Viewer from Germany here. Our "how to start an aquarium" videos tend to be more like rocket science, compared to this one. :D ( in a positive way) It is like: Before buying: think about, what you want. where to place the aquarium. what kind of fish you want to keep. Search online and in books about the needs of your desired fish. (pH, GH, KH, Temperature, what they eat, how big they can get, and social behavior, what kind of fish can be held together.) And THEN buy all the stuff: Starter Aquarium Set or individual parts. Then natural looking gravel, nutrition for beneath the gravel or nutrition capsules, natural, fast growing plants for the start, Aqua Safe bottle and very important: A Testkit to check the water parameters. (seriously ^^) In the first 1 or 2 weeks, we do not put fish inside. But it is recommended to put a little portion food in the aquarium, so the bacteria can start to grow. We need to test the water every day (for beginners) or after a while if there is NO2 peak. If the NO2 goeas down, and if the other water parameters are ok, than we can go to the fish store and buy some fish. but not all at once. On youtube germany there are a huge number of aquarium videos. Many about modern aquascape, but beginner friendly too. Recently many people like the more-habitat-like aquariums more. If someone would put a picture of plastic plants in his aquarium online, he would be burned in the comment section. :D BUT I understnad, that for absolute beginners, it might be better, to focus on the water quality and get used to all the stuff. BEcause, of you put plants in the tank, then there is a lot more to take care of. Plants need special nutrition, not to much, not to less. And the light musst be not to bright, not to dark. It is not complicated, but needs a little bit more thought. All in all, it depends on the individual person. If someone is skilled in many things and likes to read theorie and wants to do everything very well, then I would recommend to start with natural plants, wood etc. great channel btw! And yes, when I was a child, my fish died as well. but I had absolutely no idea about anything and my parents weren´t experts too. All the info from youtube helped me. My tank now, has almost no problems. The fish are healthy. Oh, and btw. Fresh fish fodder is importand too. (I mean, do not use it for a whole year, because it will be old and all the vitamins left. buy small cans and throw the rest away after 5 or 7 months.
Hi After setting up your tank, (Aqua safe, stones, natural plants) start the filter and the heater and let them run 24/7 (the heater is probably automatic and turns off, if the temperature is good) Buy a timer for the lamp and set it to 6 hours daily. (After 1 Month or so, you can set it to 7 hours, later 8 hours. but absolute maximum should be 10 hours. 8 is good. If the tank has too much light, then algae will grow fast. You need to figure out later on, how much light is best for your tank and your plants. So, now is day 1. Everything is running. From now on put a tiny little bit of fish fodder in your tank. This will help to establish and grow the good bacteria. Later on, the poop from the fish will take over this part. You can now wait for two weeks and take a glas full with your tank water to a good aquarium store (not wallmart) so they can test the water for you. (it that is possible - but it is a common thing in germany) This is important, because now you have to know, if the water is OK. In the first 1 to 2 weeks, a toxic but natural substance, called nitrit, will occur in your tank. this is normal. After a while, when there is enough bacteria, this nitrit will go down/almost vanish to a very low level. Just then it is OK and safe to put fish in your tank. Otherwhise, if you put them to early, they might die. You can, and I recommend it, buy a NO2 Test by yourself and test your water every day in the first 2 weeks. You will see, after some days, that this NO2 / Nitrit will rise and after a whiel fall down again. Another thing to know about water: Some fish like harder water and some like softer water. In germany this is tested with a GH Test. (maybe it is called different in your country.) Also important is the acidity. 7° is neutral. Most fish are fine with those 7°. But If your water has an acidity of 8° or 9° then you should not put fish inside, that like an acidity of 6° Platys, Swordtail, Guppies can be held in harder water. But they tolerate soft water too. Neons and other Tetras do not like hard water. They should be held in soft water (under 14 GH and pH 6 - 7 ) You should avoid to mix those. It would be like putting a pinguin with a giraffe inside the same cage. About the tetras in general: buy a group of 8 or 10 fish. Please do not buy 1 of this and 1 of another and 2 of this and 3 of another. Figure out maximum 3 or 4 species and stick to it. They feel more safe and more comfortable when they are in a group. Only basses and some other fish can make ploblems. they should be held in a pair of two. But basses are not for beginners, in my opinion, because they have a strong teritorial behaviour and tend to stress the other basses and hunt them the whole time. Another note: If fishes feel very uncomfortable, they will get sick. If everything is fine, they will probably be healthy for a long time.
