10 Gallon Photo-Journal: Trials, Tribulations, & Transformations

[bpswim90]

Alright, I'm going to use this thread to document my tank conditions and observations and hopefully will keep this up until the spring when I will be moving my current goldfish to the pond outside and getting new fish. Each week I will post the current water conditions, observations, etc, and a pic of the tank (taken with my horrible camera).

So, some background... it's a 10 gallon tank with two goldfish, a few rock ornaments, some dying plants (because I don't yet have a light fixture for the tank) penguin BIO-filter. I got the fish last december and they have been doing great ever since. They will be moved to the outdoor pond in the spring and replaced by fish which would better fit the tank size. If anyone has questions about my tank or anything, feel free to post in this thread and I will answer.

Now to the first entry.

11/13/05



Pre-testing comments: I haven't tested the aquarium's water conditions in months, so I'm expecting it to be out of whack.
Description: Tank is about 2/3 full of water, the water evaporates fast because I don't have a cover for the tank at the moment. The fish are healthy, active, about 2.5 inches each. Tank has a bit of algae.
pH: 7.6
Temp: 68 or 70 F (?) unsure, I think my thermometer is messed up. temperature doesn't really matter though when it comes to goldfish
Ammonia: 0 ppm
Nitrite: 0 ppm
Post-testing comments: Wow, the ammonia and nitrite levels are actually in check. This is very surprising. I guess I've been taking better care of the tank than I thought.

[bpswim90]

11-19-05


[Caption: Picture of tank showing the new cover. Note how the water level is so much higher than in the last pic because the water isn't evaporating.]

A little algae in the tank, not much though. Last week I bought a glass tank cover and the evaporation has been extremely reduced. Which is good. The fish are very active and enjoy chasing eachother around the tank. The filter appears to be working well. I may clean the tank & do a water change later today.
Temp: 74 F
pH: 7.5
Ammonia: 0 ppm
Nitrite: 0 ppm
Comments: Everything looks to still be in good shape!

[bpswim90]

11-27-05


[My tank at an angle showing the surrounding junk ;P]

I cleaned the tank today. I scrubbed the algae from the front of the tank (glass) with a toothbrush and then did about 40% water change. The fish are doing well.
I'm eyeing a new digital camera, the Canon Powershot SD400. I plan on getting it either within the next month of for Christmas, so hopefully I will soon be able to take better pictures of them.

Temp: 74 F [When cleaning the tank I noticed the water was about room temp. I wonder why it is this warm?]
pH: 7.5
Ammonia: 0 ppm
Nitrite: 0 ppm

[bpswim90]

Jan. 1st 2006

It's been over a month since I last updated! My tank has been doing fine, but has had little change or activity because that will not begin until the spring. But I will not let you down, for I have been hard at work. I got my new camera in early December, it's a Canon Powershot SD400. So anyway I've been taking lots of pics. Here are some of my favorites, I hope you enjoy them (and hope they won't crash your browser or something).
Again, feel free to comment on or ask about any of these pictures.

















Thanks for reading

[MYGOBYRULES]

have you had any problems with that filter? Every time i do a water change it takes about an hour to get it going right again with suction or with out crazy buzzing sound. it really takes alot of restraint to keep from smashing the stupid thing with a hammer. but other than that it works pretty well.

[bpswim90]

Originally Posted by MYGOBYRULES

have you had any problems with that filter? Every time i do a water change it takes about an hour to get it going right again with suction or with out crazy buzzing sound. it really takes alot of restraint to keep from smashing the stupid thing with a hammer. but other than that it works pretty well.

With this current filter I haven't had any problems since I bought it. However, in my old filter I had similar problems (buzzing sound, not much water flowing through) which I think were due to the intake tube getting junk stuck up in it. So what you might want to try is cleaning out the intake tube or other parts of the filter which could get clogged.

[micstarz]

The buzzing sound is when the lift tube is full of air and air bubbles mix with the water in your filter. To help your filter start up, fill your main filter box with water so it wont take as long.

When my filter flow slow down I clen the filter out completely except for the filter medium. In my case it is usually red beard algae.

[MYGOBYRULES]

that is what is so frustrating, i do fill the filter with water and the intake tube is completly clean. i think the problem is where the intake tube conects inside the filter where the small fan and magnet are

[CVV1]

yeah i silled it up with water the first time. the water was half way up the suction tube

[bpswim90]

April 20th, 2006.

