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Innovative Marine Aquariums

Small 3g Freshwater


Koston

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Had to take my saltwater down, too time-consuming. Couldn't stand the thought of not having any fish in my room after having them for about 7 years, so I got me a tiny 3gallonish freshwater. I set it up on Saturday with good water, the subtrate, pump, little filtration system... how long do I have to wait to put some fish in there? I only have my saltwater test kit but I was able to use the ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate tests, all are at 0, well the nitrate is somewhere inbetween 0 and 5 ppm. Obviously, I'm pretty sure the pH is gonna be fine but I'm about to run to pick up some of those tests.

 

I put in some Nutrafin Cycling stuff the first day of setting up (Saturday) but haven't put in anything else since then. No tester fish or anything. I was thinking since the levels are OK and this isnt as complicated as saltwater I was good to put my fish in. Just getting really basic tiny fish like guppies and stuff, and it will be with live plants. Am I good to go or am I waiting for some big boom of bacteria that may have not happened yet (this is the first time I've tested anything)

 

P.S. no tapwater in this, only the nice freshwater from LFS

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You'll still need to wait about a month for it to cycle. In the meantime, you can start adding plants, they'll appreciate the extra nitrogen.

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You'll still need to wait about a month for it to cycle. In the meantime, you can start adding plants, they'll appreciate the extra nitrogen.

 

a month for a tiny 3g freshwater? I've never heard of waiting a month for freshwater... on websites or at any LFS.

Thank you for the response. Guess I'll wait for more. Different LFS's (2) said to wait about a week to start putting in a couple tetras/plants.... a month seems long for this. anyone else? :)

 

I used to be pro at keeping freshwater (years ago, forgot a lot), but I let a 50g cycle for a week and had an extremely successful tank that lasted for 5 years with no deaths...

 

anyone who has knowledge in freshwater have any say?

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a month for a tiny 3g freshwater? I've never heard of waiting a month for freshwater... on websites or at any LFS.

Thank you for the response. Guess I'll wait for more. Different LFS's (2) said to wait about a week to start putting in a couple tetras/plants.... a month seems long for this. anyone else? :)

 

I used to be pro at keeping freshwater (years ago, forgot a lot), but I let a 50g cycle for a week and had an extremely successful tank that lasted for 5 years with no deaths...

 

anyone who has knowledge in freshwater have any say?

Your LFS wants to sell you fish. If those fish do not survive the cycle (they probably won't), you will need to buy more - er go, they will tell you to put them in much sooner than you should.

 

Your ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate readings mean nothing right now - the cycle has not started. Add some food and wait a few days, you should start getting an ammonia reading. From then on, the cycle will carry on like normal. It may take two weeks, it may take a month, you won't know until it's done. :)

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Your LFS wants to sell you fish. If those fish do not survive the cycle (they probably won't), you will need to buy more - er go, they will tell you to put them in much sooner than you should.

 

Your ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate readings mean nothing right now - the cycle has not started. Add some food and wait a few days, you should start getting an ammonia reading. From then on, the cycle will carry on like normal. It may take two weeks, it may take a month, you won't know until it's done. :)

 

 

I mean.. whereever I read it says about a week is fine. Im gonna go to the store and pick up some pH tests and food to put in though. and some more Nutrafin cycle.

 

but it's ok to put live plants in now? why?

 

015561179003C.jpg

this is what I put in the first day, so I just assumed it had already gone through some kind of cycle.

i guess its some kind of powerful responsive ammonia/nitrite elimination cycle thing, but my tank is teeny so I literally only put in.. 3 ml? lol

 

 

im going to petsmart to pick up some ph tests/flake food... should i get something else?

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Put in a large amount of fast growing floating plants in it and you can probably start stocking it lightly after a week.

 

I've only ever done planted freshwater tanks. So, for my initial plants, I get a large amount of really fast growers, and after a month or so, I start switching those out for the slower ornamental growers.

 

In a tank that small, you're probably relegated to the smallest of fish like Mosquito Rasboras and Dwarf Freshwater shrimp (which are extremely cool and more fun than fish, IMO)

 

 

 

I have a 2 gallong Fluval Spec at work, and I think it's a little too small for fish. I had 5 mosquito rasboras in there for a while, but I felt like it was too small for them. I only have shrimp in there now... they don't need a lot of space, and they're really fun to watch and breed.

