Tropical Fish Forum

Tropical Fish Keeping Help and Advice => New Fishkeepers => Topic started by: Dr Um on September 17, 2017, 01:53:28 PM

Title: We are cycled! Querey re. numbers of fish to get.
Post by: Dr Um on September 17, 2017, 01:53:28 PM
Big excitement in our house today - we are finally cycled after 4 weeks!

I've done a full water change and conditioned the water.  Our LFS has the cherry barbs that we want in stock, so I'd like to check how many it's OK to buy in one go.  I've cycled the tank at 1ppm ammonia, so would 6 be OK?  Hoping so as it's the recommended minimum group number.  Hoping to have 8 eventually, but not sure if I can do that in one go.  I would rather play it safe if necessary.

Hopefully photos to follow later!
Title: Re: We are cycled! Querey re. numbers of fish to get.
Post by: Sue on September 17, 2017, 03:31:16 PM
If you had cycled with 3 ppm ammonia you would be able to fully stock the tank now. But since you've used a third of 3 ppm, you can get fish equal to a third of fully stocked. If 8 cherry barbs is one third or less of your final proposed stocking, you can get 8 now.

When you get the rest of your fish, the amount you can add will depend on how long it is since you added the previous fish.



Whenever you add fish it is good practice to monitor ammonia and nitrite for several days. If either of them do show up, just do a water change  :)
Title: Re: We are cycled! Querey re. numbers of fish to get.
Post by: Littlefish on September 17, 2017, 04:01:29 PM
Congratulations on your completed cycle.  :cheers:
Looking forward to seeing pictures.  :)
Title: Re: We are cycled! Querey re. numbers of fish to get.
Post by: Matt on September 17, 2017, 04:47:11 PM
Exciting times!!... pictures are definitely mandatory at this stage  C:-)
Title: Re: We are cycled! Querey re. numbers of fish to get.
Post by: Ian1962 on September 17, 2017, 05:28:34 PM
Congratulations on your completed cycling.
I would error on the side of caution. Your tank is cycled, yes. But any fish you now add will add to the bio load of the filter. I would add 4 cherry Barbs. Then wait a couple of weeks for the filter to catch up. Then add another 4 fish. I understand nobody ways to wait, we want to see fish in our tank. But the filter still needs time to catch up to the extra fish be added. Fish keeping is about the welfare of the fish we keep, in our tanks. Don't be tempted to run before you can walk. This is only my opinion, sorry if I have upset anyone.
       :fishy1:
Title: Re: We are cycled! Querey re. numbers of fish to get.
Post by: Sue on September 17, 2017, 05:38:53 PM
The idea behind using 3 ppm ammonia to cycle a tank is that this grows more than enough bacteria to support a tankful of fish so that the tank can be fully stocked once the cycle finishes. So a third of this amount of ammonia should grow more than enough to support a tank stocked to a third of it's fully stocked amount.

The tank in question is 125 litres. The tank should easily hold 24 cherry barbs, so a third of 24 (=8) should not cause any problems, in my opinion.
Title: Re: We are cycled! Querey re. numbers of fish to get.
Post by: MarquisMirage on September 17, 2017, 07:04:49 PM
Congrats on the tank being ready.  :D  Look forward to reading more (and seeing hopefully) about it.
Title: Re: We are cycled! Querey re. numbers of fish to get.
Post by: Dr Um on September 17, 2017, 07:30:33 PM
We got 6 cherry barbs in the end - decided to play it safe and will add a couple more in a couple of weeks if they and the filter are doing OK.  They've been whizzing round the tank together and having a good old explore.  They're fab - I'm already besotted.  Photo (hopefully) attached.  Thanks all for the advice.
Title: Re: We are cycled! Querey re. numbers of fish to get.
Post by: Sue on September 17, 2017, 07:35:00 PM
If your ammonia and nitrite stay at zero over the next 2 or 3 days, I would get the last two sooner rather than later. It is always better to add a whole shoal at once rather than let half a shoal set up their hierarchy then add more so they then have to set up a new hierarchy.
Title: Re: We are cycled! Querey re. numbers of fish to get.
Post by: Littlefish on September 17, 2017, 08:00:06 PM
Great to see that your new arrivals are settling into their lovely tank.  :cheers:
Title: Re: We are cycled! Querey re. numbers of fish to get.
Post by: MarquisMirage on September 17, 2017, 10:23:43 PM
Looks good.  :D  I like the background too.
Title: Re: We are cycled! Querey re. numbers of fish to get.
Post by: Sue on September 18, 2017, 09:38:08 AM
It is a nice looking tank  :)

Of your 6 cherry barbs I can see 3 females and 1 male  :))



After you get all the barbs you want, what will your next fish be?
Title: Re: We are cycled! Querey re. numbers of fish to get.
Post by: Dr Um on September 18, 2017, 04:36:31 PM
Thanks!  I've got some mopani wood to put back in too, but it had white goo on it a week or two back, so it's been taken out and dried  and is currently soaking in a bucket so it will sink when I put it back in!  I'll leave that for now though, as I don't want to stress the fish. 

We got 4 females and 2 males, and will get another male and female soon, so hopefully the balance will be right.  The males have been chasing 2 of the females round the tank and one of them is rather boisterous, so I hope the poor female isn't too bothered!  Haven't fed them yet - I was going to leave this until tomorrow, as I'd read somewhere this eases the initial bioload on the tank - is that OK?

Hoping to get x-ray tetra next - ideally 6-8, and then once the tank is more mature, some cories - hopefully 5 or 6 three-lined cory or another species that will suit our water.

Title: Re: We are cycled! Querey re. numbers of fish to get.
Post by: Sue on September 18, 2017, 05:02:50 PM
The chasing should settle once they've got over the transfer to your tank, though you may find it start again when you add the last two. Three males and five females sounds good.

It is usual to not feed the tank the day new fish are added, and to leave the lights off off that day as well. The low light helps reduce the stress that all fish suffer after being chased round the shop tank with a net, carried around in a small plastic bag then placed in a new environment. Some fish take longer than others to get over all this.