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Aquarium Advice

Haywire

Haywire

Escaped Convict
Location
England
Okay so, I know this isn't exactly the forum for this but I have received excellent advice about stuff in the past on here so it's worth a shot.​

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I decided to get myself an aquarium to house a couple of Fantail Goldfish. It was a lot more expensive than I had anticipated but I believe I have set it up fairly well so far. I'm using two separate filters to keep the water clean: The internal filter that came with the tank and an external canister filter (tetra 800 plus). The tank itself is a Rio 180 and as the name suggests, it holds 180L of water.​

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SkypePhoto_20170530_20_23_42.jpg​

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Problem is, I want to ensure everything is fine before I introduce any fish to it. This is my first time setting up an aquarium (or being involved with one) so I need to make sure I do everything right. If anyone here has any experience or knowledge on the topic, I'd be really open to some advice on what to do now. Some things in particular:

- What's the best way to cycle my tank? Is it essential to add some ammonia product to it on a twice-daily basis to allow the bacteria colonies in the filters to develop or can I just leave it like it is for a few weeks and continue doing regular water changes?

- For the plants, the lighting will stay on for 15-18 hours a day. How necessary is a plant fertilizer and liquid CO2? As mentioned earlier, this setup costs a lot more than I had hoped for so I'm trying to keep costs down where possible.

- Any advice on keeping the water clean? I am having problems with dust and even dog hairs getting in the water and accumulating on the top. The filters usually take care of this in time, but it's something that I'll need to prevent when I have fish.

To summarize, if anyone has any pointers, tips or advice whatsoever related to what I'm trying to accomplish and my current setup then I would be highly appreciative of it. If you're thinking the tank looks a bit empty, I am planning to add one more decoration and change the poster from jet black to something a little more eye-catching. It's important to me that I only bring fish into an environment that they will thrive in rather than one that they will have to tolerate.

Thanks a lot for reading if you did, it's also worth noting that I am posting this on fish-related forums but it's worth a try posting here in case of any enthusiasts lurking about :)

 
Interesting that you've posted this.  I've also purchased a tank and am planning an aquaponic setup with the hope of growing chilli. However I can't help you much right now as I'm also in the same boat as you 😀

There are a few communities I need to join to get the specific help I need.  It's late and I don't have names to hand right now but will get back to you on it.  They would be a good start for you too.

All the best!

 
Meant to reply to this earlier.

firstly, congrats on getting a big enough tank! goldfish need a large tank as they grow big!

What you need to do is "cycle" your tank to start the nitrogen cycle, where your fishes poop will be broken down into non-toxic stuff.

Your plants will then remove this from the water as it is basically fertiliser.

after a week or 2 this should be established if you have plants etc. 

When you go to buy your fish, take a sample of water for them to test, see if its ready!

I do a 15-20% water change weekly in my small guppy tank, and use a syphon tube with gravel sucker, keeps things good, and replace with treated tap water. enjoy

 
Last edited by a moderator:
Mate why bother with filters and shit my goldfish is 14 years old and has never seen a filter

 
TCK James Blezard said:
Mate why bother with filters and shit my goldfish is 14 years old and has never seen a filter
Click to expand...
I think your goldfish may be suicidal. Just saying.

Haywire said:
Shortened for all intensive purposes.​

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Click to expand...
Looks good! Fish should be fine, though make sure they have a clean tank that hasn't had harsh chemicals used on it. Also, try and keep the tank out of the way of direct sunlight, as it can really heat up the insides and mess with them. Other than that, all looks well. Good luck with the fish!

 
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