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Tank Log

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Offline Rounds

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Tank log
« on: January 20, 2015, 06:21:49 PM »
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Hi all,

It's good to find this place!

I've recently purchased my first tank, which is currently cycling (fishless). Although I've done a lot of research beforehand, I hope this forum can answer any questions I have or problems I come across :).

I did want a large tank (don't we all), but my gf unfortunately only allowed 40cm, so I've gone for an Aqua Nano 40.

From some research, I've removed the 2 filter pads (they clogged up very quickly and I've heard cycling is faster without the carbon), and replaced with a 500g bag of biomax media, with a few shower puffs in the open space remaining (let's hope the puffs do indeed do something).

I have a decent LFS (Ripples in either Shenstone or Tamworth).

Stocking plan so far is 6 CPD's, 6 slender harlequins, 1 oto and 2-3 japonica shrimp. Possibly with a betta involved if you think that's not overstocking.

Tank details and log so far as follows:

Substrate base is sand with 4-5mm smooth stone on top.

Tap water:
pH: 7.3 (neutral = 7)
Ammonia: 0.25ppm (mg/l)
Nitrite: 0ppm
Nitrate: 20ppm

8/1/15
Water temp set at 30, measuring 29
2ml ammonia added
Ammonia: 4ppm
Nitrite: 0ppm

11/1/15
Ammonia: 3ppm
Nitrite: 0.3ppm
PH: 8
Plants added in pots:
Anubias barteri var nana
Lilaeopsis brasiliensis
Rotala rotundifolia
Cryptocoryne beckettii petchii
Bacopa australis

12/1/15
Redmoor added (weighed down with tights filled with substrate) after 4 days soaking in warm/hot water

14/1/15
Ammonia: 0.5ppm
Nitrite: 2ppm
Plants planted

16/1/15
Ammonia: 0ppm
Nitrite: 5ppm
PH: 7.8
Added 1.9ml ammonia
Ammonia: 4ppm

17/1/15
3 tiny snails spotted and holes in Anubias leaf. Snails are less than 1mm in size.

19/1/15
More snails uncovered. Hopefully not an infestation! First purchase no doubt will be a couple of assassin snails!

Let me know if I've gone wrong so far! Otherwise I'll keep you all updated :)

Steve
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A Selection of Fish in my Fish Community Creator Tanks
Japonica Shrimp (4) - Otocinclus (1) - Cherry Barb (4) - Fiveband Barb (4) - Ember Tetra (6) -
Note: The user may not necessarily own these fish, these are tanks that they may be building or researching for stocking purposes

Offline Sue

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Re: Tank log
« Reply #1 on: January 20, 2015, 06:34:21 PM »
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Hi and welcome  :wave:

Are you following the cycle method on here? It looks to be proceeding well, just make sure you don't add too much ammonia!

You stocking suggestions look good, except for the betta. I wouldn't trust one with cpd's or shrimps. My betta went frantic when I accidentally got a woodlouse in his tank and attacked it till it lay on its back and played dead. He would do the same to shrimps. And cpd's are so small a betta might decide to try and eat them - he probably wouldn't succeed but the cpd's, which are shy fish, could end up harassed to death.

Re the slender harlequins, read up on how to differentiate them foro the two lookalikes. Slenders are Trigonostigma espei and I've seen them called Espei's rasboras, slender rasboras and lambchop rasboras. T. heteromorpha are harlequins and I've never seen them called anything else. T. hengeli are Hengel's rasboras, copper rasboras or pork chop rasboras. I wouldn't trust a shop to get espeis and hengelis labelled correctly.
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Offline fishcake76

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Re: Tank log
« Reply #2 on: January 20, 2015, 09:38:47 PM »
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Hi Steve and welcome!

Your tank sounds like its gonna be good. In addition to Sue's comments on your stock, i would just add that otos like to be in groups too, although this makes me a total hypocrite as i have a single oto!! But only because his friends died!!!!  :(

FC76
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Offline Resa

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Re: Tank log
« Reply #3 on: January 20, 2015, 11:21:52 PM »
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Hi Steve :wave:

Welcome to the forum!
Just a little add-on to Fishcake's post. She's absolutely right, you do need more otos....6 upwards is best, but you might want to wait awhile anyway, as they need a tank that's mature, at least 6 months after cycling. This is because you need to have some algae growing for them to graze on.
Also, when you're ready to get some, sing out, as there are some tips to know to give your otos their best chance of survival.

Meanwhile, good luck with your tank cycling, don't listen to the staff in fish shops and have a look at the community creator on here...it's really useful for seeing what fish are right for your tank, water conditions, and if the ones you want are compatible with each other.
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A Selection of Fish in my Fish Community Creator Tanks
Panda Cory (11) - Otocinclus (2) - Platy (3) - Dwarf Rainbowfish (7) - Dwarf Gourami (2) - Red Phantom Tetra (5) - Salt and Pepper Catfish (2) - Otocinclus (2) - Guppy (male) (4) - Dwarf Gourami (1) - Platy (6) - Dwarf Rainbowfish (5) - Panda Cory (6) - Otocinclus (2) - Salt and Pepper Catfish (6) - Dwarf Gourami (1) - Platy (5) - Guppy (male) (4) - Otocinclus (2) - Panda Cory (6) - Platy (3) - Dwarf Rainbowfish (5) -
Note: The user may not necessarily own these fish, these are tanks that they may be building or researching for stocking purposes

Offline Rounds

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Re: Tank log
« Reply #4 on: January 21, 2015, 06:27:34 PM »
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Thank you all for your comments, most helpful!

