Nooby needs advice

hiya there. Hope you can give me some decent advice please.

I have a Juwell Rekord 70 tank,and filter. I have added an air pump for a bubble wall, some real plants and ornaments.

Ive got the following fish - 6 neon tetras, 1 male betta, 1 red tailed black shark, 4 plattys, 4 Guppys, 2 plecs

I was woundering if the recomemded amout of fish is right, do you think that my set up has to much fish in it?

I want to add some more fish to the tank, probably more neons to make a decent sized shoal, say another 10 or so, would that be ok?

Hi Eddie. How long is the tank set up for? Did you do a fishless cycle with ammonia or did you just add the fish almost straight away?

For a start, the Red Tail Black Shark needs a four foot tank minimum and will only get aggressive as it matures so I'd suggest you return that to the LFS (unless you're planning on getting a four foot tank!).

What type of plecs do you have 'coz AFAIK a 70L is prob too small for most species apart from maybe a small Bristlenose?

Hiya Eddie. Do you know what sort of plecs you have - some can grow quite a size so it might be worth finding out which ones you have. Also, the RTBS might be a problem - they can be aggressive and it is in quite a small tank. It might be worth returning that, but perhaps someone else will give more info on that for you.

How long have you had the tank set up for? (Sorry for all the questions!)

SNAP! :lol:

Hello you two :lol: ! Thanks for taking the time to reply. Right, to answer your questions The tank has been set up for about three weeks. I forgot to say in the first post that I have added an extra filter (Fluval) to the tank to help keep the ammonia under control.

I didnt do the fishless cycle, hadnt even heard of it to be honest, so I just filled the tank and got the fish.

I dont know what the plec is. I told the man in the pet shop the size of tank I had and he said they would be ok for that and would eat all the algae for me.

Hope that helps.

What should I do with the shark then?

Ask at the LFS where you got it if they could take it back and refund you the value you paid for it in exhange for smaler fishies

Take it back to the shop you bought it from eddie and yell at them for selling you a fish that was unsuitable. Also get them to tell you the name of the plecs you have too.

Have you checked your water stats?

can you post a pic of the plec at all Eddie?

Hopefully the plecs are Bristlenose plecs then which might be ok. The shark will need to be rehomed/returned to the LFS before it gets too big.

It might be worthwhile testing your water too Eddie just in case there's any traces of ammonia or nitrite left in the water as the tank is probably still cycling if it's only been three weeks.

Btw, to answer your original question, I'd say you're pretty much fully stocked even with returning the RTBS. Alternatively, you could always exchange the platties or guppies for more neon tetras if you're keen on increasing the shoal size.

There are a couple of articles in the Aquarium Articles forum if you need more info about both Fishless Cycling and Cycling With Fish.

OK, thanks for all the advice folks, I really appreciate you taking the time.

I have taken the shark back today, I told the fella in the shop that I had been told that my tank wasnt big enough and he just shrugged and walked away!!

I also asked him about the fishless cycle and he said there was no need as long as you dont overstock and I wasnt overstocked. He did say I should check the water for ammonia so I have bought a Nutrafin testing kit for ammonia. Its measuring somewhere between 0.3 - 0.6 which doesnt sound too bad, but I have done a water change.

Is that all I need to do?

Good move taking the shark back - theyre mean fish! as for the water testing you need to be testing ammonia, nitrite and nitrate too, as well as ph to keep an eye on what is going on in your tank so it looks like you need another trip to the shops!

till you get that, keep checking the ammonia dndo a water change if you have any level of it in the water.

IME The Nutrafin test kits aren't as accurate as the API ones. Both ammonia and nitrite need to be zero otherwise the fish will suffer the toxic effects of ammonia and/or nitrite poisoning. Did you get a chance to read my article about Cycling With Fish, Eddie? That gives you some tips on how to get through it.

Thanks Mary, I have read that and am keeping a close eye on my water now

Glad to hear it.