# Just "adopted" a 55gal tank



## Petey (Jun 18, 2010)

A friend of mine is moving and gave me their 55gal tank complete with 5 african cichlids, 2 plecos, a Penguin 350 BioWheel filter, and some other random accessories. 

A couple of questions:

Do I need a heater for the fish? I asked my friend and they said I didn't need one unless I planned on breeding them (which I don't), but I've read that the recommended temp for cichlids is 70-78 degrees.

There's a ton of algae and probably fish pooh in the gravel. I have one of those siphon hoses to clean it but how often can I use it since I have to do a water change and it's going to take more than a few cleanings to get the gravel clean?

If you guys have any advice or opinions on what to do, I would be more than happy to hear them.


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

Check the temp (use an outdoor thermometer or whatever you have handy) in the middle of the night. I don't like to see a cichlid tank much under 73, but many tanks stay that warm because of the room, the lights, and the filter pump, even without a heater. Other tanks will need a heater only in the winter. There's been a real epidemic of stuck heaters roasting fish, so if you don't need a heater, don't use one. If the tank is going down 70ish, you might get a small heater (like 150W) that will have a harder time cooking fish than the "correct" 300W recommended size. Generally the recommended size is for about a 10 degree difference between room and desired temp. If its more than that, you get a bigger heater, if its less, less. If you are only a few degrees cool, adding another filter or powerhead (never a bad idea) may push it where you want it.

I would gravel-wash down 25% of the water at a time. Refill and repeat every few days until you are satisfied. If you added a canister filter (or even a HOT magnum), you could also use it to gravel wash without taking water from the tank.


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## Revolution1221 (Apr 20, 2010)

i think the marineland stealth pros do a very good job of not over heating in my experience they have been within 1 degree even when using a heater intended for twice the size tank. they have an internal thermometer that can tell the temp of the water in the tank and shuts the heater off when it reaches the desired temp and also when removed from the water. it has an indicator light for when it is at the right temp and when it is heating.


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

stealths have a good rep, and a good guarantee. IME, when they die, they fail to heat, but don't cook fish. However they did recall one bad batch. There's a story of a stuck heater that broke a tank. Supposedly, they replaced the tank (not just the heater), now thats a good guarantee. But no brand is perfect.


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## Revolution1221 (Apr 20, 2010)

yeah def not perfect its impossible to make something with no faults and yeah thats def awesome of them. its hard to find a brand of anything with a guarentee that good i think its like 3 or 5 years on those. i actually went out and bought a brand new 250 watt stealth pro this afternoon for my brackish tank because the heater i had didnt have a temp gauge just a pluss and minus and i was getting irritated trying to get the temp right and i just didnt trust it it came with the used 75 gallon i got it was something like guardian brand.


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## Peeps (May 24, 2010)

Oh yes, you need a heater. I keep mine at 78 degrees. Goldfish are basically the only fish that don’t need a heater. I clean my tank totally about every week to two weeks, taking everything out. And siphoning the gravel. If you have stuck on algae use a credit card to get it off, it works GREAT! I had horrible stuck on algae and the credit card worked great.

You can get a pleco for the algae as well, look into the smaller ones rather then the common if you want. The tank is very pretty.


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

I have 1 55 with 2 powerheads on an UG filter and a Magnum 350. It never drops below 78 even without a heater. Some pumps throw a lot of heat.


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## Petey (Jun 18, 2010)

I'll test the water temp to see if it's too far off, but I live in Texas so right now it's about 97 degrees outside and the tank should probably be pretty close since I keep it 72~73 degrees in the house. 

I've got a couple of plecos (one about 3in and one about 7in) but they don't really eat the algae in the gravel. 

Is doing a 25% water change every couple of days going to be too hard on the fish? I use a dechlorinator but I figure the less you mess with their environment, the less of a chance of hurting the fish.


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## Peeps (May 24, 2010)

Go for every three days and scrape the sides of the tank with a credit card. You can also change the gravel if it's that bad.


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

Some fish really hate to be disturbed. Tanginikans have a rep for it. Most riverine fish love it. Malawi fish are in-between they get a little stressed, but general bounce right back. If fish are accustomed to a specific size water change, they usually do well, even if its 90%. But if a tank has had no water changes for a long time, the water chemistry may differ from the tap enough to shock them. So maybe do 10%,the first day, then 20%, and so on.


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## dan3345 (Jan 27, 2010)

I dont mean to butt in, but I have a 46 gallon tank, and i dont want to buy a heater actually for the size of tank (expensive) so is it possible to use a smaller heater? my room generally stays between 70-82 degrees, especially now that its summer. during the winter it drops, but by then i think i will have a bigger heater.


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

What kind of fish? Look up there temp. needs. If you use a smaller heater than recommended, 1) it might be on all the time and still not get where you want it, but this is better than no heater or 2) It might keep the temp where you want it, but be on a lot of the time and therefore have a shorter lifespan. When a heater fails by failing to heat, having a short-lived heater when you are planning on replacing it anyway is ok, usually worst case your fish come down with ich from the chill. But if a heater fails by sticking on and cooking a tank full of fish, its really devastating. With a larger heater, it works less, so it should be less likely to fail. But if it fails, the time you have to notice and take action is much shorter than with an undersized heater. So what's best? 

A lot of fish will live in cooler temps than they are usually found in. Fish that live in water with more variation do better. They may be sluggish or eat little and not breed or be more likely to come down sick (because of the affect of stress on the immune system). But do your research. Some "tropical fish" do fine at 70, others will suffer. The common Betta that is often kept at room temp. really only thrives in warmer water. 

A nice woman in my fish club just lost an entire tank of discus and angels Her thermometer went to 86F and it was off the scale. It seems like this (stuck-on heater) has happened to most people with a lot of tanks at least once, but is much more frequent in the past few years. Fishkeepers are scared. Some are removing heaters and heating one room, others are replacing working heaters on a schedule with new, some are using multiple small heaters instead of one big one, others will not have certain brands in their tanks and stick with one company with a good rep. Its reasonably warm here (100F today), so the most common thing is heaters only in discus tanks and known cool tanks like bottom-tier tanks near the AC vent. Fish that like cooler water such as Uruguayan cichlids are "hot".

I used to tell everyone to get a heater, if its not needed, it won't go on. Now I'm not sure that advice holds. The risk is small, but real. Its good to have a heater on hand on-hand, but use it only if you need to. And don't get the cheapest heater, spring for a name brand with a guarantee, and an auto-shutoff feature doesn't hurt either. To save money, you could go back to non-submersible. Its a pain to make holes in the lid, but the technology is 30 years old, they should have it down, right? But the last cooked fish I had was with a cheap (Whisper 10) non-submersible. 

When in doubt, throw it out. If you have any doubts about a heater at all, toss it. If the wires are frayed, if there's burnt spots in the heater, odd smells, dimmed lights or tripped breakers when it goes on, steam or water inside, melted spots (plastic heaters). Any indication at all of something not perfect, pull the plug, don't risk your fish.


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