I'll remove the idea of a Betta just to be safe. I understand re the oto's, although the community creator says one is fine, versus Cory's which need 6 or more. Either way I've got a bit of time to decide :).

If I'm honest I'd not settled on harlequins Sue and your comment makes me more nervous as my tank would be too small for most species. My alternatives were five banded barbs, checkered barbs, cherry barbs or ember tetras.

My concern with these is the water hardness and ph. My water is right in the middle of what is classified as hard, and ph around 7.8. Do you agree that this would be unsuitable for these species?

Rather than an oto, do you think I'd get away with more shrimp? I read somewhere that they don't count towards your stocking levels, so perhaps I'd get away with 5 or 6?

I had a white substance growing on the redmoor about 5 days after submersing. 5 days later and it seems to be going away which is nice, although I've read it shouldn't impact the cycle or any fish. I do however keep finding the odd snail. Aside from buying 1 or 2 assassin snails once cycled, is there anything I can do (other than emptying and gutting everything) that can prevent/slow their reproduction? I'm not sure dropping the temp is a good plan as will slow cycling significantly.

Results from last nights tests (20/1/15):

PH: 7.8
Ammonia: 0.25ppm
Diluted nitrite (4 tap water to 1 tank): 1ppm so 5ppm tank water
Nitrate: 5ppm
Added 1.8ml ammonia (Jeyes Kleen Off)
Ammonia: 3.5ppm

Thanks all

Steve
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A Selection of Fish in my Fish Community Creator Tanks
Japonica Shrimp (4) - Otocinclus (1) - Cherry Barb (4) - Fiveband Barb (4) - Ember Tetra (6) -
Note: The user may not necessarily own these fish, these are tanks that they may be building or researching for stocking purposes

Offline Sue

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Re: Tank log
« Reply #5 on: January 21, 2015, 06:55:36 PM »
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The results from the cycle look like it is proceeding well.

I have recently got a few pieces of redmoor wood, it is very good for tying java fern to and for looping stems of hornwort round  ;D It took about a week for my pieces to sink and they did exude a sort of clear-whitish goo which my amano shrimp made short work of once it went in the tank. (I should have more amanos but this is the last survivor of a group I bought 5 years ago).
Amanos make a good addition to a tank, preferably a group of them. This species is big enough not to get eaten, though they don't breed in fresh water (the larvae need salt water to develop). Cherry shrimp would be fine too; with the size tank you have you can't fit fish big enough to eat the adults (except a betta) though even small fish will eat baby shrimps.
If you do get shrimps, make sure you have a few hiding places for them. Shrimps have to moult to grow and while the new skin hardens, they are very vulnerable.

According to the manufacturer's website, the Aqua Nano 40 is a 40cm cube. I prefer Seriously Fish for tank sizes etc for any given species. According to SF:
5 band barbs need a tank with a 80 x 30cm footprint
checkered barbs need 60 x 30
cherry barbs 60 x 30
ember tetra 45 x 30 - these would fit! But they prefer softer water with lower pH.

How hard is your water? Your water company's website should give a number, though it could be in any of half a dozen units. SF reckons ember tetras are OK up to 179ppm, aka 10 german degrees. And hardness is more important than pH.
I have some ember tetras. In the first tank I put them in, they hid all the time and were pale orange. I moved them to another tank and they came out and are deep orange red.

If your water turns out to be very hard, endlers livebearers would be fine in that water and your tank. Just males as they breed like rabbits. A group of males is a very colourful addition to a tank; there are several different colour types if you look at different shops.


Snails are not that bad for an aquarium, provided there aren't so many of them there is no room for anything else  ;D I have some of those tiny flat spiral ones, I gave up trying to get rid of them years ago. Once you have fish, if you don't over feed the snail numbers will stabilise at something manageable. I would just learn to live with them.
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Offline Cod_only_knows

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Re: Tank log
« Reply #6 on: January 21, 2015, 07:57:17 PM »
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Hi Rounds,

I have the same tank. Unfortunately the cube shape does limit what you can add. CPD's are stunning fish, but as this was my first tank I went for something a little cheaper and more flexible with regards to water parameters - Xray Tetra. I downloaded an app on my phone which is great and said these would do fine in the Aquanano 40, though after purchasing them Sue informed me that the tank is too small. I've stuck with them as my better half won't let me get a bigger tank. They seem settled and now have beautiful colouration and school fantastically.

I have seen some stunning Ember Tetra in my LFS, and the school nicely too. You might want to consider Emerald Dwarf Rasbora (Danio erythromicron) another stunning little fish. I've also heard Scarlet Badis (Dario Dario) do well in this tank.