Oh, and put Aqua safe every time in the tank (or in the water, in the bucket) when you do a water-change. And DO NOT clean the filter too often. Every month is too often. And when you do it, then just rinse it out a little bit inside safe water. (water without clorine. or aquarium water) but obviously not inside your aquarium. :D )
My Betta died...a tetra died before that and finally last tetra died. Starting over from scratch. Should I clean the old gravel first tho I've cleaned it twice with a suction kit. ?
What did you do? If the fish died, yes, I would clean the gravel -- since you don't know the cause of death. Once the tank is established, only clean with suction kit.
I set up my tank last night, added dechlor and added 5 neon tetras. They all died within 6 hours! They were the only fish in the brand new tank. Ive set many tanks up the same day and never had this issue. What happened? Yes floated the bag and i didnt add the water from the pet store in the new tank. Only thing i can possibly think of is ammonia. The only thing i saw before they started dying was gasping at the surface so i added an air stone because i thought the filter wasnt giving enough oxygen. There was zero flashing. I keep koi, i always have checked my tap water. Its always had chlorine but never ammonia. So when i filled the tank i didnt even bother to use my test kit for ammonia. When they started dying, i immediately checked it. It was at 1ppm. I knew id be having to use my prime or safe until the good BB grew but wasnt ready for ammonia already in there. Could the ammonia for those few hours have killed them that fast? (Honestly never dealt with ammonia issues) Im glad i checked my tap water tho because now i know theres ammonia in it also, i would have been gutted if i killed my beautiful koi. Any advice or info, insight would be appreciated.
I came here from SCBand really like your channel! Thank you for this video. I have been wanting to get an aquarium for a few years now. Just wondering, but do you still need to use the Aqua Safe if you have well water with no chlorine? Sounds like I need to do some research before I start. Especially since I live in the country and have to travel to get to a store that sells aquariums. I'm hesitant to buy them online as you never know what you will end up getting.
Thanks for sharing about the beneficial bacteria. I have never used such a product. Instead, I take in existing sponge filter from an established tank and use that to cycle a new tank whenever I set up anything new. I have never lost a fish doing it this way. And I have placed anywhere from 10 to 40 or more fish at a time using that method. But always good to know there are other options. Great video thanks.
That is a great system, and I do it too! sometimes I'll move some plants or driftwood/rocks from an established tank. But for those who don't already have one -- this is a great "new" option! :)
Supposed to be a 1 and done thing, put its good to add a little here and there after water changes or adding more fish early on just incase the bio load becomes to big to fast and its good to replenish some of that bacteria. But as far as setting up a new tank you'll get the right size bottle and add it all that first time and your good to go. It'll add the bacteria needed to handle a small bio load while it can grow and reproduce more.
I doubt the tetra product works as designed. I would like to see the testing data behind that. Time is the best way to cycle your tank along with an ammonia source. I do agree that "some" products do help with the cycle but it is not an end all. Most new hobbyists kill their fish because they do not cycle properly but they also overfeed the fish and thereby pollute the tank. Once polluted with too much food and a lack of beneficial bacteria it does not take long to kill an overstocked tank coupled with an improperly cycled tank. 40 years of fish keeping and you still killed some fish? REALLY! And using the product you touted makes no sense to me.
Wash the gravel first & you need an air stone filter needs to build up bacteria you can wash it in used tank water when water changing bacteria also builds up on gravel & stick on seem to take in I use a digital one Fish need 12 Hours of light some are ok with bright Neons subdued lighting Algae isn't a threat to tanks use live plants that will help
Viewer from Germany here. Our "how to start an aquarium" videos tend to be more like rocket science, compared to this one. :D ( in a positive way)
It is like:
Before buying: think about, what you want. where to place the aquarium. what kind of fish you want to keep.
Search online and in books about the needs of your desired fish. (pH, GH, KH, Temperature, what they eat, how big they can get, and social behavior, what kind of fish can be held together.)
And THEN buy all the stuff:
Starter Aquarium Set or individual parts. Then natural looking gravel, nutrition for beneath the gravel or nutrition capsules, natural, fast growing plants for the start, Aqua Safe bottle and very important: A Testkit to check the water parameters. (seriously ^^)
In the first 1 or 2 weeks, we do not put fish inside. But it is recommended to put a little portion food in the aquarium, so the bacteria can start to grow.
