New and confused Posted May 24, 2005 Share Posted May 24, 2005 This is your friendly neighbourhood nuisance bugging you for even more advice. I have just bought a 5 ft tank for Zariah and would like some advice on the best set up. I am not going to move her in to it for a few weeks as I think I have stressed her enough lately. Just wanted to make sure I have the filtration and heating etc worked out and also wondered if I should add some other fish at the same time or leave her alone. Maybe some bristle nosed catfish? Would they help keep the tank clean? Yes I know you are all shaking your heads n thinking hopeless Any ideas and advice would be most appreciated. Jess Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BaZ Posted May 24, 2005 Share Posted May 24, 2005 I have just bought a 5 ft tank for Zariah and would like some advice on the best set up. Who or what is Zariah? I'm hoping she's a fish, but different fish have different needs so we'd need to know what type she is to give you an accurate answer Just wanted to make sure I have the filtration and heating etc worked out Ok, so what have you got so far? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
New and confused Posted May 24, 2005 Author Share Posted May 24, 2005 She is a 5 year old texan. I have nothing yet. At the moment she is in the 3ft tank I bought her in. Just bought the new tank ( 5ftx20inchesx15inches )...get it on Thursday and before I get anything else wanted to make sure i got it right. Would a power filter that filters 2200 litres per hour be good enough? I have a cichlid book that says 3 x 200 watt heaters? She is just starting to settle in and i don't want to stress her any more, so thought I would set the new tank up over the next couple of weeks have it running smoothly before I put her in. Also if you thought I should add other fish, introduce them all at once so it is a level playing field. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
r.d.m Posted May 24, 2005 Share Posted May 24, 2005 in a 5 foot tank id be looking for a male for her ,once they pair up they live together quite peacefully,two 200 w heaters are adequate, also whatever filter you end up using check out the faq's on fishless cycling, your fish has been through a lot lately and asking her to cycle a tank as well may prove too much for her at the moment, good luck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ash Posted May 24, 2005 Share Posted May 24, 2005 Echo RDman's idea - you could perhaps find her a BF & get some silver dollars or something as targets/dithers for the pair, and the BN's as clean up crew of course. What's this filter you have your eye on? a good cheap and redundant way out of it would be an Aquaclear 300/500 and a cheapie 1200lph cannister from AOA. Up here in NQ my 4x2x2's get away with a single 300w heater, tho redundancy is definatley a good thing. 3 x 200 is overkill IMO, 2x 200 will do. Definately don't cycle with her given the hell she's been thru - if you can't get ammonia where you are (I can't get it pure) you can let a prawn or two rot in the tank instead as a way of feeding the bacteria. Or if you get the dithers & her BF you could cycle with them. I've never lost a fish cycling a tank - if you feed really sparingly & seed the filter from an established tank's media it's pretty damn safe. That being said, with a stressed fish like her it's not worth the risk. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
New and confused Posted May 24, 2005 Author Share Posted May 24, 2005 OHHH S**T cycling OMG I thought it just meant taking out some water and replacing it with fresh I'm reading the FAQS now and trying to figure it out. I'm a bad mummy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ducksta Posted May 24, 2005 Share Posted May 24, 2005 The filter your using on the 3' tank can go straight into the new tank, with ALL the water, and a top up. As for having the texas avoid the cycling, your 3' tank would still be cycling anyway right? And if it isn't, then the filter on the 3' tank will suffice to support the bioload she produces. But What I would do would be to transfer the entire filter and all tank water over. Do not clean the filter!!! The water will probably look a little ugly going into the new tank but it will settle. Then top up the tank with treated (dechlorinated) water. This is just like doing a 50% water change What kind of filter is the one you have? by "power-filter" I would assume you mean a power head pump with a smallish sponge pre-filter - these are pretty useless on their own as filtration but great for moving water around. I will wait on hearing what your current filter is before suggesting what to add, but Ash' suggestion of an aquaclear and a cheap cannister sounds pretty spot on For heaters, I would use 2 300W heaters. In fact, depending on other contributing factors (like how cold that room gets at night, which shouldn't be too cold in sunny QLD ) a single 300W heater should suffice. What size heater is in your 3' tank? If it is 200, get another 200, if it is 300, get another 300, and just use the 2. The worst thing you can do is use 2 heaters of different wattage in the same tank. For tankmates, I agree a male texas would be good How sure are you your fish is female? 2 males should be OK in a tank that size but they wont breed To accompany them I agree a few silver dollars, or some of the larger rainbow's would be ideal. And some bristlenose as a clean up crew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teflon Posted May 24, 2005 Share Posted May 24, 2005 2x 200w heater for a standard 5 foot? I would just go with one 300 watt and enter this months photo comp and win yourself a canister Cheers Adam Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
New and confused Posted May 24, 2005 Author Share Posted May 24, 2005 umm pretty sure she is female, I have seen a male and he has the big forehead thing happening. Sorry I don't have much time atm but will answer all the filter questions soon. Once again thank you for all your help. I will get it right soon. I hope Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
r.d.m Posted May 24, 2005 Share Posted May 24, 2005 2x 200w heater for a standard 5 foot? I would just go with one 300 watt and enter this months photo comp and win yourself a canister Cheers Adam ← Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
New and confused Posted May 24, 2005 Author Share Posted May 24, 2005 ok..Ash's reply sounds good, so they are the filters I'm going to get. Red and Ducksta that is good advice ty. It was 9c here last night and going to get alot colder. Sunny Qld is great unless you live in the hinterland. Should I wait and cycle the new tank before i move her? Yes I know im a pain, but i really want to get this right. BTW word of advice, never buy a fish for $30 at a garage sale, you fall in love and 100s of dollars later are still spending. Should I introduce them to the new tank all at once? Goldfish are so much easier So ..those filters, another heater, boyfriend, BNs, Silver Dollars = megabucks Happy Zariah ..priceless Jess Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teflon Posted May 24, 2005 Share Posted May 24, 2005 If you want to speed your cycle up use a product called "Nitravec" its from a brand name Sera. I used it and couldnt be happier. You can introduce your fish on the second day. Even my LFS(Which is an ACE sponsor) Uses it, well he actually got me started using it and its great HTH Cheers Adam Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
emp1re Posted May 24, 2005 Share Posted May 24, 2005 If you want to speed your cycle up use a product called "Nitravec" its from a brand name Sera. I used it and couldnt be happier. You can introduce your fish on the second day. Even my LFS(Which is an ACE sponsor) Uses it, well he actually got me started using it and its great HTH Cheers Adam ← no products can completely cycle a brand new tank and new filter by the second day. it only assisted, u can get the same effect by re using old filter materials Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ash Posted May 24, 2005 Share Posted May 24, 2005 BTW word of advice, never buy a fish for $30 at a garage sale, you fall in love and 100s of dollars later are still spending. So ..those filters, another heater, boyfriend, BNs, Silver Dollars = megabucks Happy Zariah ..priceless Jess ← Filters - ~$180-200 heater - $13 BF - $15-20 BNs $5 each for babys or one semi adult for $15 Silver dollars $~10ea (need 3-4 min for school) it ain't that bad, you don't wanna know what some individual fish are worth Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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