I'm not over feeding them so I just can't understand it
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Really upset to hear of your troubles Jack, it must be really disheartening for you. As Sue suggests you may have a sick batch of harlequins... Chances are they wouldn't have been in pets at home very long, I believe they have a quick turnaround of stock. I do wonder what they do with unsold stock???
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It is not uncommon for fish to show no symptoms of disease. Your water tests are fine, and confirmed by the shop, so it kind of has to be something with the batch of fish. Whether they were diseased, or just stressed, you probably wont know. It's also possible that the male fish is from a different batch/delivery of fish, or it is just a coincidence that it is only the females are dying.
You may just have to console yourself with knowing that it is nothing that you have done.
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I honestly thinking that if they all die I'm not bothering with them again I will just stick to the barbs as they seem to be fine but the only thing is there not shoal ingredients they just stick to groups of two
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Pets at Home may not have the best reputation for fish, probably because they do not specialise in aquatics. It would be worth you finding another local fish shop if you are going to buy more fish. Maidenhead Aquatics is nationwide and the experience I've had with the one here is pretty good. Independent fish stores can be good, you will need to spend some time and look around to find a good shop where you trust the staff.
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The closest maiden head to me is a good hour drive
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Shops that I have found are a2z aquatics... and kidgrove tropical fish
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The MA is a bit too far to be convenient, but you might want to spend some time in the other two, see what they've got, how they treat their stock and how good their staff are.
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I would take a look at those shops you mention. If they look OK maybe get more fish from there. But don't believe what they tell you until you've checked what they say.
A couple of definitions:
Shoaling fish are those which live in hundreds or thousands in the wild. They need the company of other fish of the same species. If there aren't enough of them, their instincts tell them the rest of the shoal has been eaten and there is a predator around, and they become stressed.
Schooling is the behaviour of some species of shoaling fish where they swim around in a group.
Most schooling fish are marine fish. Freshwater fish mainly school when they are threatened. Most shoaling freshwater fish will go their separate ways in a tank, only coming together in a group if they are frightened.
Your barbs are behaving normally. Most other species will behave the same.
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I woke up to only 3 harley quins left and all my barbs and shrimp are still theremember and I got my shrimp fromega kidsgrove and my betta for my other tank from a2z and there all doing fine
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Sorry to hear that you are still having problems with your fish.
Are the 3 remaining fish the replacements or from the original batch? I guess you may not be able to tell, but it is more out of interest to see if the replacements are from a good batch.
I would be tempted to have a chat with the P@H staff and say that you don't want replacement fish, but would like to return all the harlequins and either get a refund or some food or dechlorinator or something up to the value of the fish. I admit that I bought my first fish from P@H, and apart from 1 v. platy, all other fish are still with me. I think you've just been very unlucky with the harlequins.
Take a bit of time to get to know the other shops and restock your tank from them.
I'm also guessing that it must be quite stressful and unpleasant to get to your tank in the morning, anticipating problems with the remaining harlequins. You know that your water parameters are fine and your other fish are doing well, so don't let it put you of, or even put you of keeping harlequins.
Best of luck and keep us posted.
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I honestly thinking that if they all die I'm not bothering with them again
It can be very off-putting when fish of a particular species die - while I loved my pygmy cories, for some reason, they didn't fare well, yet my other two shoals have been fine (touchwood) which has put me off having pygmy cories again. It probably would be a good idea to try something else, then, if you change your mind in the future and decide to have another go at keeping harlequins, it would be worth taking a look at various shops' stock. I notice vast differences between different shops' stock - sometimes a particular species of fish can look grey and weak in one shop yet bright and active in another, almost unrecognisable as the same species.
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2 more died today so I took the live one and the dead ones back and got a full refund so I went out and got 6 more cherry barbs and 4 new shrimp and a 7litre tank which I've named the hospital.. but I'm unsure how to cycle it?