We need to test the water every day (for beginners) or after a while if there is NO2 peak. If the NO2 goeas down, and if the other water parameters are ok, than we can go to the fish store and buy some fish. but not all at once.
On youtube germany there are a huge number of aquarium videos. Many about modern aquascape, but beginner friendly too. Recently many people like the more-habitat-like aquariums more.
If someone would put a picture of plastic plants in his aquarium online, he would be burned in the comment section. :D BUT I understnad, that for absolute beginners, it might be better, to focus on the water quality and get used to all the stuff. BEcause, of you put plants in the tank, then there is a lot more to take care of. Plants need special nutrition, not to much, not to less. And the light musst be not to bright, not to dark. It is not complicated, but needs a little bit more thought.
All in all, it depends on the individual person. If someone is skilled in many things and likes to read theorie and wants to do everything very well, then I would recommend to start with natural plants, wood etc.
great channel btw!
And yes, when I was a child, my fish died as well. but I had absolutely no idea about anything and my parents weren´t experts too.
All the info from youtube helped me. My tank now, has almost no problems. The fish are healthy.
Oh, and btw. Fresh fish fodder is importand too. (I mean, do not use it for a whole year, because it will be old and all the vitamins left. buy small cans and throw the rest away after 5 or 7 months.
Ok we followed the recommendations but our 5 fish all died the first week - obviously the environment wasn’t ideal - how do I restart? Take water out?
Hi
After setting up your tank, (Aqua safe, stones, natural plants) start the filter and the heater and let them run 24/7 (the heater is probably automatic and turns off, if the temperature is good)
Buy a timer for the lamp and set it to 6 hours daily. (After 1 Month or so, you can set it to 7 hours, later 8 hours. but absolute maximum should be 10 hours. 8 is good.
If the tank has too much light, then algae will grow fast. You need to figure out later on, how much light is best for your tank and your plants.
So, now is day 1. Everything is running.
From now on put a tiny little bit of fish fodder in your tank. This will help to establish and grow the good bacteria.
Later on, the poop from the fish will take over this part.
You can now wait for two weeks and take a glas full with your tank water to a good aquarium store (not wallmart) so they can test the water for you. (it that is possible - but it is a common thing in germany)
This is important, because now you have to know, if the water is OK.
In the first 1 to 2 weeks, a toxic but natural substance, called nitrit, will occur in your tank. this is normal. After a while, when there is enough bacteria, this nitrit will go down/almost vanish to a very low level. Just then it is OK and safe to put fish in your tank. Otherwhise, if you put them to early, they might die.
You can, and I recommend it, buy a NO2 Test by yourself and test your water every day in the first 2 weeks. You will see, after some days, that this NO2 / Nitrit will rise and after a whiel fall down again.
Another thing to know about water:
Some fish like harder water and some like softer water. In germany this is tested with a GH Test. (maybe it is called different in your country.)
Also important is the acidity. 7° is neutral. Most fish are fine with those 7°. But If your water has an acidity of 8° or 9° then you should not put fish inside, that like an acidity of 6°
Platys, Swordtail, Guppies can be held in harder water.
But they tolerate soft water too.
Neons and other Tetras do not like hard water. They should be held in soft water (under 14 GH and pH 6 - 7 )
You should avoid to mix those. It would be like putting a pinguin with a giraffe inside the same cage.
About the tetras in general: buy a group of 8 or 10 fish. Please do not buy 1 of this and 1 of another and 2 of this and 3 of another.
Figure out maximum 3 or 4 species and stick to it.
They feel more safe and more comfortable when they are in a group.
Only basses and some other fish can make ploblems. they should be held in a pair of two. But basses are not for beginners, in my opinion, because they have a strong teritorial behaviour and tend to stress the other basses and hunt them the whole time.
Another note:
If fishes feel very uncomfortable, they will get sick.
If everything is fine, they will probably be healthy for a long time.
Oh, and put Aqua safe every time in the tank (or in the water, in the bucket) when you do a water-change.
And DO NOT clean the filter too often. Every month is too often. And when you do it, then just rinse it out a little bit inside safe water. (water without clorine. or aquarium water) but obviously not inside your aquarium. :D )
Old-School tank with colored gravel, plastic plants and a shipwreck!