 

There are also some really cool dwarf freshwater lobsters available now. You need to make adjustments for their needs, but they could be fun. I've bought yellow shrimp from these guys http://www.theshrimpfarm.com/ before and they were awesome. Highly recommended.

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Put in a large amount of fast growing floating plants in it and you can probably start stocking it lightly after a week.

 

I've only ever done planted freshwater tanks. So, for my initial plants, I get a large amount of really fast growers, and after a month or so, I start switching those out for the slower ornamental growers.

 

In a tank that small, you're probably relegated to the smallest of fish like Mosquito Rasboras and Dwarf Freshwater shrimp (which are extremely cool and more fun than fish, IMO)

 

 

 

I have a 2 gallong Fluval Spec at work, and I think it's a little too small for fish. I had 5 mosquito rasboras in there for a while, but I felt like it was too small for them. I only have shrimp in there now... they don't need a lot of space, and they're really fun to watch and breed.

 

There are also some really cool dwarf freshwater lobsters available now. You need to make adjustments for their needs, but they could be fun. I've bought yellow shrimp from these guys http://www.theshrimpfarm.com/ before and they were awesome. Highly recommended.

 

Thanks for the info. I was inspired by the exact same tank as mine that they had on display at a LFS, they had it setup really neatly with lots of plants and a few smaller guppies (i think maybe 1-2 tetras) and a bunch of teeny red shrimp that I'm definitely going to look into, probably red cherry shrimp but just glanced at them. Kinda wanted to mimic what they had going on. also gonna put a little piece of driftwood coming up from the back.

 

What lobsters can go into a 3g?

 

I plan on buying a couple freshwater plants right now (gonna run to an LFS instead of petsmart) and some flake food and put a tiny bit of food in to make sure my cycles going good

 

Dude that is a great website, thanks. Im gonna look into buying some shrimp from there later on. Im afraid 10 shrimp might be too much and thats one of the smallest quantities they will ship in. I might go with 5 of those blue ones. but I wanted to maybe throw in one of the red ones from my LFS, but i dont think those 2 are compatible :(

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I mean.. whereever I read it says about a week is fine. Im gonna go to the store and pick up some pH tests and food to put in though. and some more Nutrafin cycle.

 

but it's ok to put live plants in now? why?

 

015561179003C.jpg

this is what I put in the first day, so I just assumed it had already gone through some kind of cycle.

i guess its some kind of powerful responsive ammonia/nitrite elimination cycle thing, but my tank is teeny so I literally only put in.. 3 ml? lol

 

 

im going to petsmart to pick up some ph tests/flake food... should i get something else?

The only true live nitrifying bacteria are in "Dr. Tim's One and Only", that product does not contain live bacteria. It will, however, give an ammonia source to start your cycle, so you can probably skip out on the food.

 

FWIW, I've never seen nor heard of a non-seeded tank cycling in a week, ever. It just doesn't happen, nitrobacter that process ammonia just don't duplicate that fast.

 

Put in a large amount of fast growing floating plants in it and you can probably start stocking it lightly after a week.

 

I've only ever done planted freshwater tanks. So, for my initial plants, I get a large amount of really fast growers, and after a month or so, I start switching those out for the slower ornamental growers.

 

In a tank that small, you're probably relegated to the smallest of fish like Mosquito Rasboras and Dwarf Freshwater shrimp (which are extremely cool and more fun than fish, IMO)

 

 

 

I have a 2 gallong Fluval Spec at work, and I think it's a little too small for fish. I had 5 mosquito rasboras in there for a while, but I felt like it was too small for them. I only have shrimp in there now... they don't need a lot of space, and they're really fun to watch and breed.

 

There are also some really cool dwarf freshwater lobsters available now. You need to make adjustments for their needs, but they could be fun. I've bought yellow shrimp from these guys http://www.theshrimpfarm.com/ before and they were awesome. Highly recommended.

I would highly recommend dwarf shrimp. You can only put a single color morph of each genus (eg, neocaridina, such as red cherry, sakura, blue pearl, or orange, and caridina, such as crystal red/black, orange-eyed blue tigers, etc, but caridina take a lot of extra work to keep healthy and breeding, the neocaridina can pretty much survive irradiated water and still be ok ;) ) or else they will interbreed, and the offspring will be brown.

