# New tank advice - Betta, tetras, bristlenoses



## Mew_chan (Jan 28, 2009)

**Help! Death & White film on surface* New tank advice - Betta, tetras, bristlenoses.*

*Edit: HELP! Betta Dead, ! tetra missing, White film on surface! Help! Read below for update 7th post*

Hi everyone, I have only just aquired my first ever fishtank and have been watching it happily for 5 days now. I do have a number of questions though.

*My Fish:*
In the tank I have 1 male Betta fish (my pride and joy), 8 small Tetras (cannot remember what species but they are almost transparent with pearly belly, a black stripe from the end of their belly running down their sides with an oranges stripe above the black) and 2 bristlenosed catfish. All are getting along well fine. 

*My set up: *
If I had to guess I would say it is a 19" tank (is about as big as my computer monitor).I have a largish cave like decoration in my tank 2 plants (a potted anubis, and a larger and some java moss. With black smallish gravel.

When I bought the fish I wasn't really told that much about them... the guy was very helpful and answered my questions well but he didnt really volanteer much infomation to me.

*Question 1 - The bristlenoses*
After looking on the net, researching my respective fish, I have discovered that the bristlenoses are mostly vegetarian, I had assumed they would be fine on flakes that had fallen to the bottom of the tank and black worms like the other fish. Since it is a new tank there is little algea. Several differnt articles recomended lettuce (amoungst other things) for them so having just had some lettuce for tea I grabed some of the discarded bits, washed it and wedged it under the rock. They are out of the cave now and havent even gone near the lettuce, and are currently combing the bottom near where I fed the other fish. I intend to leave it overnight and see if there is a dint in the lettuce, but any hints would be great. Do I need to cook it? I think I might buy them some algea pelates or wafers as well.

It also seems that i need to provide them with wood, bogwood or driftwood is recomended but I have no idea where to get it for a decent price. It was $35 dollars for a bit with a live plant attached to it in the same shop I bought the fish in... that make very pretty decorative pieces... but will any wood do?

*Question 2 - bubbles in tank, Betta*
I know siamese fighting fish make bubble nests but today when I came home, after 1 night away the tank was lined with bubbles... around the pipe to the filter, the plants and the edge of the tank... the filter is a little strong at the moment... its a sort of drop filter where water plunges into the tank from a little above, I am trying to work out a method to decrease the current so I dont have to buy another filter. I thought it could have been the current breaking up the bubble nest of my Betta, although I had not really seen him blowing bubbles before but it could just be that he is settling in. Can something else cause these bubbles? They were sort of small filmy bubbles.clustered tightly together. 


Any general care information would be greatly appreciate... I have been reading numerous sites regarding the care of my fish but there are clearly huge gaps in my novice knowledge... so shoot away


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## SueM (Jan 23, 2004)

Mew_chan said:


> Hi everyone, I have only just aquired my first ever fishtank and have been watching it happily for 5 days now. I do have a number of questions though.
> 
> First Mew_chan, if your tank is only 5 days old it has not gone threw the The Nitrogen Cycle Yet, which can be dangerous for your fish, but a necessary stage of nature that needs to develop before your tank can become stable & healthy.
> Here's a few sites to help with that...
> ...


But most of all, enjoy


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## Mew_chan (Jan 28, 2009)

Yeh after doing a bit of research I am a little worried about the fact that I didnt cycle the tank before buying the fish, the annoying thing was that the Aquarium guy never really mentioned the danger that not cycling could do to my fish. He pretty much said as long as I use the conditioner the tank they would be fine, I went in again 3 days after I bought the tank and got them to test the water where a differnt guy told me about the nitrogen cycle, he recommended doing 50% water changes every 3 days 

Unfortunately my boyfriend got excited by my fish and also decided to buy a similar set up so we will see how we both go.. we are doing the regular water changes of 50% every 2 to 3 days. Im hoping my fighter fish will be ok at least since he is very beautiful and I would hate to loose him.

Should I move him and maybe the bristle noses into separate jars?

On thing I do wonder about though is why are my fish at danger in the tank with the filter where as a betta can survive in a tiny bowl and not have the same problem? If I were to do 50% water changes daily would that help even more?