My Betta died...a tetra died before that and finally last tetra died. Starting over from scratch. Should I clean the old gravel first tho I've cleaned it twice with a suction kit. ?
What did you do? If the fish died, yes, I would clean the gravel -- since you don't know the cause of death. Once the tank is established, only clean with suction kit.
New music for the Fincaster The other was a bit weird. I wasn’t scared though. Lol
Thank you. I actually did make the mistake of thinking the bottles were the same. Thank you for this. I’ll be buying the other bottle today
I set up my tank last night, added dechlor and added 5 neon tetras. They all died within 6 hours! They were the only fish in the brand new tank. Ive set many tanks up the same day and never had this issue. What happened? Yes floated the bag and i didnt add the water from the pet store in the new tank. Only thing i can possibly think of is ammonia. The only thing i saw before they started dying was gasping at the surface so i added an air stone because i thought the filter wasnt giving enough oxygen. There was zero flashing. I keep koi, i always have checked my tap water. Its always had chlorine but never ammonia. So when i filled the tank i didnt even bother to use my test kit for ammonia. When they started dying, i immediately checked it. It was at 1ppm. I knew id be having to use my prime or safe until the good BB grew but wasnt ready for ammonia already in there. Could the ammonia for those few hours have killed them that fast? (Honestly never dealt with ammonia issues) Im glad i checked my tap water tho because now i know theres ammonia in it also, i would have been gutted if i killed my beautiful koi. Any advice or info, insight would be appreciated.
Good stuff, John. Thanks
I came here from SCBand really like your channel! Thank you for this video. I have been wanting to get an aquarium for a few years now. Just wondering, but do you still need to use the Aqua Safe if you have well water with no chlorine? Sounds like I need to do some research before I start. Especially since I live in the country and have to travel to get to a store that sells aquariums. I'm hesitant to buy them online as you never know what you will end up getting.
I would still use it. Also Be sure to use the Safe Start -- no matter what!
Thanks for sharing about the beneficial bacteria. I have never used such a product. Instead, I take in existing sponge filter from an established tank and use that to cycle a new tank whenever I set up anything new. I have never lost a fish doing it this way. And I have placed anywhere from 10 to 40 or more fish at a time using that method. But always good to know there are other options. Great video thanks.
That is a great system, and I do it too! sometimes I'll move some plants or driftwood/rocks from an established tank. But for those who don't already have one -- this is a great "new" option! :)
So after you use safestart the first time..how often you used it after that. Everyday or once a week ???
When you do a water change add a little aqua Safe to fresh water
Supposed to be a 1 and done thing, put its good to add a little here and there after water changes or adding more fish early on just incase the bio load becomes to big to fast and its good to replenish some of that bacteria. But as far as setting up a new tank you'll get the right size bottle and add it all that first time and your good to go. It'll add the bacteria needed to handle a small bio load while it can grow and reproduce more.
When should I add the fish after I put in the Tetra safe start
2 weeks should be safe.
Very valuable content! Thank you Sir!
Thanks! And good luck!
The filters that come with the Walmart tanks are junk.Buy a penn-plax cascade internal filter.Model 600
Awesome video for beginners. Thank you!
While i liked the video for being informative, i must say that seeing a mac triggered me a bit.
Can I do that for my new flower horn tank
Good video.
I doubt the tetra product works as designed. I would like to see the testing data behind that. Time is the best way to cycle your tank along with an ammonia source. I do agree that "some" products do help with the cycle but it is not an end all. Most new hobbyists kill their fish because they do not cycle properly but they also overfeed the fish and thereby pollute the tank. Once polluted with too much food and a lack of beneficial bacteria it does not take long to kill an overstocked tank coupled with an improperly cycled tank. 40 years of fish keeping and you still killed some fish? REALLY! And using the product you touted makes no sense to me.
Patrick Mayo couldn’t you just test your waters to make sure the levels are right with the cycling product?
Wash the gravel first & you need an air stone filter needs to build up bacteria you can wash it in used tank water when water changing bacteria also builds up on gravel &
stick on seem to take in I use a digital one
Fish need 12 Hours of light some are ok with bright Neons subdued lighting
Algae isn't a threat to tanks use live plants that will help