Well maybe you should, lol. I belong to a plant club & plants help with water quality, aesthetics & microfoods...just another thing to think about...some are as easy as fake...
Fishless Cycle
- Thread starter railer20
- Start date
I’d have to change substrate and probably other stuff too. It just doesn’t seem lime something I want to do or have to care for.
No! There are plants that are glued or tied to wood or rocks that can grow in any light, no fertilizers...really! Just keep it in the back of your mind...& they can help (slowly) with cycling too, lol....the plant pusher...
Breeding in a community tank is not conducive to offspring survival. Eggs and fry are the menu for most fish. Some even eat their own young. The conditions for successful breeding pearls call for a species tank with shallow water. The female also needs to be removed once there are eggs in the bubblenest.
Also, the males are the much prettier of the sexes. So having only females and no spawning will result in pretty drab looking fish. The links I gave you to seriouslyfish.com are pretty decent info. A lot were revised in the last few years and I know one of the people who worked on this. However, in a big enough space and with plenty of plants (even fake ones) the odds are much better in terms of male aggression.
I am curious, what were this morning's readings and did you add ammonia Dose #4 for a 3 ppm concentration? Adding more than this will just prolong the cycle as it will make the bacteria want to multiply and as they do your readings will indicate the end of the cycle is further away.
One suggestion, for whatever it is worth. When I was setting up my first tank almost 20 years ago, I knew almost nothing. Books were still competing for online info and I bought a copy of the Baensch Aquarium Atlas. An excellent book with tons of great color pictures. I would thumb through it and when I spotted a fish which I liked how it looked, I would then read the info to determine if I could keep it in the size tank I had and in my well water parameters. Most often the answer was no because I had only 45 gallons and soft water. It took a few months to learn my true pH, which was low 6s from the well, but 7.4 in the tank. (It turned out high dissolved CO2 levels from the well lowered the pH until the excessCO2 outgassed and the true pH was revealed.) Over the years the water got softer and the pH is now dead neutral at 7.0.
Also, the males are the much prettier of the sexes. So having only females and no spawning will result in pretty drab looking fish. The links I gave you to seriouslyfish.com are pretty decent info. A lot were revised in the last few years and I know one of the people who worked on this. However, in a big enough space and with plenty of plants (even fake ones) the odds are much better in terms of male aggression.
I am curious, what were this morning's readings and did you add ammonia Dose #4 for a 3 ppm concentration? Adding more than this will just prolong the cycle as it will make the bacteria want to multiply and as they do your readings will indicate the end of the cycle is further away.
One suggestion, for whatever it is worth. When I was setting up my first tank almost 20 years ago, I knew almost nothing. Books were still competing for online info and I bought a copy of the Baensch Aquarium Atlas. An excellent book with tons of great color pictures. I would thumb through it and when I spotted a fish which I liked how it looked, I would then read the info to determine if I could keep it in the size tank I had and in my well water parameters. Most often the answer was no because I had only 45 gallons and soft water. It took a few months to learn my true pH, which was low 6s from the well, but 7.4 in the tank. (It turned out high dissolved CO2 levels from the well lowered the pH until the excessCO2 outgassed and the true pH was revealed.) Over the years the water got softer and the pH is now dead neutral at 7.0.
I did add the#4 dose per your instructions before I left the house. My ammonia looked very close to the .25. The Nitrite I still can’t get a good read on but to me it didn’t look much different.
Everything I’ve read on the pearls is one male and two females. So that’s probably what I will do.
Just to confirm:
"add another full ammonia dose (Dose #4) and then test in 24 hours.
If ammonia and nitrite both read 0 ppm, you are cycled. Do a large water change, be sure the water is the proper temperature, and add fish. The odds are this will not be the case quite this soon.
If ammonia and nitrite do not both read zero, continue to test daily. Whenever ammonia is again at .25 ppm or less and nitrite is clearly under 1 ppm, add the full amount of ammonia (Dose #5) and test in 24 hours. "
The timing for the cycling method in the article I linked is based on a from the start process. Where you are was somewhere in the middle and a bit messed up. So the exact timing to get to the desired 0/0 is somewhat variable. The goal is not to need another water change until the cycle is complete. Unless things go wonky again for an unexpected reason, your tank should get back on track within a matter of days.
