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New to aquaria, advice needed!

Hi @mrhoyo

Please don't rush into this. Take your time and ensure that you choose fish according to the water hardness. It's very easy to make the mistake of picking out fish at your LFS only to find that they are not suitable for the water you may have. As your water hardness is very low, it is prone to what is known as a 'pH crash' where the pH can drop to a very low figure. I think I provided two links for you earlier in this thread for deciding on suitable fish species. But, first of all, I suggest you read about the nitrogen cycle. Get acquainted with ammonia, nitrite and nitrate. Decide whether to rely entirely on your filtration system to process this toxic waste or split the load between the filtration system and your plants. Here's another great place to do some reading:

http://injaf.org

Forgive me if I've overlooked anything earlier in your thread where these points have already been dealt with.

JPC
 
I would also rule out the Rosy Barbs as too big.
Black Ruby Barbs are a bit smaller, but quite boisterous and would limit what other fish you could keep, ie nothing shy or delicate.
Apart from those and the ones Hufsa has ruled out the others on your list would be good. Apart from the Rams and Empire Gudgeon they are all shoaling fish and thrive in groups, so when you look at your stocking capacity allow for at least six of any species, and they will look even better if you have more, so that will limit the number of species you choose.
Ember Tetras are good, not on your list, but in your photo.
Others you might have a look at include Green Neons, Harlequins, Copper Harlequins, Cherry Barbs and Sparkling Gouramis.
To make your tank look full, but not overcrowded, it's good to have fish that swim at different levels, eg most Rasboras spend a lot of time near the top but Barbs and Empire Gudgeon stay towards the bottom or middle (until you put floating food in) so if you go for a mix it will look better than three species that live at the surface and nobody down below.
 
jaypeecee said:
As your water hardness is very low, it is prone to what is known as a 'pH crash' where the pH can drop to a very low figure.
Click to expand...
This is a good point, you have almost no hardness at all, and while soft water is good, a little bit of hardness acts as a buffer, and resists sudden changes. You are lucky with your tapwater though, as it's much easier to add a bit of hardness than it is to remove the minerals from hard water.
If you use re-mineralisation salts to increase the hardness to 4 or 6 degrees it might avoid problems. Also, if you go for shrimps, they need some mineral content for their shells. Some kinds are more fussy than others, so you could check out the preferred hardness for the shrimp you choose, and aim for that. For avoiding a pH crash, the amount is not too critical, just that 'a bit' is safer than 'virtually none'.
 
Yes, 4dKH doesn't sound a lot, but it's many times more stable than one or half a degree.
What I meant was if the OP chooses shrimps that require a particular range, that would be the range to aim for, the amount required for buffering is no too critical, so 4, 6, 8 or whetever will be fine. :)
 
sparkyweasel said:
Yes, 4dKH doesn't sound a lot, but it's many times more stable than one or half a degree. What I meant was if the OP chooses shrimps that require a particular range, that would be the range to aim for, the amount required for buffering is no too critical, so 4, 6, 8 or whetever will be fine.
Click to expand...

Hi @sparkyweasel

With shrimps and their need for calcium in the water, that's where GH comes in as it is a measure of calcium + magnesium in the water.

JPC
 
Hufsa said:
Went through with some quick no's.
The rest youre going to have to google, seriouslyfish is a good starting point. You gotta do some legwork yourself.

◻ *Yellow lab* Nope. Malawi
◻ *Red tiger oscar* No way. Big big tank
◻ *Red rainbow fish* Will get too big
◻ *Red tailed black shark* Too big and territorial
◻ *Rainbow garra* Boisterous fish that I personally feel will get too big for 70l. Can chase other fish.
◻ *Panda loach* Only get these if you are sure you can keep them alive. Endangered.
◻ *Goth swordtail* Hard water
◻ *Black angel fish* Will get much too big
◻ *Plec* If youre getting a "sucker fish" / pleco of any kind make sure it is a species that will not grow to 1 meter
◻ *Blue fredcochui tetra* Large and boisterous
◻ *Blue acara* Will get too big, and will probably rescape your tank for you.
◻ *Congo tetra* Much too big
◻ *Dalmatian Molly* Hard water
◻ *Guppy* Hard water
Click to expand...
Perfect, thanks.
I've been through seriouslyfish for everything on that list and more. It's pretty good for a description, basic care and size per fish but doesn't say e.g. you need 10+ but can only fit 5. The hardness stuff is also confusing at the minute because we don't know exactly what we have.
I can't figure out how to multi-quote off my phone so there's going to be a barrage of posts.
 
jaypeecee said:
Hi @mrhoyo

No wonder you're having some difficulty measuring GH and KH. My quick calculations based on the calcium and magnesium figures would suggest that both GH and KH are less than 1dH. I suggest that you repeat the two tests using 10ml of tank water instead of 5ml. Then add 1 drop of test liquid at a time, swirling the tube thoroughly to ensure good mixing. Count the number of drops and let us know the result. The change in colour is likely to happen when going from 1 to 2 drops, I reckon. Please also check the expiry date of the test kits and let us know what they are.