Yes, I am still doing this journal. The reason for lack of update is simply because I can not move my fish outside until the water is warm enough. If you have any helpful tips for me moving my fish, please post them either in this topic or here. The tank is about the same as when I last put up pictures of it. There's a little more algae, and the fish are a tad bigger. My apologies for the poor photo quality, they're just quick shots, nothing special.


Yep, that's me.








Thanks for reading.

Feel free to post comments or questions.

[bpswim90]

Today I constructed my quarantine tank to be used with my new fish purchases later in the year! I roughly followed the guide at this site. For fishless cycling help I refered to this guide. Special thanks to both of those sites for the help.


This is basically what I started with. Most of it was tank equipment which was laying around in my room or the garage. I have one old tank (I believe to be 2-3 gallons. It's small, but will be big enough to quarantining a couple fish at a time), one old filtration system which still works, a couple old filters, a couple air pumps and a couple of air stones (I probably won't use the pumps or air stones).


A day in advance, I put one of my old filters into my 10 gallon's filtration system. Hopefully I will some bacteria on it to help jumpstart the colony.


Here's how it looks fully constructed. Notice that I cut out some black garbage bag plastic and put it underneath to protect the shelf from water.


After filling with water, I used an eyedropper to put 5 drops of NH3 (Ammonium Hydroxide) into my tank. I plugged in my filter system (without filter in it) and let it run for a minute to mix up the water, then took a test sample and tested the water.


It looks to be at about 2ppm. So, I added 3 more drops and tested again and it was close enough to the 3ppm I was aiming for. So, everyday I will add 8 drops of NH3 for my bacterial colonies until I get my fish.

TO BE CONTINUED...

[bpswim90]

April 21st Continued

Now that I have my ammonia in the tank, I can put in my filter.


Here's what it looks like. Yeah, not much stuff on it. But any amount will help.


In addition, I shook some of the stuff off of my 10 gallon's filter. I know there's some bacteria on that nasty thing.


Here's the finished product! Sideways for your convenience! (Notice that I also decided to tape some of the garbage bag plastic on the side because of splash factor.)

- ~ -

Afterwards, I went and bought a heater for the quarantine tank for 30 dollars. So here is the real finished product:


There you have it!

[bpswim90]

April 24th, 2006.

Well, my 2 Gal. Quarantine has sprung a leak. Last night I noticed that it had a puddle of water under it, so I picked it up and wiped up the water with a rag. This morning when I woke up, there was another equally large puddle underneath. It's a really old tank, so I guess it doesn't surprise me. I'm glad I put that trash bag plastic underneath because it really would have damaged the shelf. So, what I think I will do is get a 10 gallon or a 5 gallon and just move all my stuff and dump the water into it. If I get a 10 gal. this will also be convenient because I can move my tank cover to it once I get a lighting hood for my regular 10 gallon.

So far, I plan on stocking my regular 10 gallon with 2 honey gouramis, 3 cory pandas, and 6 glowlight tetras. I have a feeling this may be too many fish, but I'm unsure.

And finally, here's some quick photos...





That thing goldfish do when they eat food...


That's all for today. Comments and questions are welcome.

[bpswim90]

April 25th, 2006

Well, the leaking of the Quarantine has gotten out of hand. It's somehow gotten under the garbage bag and onto the shelf, and the shelf is starting to get all bumpy and warped. How frustrating... Well I am deffinately getting a new tank then, as I don't see any other way to fix this. I'm not even sure it's really leaking. I think it's because I'm using a HOB filter on a 2 Gallon tank, the water is somehow going over the top (Hard to explain...). Regardless, an underwater filter would probably be just as, if not more, expensive than a 10 gallon tank. However, I'm not sure where I will be able to put a 10 gallon... oh well. In the meantime I've folded up a towel and put the tank on it.

Next... still no nitrites in the QT. Yesterday there was an unexplainable drop in the ammonia, then today I checked it twice and it was around 6 ppm, so I did about a 50% water change and it went down to just under 4ppm, good enough. I think I may have been adding to much ammonia, so I will make sure not to add any more ammonia until it goes lower than 3ppm.

I also decided on the fish which I'll be putting in my aquarium:

• 2 Honey Gouramis
• 3 Ottos (Midget Sucker Catfish)
• 6 Glowlight tetras

It's a little cramped, but with live plants to help take away nitrates and regular water changes it will be fine. Thanks to JustOneMore telling me that panda cories don't belong in a 10 gallon.

