Cycling
1. When setting up a new tank, the tank must ‘cycle.’ Cycling is the word which commonly refers to the colonization of your tank and filter by denitrifying bacteria. These bacteria are needed to break down the ammonia in fish waste into nitrites and nitrates. Both ammonia and nitrites are highly poisonous to fish and can permanently damage their gills or kill them. - Seeker
2. Stock slowly to give the bacterial population time to increase to match the additional waste load. 2-3 fish and wait 2-3 weeks, repeat as necessary until stocked. Unnecessary with fishless cycling unless adding more stock to an established tank. (A&A)
3. Seed new tanks with a small amount of gravel, filter media, decor, or filter sponge squeezins from an established tank. This will help to jump-start the beneficial bacteria and reduce or eliminate cycling time with either the fishless cycling method or when using fish. (A&A)
4. When setting up a new tank, try the fishless cycling method. ("klewis61" FT) Add ammonia to the tank initially until you obtain a reading on your ammonia kit of about 5 ppm. Record the amount of ammonia that this took (an eye dropper is great for this), then add that amount daily until the nitrite spikes. Once the nitrite is visible, cut back the daily dose of ammonia to ½ the original volume until the nitrites disappear. When you get a 0 ppm nitrites reading, you have a fully cycled tank. Do a 50 - 70% water change and add fish. For more details see these sites:
http://www.tomgriffin.com/aquamag/cycling.html
http://www.tomgriffin.com/aquamag/cycle2.html
5. The ammonia used should be free of surfactants, perfumes, and colourants. The ingredients should only say ammonia or ammonia and water. Usually the generic brand is the one you are looking for. (-Tom Griffin)
6. This system works. I have used it and highly recommend it. Just be ready to add fish 24 hours after the last addition of ammonia or be prepared to continue the lowered ammonia feed until 24 hours before you add fish. Do not forget to do the 50 - 70% water change before adding the fish. ("klewis61" FT)
7. Fishless cycling can also be used to keep hospital/quarantine/fry grow-out tanks cycled and ready for new fish indefinitely when not in use by adding a maintenance dose of ammonia (e.g. 2-3 drops/10 gallons) daily to keep the tank cycled. Simply stop the addition of the ammonia the day before you want to buy your fish, take ammonia and nitrite tests to be certain that the levels are still zero, and do a 50 - 70% water change to reduce nitrates. (-Tom Griffin) (115)
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Fish Wrangling
1. "The single most important piece of advice on keeping fish I can ever give you is: keep fish that will thrive in your tap water conditions. Follow this rule and the world of fish keeping will seem as easy as making a cup of tea!" - Matthew Handy of the Freshwater Fish & Home Aquarium Internet Club! http://www.tropicalfish.cwc.net/entrance.html/P
2. Touching a fish is more dangerous for you than the fish. The fish is constantly renewing it's slime coat and some handling won't hurt it. Lots of people 'pet' their fish without ever harming them. Too much handling can hurt a fish though. You on the other hand can get a number of diseases from the fish. Piscine tuberculosis or fish TB is just one of several that you can get from your fish. Remember, an aquarium is a huge bacterial breeding ground. Some bacteria are necessary for the aquarium to thrive, but that doesn't mean you won't get some nasty one growing in there that can make you sick. You should always be careful to wash your hands well after touching a fish or reaching into tanks and should avoid reaching into a tank with open cuts on your hand, etc. - Seeker
3. When planning or adding fish to a community tank, be sure that all the fish require similar water parameters such as pH, temperature and hardness. - Seeker
4. Have you noticed that your fish are acting scared and suddenly crashing into the sides of your tank or decorations as you walk by? If so you may have shadows inside your tank causing stress to the fish and suddenly making them swim very fast as if to get away. Here's a little test to check for shadows. Walk slowly past your tank when there's a lot of light outside or in the room. Are your fish freaking out? Then walk slowly past your tank when it's very dark outside or in the room. Do they seem to be fine now? This means there are shadows inside your tank. Here are some things you can do to get rid of the shadows. Look inside your tank to see if you can find them. If you do then move your plants and decorations around. Maybe put in some floating plants. Also, check the location of your tank. If it's by a window then cover up the sides of your tank, or do some window treatments. You could also change the positioning of the lights in the room if possible. The worse thing you may have to change is the location of your tank. (discus_man FT)
5. You can tell alot by fishie poo. Observe your fish's poo regularly. - Chris
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>New Fish 1. Use a quarantine tank for new fish wherever possible to avoid introducing diseases to your established tanks. Fish should be quarantined at least a week or two and observed frequently for signs of disease. - A&A & Seeker
>>Buying
1. Do check the requirements and compatibility of species BEFORE buying. (A&A)
2. Observe fish carefully before buying, avoid any with split fins, damaged gills, etc. (A&A)
3. Find out if your lfs uses a single filtration system for all it's tanks. If so, be sure to quarantine any fish you buy especially if you see sick or dead fish in any of the tanks. If the lfs doesn't use a single filtration system, then use the 3 rule. If there are more than 3 dead fish in 3 different tanks, don't buy from that lfs. - Angie
4. Never buy fish from a tank with dead or diseased fish in it. - Angie