Test tomorrow morning and let's see where your readings stand. My expectation is that ammonia should drop and that nitrite should rise. I would expect ammonia is clearly down from 3.25 ppm after this morning's addition should have made it, and that nitrite is clearly up from wherever it was this morning. Nitrite should not hit 5 ppm. However, if it does, I am not worried as It cannot reach cycle stalling level based on how much ammonia was added and how many nitrite oxidizers there already are.
"add another full ammonia dose (Dose #4) and then test in 24 hours.
If ammonia and nitrite both read 0 ppm, you are cycled. Do a large water change, be sure the water is the proper temperature, and add fish. The odds are this will not be the case quite this soon.
If ammonia and nitrite do not both read zero, continue to test daily. Whenever ammonia is again at .25 ppm or less and nitrite is clearly under 1 ppm, add the full amount of ammonia (Dose #5) and test in 24 hours. "
The timing for the cycling method in the article I linked is based on a from the start process. Where you are was somewhere in the middle and a bit messed up. So the exact timing to get to the desired 0/0 is somewhat variable. The goal is not to need another water change until the cycle is complete. Unless things go wonky again for an unexpected reason, your tank should get back on track within a matter of days.
Test tomorrow morning and let's see where your readings stand. My expectation is that ammonia should drop and that nitrite should rise. I would expect ammonia is clearly down from 3.25 ppm after this morning's addition should have made it, and that nitrite is clearly up from wherever it was this morning. Nitrite should not hit 5 ppm. However, if it does, I am not worried as It cannot reach cycle stalling level based on how much ammonia was added and how many nitrite oxidizers there already are.
Just another word on pearl gouramis-- DO NOT get the balloon version. These are, IMO, obscene! The breeders have shortened the bodies so all the internal organs are crammed into a smaller area. Not only do they look awful, this mutation ( in all "balloon" fish) shortens their live by a wide margin. Please don't support this terrible trend. Just because a mutation is easy to breed for doesn't mean it's good.
While I'm on my soapbox, I also don't like albino fish (really? breed out all the pretty colors?!?)...long fins are less objectionable or maybe even "glow" but...still, can't, shouldn't we just have naturally pretty fish? Or pick a different species...that fits your ideals for "beauty" whatever that may be for you, or for me.
If you want you could try 1 male & 3 females pearls if your tank seems too empty...but let them grow to adult size, most fish we buy are juveniles with a lot of growing left to do. That's good, we get a maximum lifespan & enjoyment from our fish.
Sorry, rant over...for now
While I'm on my soapbox, I also don't like albino fish (really? breed out all the pretty colors?!?)...long fins are less objectionable or maybe even "glow" but...still, can't, shouldn't we just have naturally pretty fish? Or pick a different species...that fits your ideals for "beauty" whatever that may be for you, or for me.
If you want you could try 1 male & 3 females pearls if your tank seems too empty...but let them grow to adult size, most fish we buy are juveniles with a lot of growing left to do. That's good, we get a maximum lifespan & enjoyment from our fish.
Sorry, rant over...for now
Yep will test again in the morning before I hit the road!
My guy doesnt have balloon ones and I am not a fan of albino fish so all good ?. I’d like 4 but probably overstocks me.Just another word on pearl gouramis-- DO NOT get the balloon version. These are, IMO, obscene! The breeders have shortened the bodies so all the internal organs are crammed into a smaller area. Not only do they look awful, this mutation ( in all "balloon" fish) shortens their live by a wide margin. Please don't support this terrible trend. Just because a mutation is easy to breed for doesn't mean it's good.
While I'm on my soapbox, I also don't like albino fish (really? breed out all the pretty colors?!?)...long fins are less objectionable or maybe even "glow" but...still, can't, shouldn't we just have naturally pretty fish? Or pick a different species...that fits your ideals for "beauty" whatever that may be for you, or for me.
If you want you could try 1 male & 3 females pearls if your tank seems too empty...but let them grow to adult size, most fish we buy are juveniles with a lot of growing left to do. That's good, we get a maximum lifespan & enjoyment from our fish.
Sorry, rant over...for now