As far as plants and decorations are going... I'm thinking dense planting on the sides, some open space in the middle, and maybe a pile of rocks formed into a cave or a decoration or something for fish to hide in. I'll have some floating plants on the water surface, too.

Ah yes, now for updates on the pond. Well, today I checked the pond's temperature and it was a steamy 62 degrees Farenheit. Compare that to the 81 degrees (I don't even use a heater, I don't know why it's so warm) 10 gallon my goldfish live in. That's a 19 degree difference, people. I think what I'll do is gradually cool the 10 gallon by putting in cold water changes every day until the temperature is in the low 70s or upper 60s. Then I will move them.

That's all for now. Thanks for reading, and if you have any questions feel free to ask.

[bpswim90]

April 26th, 2006.

Well, lots happened today. First off, I moved my QT to a 5 gallon bucket which was previously used for water changes. I don't know why I didn't think of it before. Now I don't have to buy another 10 gallon and try to find space for it. The ammonia in the QT was still around 4 ppm, so I didn't add any. The nitrites are still at 0 ppm. I also realized that I haven't been adding enough dechlorinator to my water... I've only been adding half as much as needed. I sincerely hope this hasn't been killing my bacteria.

I also went to Petsmart and bought a fluorescent strip light (only one light, 18w) and 10 lbs of black gravel for later. This means I officially have all the equipment I need for my fish! All I need to do now is wait until I can move my goldfish out, and then I can get things set up. I checked out their fish, too, and I saw all three types I plan on buying. The Honey Gouramis were especially cute.

The light has been working well. I will post some pics tomorrow.

Thanks for reading, feel free to comment.

[diane44]

Diane here,
I have enjoyed reading and seeing your pics of your fish. I am new to the fish world and looking forward to hearing more about your fish and seeing more pics.

[bpswim90]

Thanks, Diane. Glad you're enjoying the journal.

More updates soooooon!

[bpswim90]

Today was the day of the big move of my goldfish to the outdoor pond! But before I start on that, I shall speak quickly of my quarantine bucket. It is still hovering around 3 ppm ammonia and 0 nitrites. I can't wait for the thing to cycle! Well, I guess these things take time.

The Move
FROM:


TO:


Pre-Move: For the past week or so, I have been doing cold water changes in my tank to help get the temps down low enough so that it is almost the same as the pond. Yesterday I began putting in a 1-gallon ziploc about 1/4 full of ice in it and replacing about ever 8 hours. This morning I shut my blinds, took off my tank cover, AND put in ice, all in attempt to get the temps down. Finally, this afternoon, I got within 3 degrees of the pond temperature (pond 67 degrees, tank <70 degrees) and deemed that close enough.

Move:
I started out by getting my materials ready. I used a fish net, a 1 gallon ziploc bag, a bottle, and a towel.

I put the ziploc bag in my tank and filled it with water. I turned it on its side and aimed it at my fish. I then gently, GENTLY is the key word here, guided my fish into the bag with my fish net.

Every part of the moving process should be as gentle and smooth as possible to help keep the stress level of the fish down. Once my fish were safely in the bag, I zipped it close (only for a short period of time) and then wrapped a towel around the bag.

This is also to reduce stress; the fish are generally less likely to stress when they cannot see the move happening from inside the bag. While carrying the bag, I took every effort to make the ride as smooth as possible. Finally, once we were at the pond, I took off the towel, opened the bag and folded over the edges of the bag.

This helps to keep the bag upright while I am acclimating the fish to their new environment. I allowed the temperature to adjust for about 10 minutes, then used my bottle to pour in some of the pond water. A couple minutes later I did this again. Several minutes later I did this a second time. Finally, once I was sure my fish were ready, I slowly released them from the bag. And now they can be free in their new home!

(Now let us just hope they don't procure some sort of disease. )

Edit: By the way, the fish have been doing quite nicely today. At first they were pretty scared, and avoided the current residents (one big and one small) at all costs. But a couple hours later they were chasing each other around like the best of friends.

[Ownager2004]

Wow nice pond. Those fish probably think they died and went to goldfish heaven.

[bpswim90]

Haha, thanks. Our family (well, mostly my parents) have put a lot of time into it. Yeah, I certainly do hope the fish like it. They seem to be pretty darn happy so far.