New To Fish Keeping

The shrimp are doing nothing at the moment apart from sitting in a floating plant. I've only had them 5 days so it's a bit early to tell, they may be just getting used to things or they may well be very lazy.

The fish (cherry barbs, 5-band barbs, guppies and a platy) ignore them. I'll post if anything changes but I'm a bit disappointed at the moment - perhaps I should've got Amano shrimp instead.

You said the guppies in the shop were locally bred? They'll be much hardier than the ones mass bred in the Far East.

Mine were obviously bred in the Far East 'cos another one looks like it won't be seeing tomorrow at the moment.

...and I was really hoping I might be able to go a month without a guppy turning up it's toes. *sigh*

Bactinettes was the only  'bottled bacteria' sold in the UK at that time that worked. It was similar to biospira sold in the US. Both of these had a very short shelf life and had to be kept refridgerated. Not a lot of shops sold bactinettes (too much chance of reaching the expiry date before it was sold) and I'm pretty sure they stopped making it a while ago.
Biospira, the US one, was made by Marineland. They were taken over and the product replaced by Safe Start which is available in Europe. It is one of the few products that is reputed to work some of the time.



See what your ammonia reading is tonight. If it is above zero, wait till tomorrow night to add more. You don't want to risk pushing your nitrite up too high. That will go up quite fast because 1ppm ammonia gets turned into 2.7ppm nitrite.

Sorry, I should explain better.


If the ammonia drops to zero, top up at the usual time. If the ammonia has not dropped to zero, test again next day and if it's dropped then, top up that night.

It's a balancing act. You need to add enough ammonia to keep the ammonia eaters fed but not too much as that would result in a massive amount of nitrite.

...you can get a cat as well!



... or perhaps two.

OK...so ColinB isn't the only one with babies in his tank!  Although, I suspect his surprise arrivals are a lot more welcome than mine.  This afternoon, as I looked at the tank, marching(?) purposefully across the sand was a baby snail....boy, he had got some speed up!  On closer inspection I spotted 3 more on the glass.  I assume they have come in as eggs on the last plants I added.  How long do snails eggs take to hatch?  I have no idea what sort they are or even, if any sort is welcome in your tank?  Should I nab them when I see them?
Anyway, put some more ammonia in last night and tested today...no ammonia.  I shall add some more tonight and see what the readings are tomorrow. 
I bought some more water conditioner in preparation for plenty of water changes if needed, and it had attached to it a bottle of Tetra Safe Start as a freebie.  Now, whether it's because the stuff doesn't sell well that they're giving it away, I have no idea.  Anyway, I figured it couldn't hurt so I put that in the tank today.
I spoke to the chap in my nearest fish shop and he said if I gave him my list of fish I want he would get them in for me.  I asked where they came from and he said they were all local.  He seemed surprised by my asking and when I asked if all his fish came from nearby as opposed to a large supplier or Asian sources he looked at me like I was mad and laughed.  Then he realised I wasn't joking and said no he only used local breeders.  I'm guessing that's a good thing but for the first time since I have been to that shop I saw 2 dead fish in his tanks, one sadly, was a little 8 spot puffer, so that is obviously a bad thing.  I suppose fish shops get their share of fatalities too.  Should I avoid this shop now though?
Any thoughts most welcome....

Hi Sue,
Interesting....yes, he did have some Neon Tetras also Emperor Tetras, so perhaps he's telling me porkies!  I'm going to another shop tomorrow.  It's a large pet store in a bigger town.  They have a large fish department including some beautiful marine set-ups.  My youngest son has moaned that all the messing about with starting my tank, I should have had a marine one!  My eldest son has had a marine aquarium for about 10 years now and I clearly remember him having to jump through hoops to get it stabilized.  I have to say though, it is stunning.  One of his fish is from his original group and he is extremely fond of him.
Anyway, as you know, I digress!  I shall see what the fish look like at the big store also at the garden centre near there.  It's very different getting livestock of any sort in France.  The pet stores still sell puppies and kittens.  They are all pedigrees, (not that I'm saying they're better) and come from local breeders.  The naming of pedigree animals is quite strict too, they have a different letter for each year, (a bit like a car registration) and the animal is registered with a name beginning with the designated letter.  This years letter is H.  It's very tough seeing cats and dogs in a pet shop environment but I have to say they are kept scrupulously clean and thestaff have always got one or other in their arms giving them a cuddle or generally playing with them.  Customers are also able to hold them, they have had their first vaccinations....the animals, that is, (don't know about the customers)!!!
I shall keep an eye on snail numbers and pick them out if they look like taking over!
Can't wait to get some fish!!!!!

Definitely sounds like you need a big water change to me :-) I wouldn't worry about losing your safe start too much... they don't really seem to do much, and if they have worked your bacteria should be growing in your sponges etc now and not in the water itself... I think getting your nitrates back down will be better so it doesn't stall your cycle. However I'm only just nearing the end of my first ever cycle so maybe wait until TigzFish or someone sees this to do anything!

aah..thanks guys.  I thought that was what was needed, but it's always nice to have other input when you're a complete beginner!  I have been following your progress with great interest, Jesnon....well done, it sounds like fishes are just a heartbeat away for you.....how exciting!
Thanks ColinB for your patience and encouragement, it's most welcome.
Should I add more ammonia tonight after I've done my water change, if so, how much?  Do I need to change the water again tomorrow or Sunday or will it depend on tomorrows water test?
Thanks.

Thanks Resa, I can't wait now! It does sound like your cycle is progressing much faster than mine did! You'll have to take some pictures of your new arrivals Colin!