Making The Best Of Some Bad Decisions (naive Fishkeeper)

Apologies in advance for the upcoming ramble. I've given the background and context as I feel the need to defend myself, as I've been naive and now I'm looking to put things right.

So I've gotten to where I am with fishkeeping on luck, more than anything. I was given my nan's tank about three years back when it became too much of a chore for her to keep looking after it. Her tank was 45L, and when I took it on, it contained about 7 each of neon and black neon tetras. I asked about maintenance and was presented with a toothbrush, an algae brush and a bucket and told to give it a scrub once every couple of weeks, to brush the filter sponge with the toothbrush and to change about a quarter of the water at the same time. I was also given a box of Aquarian flakes and told to give them a small pinch each morning.

The tank was over a decade old when I received it and since then, I've just been looking after it in the same way, following what she did, with the only difference being my purchase of a gravel vacuum to make the job a bit easier. The neons were a few years old when I received them but as time has passed, some died and I attributed it to age, as the tank was "healthy", there was no sign of illness and the others all appeared fine, so there was no cause for alarm. I hadn't really looked into fishkeeping because she'd kept fish for over a decade without any problems and her advice appeared to be looking after the tank and fish just fine.

About a month ago, I came downstairs to find a puddle of water and a small leak. The leak wasn't pouring, it was like a pin prick, but it had clearly been going for most of the night, as the tank was just above half-full. I hastily slapped some tape over the leak to try to stem it, threw some towels down and then rushed down to the nearest fish shop to buy a tank. I couldn't find another 45l tank, so I took an Aquael LEDDY 60 54L tank and rushed home. A quick Google told me to take all my old gravel, decorations, filters and as much water into the new tank as the best emergency move. I moved everything into the new tank, topped it up with dechlorinated water and then hoped for the best. Over a few days, numbers thinned out and I lost about half a dozen fish in total, but as I already thought the fish were old, I figured the shock and stress of the move had done for them and wasn't concerned.

So, just over a month ago, with 4 black neons and 2 neon tetras left, I returned to the fish shop to restock. I think the salesman saw me coming, as I wanted a pick 'n' mix of fish that he was only too happy to provide. I came home with about a dozen new fish, new foods and another decoration for the tank. One of the fish I bought was female black/gold molly, and within a fortnight she'd gained quite a bit of weight so I went looking to see if she was pregnant and found this site (among others) and realised that I had been doing quite a bit wrong, because I'd followed my nan's regime (which was working, to a point) and got fleeced by a salesman. I've been naive about this as a hobby, taking on my nan's advice and then listening to the salesman, trusting him in his role as an "expert" and not assuming he's out just to line his wallet.

I've tested my water with the API Master Kit and it seems pretty good, so I think I've been lucky, but as I'm exploring this site I think I need someone that knows their stuff to tell me what's what because there's a lot to take in and I could do with a bit of guidance to say the least. I've been doing 25% water changes every Saturday, feeding a little bit twice daily and having checked my water levels each time I've done a change, I've not seen any real changes other than the nitrates gradually decreasing.

So, I've got a 54L tank, footprint of 60x30 by 30 high. I've got an oversized internal filter (sponge, suitable for up to 90l that came with the tank and a powerhead suitable for up to 180l), the standard LED strip light in the hood of the tank, some decorations and silk plants, with gravel.

My fish:
4x Panda corydoras (genders unknown)
4x Black neon tetras (genders unknown)
2x Neon tetras (genders unknown)
2x Black and gold mollies (one male, one female)
1x Golden ram (female)
1x Hatchetfish (gender unknown)

My water:
PH - 7.2
Ammonia - 0.25ppm (there's a green tinge, but when I checked my tap water it was the same colour too)
Nitrites - 0ppm
Nitrates - between 10 and 20ppm
Hardness - 52.479ppm/2.94dH

I'm a bit concerned about the ammonia, but I think I read another thread suggesting it might just be the test kit (or my eyes!), as if tap water measures the same, then it's alright - can someone confirm this? I'm also running my old filter alongside the new one that came with the tank, is there any problem in this? Can I "over-filter" the water this way?

I'm still feeding Aquarian flakes, but now have some little wafers for the bottom feeders and I feed a small amount of each twice a day. I've also got frozen brine shrimp and frozen bloodworm, but when I've tried putting them in, no-one paid them any attention, so I cleared them out and haven't tried with them again. Do the fish I have not eat these things? I took them on the suggestion of the salesman and now just feel like a mug...

