So now a new issue arises. My local guy doesn’t have all the fish I want. I can order online from live aquaria but then they won’t guarantee the sex on the Pearls. So if I order online and it won’t deliver until Tuesday what do I need to do to the tank to keep it going? Also if I order online, get everything but the Pearls on Tuesday, go pick up the Pearls locally on Thursday so I can get the male/female would that be ok?
Fishless Cycle
- Thread starter railer20
- Start date
You do need to get all of the fish into the tank pretty close together. there are two reasons for this. First, that is why we do a fishless cycle at about 3 ppm of ammonia. it allows us to stock the tank fully on day one. however, day one is actually a couple of days not one. However, there is a more important consideration. This has to do with quarantining fish. if you get all your fish from the same source all at once, your tank is a quarantine tank. However, if you use two sources, then you are mixing fish from them and if one source has an issue while the other does not, you get to share the issue between all the fish.
If you want to order online for next Tuesday delivery, dose the same amount of ammonia every 2-3 days until the fish come. You still must do a big water change right before the fish go in.
The thing is if you get the fish from all one source, the odds are any issues there might be will usually be the same for all the fish from that source. Most stores use central systems or mix equipment between tanks. However, two sources may have different issues and then you are dealing with two problems not one.
Q tanks are important if one adds new fish over time. One new sick fish can wipe out a tank you have worked to get established and stocked. You would not like my normal practice. Tank raised fish are Q'd for 30 days and wild one's for 90 days. This means they must go for that long without any issues before they go into a permanent tank. If I have to treat the fish, when/if they recover, the Q period starts anew from there. When I sold at events and would purchase some fish specifically to sell, I would bring them in so I had at least 3 months in Q before I would sell them.
As you are in the hobby for longer, you will become attached to some fish you have had for a while. Nothing sucks more than harming your favorites because you did or could not quarantine something new before you added it.
If you want to order online for next Tuesday delivery, dose the same amount of ammonia every 2-3 days until the fish come. You still must do a big water change right before the fish go in.
The thing is if you get the fish from all one source, the odds are any issues there might be will usually be the same for all the fish from that source. Most stores use central systems or mix equipment between tanks. However, two sources may have different issues and then you are dealing with two problems not one.
Q tanks are important if one adds new fish over time. One new sick fish can wipe out a tank you have worked to get established and stocked. You would not like my normal practice. Tank raised fish are Q'd for 30 days and wild one's for 90 days. This means they must go for that long without any issues before they go into a permanent tank. If I have to treat the fish, when/if they recover, the Q period starts anew from there. When I sold at events and would purchase some fish specifically to sell, I would bring them in so I had at least 3 months in Q before I would sell them.
As you are in the hobby for longer, you will become attached to some fish you have had for a while. Nothing sucks more than harming your favorites because you did or could not quarantine something new before you added it.
I've not tried it in a few years, but the few times I did try zucchini or green beans, my BN wouldn't touch it. Not sure what I did wrong there.
I also feed them omega one veggie wafers and they get what ever flake food scraps happen to make it to them.
Just want to say thank you for all the help during my cycle. Sorry if I drove you all nuts but wanted to do it right. As of this evening I am officially stocked. I skipped the rummynose and got white clouds instead.
1 rubbernose pleco
1 nerite snail
8 sterbai corys
3 pearl gourami
10 harlequin rasboras
10 white cloud minnows
so far the gouramis have hidden and the corys are all over the place.
Question - plan on feeding once daily. For that stock do I need to do anything special? I figured i would do flakes 3-4 days and then pellets/bloodworms other days. How often do i do algea wafers? Along with zucchini or other veggies?
1 rubbernose pleco
1 nerite snail
8 sterbai corys
3 pearl gourami
10 harlequin rasboras
10 white cloud minnows
so far the gouramis have hidden and the corys are all over the place.
Question - plan on feeding once daily. For that stock do I need to do anything special? I figured i would do flakes 3-4 days and then pellets/bloodworms other days. How often do i do algea wafers? Along with zucchini or other veggies?
I agree with TTA, losing favorite fish is awful! I'm not usually so attached to most schooler/shoalers as individuals. I'm sad, but not as much as with separate "personal" fish deaths. The biggest, the friendliest...the only...Talk to your local "fish guy", "he" may be willing to isolate your desired fish for a short while until you can get them all at once. These are slow times for them too, in covid times...Ask! All they may say is no. Quarantining is always good if you can...I understand if you can't...Some of us have many tanks...
My most experiences were feeding veggies to loaches & BNs, maybe rubbernose? Clown loaches loved zucchini & romaine & didn't eat my plants if fed veg 2 or 3 times/week. They also like "shelled" thawed frozen peas. BNs liked those & canned green beans. I gave sweet potato, banana, broccoli (both were messy!) & some other fruits & veggies. Other loaches weren't into veg at all, spinach wasn't much liked by any. Try any but be prepared to remove it in 24 hours...& maybe a heavy vacuuming +/or filter cleaning too.
I see you were posting at the same time, it's my dinner time so I'll think more for tomorrow...I like your stocking for right now!
My most experiences were feeding veggies to loaches & BNs, maybe rubbernose? Clown loaches loved zucchini & romaine & didn't eat my plants if fed veg 2 or 3 times/week. They also like "shelled" thawed frozen peas. BNs liked those & canned green beans. I gave sweet potato, banana, broccoli (both were messy!) & some other fruits & veggies. Other loaches weren't into veg at all, spinach wasn't much liked by any. Try any but be prepared to remove it in 24 hours...& maybe a heavy vacuuming +/or filter cleaning too.
I see you were posting at the same time, it's my dinner time so I'll think more for tomorrow...I like your stocking for right now!
Well, there's a fish I've kept! I've loved our clown plecos the many times we've had them over the years. They're very nocturnal mostly, nice for us insomniacs, lol. As I recall, they nibbled at peas, green beans & mostly late night snacks of shrimp pellets, earthworm pellets, wafers etc. They're pretty long lived too, 1 lived 11+ years until we moved & rehomed it...Sniff, he was my late night buddy!
Uh oh, you're losing fish already? I bet the clown pleco is just hiding, they're very good at that...
The gouramis, not so hiding...what size were/are they? Can you give us a tank pic? I'm worried about them...
The gouramis, not so hiding...what size were/are they? Can you give us a tank pic? I'm worried about them...