JPC
Click to expand...
I'll have a look, will probably be after work.
 
jaypeecee said:
Hi @mrhoyo

Please don't rush into this. Take your time and ensure that you choose fish according to the water hardness. It's very easy to make the mistake of picking out fish at your LFS only to find that they are not suitable for the water you may have. As your water hardness is very low, it is prone to what is known as a 'pH crash' where the pH can drop to a very low figure. I think I provided two links for you earlier in this thread for deciding on suitable fish species. But, first of all, I suggest you read about the nitrogen cycle. Get acquainted with ammonia, nitrite and nitrate. Decide whether to rely entirely on your filtration system to process this toxic waste or split the load between the filtration system and your plants. Here's another great place to do some reading:

http://injaf.org

Forgive me if I've overlooked anything earlier in your thread where these points have already been dealt with.

JPC
Click to expand...
I'm pretty confident with the nitrogen cycle and definitely won't rush livestock in, that's why I'm asking so much now.
I don't want a repeat of last time I had fish.

I don't really understand the "choice" bit you've mentioned - I've got the filter and I've got the plants, presumably both are processing waste (currently only ammonia)?
 
sparkyweasel said:
I would also rule out the Rosy Barbs as too big.
Black Ruby Barbs are a bit smaller, but quite boisterous and would limit what other fish you could keep, ie nothing shy or delicate.
Apart from those and the ones Hufsa has ruled out the others on your list would be good. Apart from the Rams and Empire Gudgeon they are all shoaling fish and thrive in groups, so when you look at your stocking capacity allow for at least six of any species, and they will look even better if you have more, so that will limit the number of species you choose.
Ember Tetras are good, not on your list, but in your photo.
Others you might have a look at include Green Neons, Harlequins, Copper Harlequins, Cherry Barbs and Sparkling Gouramis.
To make your tank look full, but not overcrowded, it's good to have fish that swim at different levels, eg most Rasboras spend a lot of time near the top but Barbs and Empire Gudgeon stay towards the bottom or middle (until you put floating food in) so if you go for a mix it will look better than three species that live at the surface and nobody down below.
Click to expand...
Thanks. I don't really want that "one of everything" look so I was thinking one type of shrimp, one type of shoaling fish and then maybe one or a pair of some kind of other fish (is centrepiece the word?) and perhaps a pleco or another set of bottom chaps. Not sure where shrimp live in terms of levels.
 
sparkyweasel said:
This is a good point, you have almost no hardness at all, and while soft water is good, a little bit of hardness acts as a buffer, and resists sudden changes. You are lucky with your tapwater though, as it's much easier to add a bit of hardness than it is to remove the minerals from hard water.
If you use re-mineralisation salts to increase the hardness to 4 or 6 degrees it might avoid problems. Also, if you go for shrimps, they need some mineral content for their shells. Some kinds are more fussy than others, so you could check out the preferred hardness for the shrimp you choose, and aim for that. For avoiding a pH crash, the amount is not too critical, just that 'a bit' is safer than 'virtually none'.
Click to expand...
That sounds straightforward, is it just a case of adding something when I do water changes? I'm already adding Prime and fertiliser so it's no problem for me to add salts too.
 
sparkyweasel said:
Yes, 4dKH doesn't sound a lot, but it's many times more stable than one or half a degree.
What I meant was if the OP chooses shrimps that require a particular range, that would be the range to aim for, the amount required for buffering is no too critical, so 4, 6, 8 or whetever will be fine. :)
Click to expand...
From what I've been reading it looks like most fish and invertebrates would do better with GH and KH far above what I have at the minute.
On seriouslyfish I've only seen a handful with recommended hardness below 20ppm which is where I think I'm sitting.
 
mrhoyo said:
From what I've been reading it looks like most fish and invertebrates would do better with GH and KH far above what I have at the minute.
Click to expand...

Keep in mind that its a lot easier to add a bit of salts than to get them out. Of course just using straight tap with nothing else is the absolute easiest but not always realistic. I too have soft water, not quite as soft as yours, and add a lil bit of GH powder with water changes.
 
Tests are well in date:
20200615_081101.jpg

The tubes are only 8ml capacity and I couldn't tell colour change in a bowl so each of these is 8ml water plus 1 drop.

KH:
20200615_081503.jpg 20200615_081530.jpg 20200615_081554.jpg

GH:

20200615_081727.jpg
20200615_081745.jpg
20200615_081803.jpg
20200615_081817.jpg
20200615_081831.jpg
 
mrhoyo said:
I don't really understand the "choice" bit you've mentioned - I've got the filter and I've got the plants, presumably both are processing waste (currently only ammonia)?
Click to expand...

Yes, that's right, both will be processing nitrogenous waste. And, as you say, that will be ammonia at the moment. The suggestion that I'm just about to make is a bit contentious but I would add Tetra SafeStart to your tank to help establish a healthy bacterial colony in your filter. I, and many others, have had great success with this specific product. If you decide to try SafeStart, it is very important to give the bottle a vigorous shake before use.

JPC
 
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