 

Thanks for the info. I was inspired by the exact same tank as mine that they had on display at a LFS, they had it setup really neatly with lots of plants and a few smaller guppies (i think maybe 1-2 tetras) and a bunch of teeny red shrimp that I'm definitely going to look into, probably red cherry shrimp but just glanced at them. Kinda wanted to mimic what they had going on. also gonna put a little piece of driftwood coming up from the back.

 

What lobsters can go into a 3g?

 

I plan on buying a couple freshwater plants right now (gonna run to an LFS instead of petsmart) and some flake food and put a tiny bit of food in to make sure my cycles going good

 

Dude that is a great website, thanks. Im gonna look into buying some shrimp from there later on. Im afraid 10 shrimp might be too much and thats one of the smallest quantities they will ship in. I might go with 5 of those blue ones. but I wanted to maybe throw in one of the red ones from my LFS, but i dont think those 2 are compatible :(

Also check out http://www.plantedtank.net/ they've got a big community with everything you'd ever want to know about plants, dwarf shrimp, etc. :)

 

If you want any plants, let me know. I've got a sprig of staurogyne repens, some peacock moss (attach it to your driftwood and it looks badass), and a mini Marimo moss ball you can have for cost of shipping.

 

Mexican Orange Dwarf is about it.

+1, aka CPO, Cambarellus Patzcuarensis var. Orange

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The only true live nitrifying bacteria are in "Dr. Tim's One and Only", that product does not contain live bacteria. It will, however, give an ammonia source to start your cycle, so you can probably skip out on the food.

 

FWIW, I've never seen nor heard of a non-seeded tank cycling in a week, ever. It just doesn't happen, nitrobacter that process ammonia just don't duplicate that fast.

 

 

I would highly recommend dwarf shrimp. You can only put a single color morph of each genus (eg, neocaridina, such as red cherry, sakura, blue pearl, or orange, and caridina, such as crystal red/black, orange-eyed blue tigers, etc, but caridina take a lot of extra work to keep healthy and breeding, the neocaridina can pretty much survive irradiated water and still be ok ;) ) or else they will interbreed, and the offspring will be brown.

 

 

Also check out http://www.plantedtank.net/ they've got a big community with everything you'd ever want to know about plants, dwarf shrimp, etc. :)

 

If you want any plants, let me know. I've got a sprig of staurogyne repens, some peacock moss (attach it to your driftwood and it looks badass), and a mini Marimo moss ball you can have for cost of shipping.

 

 

+1, aka CPO, Cambarellus Patzcuarensis var. Orange

 

So, I'm gonna get some flake food right now and sprinkle some in then test and wait a while, but I was planning on buying a couple live plants right now as well and the driftwood just to get started.

 

About the dwarf shrimp, that website up there only sells them in like packs of 5 or 10. You're saying I can't get more than 1 of each color? Or they will just start making ugly brown babies?

...Why would they sell them in packs of 5 then! :\ That just %&s on everything, haha.

 

I'm gonna look up what your plants look like but I would love to have them. How much is shipping?

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So, I'm gonna get some flake food right now and sprinkle some in then test and wait a while, but I was planning on buying a couple live plants right now as well and the driftwood just to get started.

 

About the dwarf shrimp, that website up there only sells them in like packs of 5 or 10. You're saying I can't get more than 1 of each color? Or they will just start making ugly brown babies?

...Why would they sell them in packs of 5 then! :\ That just %&s on everything, haha.

 

I'm gonna look up what your plants look like but I would love to have them. How much is shipping?

No, you can only keep one color, eg, all red, all orange, etc.

 

Shipping is $7-10 depending on what I can fit them in, just sending them priority mail.

 

Staurogyne repens:

staurogyne_repens.jpg

 

peacock moss:

Peacock-Moss-On-Rock-01.jpg

 

Marimo moss ball (this one is ~1/2"):

Cute%20Little%20Green%20Ball%2C%20Marimo%2002.jpg

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No, you can only keep one color, eg, all red, all orange, etc.

 

Shipping is $7-10 depending on what I can fit them in, just sending them priority mail.