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Does it have a filter? You could cycle it using the fishless cycling method, or what would be easier is to take some media from the filter of the main tank and put it inside the hospital/quarantine tank filter. You could do this when you want to use the small tank and leave the media inside the main tank until then. Once you've finished using the small tank, either return the media to the main filter till next time, or if the the fish in the small tank died from a disease, throw the media away and get some more for the main filter. It's not worth the risk of transferring something nasty to the main tank just for the cost of some filter media.
Sponges can be cut up to fit or ceramic media put into a mesh bag.
But be warned that 7 litres is very small, you would need to keep a close eye on the ammonia and nitrite levels while there were any fish in the tank. With that volume they would build up quickly.
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I'd prefer to do the fish less cycle as the filter in this is tiny and my main one is and external filter but how do I do that?
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Instructions for fishless cycling are here (http://www.thinkfish.co.uk/forums/fishtank-filtration-and-cycling/fishless-cycling-how-to-do-it/). If you only use these instructions it could take anything up to 2 months to cycle the filter. But if you squeeze some of the 'muck' from your external filter into the small tank, that would help seed the cycle and make it go faster. The muck contains some bacteria, though not as many as actual media.
When the tank is not in use, just run the whole filter in the main tank to keep the bacteria alive, or leave it in the small tank and add ammonia.
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Hello again I'm a bit worried about a cherry barb as it seems a bit fat and just bobs around the bottom on its own but the others are all shoaling together I'm not sure if it's male or female either?
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And is this shrimp pregnant?
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Male cherry barbs are red, females are much paler. Females tend to be fatter than males as well.
A female could be egg bound, over-eaten or have dropsy - the diagnostic symptom for that is where the scales stick out like a pine cone. Going off on its own is normal for cherry barbs.
Yes, the shrimp is carrying eggs. They carry them between their swimmerets.
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Okay well he's just a fat cherry barb as his scales are fine ... and how long does it take for the shrimp to lay eggs and hatch?
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Cherry shrimp females first develop a saddle shaped mark on the back, which can be white, yellow or green. This is the eggs developing inside the ovaries. When the eggs are ready, the female sends out a chemical signal to alert the males. I'm not sure if the eggs are fertilised then pass down to the swimmerets, or if the pass down unfertilised and are fertilised once they are in place. But in typical tank temperatures, it takes around 28 days from fertilisation to the eggs hatching. It can seem less, but the eggs could have been under the abdomen for several days before we notice if there are hiding places in the tank.
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Apparently fertilisation takes place with the shrimps facing each other, goodness knows how that works!
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Can anyone tell me what these are? They came in a bag with a plant .... they weren't ment to be in there?
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Really hard to tell. I'm sure Sue will have a better idea than me.
My guess :- female Endlers?
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That's a good shout Simon, if that is the case I would guess they could be pregnant or get pregnant...
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I don't have any other guppies the just accidentally got in the bag and the shop didn't notice and neither did I till I got home the must of been in the car a good couple of hours to? :/
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Endlers are pretty hardy and the fact they were in with plants probably helped. If they're teeny you should be ok and they shouldn't be pregnant. I'd take em back if I were you, they'll take up room you could use for fish you actually want.
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My first reaction is endlers as well. If they are less than half an inch long, they could even be males as they look like females till puberty when they start to colour up.
If they are females and there was even a single male in the same tank, they could be carrying sperm. Males will mate with females when they are still almost babies. These young females don't get pregnant for a while as they are too immature, but they carry the sperm until they are old enough.
A couple of hours in a bag won't harm the fish. I've bought fish from a shop a good hour's drive away.
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I have another problem ... I have a cherry barb with something white sticking out on his belly? And I'm worried
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This is the best pic I can get please say nothing is wrong
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It's hard to be sure from the photo - and we all realise just how hard photographing a given fish can be >:(
Is it a rounded lump or like a bit of white poo? The photo also makes the abdomen look swollen - is it, or is it just the angle of the photo?
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I looks a bit swollen and more like a lump
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I've got a better pic now
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That doesn't look nice at all. But I have no idea what it could be, I'm afraid.
How is the fish behaving?
