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hey there.. i was just told to read an article about some nitrogen cycle and armonia faq http://fins.actwin.com/mirror/begin-cycling.html
.. and was told that in the first 4-6 weeks my fish will die because of this.. i have a 13 gallon tank.. its not big and i have made a bad selection with my fish of choice(2 clown loachs & 2 angels).. i was recomended to take them back.. which i will do.. but my question is what fish should i replace them with and can someone explain what the articl is about.. cause its like another language or me =[ ..
if someone could help me out it would be much apreciated
cheers

as for the cycle, that refers to the buildup of ammonia and its conversion to nitrites and then nitrates by the nitrifying bacteria in the tank water. these bacteria break down the ammonia into nitrites, which are very dangerous to your fish, then break the nitrites into nitrates, which are relatively safe for your fish. the chart they show you is what happens if you measure your ammonia/nitrite/nitrate levels throughout the cycle.

as for stocking your 13g tank... your choices are pretty limited for such a small tank. you could have a betta and some other small peaceful fish, like maybe a 2-3 cories. or you could make it a shrimp tank, although shrimp aren't always as pretty as fish for a tank

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-[font color="#800080"]I will try to you help you out a bit!
When you first get a tank, you add fish, and the fish produce ammonia from urine and poop. This causes a type of bacteria to grow, which transforms the ammonia into the slightly less harmful Nitrites. Once the nitrites build up high enough, another type of bacteria grows, which transforms Nitrites into Nitrates. Nitrates are used up by Live Plants in their daily cycle.
Fish can be harmed by ammonia and nitrites, some fish more than others. For Cycling your tank, you should choose fish that are hardy, and cheap. Recommended fish would be: Zebra Danios, White Cloud Mountain Minnows, Platys, Rainbowfish, feeder goldfish (if your pet store will allow U to return them, ask first). I have found White Clouds to be great cyclers, as are platys and rainbowfish in particular. Also, You can sell these fish back to the pet store if they survive the cycle. If you lose a fish during cycling, be sure to replace it as soon as possible. You want to build the tank up to be able to handle the bioload (amount of waste produced) by your new occupants. A 12g tank could be cycled using 6-10 zebra danios,or 6-10 white clouds, or 6 platys, or 6 feeder goldfish.
Angelfish grow much too large for a 12g tank. They really need at least a 25g tank that is at least 18 inches tall.
Clown Loaches need 75gs at least, but are slow growing (around 1/2 inch-1 inch a year) so you could keep them for awhile if you plan to upgrade to a larger tank within a years time. If not return them.
There are lots of fish you can keep in a 12g, including some types of Loaches. The Angelicus loach and the queen loach, as well as kuhli loaches, and hillstream loaches, could all be kept singly, or in a pair in a 12g.
There are lots of tetras and other fish that you could keep in a 12 as well- Lemon Tetras, Rummynose Tetras, Neons, Black Neons, Glowlights, Pristellas, Cochus Blues, White Cloud Mountain Minnows, Zebra, Danios Leopard Danios, Pearl Danios, Guppies, Platys, Killiefish, Cherry Barbs, Gold Barbs, Tiger Barbs, Pentazona Barbs, Checkerboard Barbs.
There are also smaller cichlids : Bolivian Rams, Blue Rams, Aggassizis Dwarf Cichlid, Cockatoo Dwarf, etc.
I hope this helps you any, feel free to ask questions

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thank you both so much.. i understand much better now.. i will be replacing my fish.. but i just gotta decide what with.. what goes good with neon tetras.. and how many should i get of each.. also plants.. i have some live plants in my tank dont know the names of them.. but what else would be good for the tank..
thanks very much

you cant put neons in a cycling tank, they will die.

I would go with 5 White cloud mountain minnows.

Cycling your tank with fish...you need hardy fish..like sneaky_pete mentioned above.I would have barbs and danios.
White clouds is also a very good fish.
The cycling can take from 4-8 weeks to finish

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I know human beings and fish can co-exist peacefully.

yep i get yas.. now.. i'll see how i go and report back here.. thanks very much for your help..

is the tiger barb a good hardy fish?? if so how many should i get.. my reason to choose this is because i would like a fish that i will have no need to trade back after the 6 weeks .. also what are some good fish for my tank to go with it.. i ask to many question

Hi..well i think that tiger barbs is a good hardyfish..i would go with 6 of them in your tank
Later you can add a cuple of gouramis,mollie and ottos.

Last edited by robby1619 at 09-Nov-2004 04:56

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I know human beings and fish can co-exist peacefully.

I wouldnt put more then 4 tiger barbs in your size tank. ANd your tank is too small for mollys. They can grow rather large. If you get a gourami, go with a dwarf. Like a dwarf or honey would work well.

IME tiger barbs are sensitive to ich, to becarful with thatbut otherwise they are great little fish

You're not asking too many questions. We're very glad to help.

It seems to me that tiger barbs are fairly hardy but very active. In that size tank they won't have much swimming room and may even jump right out! Also if you add them all at once you have quite a large load in a small tank (increasing the ammonia concentration).

White cloud mountain minnows (WCMMs) are smaller, so you can add a few at a time and gradually increase the load, hopefully avoiding any deaths.

The same would apply to zebra danios, although again they are active fish, so although they are small they still need room to swim. In my experience they are very tough little blighters and the best fish for beginners and for cycling.

Hope that helps. And please keep asking more questions!

thank you all s much.. you have been a great help!!!


Last edited by r0b3y at 20-Jan-2005 07:02