On a number of occasions I have cycled tanks by introducing water or some gravel or filter media from an established tank to jump start the bacteria. If that is not practical it is always easy to add a few goldfish which are extremely hardy to the tank in the first week. You can always return them to the LFS later. This starts your bio load out and puts something in the tank to watch which is always better than waiting for water to age.
As far as stocking goes the more important lesson is check your water quality along the way. For example, if you have one tetra in a 55g tank you will need to change your water once every two years. If you have 100 tetras in a 55g tank you will need to change your water every other day. Either way the water will be good quality but the maintenance requirements on the owner (you) are different. If you like changing your water you can add more fish. If you have a lot of other responsibilities and tend to put off water changes stock lighter.
What this means for you in simple practical terms is this: if you have a good filter (it sounds like you do) you can slowly add fish until maintaining your tank becomes too much work. Then back off and let natural attrition dial things back a bit. That is the experience part.
The single most important thing that new (and old) fish keepers ignore is testing the water on a regular basis. You can get one of those kits with a few different bottles of liquids in it. The liquids are better than the strips (though the strips seem to be enough to tell people if things are "probably OK" or "way off"). Test your water every week or two and use that as your guide for how many fish to cram in there. You will always know if you have room for more or not. If it only takes a week for your ammonia to hit danger levels you have overstocked. If your ammonia is always at the bottom of the scale you have room for more fish.
Your plan of adding a few every week is good. Another common mistake is going out and buying 50 fish because you are excited. A few a week is good. As you begin to reach what you think is the threshold back off and add a few a month. You'll know.
I would also advise to keep a journal. Record your water quality, the fish you add, the fish you lose (that you notice), when you change a filter, and whatever else happens to the tank. The entries may all be fairly short but you can learn a lot from your own experience that way.
Welcome to the club and have a wonderful time!
As far as stocking goes the more important lesson is check your water quality along the way. For example, if you have one tetra in a 55g tank you will need to change your water once every two years. If you have 100 tetras in a 55g tank you will need to change your water every other day. Either way the water will be good quality but the maintenance requirements on the owner (you) are different. If you like changing your water you can add more fish. If you have a lot of other responsibilities and tend to put off water changes stock lighter.
What this means for you in simple practical terms is this: if you have a good filter (it sounds like you do) you can slowly add fish until maintaining your tank becomes too much work. Then back off and let natural attrition dial things back a bit. That is the experience part.
The single most important thing that new (and old) fish keepers ignore is testing the water on a regular basis. You can get one of those kits with a few different bottles of liquids in it. The liquids are better than the strips (though the strips seem to be enough to tell people if things are "probably OK" or "way off"). Test your water every week or two and use that as your guide for how many fish to cram in there. You will always know if you have room for more or not. If it only takes a week for your ammonia to hit danger levels you have overstocked. If your ammonia is always at the bottom of the scale you have room for more fish.
Your plan of adding a few every week is good. Another common mistake is going out and buying 50 fish because you are excited. A few a week is good. As you begin to reach what you think is the threshold back off and add a few a month. You'll know.
I would also advise to keep a journal. Record your water quality, the fish you add, the fish you lose (that you notice), when you change a filter, and whatever else happens to the tank. The entries may all be fairly short but you can learn a lot from your own experience that way.
Welcome to the club and have a wonderful time!