According to the community calculator, I need more of each of the tetras, another female molly and from what I've read here, I could also benefit from another couple of pandas, too. I also see that my tank is too small for the hatchetfish anyway.

So I'm thinking I should return the hatchetfish and the gold ram to get another female molly... and then what? I don't much like the black neons, they're not very interesting fish (in terms of colour or personality) and I would much rather have more neon tetras in their place, but I can't return them to the pet store and I'll just have to wait for nature to take its course. Given the relative age of my neons, and the stress they've had recently, is it even worth adding to their numbers, or will new members struggle to shoal with the oldies?

From what I've read here, I think I'm getting to grips with it, but I'd rather be sure. If I've missed any vital information or need to clarify something then just ask - I'm still learning the terms!

All I can think of to add to fcmf's post is to agree with rehoming some of the fish. Your water is far too soft for mollies and they will get sick easily if kept in soft water.

The ammonia test - the type of light it is read under can affect the reading. Daylight is best, but we don't have that around for very long at the moment. Old fashioned incandescent light bulbs are fine (if you still have any) as are LED and halogen. Fluorescent tubes, including compact fluorescent energy saving bulbs, make the water look greener than it really is.
And finally, some people never see the yellow of zero even in tanks that have been running with no problem for years. And in daylight. The only explanation anyone can come up with is that there is variation in eyesight. Like my mother swears her grey trousers are blue even though the label calls them charcoal.

Ammonia is a gas which dissolves in water where some of it turns into ammonium. Ammonia is toxic to fish, while ammonium is much less so. Virtually all our test kits measure ammonia and ammonium combined as total ammonia. Ammonia is NH₃ and ammonium is NH₄⁺. The amount that is in each form depends on the pH and temperature of the water.
There are on-line calculators to work out how much is in each form, and your 0.25 ppm total ammonia at pH 7.2 and assuming 25 deg C comes out as 0.0023 ppm ammonia.
Any ammonia below 0.02 is safe, and yours is 10 times lower than that. So your fish are safe at 0.25 ppm total ammonia 


Shops hope that the fish in their tanks won't be there long so it doesn't matter if the water is wrong for them. And if they die after purchase, they don't care because you'll just buy more.
Hard water fish come from areas with lots of calcium in the water. Their bodies have evolved to excrete most of the calcium their bodies take in from the water. When they are put in soft water, they continue to excrete calcium but because there is little in the water, it aren't replaced and the fish suffer mineral deficiency.
Soft water fish have evolved to keep calcium in their bodies because there is little of it in soft water. If soft water fish are put in hard water, their bodies continue storing calcium until their organs become calcified.

Yes it is possible to 'harden' water by adding the minerals that make water hard. These are called remineralisation salts and are mainly used by people who use pure water (eg reverse osmosis water) which contains no minerals at all.
But your other fish won't be happy in water as hard as mollies need it.

Bettas are problematic. Males are worse than females, but there are some downright nasty females around. The cause of the problem with bettas is that the fish we see everywhere are intensively bred Betta spendens, and before they were bred for pretty colours they were bred for aggressiveness - they've been fought for sport in the far east for many human generations - like pit bulls were bred for aggressiveness for fighting here in the west. Bettas are bred in huge numbers in the far east for sale as pets in the west but no-one has tried breeding this aggressiveness back out of them.

There are a lot of fish that like your hardness - all south American fish and most Asian fish prefer soft water. The trouble is most species that are OK for your tank size are shoaling species which need at least 6 of the same, and fish that can be kept alone or in pairs need bigger tanks. And mollies also need a bigger tank, I forgot to mention that before  They need a tank at least 90 cm long as they are big fish especially females.

Honey gouramis would be OK, a male/female pair. They come in three different colours with yellow being the most common in shops, red the next most common and the wild colour being hard to find. Honeys (some shops call then dwarf honey gouramis) are peaceful for gouramis, and unlike some other gourami species the males do not harass females to death.

Or if you'd rather stick to shoaling species, ember tetras would go well with blue neons. They look washed out in shops but when they've settled in they really do live up to their name.
Green shoaling fish? Microdevario kubotai, variously called neon green rasboras, green tetras or even yellow rasboras.

Don't be tempted to rush into getting more fish, though. I speak from experience when I say if you stock to the max too soon, you'll find a new shop with fish you didn't know existed and have no room for.

@Littlefish

Thanks for the welcome, and the consolation that I'm not the only person to make these mistakes. Even before signing up, this site had been a massive help, but being able to actually just ask my questions (and I'm sure there will be plenty more of them) and get answers is quite relieving. I'm glad I've found you, and I'm sure my fish are, too.


