Tsarmina Posted October 6, 2007 Report Share Posted October 6, 2007 before adding fish to a tank, sit the bag they are in, in the tank for about 30mins. the temp of the bag will change to match that of the tank. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eclaire Posted October 6, 2007 Author Report Share Posted October 6, 2007 21litre tank just isn't going to work for goldfish, they get too big too fast. Add a small filter like subZ suggested and a handfull of minnows will be fine in there. A couple of snails wont hurt either. Add a heater and you could have a couple of corys etc. I still have an old 18l tank that I used to breed minnows in, worked fine. Its got some guppys and a little bristlenose pleco in there now, but it's a small tank, so go with small fish in it. Ian man .... I just can't decide what I want to do ........ Have a found a bristlenose pleco on trademe, and the albino corys, so might go with them ... don't know what to do about my fantails though ... will they be ok in the tank til i sell them or not really? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eclaire Posted October 6, 2007 Author Report Share Posted October 6, 2007 http://www.trademe.co.nz/Home-living/Pets-animals/Fish/Fish/auction-121019072.htm http://www.trademe.co.nz/Home-living/Pets-animals/Fish/Fish/auction-121459185.htm which is better of the above two? http://www.trademe.co.nz/Browse/Listing.aspx?id=120770337 are these fish reasonably priced? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eclaire Posted October 6, 2007 Author Report Share Posted October 6, 2007 before adding fish to a tank, sit the bag they are in, in the tank for about 30mins. the temp of the bag will change to match that of the tank. thanks animates actually told me to do that too!!!! they also told me to add a cup of water from the tank to the bag every 5 mins for 20 mins, so the conditions in the bag match the tank, then take the fish out of the bag and put in the tank ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eclaire Posted October 6, 2007 Author Report Share Posted October 6, 2007 will the bristlenose pleco and corys be ok without a heater? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janelle Posted October 6, 2007 Report Share Posted October 6, 2007 Maybe in summer if your house is always warm inside, but if there's ever an unexpected cold snap you might find them getting sad (dead). I kept tropical fish in an unheated tank and they were fine until winter rolled around. =( Now I'm subtropical because I had a goldfish in there until fairly recently but a heater really makes the difference to what range of fish you can keep. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eclaire Posted October 6, 2007 Author Report Share Posted October 6, 2007 thanks Janelle I will try and get a heater then if I can afford one (reasonbly cheap on Trademe but will have to check the budget first) I guess I should wait until I sell the fantails before having the heater installed? will the combination of corys and bristlenose plecos be ok with my two minnows? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janelle Posted October 6, 2007 Report Share Posted October 6, 2007 Oh, if you want a heater I'm selling a 55 watt heater. It's on Trademe at the moment but if it's still there when the listing expires (on Thursday) you're welcome to take it off me for fairly cheap. I'm selling it to offset costs on the heater I *really* want. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ianab Posted October 6, 2007 Report Share Posted October 6, 2007 so do i need to take minnows out of water whilst it is getting up to temp or just leave em in there? Best is to set the temp to it's lowest setting, probably around 19C, then wind it up a couple of degrees each day. Of course if it's a warm day and the tank is sitting at 22 anyway, just pop in the heater and stop the temp falling again. will the bristlenose pleco and corys be ok without a heater? I wouldn't risk it - a couple of days of cold weather and they are gonners. Have you got some filtering organised for the tank? You need to get it cycled and running properly before you add any more fish. But yes you can keep WCMM, cories and bristlenose plecos together. Set the temp at the low end of the tropical, ~22-24C and they will be fine. Be aware that the temp markings in the heaters are NOT very accurate. Get a thermometer to double check what the temp actually is and adjust the dial on the heater accordingly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eclaire Posted October 6, 2007 Author Report Share Posted October 6, 2007 Thanks Ian No, haven't got a filter as yet, but will def get one sorted prior to adding new fish ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eclaire Posted October 6, 2007 Author Report Share Posted October 6, 2007 ummmmmm what does "cycled" mean? I feel so dense! :-? