Newbie getting crash course!

[tara brown]

Hi All,

I'm very new to fish keeping but have done a lot of reading and i'm feeling better about the whole thing. I got thrown into it when a 20 gallon was given to me with fish about 3 weeks ago. It was infested with snails so i was told to dump everything, bleach it out and put everything back. I did that, then read about cycling - OOPS!

This is what the tank came with and so far everyone is surviving (there has only been 1 very close call):

-5 fancy guppies
-3 red eye tetras
-2 neons
-2 bleeding heart tetras

-oh and 5 live plants which i added over the past 2 weeks.

I would love to add corys and something to eat algae. Any suggestions? What do you think will fit?

I will of course wait until the tank has finished cycling.

Thanks for the advice!

Tara

 

[plah831]

Cories won't really eat algae. Your best bet for battling algae is to be very good about tank cleaning. Minimum 25-50% water changes a week will remove the excess nutrients on which algae thrive. Reducing feedings is also a good way, as the rotten food or fish waste act as fertilizer. Adding live plants will also help because they are superior at competing for those nutrients

By the way, all those snails were also the result of excess nutrients. It's quite easy to control snail populations by reducing feeding and being very on top of tank cleaning. Most of my tanks don't have algae eaters, and I have absolutely no problem with algae or snails (even though I've added snails to most of my tanks).

good luck! I'm glad you learned about cycling. Fish keeping is a continual learning process That's why it's so fun!

 

[Pallen81]

Get a pleco that is NOT a common pleco. that will grow way too big for your tank. like 20 inches.

I have a Tiger Pleco that is about 4-5 inches full grown. He's really pretty also. Just research plecos online or in a book though because some prefer wood over algae and some grow way larger then others. there are tons of really neat looking ones as well, however for some of them it may be hard to find at your LFS. I have ordered speciality fish from onilne and I have always had great success.

I think Corys would be fine. There are also a bunch of them to choose from and they generally don't get very big at all.

Also, you might want to get a few more Neon tetras (around 6 is a nice size)because they are a schooling fish and they look cool when they stick together.

But remember, siphoning your gravel and weekly water changes is your key to success!!! Be careful not to overstock your tank as well. Adding a few more fish will get your tank very close in my opinion.

Welcome back to the hobby!!!

 

[plah831]

oops, I misread and thought Tara wanted to add cories to eat the algae.

What most newbies (and that's not a derogatory term) don't realize is that most algae eaters stop eating algae as they get older. For example, Chinese algae eaters and plecos become more carnivorous as they get older, and aggressive as well. While otocinclus catfish remain small and peaceful, once the algae is gone they start to starve. I think it's cruel when people think bottom feeders can survive on whatever garbage is on the bottom and don't think to feed them extra. I'm not saying you're going to do this, Tara, I'm just pointing out a pet peeve of mine. And a very common mistake that I've seen. Oto's are very cute, and peaceful as I said, but rarely accept prepared foods such as wafers and flakes. Even algae wafers mine turn their nose at. The only one they seem to like is Omega One Veggie Rounds because they list kelp and spirulina first, before fish meal (which is what most other algae wafers contian more of, than vegetable matter).

 

[fishcatch22]

very few plecos become carnivorous with age, and a bristlenose pleco will be an excellent algae controller for your tank for life. I strongly reccomend getting one of those if you want algae gone. FWIW, the only "algae eaters" IME that lose value in that respcet with age are CAEs and common plecos.

 

[tara brown]

Over stocking?

Hi All,

Thanks for those very quick replies! You guys are awesome!

I know cory's don't eat algae but i read they are good at picking up fallen food which sounds great. Of course i am not going to use that as an excuse not to vacuum my gravel!

I just assumed every tank needed an algae eater of some sort...

I would like to get more fish (one's that i like, not ones that were just given to me) but i am worried about over stocking and stressing everyone out. I have an aquaclear power filter for up to 50 gallons and 5 live plants.

this is what i've got so far:
5 guppies
3 red eye tetras (they are quite big!)
2 bleeding heart tetras
2 neons

I like cory's and gouramis are really pretty too.

If this was your 20 gallon, what would you add/change/take away?

Tara

 

[fishcatch22]

well, you could get some cories or a BN pleco, but I don't know if you could swing both. i've seen my BN eat leftover flake, too. you should get 2-3 more neons, or you may be able to swing a dwarf gourami on top of everything else instead of more neons, but that's it for midwater.

 

[wataugachicken]

i would:

keep the guppies, add one more female
bring the red-eyes back to a local fish store
choose either the neons or the bleeding hearts, then add about 4 or 5 more of whichever species is picked. return the other kind.
add three cory cats.

 

[tara brown]

Interesting...

Why did you say return the red eyes? Because they get too big? I kinda like them more than the bleeding hearts which seem more boring...

 

[fishcatch22]

Interesting...

Why did you say return the red eyes? Because they get too big? I kinda like them more than the bleeding hearts which seem more boring...

no see, most tetras need schools of at least 5 individuals. right now only you only have 2-3 of several types, and it would be best to instead have 7 of whichever type you prefer, and get one more female guppy, as well as 6-7 cories or 1 bristlenose pleco.