@Sue

So, with the Betta, my issue is that I won't know its temperament until I get it home and into the tank, at which point it might start picking fights? Is it something I could watch for in the shop, and see which one was submissive/timid, or could I risk taking home a runt that then tries to assert itself as the biggest thing in my tank (which it would be)? I only ask because you haven't exactly said no... only that there are problems. I would like to have a "showy" fish, either a single one or a pair, and the betta looks the part even if it isn't behaving that way.

The honey gouramis look alright, though it does lead me to wonder what to do with my golden ram. Seeing as she's already in the tank, could I just introduce a male to keep her company? I like the look of a few of the rams, but I know they become territorial when breeding and they'll end up fighting with the corys if they go too close to the eggs. If I get a different type of ram (like a German blue) would they pair up without successfully breeding, or will they produce some sort of hybrid? Would she be happy with one of the dwarf cichlids, or will they not pair up together?

If I add to my neons and pandas, I don't appear to have enough space in the tank for another shoal, which means either a larger shoal of neons, or I'm back to one/two centrepiece fish.

A female betta could work. But it is not guaranteed. Females are usually kept in tanks together in shops so you should be able to observe their behaviour. But.... a female which is low down in the female betta pecking order might appear submissive to avoid the attentions of the more dominant females, then when they are not there she suddenly decides to be top fish in her new tank and bully the other fish into submission.

No, I'm afraid you can't buy a male of any colour morph for the female ram, she must choose her own mate. A pair that is not properly bonded can easily end up with one killing the other. They must either be bought as a bonded pair, or a group must be bought and when two pair up, rehome the rest. It is better if you either keep her alone or return her to the shop. It would also be risky if you got another female because the one you have now considers the whole of your tank as hers. Another female will be seen as an interloper. Buying two females at the same time is possible.
Rams come in several morphs - the basic ram, gold rams, electric blue rams, balloon rams, angel rams (the ones with long fins) and they are all Mikrogeophagus ramirezi. They have been selectively bred to get all these different colours and body/fin shapes. All M. ramirezi have red in their eye rings making it easier to tell the difference between them and Bolivian rams which have no red in their eye rings.Shops cannot be guaranteed to label their fish correctly.
Then there's the Bolivian ram, Mikrogeophagus altispinosus. This is a different species. But it grows bigger than the ram, and needs a bigger tank.

There are other dwarf cichlids that might work, but again you would need to buy a bonded pair - and I think your ram would object to them invading her territory. If you were to part ex the ram for other fish, that would be a way round it.
Cockatoo cichlids (Apistogramma cacatuoides) and agassizi's cichlid (A. agassizii) are the most common in shops. The way you spot a bonded pair involves standing motionless in front of the shop tank till the fish forget you are there. Then they will start behaving normally. The males will flare their fins out at each other and push each other with their noses. The females will just get on with life. If a male allows a female to stay close by him without objecting to her, they are likely to be a pair. Buy those.

Some shops will give you some part ex for fish, but it's never what you paid for them. Other's won't give you anything, they just take them off your hands. And there are some shops that won't take them at all.
if all else fails there's http://www.aquarist-classifieds.co.uk/ I find fish go pretty quickly if you give them away.

When livebearers are within a day or two of giving birth, their body changes shape so that it looks as though they've swallowed a box. It's called squaring off, a pretty accurate description 

I would put P@H at the bottom of a list of potentials. Non-chains are most likely to accept fish in my experience.

Good news - the LFS has confirmed that they'll take back the mollies, the ram and the hatchetfish.

Still no baby mollies, and she's still not looking "square", though she is still growing bigger.

When I brought the fish home, they were in thick plastic bags that I've since chucked. What's best for taking them back? I was thinking that something like a freezer bag is the closest thing available, would they be alright? The LFS is about 10 minutes away, so they won't be trapped in the bag for long, but I don't want to put them under any further stress if I can help it.

Thanks for the advice, I've got two nets, so I'll try to make use of them.

Just a thought - my normal tank maintenance is on a Saturday morning. 10-15% water change, gravel vacuum etc. I'm planning to take these fish back on either Friday afternoon or Saturday, and I've asked the LFS to stick two panda corydoras and four neon tetras on reserve for me to pick up at the same time. Will I be alright to my normal maintenance on the Saturday morning? I seem to recall reading something about not feeding/cleaning the tank if you're expecting new arrivals, but I'm not 100% and I can't find the thread...

I'm quite hirsute, so hopefully this "relaxing" hobby won't take too much of a toll on my hair!