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Introductions and hello's / Just starting the money pit of fish keeping
« Last post by Squeebo84 on March 25, 2024, 08:05:14 PM »
Hi all, glad I've stumbled across this forum and Ill be doing plenty of reading!
Started with a little starter tank that I found in a school refurb that was getting thrown out and thought" Ill get it for the kids" I soon took over and claimed it as my own😂. I had 3 rosy barbs and a plec and a few plastic plants and a spongbob figure.
After scouring the web for a second hand tank I found a fluval flex 123l with a few rocks for £50 and snapped it up.
Ive since put in
2 new filters and media (didn't come with any)
New 150w heater
2 stones
3 plants (anubias nana, amazon sword and a crypt)
A sandy gravel Substrate (1-3mm)
A few patches of fluval plant soil just where the plants are planted.
I have 3 peices of drift wood soaking ready to go in.
Air stone
The old air fed filter and some old substrate in a stocking next to the new filters.
 
I got impatient with the cycle about 2 weeks in and my water readings were good and I caved in and got 4 harlequin rasbora To get the cycle going and some fluval cycle also put the pleco in there aswell after letting it acclimatise at top.

Its been 3 days and the ammonia has gone to 0.2 and no2 is still showing 0 but the no3 is showing about 20~25.
Plants are growing well also.
I no I should have read up first and should have waited the fish less cycle but any recommendations or tips would be welcome and thanks for having me here.
I'm looking forward to learning and growing my natural looking fish community.
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Introductions and hello's / Re: hello new fish tank owner here
« Last post by tornmean9 on March 20, 2024, 08:12:40 AM »
my tank  is finally cycled and i added my first two fish   i went with  two Croaking Gourami (Trichopsis vittata)
https://www.thinkfish.co.uk/fish/croaking-gourami.html

im happy to finally having fish in the tank
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Introductions and hello's / Re: hello new fish tank owner here
« Last post by tornmean9 on March 04, 2024, 09:41:38 AM »
well tank cycle seems to be going well  s far i got nitrites showing up   but in  another developement  my friend i live with decided to get there own 200l  tank for them selfs  so house alreay gone from 0 tanks to two with in couple of weeks
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The Emergency Room / Re: What is happening to my Goney Gourami
« Last post by uv on February 26, 2024, 07:27:20 PM »
Thank you very much
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The Emergency Room / Re: What is happening to my Goney Gourami
« Last post by Sue on February 26, 2024, 03:38:27 PM »
If it's just "new to the tank" shock, it should get better. Some fish take a few weeks. But keep an eye on it till you are 100% sure it's OK.

Nitrate - there are a few expensive media, some used in-tank, some to pre treat new water for a water change. Pozzani make pre-water change filters. For in-tank - API Nitra-zorb.
Other possibilities include using a storage tub for water change water, and have floating plants in there to remove nitrate from tap water before it is used. But this would need a good source of light. In those countries where the container can be kept out of doors all year round, this is a practical method, but in colder climates, the container would have to be kept indoors in winter which may not be practical.


Of course if the water is also very hard, gouramis need soft water, though guppies do need hard water. Using a mix of tap and reverse osmosis water will reduce the hardness, and nitrate.
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The Emergency Room / Re: What is happening to my Goney Gourami
« Last post by uv on February 26, 2024, 03:04:54 PM »
Hi Sue,

I would be happy if it is one male and female. :)

Nitrates in my tap water are on the higher side. Which nitrate removing media would you recommend?

What about the fish health. Is it doing OK now?

Thank you,
UV
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The Emergency Room / Re: What is happening to my Goney Gourami
« Last post by Sue on February 26, 2024, 02:38:51 PM »
Ah, I see now they are the fish sold as red honeys not natural coloured honey gouramis. Sorry about that mis-identification  :-[ These are not actually honey gouramis. They are either red thick lipped gouramis or some say that are honey-thick lipped hybrids. I have never been good at distinguishing the sexes of this fish  :(
Having said that, I suspect the fish on the right in the first two photos is female due to the shorter rounded fins. The single fish in the last photo is possibly male as its fins are longer and not quite as rounded. Of course I could be completely wrong  :)

With true honeys, I could usually tell the difference in the shop tank by behaviour. Males would be the ones with an up front attitude while the females tended to be minding their own business and searching the bottom of the tank for bits of food.

So hopefully you do have a male and female.


It's possibly the one you got a week ago is slow at settling in. The brown poop is a good sign; it's white stringy poop that often means internal infections, anything from bacteria to worms.


You haven't mentioned nitrite, hopefully that too is zero.
Nitrate is a bit high at 40 ppm, it is now realised that levels above 20 ppm are not good for fish long term. What is the nitrate level in your tap water? UK legislation allows up to 50 ppm in drinking water. If your tap water is also high in nitrate, there are things you can do to lower it in the tank such as using nitrate removing media. But if tap nitrate is low, your tank nitrate should be at just about the same level as tap level. If it's higher, the usual causes are not enough water changes allowing it to build up, and/or feeding too much fish food as that decomposes to make ammonia which is turned into nitrate.
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The Emergency Room / Re: What is happening to my Goney Gourami
« Last post by uv on February 26, 2024, 02:20:08 PM »
Hi Sue,

Ammonia is 0 and nitrates is about 40ppm. Poop is not white, coloured dark brown.

He started coming up and swimming in the afternoon. Hopefully he should be alright. I didn't notice they pecking each other though.

I attached both the fish pictures.

Thank you

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The Emergency Room / Re: What is happening to my Goney Gourami
« Last post by Sue on February 26, 2024, 02:02:03 PM »
Can I just confirm a few things, please.

Your water tests - are ammonia zero, nitrite zero and nitrate below 20 ppm?
The poop - was it 'normal' coloured or white and stringy?

From the photos, the fish doesn't look too happy. And it's a male not a female, it's the natural colour and natural females are silvery beige while this one is tan coloured. His throat is white when it should be anything from tan with black speckles to dark inky black when he's in the mood for breeding.

Which leads me to ask, what sex is the other honey gourami? If that too is a male, this one could be being picked on by the other. A 50 litre tanks just isn't big enough for 2 males; they are territorial fish and one will try to drive the other out of its territory - but in a tank, it can't leave so the dominant one sees the other as constantly challenging it.

Could you post photos of both fish, please, preferably from the side. I do realise fish are not the easiest of creatures to photograph  :(
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The Emergency Room / What is happening to my Goney Gourami
« Last post by uv on February 26, 2024, 10:21:05 AM »
Hello,

I've got this honey gourami about a week and it doesn't look healthy today. It is hardly swimming but when it did I see a long poo hanging at the bottom.

The tank is several years old and recent ammonia and nitrates seem to be OK.

It's a 50l tank and all I have is 2 honey gourami's and 1 guppy.

Appreciate any advice to save her.

Thank you,
UV
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