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Do you think the lump is on the outside (eg from damage through getting stuck in decor, burning against a heater or being nipped by a tankmate, or something else from the outside) or is it more coming from the inside (eg bloating) and which is so severe that it's as though it's protruding out and causing a lump and discolouration on the scales?
Can you describe the lump more eg fluffy or pus-like? Have a good think about whether there's anything non- fish-related that it resembles at all. That way it might help us work out better what it is.
[Incidentally, as I'll not get the opportunity to keep an eye on and reply to further posts this evening, if you think it might be coming from the inside and protruding through the skin, it might be that the fish is bloated from too much food or possibly swallowing some of the substrate, as I've had experience of fancy goldfish doing and then looking a bit like this. If this might be the case, and even if it isn't, it might be worth feeding some chopped pea - take the shell off and cut the two halves of the pea into as many tiny morsels as you can, and this should help unbloat the fish.]
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He's acting normal he's with the group and he's eating but it looks like it's all fish but kind of reminds me of an abscess? I've put some aquarium salt in to try help the little fellow out but other than that I have no idea what to do... he isn't acting any differently than normal he still plays in the bubbles and everything
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Until we can work out what it is, the best thing is water changes (clean water helps) and keep a close eye on it.
Be careful about adding salt as some fish can't tolerate it. You could try a salt bath, that is add the salt to a tub of tank water and out the fish in that for several minutes - if you can catch it.
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Il keep an eye on him as every time I put the net in they clump together and go under the bog wood
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Okay I have caught him and he's in a salt bath these are the pics I have managed to get
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This aswell
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The top view shows a bulge on the fish's side. In that case it could be an abscess. I don't know of any cure for that, I'm afraid :(
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Unfortunately he didn't make it he died shortly after I put him in the medical tank
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Sorry to hear about your fish.
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Does anyone know what the best UV steriliser is for a 1000lph external filter?
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Very sorry too, to read about the fish. I did think he looked rather weak in the hospital tank. Even if there had been a suitable medication, it seems he wouldn't have had the strength to tolerate it.
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Several years ago I had a betta that was swollen like that. In the end he was so bad I put him down. I examined the body and found the abdomen was full of yellow goo :sick:
UV lights are not a cure-all. They rely on water born bugs flowing past the UV light before they can infect a fish.
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Several years ago I had a betta that was swollen like that. In the end he was so bad I put him down. I examined the body and found the abdomen was full of yellow goo :sick:
UV lights are not a cure-all. They rely on water born bugs flowing past the UV light before they can infect a fish.
That doesn't sound pleasant at all... Least of all for the poor fish!
Are UV Sterilisers supposed to give off visible light ie. like a blacklight gives off a violet hue? My tank came with a UV steriliser unit on the rear and I've never noticed light coming from it but never looked closely....
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UV sterilisers are part of a filter. You can't use UV directly in the tank as it would harm the fish, so the light is part of an external filter and shines on the water passing through that. It is very useful for microscopic floating algae (green water) but to use to kill bugs depends on the bugs going past the UV before getting to the fish. For example, I have read this description - imagine a whitespot cyst rupturing 1 inch away from a cory. The 'baby' parasites will reach the cory well before the filter has had chance to suck them past the UV bulb.
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Interesting... I wonder if mine is working or not, I just assume since all seems well that it is... But if it weren't working how would I know?
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The other thing I know about UV sterilisers is that the bulb has to be changed regularly or it becomes ineffective. If it is changed as per the manufacturer's instructions, it should work OK.
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In that case, I'd say it's definitely no longer effective. The previous owner of the tank was my mates' daughter. He ended up doing all of the maintenance towards the end of them having fish in it as she would let it go to the point where the spray bar flow would stop because of the gunk build up (nice) and to be quite frank the filter tubes were disgusting when I first got it. After me owning and running it for 3 months they are close to being completely clear...
Suffice to say I highly suspect the UV filter will have the original bulb inside it. I may replace it at a later date. Everything is fine in the tank so no need to do anything with it.