 

Staurogyne repens:

staurogyne_repens.jpg

 

peacock moss:

Peacock-Moss-On-Rock-01.jpg

 

Marimo moss ball (this one is ~1/2"):

Cute%20Little%20Green%20Ball,%20Marimo%2002.jpg

 

I don't need the moss ball but those other ones would be sick! I'd pay shipping. Will they live?

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You'll still need to wait about a month for it to cycle. In the meantime, you can start adding plants, they'll appreciate the extra nitrogen.

nothing wrong with waiting a month, but thats kind of long ime. a week is usually what ive done with a basic run of the mill FW. as with a SW you want to achive a balance....i wouldnt introduce inverts in a week. FW fish usually do ok.

 

that being said, i will run carbon heavy in the begining and slowly taper it off around when the wood/dead leaves stop putting out as much tannins and my plants start to root.(a month, go figure) i just use sponges in my filters now.

 

its been a while since ive tested my guppy tank, but last time i checked alot of the api tests for basic stuff, ph, nitrates etc are the same for FW.

 

dont go supplement heavy. a little goes a long way. if you are using a quality substrate and just "easy" plants, ferts can be overkill. peroxide will get rid of black hair algae, but go easy with it, it will burn your fish's gills.

 

youll never get an ugly saltwater like cycle, but if your levels get off kilter your fish/inverts will pay. again, not as drastic as SW. youll have small spots of pest algea at first and that will go away with introduction of more plants. probably around a month...

 

dont over think it. its easy. clean water+plants+light+water movement. it will get better and more stable with age, probably why dude is telling you a month. can it be done quicker? yeah.....sure. if you already got one FW going you can jumpstart another one by using a seasoned filter from the other tank in it.

 

you need a bigger tank, 3g is not much drinking water

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nothing wrong with waiting a month, but thats kind of long ime. a week is usually what ive done with a basic run of the mill FW. as with a SW you want to achive a balance....i wouldnt introduce inverts in a week. FW fish usually do ok.

 

that being said, i will run carbon heavy in the begining and slowly taper it off around when the wood/dead leaves stop putting out as much tannins and my plants start to root.(a month, go figure) i just use sponges in my filters now.

 

its been a while since ive tested my guppy tank, but last time i checked alot of the api tests for basic stuff, ph, nitrates etc are the same for FW.

 

dont go supplement heavy. a little goes a long way. if you are using a quality substrate and just "easy" plants, ferts can be overkill. peroxide will get rid of black hair algae, but go easy with it, it will burn your fish's gills.

 

youll never get an ugly saltwater like cycle, but if your levels get off kilter your fish/inverts will pay. again, not as drastic as SW. youll have small spots of pest algea at first and that will go away with introduction of more plants. probably around a month...

 

dont over think it. its easy. clean water+plants+light+water movement. it will get better and more stable with age, probably why dude is telling you a month. can it be done quicker? yeah.....sure. if you already got one FW going you can jumpstart another one by using a seasoned filter from the other tank in it.

 

you need a bigger tank, 3g is not much drinking water

 

yeah everyones telling me oh my god get this fertilizer for your plants etc.. im putting in under 10 plants and a couple fish/dwarf shrimp. is a fertilizer necessary seriously? It seems complicated for a FW. I think I will get the Fluorish and Fluroish excell to provide good nutrients for them.. but still iffy on the fertilizer.

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id go easy on the ferts, but excell and florouish are good starts. like i said, it depends on plants. if you just fill it with java fern and similar easy plants, not a deal breaker. if you are trying to carpet the ground, then you will def. need a carbon source.

 

slow your roll on the shrimps till you get the tank stable, just like in SW, they will pay if your water isnt up to par. if not more quickly.

 

i usually operate under a "less is more" philosophy.

 

you should hit the heads up on plantedtank.com(net?) for more in depth info on ferts, co2 and the like.

 

again, less is more, i get by fine with no co2. it might be ugly right now, but my FW hasnt had a WC or even anyone that looks at it with love in 8 months. i cant wait to get home and clean it up.

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Also, I don't see why you couldn't put 10 dwarf shrimp into a 3 gallon tank. They get along just fine and aren't like fish, they don't need to swim around. If it's a planted tank, there will be lots of things for them to clean. They are natural algae eaters and don't require much food. They're also extremely low bioload.

 

As for mixing of different breeds, there are charts that show which ones can't go together.

 

Compatibility-Chart.gif

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