Thank you for those links I have read some and it is good advice.


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

I wouldn't move the fish to jars. Betta are going to be less affected by the cycle than the tetras, but if you do your water changes and keep the ammonia and nitrites down, all the fish should do fine. Do not overfeed while you are cycling a new tank. Once a day is enough.


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## Mew_chan (Jan 28, 2009)

Oh and the tetras are Rasbora Hengeli.

What good methods are there to keep the ammonia and nitrate levels down? Besides water changes and not feeding the fish? Are there any products I should invest in, or should I look around and see if I can find some of that algea in a bottle?

Im also sorta worried that my water is too warm... I live in a hot climate.. the current temp at the moment is in the mid to high 30s... when I touch the water it feels warmish to the touch.. I have airconditioning in the room but we really only use it occasionally would it be advisable to keep the aircon at 25 degrees during the day since its a little bit pathetic and the tank isnt really close to it?


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

To cool a tank. Best way is a plug-in chiller, but thats pricey. Open the lid or leave it off (dangerous with jumpy fish). Blow a fan across the water surface (you have to have an open lid). Drop the water level so the filter makes a waterfall. Ice cubes in a sealed bag. Dechlorinated water ice cubes. Plastic re-coolable "ice blocks" in a bag. 

Also choose hot-water fish. Fish from real tropical areas. Adding aeration and turbulance at the surface will put more air in the water. Lack of oxygen is the main fish-killer in too-hot tanks. 

I like Prime for a cycling tank. It "detoxifies" ammonia and nitrite. If you are tracking a cycle with test kits, you may or may not see the 'detoxified' stuff. But it increases the odds of fish living through cycling. In emergenicies, you can also use a 4X dose in case of an ammonia spike. 

Measure all 3 dimensions of your tank. It sounds like a 5, or 10 or even a 20H.


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## Mew_chan (Jan 28, 2009)

*Betta died*

Aww kira the betta died  he was just floatin on the bottom...Im not sure if he got stuck under the rock decoration that was in ther cuz I had to lift it out to get him out of the tank... I looked him over but could see nothing wrong with him. I thought at least he would survive since they are supposed to be hardy...  oh well i obviously wont replace him yet and will let the tank cycle with the other fish in it... and hope for no more deaths... 

Could it have been the shock of the water change? 

There was a strange whitish flim on the surface of the water and strange bubbles... it was there the other day but I scraped it off... I have scraped it off again but am puzzled.

I have bought a product called stresszyme to help put bacteria in the tank. and added some to the water 

The other fish seemed fine although 1 tetra is missing.. 

I bought a thermometer is reading at 26C

Bought a test strip here are the results:
Nitrate: 0
Nitrite: 0.5
ph: 7.5
KH: 80
GH: 60
Need to get an ammonia test


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## Mew_chan (Jan 28, 2009)

Changed my signature so you can now see what my tank looked like... seebelow


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## Chrispixx (Dec 23, 2008)

Mew_chan said:


> Aww kira the betta died  he was just floatin on the bottom.I bought a thermometer is reading at 26C



Sorry to hear about your Betta. 

26C is a good temp. I keep my tanks between 26-27C and have for years.
Right now my 55 gal. is at 27.5C




:fish:


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## <3~Pleco~<3 (Jan 31, 2009)

I'm not sure you did this but I'll say it anyways for future reference.
When you first start a tank and it is cycled you can add some fish. Many people go and buy all the fish they want and plop them into the tank. This creates a lot of stress on the fish and makes it difficult to keep clean right away.
You need to get one kind of fish first and float them in the tank for 30 min. Wait a week and then get some more fish. Then wait another week, and so on. 
This ends up working better with more success as the stress level in less, and there is less poop to contaminate the water for the first couple weeks.

Sorry about your betta.

About your missing tetra - check the filter.


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## Mew_chan (Jan 28, 2009)

New tank Day 11 readings
(last waterchange 2 days ago)

Ammonia 0 - 0.25
nitrate 20 
nitrite 2
Ph 7 
KH 80 - 120
GH 80 - 120


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