I have Red Cherry Shrimp and Nerites and they do a fantastic job on my algae. If you are keen on a suckermouth, then an alternative to Otos could be a Pitbull Pleco (Parotocinclus jumbo) which grow to about 6cm.

If you're looking for a centerpiece fish, then thinkfish says that Honey Gourami's are fine in this tank. They come in a couple of colour variants, but my fave is the natural colouration if you can find it.

Good luck!
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A Selection of Fish in my Fish Community Creator Tanks
Checkered Barb (3) - Endler's Livebearer (5) - Galaxy Rasbora (7) -
Note: The user may not necessarily own these fish, these are tanks that they may be building or researching for stocking purposes

Offline Rounds

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Re: Tank log
« Reply #7 on: January 27, 2015, 10:09:55 PM »
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Thank you again for your comments :)

Latest test results:

24/1/15
PH: 7.8
Ammonia: 0ppm
Nitrite (4:1): 2ppm
Nitrate: 40ppm
Added 1.8ml ammonia

27/1/15
PH: 7.6
Ammonia: 0ppm
Nitrite: 0.25ppm
Nitrate: 20ppm (??)
Added 1.8ml ammonia

From the above I'm hoping that ammonia will have reduced to zero by tomorrow. Just need to get nitrite eating bacteria built up then I'm all sorted :). I'm going for 24 hr dosing of Ammonia unless you disagree Sue?

Any idea why the nitrate has dropped? I repeated the test twice to make sure it wasn't a lie. I'd expect it to have increased.

The water hardness on suppliers website states 12.5 degrees German.

LFS has green neon tetras, which apparently grow much smaller than blue and are suitable for my tank. Has anyone came across this species? They also have Espe Rasbora and Dwarf Rasbora, which look nice :).

Steve
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A Selection of Fish in my Fish Community Creator Tanks
Japonica Shrimp (4) - Otocinclus (1) - Cherry Barb (4) - Fiveband Barb (4) - Ember Tetra (6) -
Note: The user may not necessarily own these fish, these are tanks that they may be building or researching for stocking purposes

Offline Sue

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Re: Tank log
« Reply #8 on: January 28, 2015, 10:59:08 AM »
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It looks as though you are around Step #10 of this method. Rather than add ammonia every 24 hours, I would continue from step #10.

Nitrate is the most unrealiable of our testers. I wouldn't worry too much over those results.


A GH of 12.5 degrees is classed as hard. You ask about green neons - I have some! But they do need soft water I'm afraid. Mine is 6 german deg and even that is a bit on the hard side for them.
I would need to know the latin name for the dwarf rasboras before I could comment on those as there are quite a few fish that could come under that name. Espei's rasboras should be OK.


Edit - Seriously Fish has Boraras maculatus as dwarf rasboras. According to that profile, they need a maximum hardness of 90ppm/5 german degrees. If these are the fish you saw, I'm afraid your water is too hard.
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Offline Rounds

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Re: Tank log
« Reply #9 on: February 06, 2015, 09:50:44 PM »
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Sorry guys been busy!

Latest test results:

28/1/15
Ammonia: 0.2ppm
Nitrite: 5ppm

29/1/15
Ammonia: 0ppm
Nitrite: 2ppm
Nitrate: 40ppm

30/1/15
Ammonia: 0ppm
Nitrite: 0ppm
Added 1.8ml ammonia

31/1/15
Ammonia: 0ppm (yeay)
Nitrite: 2ppm
Snails: Around 30 babies roaming the redmoor

1/2/15
Ammonia: 0ppm
Nitrite: 0ppm
Added 1.8ml ammonia

2/1/15
Ammonia: 0ppm
Nitrite: 2ppm

3/1/15
Ammonia: 0ppm
Nitrite: 0ppm
Added 1.6ml ammonia

4/1/15
Ammonia: 0ppm
Nitrite: 0.25ppm

5/1/15
Added 1.6ml ammonia
Ammonia: 3.5ppm

6/1/15
Ammonia: 0ppm
Nitrite: 0ppm

Sounds like I'm done based on the above. Do you agree?

Sticking wise I'm now thinking:

Espei x6
CPD x6
Red cherry shrimp x6
Assassin x2

How does this sound?

Thanks all :)
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A Selection of Fish in my Fish Community Creator Tanks
Japonica Shrimp (4) - Otocinclus (1) - Cherry Barb (4) - Fiveband Barb (4) - Ember Tetra (6) -
Note: The user may not necessarily own these fish, these are tanks that they may be building or researching for stocking purposes

Offline Sue

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Re: Tank log
« Reply #10 on: February 07, 2015, 02:12:04 PM »
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Since your filter can clear 3.5ppm ammonia to zero ammonia and zero nitrite in 24 hours, the cycle has finished  :cheers:

If you can't go fish shopping for a few days, add a 1ppm dose of ammonia every 2 or 3 days till you can go. Do a big water change shortly before going shopping to remove the nitrate that has been made by the cycle.

Your tank is 55 litres so the fish will be fine. But I would leave the shrimps a few months as they are more sensitive than fish to water conditions and it is better to wait till the tank has grown all the other micro-organisms besides the filter bacteria that help keep the water conditions stable.
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