New 10 gallon tank

hey

Hi there,
I would wait as long as possible to add the fish, try getting some of the bacteria in a bottle i mentioned it shoul help speed up the process!!!
believe me fishy cycling is a painful process (constant water changes) the best woul be to wait about 3 weeks but because it's a gift try to at least wait a week then i wouln't get more than 2-3 hardy fish that were mentioned above - you shoul be ok!


wingman has some great comments too!


keep in touch here we'll help you figure it all out!


but no matter what you do DON'T ADD ANY FISH IF THERE'S AMONIA IN THE TANK!!! this will kill them in a jiff!!! it's ok if you have some nitrites that isn't as poisonous but make sure 0 amonia buy an amonia test kit make sure thats gone it shoul clear out in a week then your all set for next weeken!!!
 
Anne, this depends on how you want to cycle the tank. There are three basic ways you can go.

1. Fishless Cycle. This is the cheapest way to cycle the tank as all you'll pay for is pure ammonia. If you do a quick search here on fishless cycle you'll find plenty of info on it. Basically you add pure ammonia in a tank without fish to start the colony of nitrifying bacteria in the tank. The great part about this cycling is that you don't stress fish because you don't add them until the tank is fully cycled (ammonia and nitrite levels are both at zero and nitrates are under 20). The bad part is that it can take 2-4 weeks depending upon how lucky you are and during that time you can't have any fish in the tank.

2. Fishy Cycling. This is the old school way of doing things where you purchase a couple of hardy fish, plop them in the tank and let their waste and food provided the ammonia for cycling. the upside is that you get fish in the tank but the downside is that you stress the fish terribly and you may lose some. During this type of cycle ammonia and nitrites can rise posing a danger to your fish you'll find yourself doing daily water changes in an effort to keep the water safe. This cycle will probably last four weeks but I've heard horror stories of it lasting weeks longer.

3. Bio Spira. This is the real new-fangled approach. Bio Spira is bacteria in a packet made by Marineland. You won't find it everywhere as its only sold in local fish stores (not petco/petsmart) and there is a chance that no one in you are will carry it. If all else fails you can buy it online. In fact, Bernie sells it cheaper online, with shipping, than I can buy it locally.
Bio Spira provides all the nitrifying bacteria your tank needs right in its packet. You can get a dose that will treat 30 gallons.

With Bio Spira you add the packet to your tank with your fish at the same time (not exactly the same time but the same day anyway) :p The tank should be cycled immediately. The upside is that you get your tank cycled immediately and you get to add fish quickly. The downside is that Bio Spira isn't real cheap (about $11-15 I think) and sometimes you can get a batch that doesn't work. If that happens you can just add more but its can be a little hassle. I still favor this route, especially since I have the patience of a child and want my fish NOW :D

If you go with Bio Spira or Fishy cycling, you can let you tank sit with the filter on for about 24 hours. I let mine sit for 48 just to be safe but 24 will work.
 
Anne L.,

I have not heard better advice about setting up a fish tank. I wish this forum was around when I set mine up!

My opinion was that fishy cycling is the best way to go, but I forgot about Bio Spira. If you feel insecure about using fish (which isn't too risky if you change %10 of water once a week), then Bio Spira is the way to go!

P.S. LmouthBass, thanks for the comment, I know I'll be consulting you for advice in the future.
 
I didn't answer your last question:
You've got it, put in the gravel, plants, filter and heater.

It's ok to run the tank overnight or for a week, there is no bacteria in it, the only thing you're trying to get rid of is chlorine (water conditioner will take care of that). The only balance you need to worry about is temperature (heater).

Once the fish get in, all the magic starts. It's after the fish are added that you need to wait 2 weeks (min.) to add more fish.
 
yeah there has to be an ammonia source (fish wastes, clear ammoonia) to get the cycle started at all. if you add bacteria and dont have any ammonia for them to eat and break down your bacteria colony wont last to long. id go with either fishless which provides a basic understanding of the nitrogen cycle before you add fish or the bio spira and a slow adding of bio-load if your not feeling patient.
 
Anne L., what kind of fish are you leaning towards, both in short term (possibly for fishy cycling?) and long term? I am interested in what appeals to your boys, too. When my family had our 20 gallon community tank, I loved Angels and plastic plants, whereas my sister liked tetras (especially neons) and bright, god-awful gravel and plastic ship-wreck style decorations that hooked up to the air pump.
 
yeah

it'sp to you those are your options- i think their both valid points


i did a fishy cycle with a 20g and found it to be a pain in the butt - then again at the time i had never heard of the nitrogen cycle and started my tank with close to 19 fish!!! (poor newbie i was)!!!
i think my fish only lived because of this website and my constant water changes through the ordeal!!!
i think the most important thing is to not put fish in while you have amonia this will kill them quickly or shorten their lifespan
but agani a hardy fish shoul make it through


as mentioned earlier you do have to have amonia to start thebacteria colony in the tank the the bacteria eats the amonia though and then produces nitrite - i personally woul wait until you show 0 ammonia or very low ammonia then go from there!!! but with a 10 g it shoulnt be to much to manage either route you go!!!
 
Long ago when my family had a 10 gallon, we went through so many fish its hard to remember what we had (its sad really, but we listened to the lfs and nothing ever worked).
I was like 11 or 12, and my sister 8 or so, and the fish i remember liking most were the cory catfish and the guppies because of thier long pretty tails. Kissing gouramies were cool too, but they can get big so i dont reccommend them.
My mom liked her angel the best. And when our heater went bazzurk and cooked all our fish, our chinese algae eater was the only one left. go figure. little brat.

Anyways, there are lots of cool fish out there that the boys i'm sure would love to watch. Danios are fun because they are constantly moving, at least my six are, never a dull moment!
 
Wow, lucky you!

The advice in this thread is gold. I don't think I can add anything to it. I wish I had known about this forum when I first started up. I had to learn the hard way :(.

Graeme
 
I talked to a lady at the fish store yesterday and she suggested adding the water, plants, decorations, etc., letting the tank run for a week, and then adding 2 hardy fish. She also mentioned adding something called cycle, the water conditioner, and something else which is supposed to lessen the stress on the fish.

Is she on the right track with this, or does it seem like a bit much?

I'd like to get started with this tomorrow or the next day, so what do you all think of this - I'm starting to get nervous and confused about the whole thing.

:confused:

Edit: Aquarius, I'm thinking of getting some platies, danios, or such. The lady at the fish store told me to get 2 cheaper hardy fish to start with, but I'm not sure which one she meant. I intend to go back there tomorrow and find out more.
 
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