5. Fish with big eyes and/or scales are going to get big. Be prepared. - Angie
6. There are lots of places to get fish other than at the local pet store. Local fish club auctions, internet auctions like at Ebay or Aquabid, or buying directly from a breeder over the internet are just a few ways to find new fish. - Seeker
>>Transporting or Shipping
1. Whenever I go to a pet store I take a styrofoam cooler to place the fish in. Saves your car seats should a bag spring a leak, it also helps prevent chills in the winter or overheating in the summer. It is also easier to carry. I keep one in my car trunk just in case I get the "URGE" to buy more fish, That way I am always ready. -Angie
2. When shipping fish, use a styrofoam lined box to keep the temperature as steady as possible. Heat packs and cold packs can be used depending on the weather and the fish being shipped. Extremely hot (90+) or cold periods (40 or below) are not good for shipping. Double bag the fish in case of leaks. Use an air pump to add air to the bag. Include an oxygenating tablet like a ‘bag buddy’ to keep oxygen levels in the water up. Label the box ‘fragile,’ ‘this side up,’ and ‘live fish.’ Avoid long shipping times like over weekends. Be sure to inform the recipient that the fish are on their way and when to expect them so someone can be there when the fish arrive. Also give instructions on what to do if any of the fish are DOA. - Seeker
3. When receiving fish through the mail, be prepared for them. Have a tank ready for them to go into. Be there when they arrive. Open the box and remove the fish in a dark area to avoid shocking the fish. If any are dead inform the sender immediately or follow the sender’s instructions for DOA’s. Acclimate them before releasing them into a tank. Allow them a few hours to settle in before feeding them. - Seeker (130)
>>Acclimating
1. Release new fish into the tank gradually - float the bag for at least 20 minutes to equalize temperature. (A&A)
2. If you know there are extreme differences in water parameters such as pH or hardness, use a more thorough acclimation. Suck some water into a bucket out of the tank they are going into. Float the fish in the bucket for 20 minutes to equalize the temperature. Then open the bag and begin adding water from the bucket into the bag a little at a time until you have doubled the amount of water in the bag. Then use a net to pour the fish out of the bag and release them into your tank. This method avoids the danger of dumping the dirty water from the bag into your tank. This method is really only necessary for extreme differences in water parameters, but is also useful for more delicate species, if you don’t know the parameters of the other water (e.g., when getting fish through the mail) or are just being more cautious. Most local pet stores will have water close to yours in parameters as you are both more than likely getting the same tap water. - Seeker
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>Netting
Netting fish is perhaps the most often and fundamental way in which fish are handled. It can be a traumatic experience for both you and the fish. Fish are often injured when netted and these injuries can often lead to bacterial of fungal infections. Certain species can be more easily caught using a particular net technique. Here are some tips to make things easier on you and the fish.
1. Only use soft, pliable nets. As nets get older they tend to get stiff and coarse. Some of that can be alleviated by letting the net sit in the water a few seconds before you try to net the fish. This can also help the fish to get used to the net and less afraid of it. But once a net gets too stiff or coarse it should be thrown away or the netting replaced with tulle or a similar material. - Seeker
2. Clean your nets after using them, especially when using them on a sick fish, by dipping them in alcohol for a few minutes and rinsing them well with tap water or using one of the commercial brands of net cleaner. - Seeker
3. Angelfish are best caught using a plastic bag instead of a net to prevent damaged fins. - Angie
4. Guppies are often easy to catch when the net is brought up from underneath them. They don’t tend to see it coming and so don’t bolt away from it. - Seeker
5. Swordtails and a number of other species require a trapping technique where you trap the fish in the net up against the glass. A light tap on the glass will usually get the fish to bolt into the net so you can raise the fish in the net out of the tank. - Seeker
6. Tetras and other fast swimming mid range fish are often best caught using two nets, one on either side of fish front and back. Catch the fish with one net when it bolts from the other. - Seeker
7. Loaches, corys and other fast swimming bottom dwellers are often best caught by herding and trapping. Stand a large net on the bottom near a corner. Use a long handled plastic spoon, a chop stick or another net (gets caught on things so it’s the last choice) to heard the fish to the corner where the net is and then into the net. - Seeker
8. Need a really big net for a really big fish? Try building your own from coated garden wire and tulle. See the do-it-yourself section for details. (See the articles section for now) - Seeker (140)
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Links to the other Tips & Tricks pages:
Intro, Tools & Gadgets Tanks, Used Tanks, Buying Used Tanks, Cleaning Used Tanks, Tank Set Up
Tank Set Up cont'd: Dividers & Barracks, Heaters & Air Pumps, Substrates, Backgrounds, Decor
Decor cont'd: Caves, Live Plants, Fake Plants, Fasteners, Filters, Filter Media
>> Cycling, Fish Wrangling: New Fish, Transporting or Shipping, Acclimating, Netting << You are here
Feeding, BBS & other live foods, Fish Health, Chemicals, Medicines & Treatment, Salt
Spawning & Fry Care, Dealing with Snails, Algae & other pests, Power Outages
Maintanence, Water, Water Conservation