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ianab Posted October 6, 2007 Report Share Posted October 6, 2007 ummmmmm what does "cycled" mean? I feel so dense! :-? Have a read of this. http://www.firsttankguide.net/cycle.php Fish excrete ammonia in to the water. Ammonia is obviously poisonous and will kill your fish quick if it's not taken care of. The main reason to have a filter is to process this ammonia, first into nitrite then nitrAte. Nitrate is much less toxic and you can remove it by doing regular partial water changes. The conversion is done by bacteria that live mostly on the media inside the fitler. Some live on the gravel / rocks and glass too, if you dont have a filter you have to rely on them, but they aren't as efficient as a power filter. When you set up a new tank you have no bacteria living in it, it takes a few weeks for them to establish and multiply. This is called "cycling the tank". Easiest way is to just add a couple of hardy fish and wait a few weeks, then add a couple more each week untill you have a full population. If you just set up a new tank and add a full population of fish, even with a great filter there will be no bacteria to break down the ammonia. It will build up quickly and probably kill the fish. With just a couple of fish the buildup is slow and the bacteria can multiply and take care of it before it becomes a problem. You can get water test kits to monitor all these processes as they happen, but if you just take things slow and let the process happen you will be OK. Cheers Ian Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caper Posted October 6, 2007 Report Share Posted October 6, 2007 Hi & Welcome :bounce: It seems to be getting all too hard I know what you mean. I used to think the worst part was feeding the fish the right amount. But really, once you get it down to system it's really fun. As you can already tell from here, people are great to help out. I know I ask lots of questions. I think you're always learning something new...and in my case, learning something "old" again :-? When the brain refuses to function, I forget lots :lol: Take care, Caper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eclaire Posted October 6, 2007 Author Report Share Posted October 6, 2007 Thanks Ian So I guess that means I can't get all of my fish at once then and just put them in the tank .... What fish would you recommend I start with out of minnows, corys and the bristlenose pleco? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tsarmina Posted October 6, 2007 Report Share Posted October 6, 2007 start with the minnows, but only the ones you have. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eclaire Posted October 6, 2007 Author Report Share Posted October 6, 2007 thanks for that ... once I have my two minnows sorted, then what? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wilson Posted October 6, 2007 Report Share Posted October 6, 2007 slowly add more fish Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eclaire Posted October 6, 2007 Author Report Share Posted October 6, 2007 how many, how often? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carznkats Posted October 6, 2007 Report Share Posted October 6, 2007 Just a couple of fish at a time, lets the bacteria increase slowly without harming your fish! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eclaire Posted October 6, 2007 Author Report Share Posted October 6, 2007 ok thanks .... does it matter which I add first? how long do I wait before adding the second lot? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wilson Posted October 6, 2007 Report Share Posted October 6, 2007 i would wait a week i would go minnows then corys then the bristlenose Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ianab Posted October 7, 2007 Report Share Posted October 7, 2007 start with the minnows, but only the ones you have. Yup.. what I suggest is find a new home for the goldfish and get a filter in the tank and running first. Leave it like that for a couple of weeks with just the minnows. During that time sort out a heater and get the temp set correctly for the tropicals. Then you can add a couple more fish. Allow 6 weeks for a new tank to cycle completely. If you can find some Dwarf corys they would be ideal, only grow about 3cm long but a very cute. You could have 2 or 3 of them then. Corys prefer to live in a group anyway. They will be more active and fun to watch if there are several. If you get a pleco, make sure it IS a bristlenose. The other species look similar and cost about the same, but can grow to 30 or 40cm long I have a couple of 2-3 year old ones that would hardy even FIT in a tank your size :lol: I know there seems like a lot to learn, but the basics are pretty simple and if you follow them your fish will be healthy and live a long time (years). I dont have any geriatric fish yet as I've only been back into fish keeping for a couple of years after a long break. The first little fish I bought when we were given our first tank is now a big 20cm pleco and I've recently moved him into a new 200l tank. Another pleco I've been given is at least 5 years old, but its still a youngster too. Cheers Ian Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eclaire Posted October 7, 2007 Author Report Share Posted October 7, 2007 Hi thanks everyone for all of your advice ... I really appreciate it... it's really awesome that complete strangers will help out other complete strangers!! I am now the proud owner of a thermometer, undergravel filter and heater .... yaaaaaaay ... will set everything up in the next couple of days.... woooooohoooooo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wilson Posted October 7, 2007 Report Share Posted October 7, 2007 thats good did you get them of trademe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eclaire Posted October 7, 2007 Author Report Share Posted October 7, 2007 thermometer from critter kingdom, undergravel filter animates and heater from Janelle!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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