Hello everyone! This is my first planted tank and i really want to do it right. Its 20 gallons, I'd love larger but my apartment has weight restrictions for fish tanks.
Currently i have nine cardinal tetras, four dwarf kuhli loaches (i will be adding at least two more, I didnt realize I needed a group of six or more) and three hitch hiker snails that came with plants but I'm unsure of what species.
Tank was fully cycled before adding fish, took about three weeks.
0 ammonia, 0 nitrite, 0 nitrate. pH of about 7. Temp is 79°F
Questions i have
Is it normal to remain at zero nitrates? I've only ever seen a positive test for ammonia, ive never seen a positive for nitrite or nitrate but ammonia is also now back to zero. I use the API freshwater testing kit and was able to get ammonia up to about 0.5ppm before it returned to zero. Had ammonia at 0.25ppm for two days after adding the tetras but then returned back to zero.
Can I safely add more fish, or am i bordering on overstocked? I was considering a honey gourami.
Any other advice?
Posted by ReadyConcert3230
1 Comment
Great looking tank, your not overstocked at all. I would definitely add at least 2 more kuhli’s. Do you see much of the 4 you already have?
Kuhli’s would definitely appreciate more hiding places on the bottom of the tank. This will get better once your plants grow in a bit more.
At a later date you could definitely add a few more cardinal tetra’s. I’ve got 13 (ordered 12 but I got a bonus one) in my 20 gallon.
I think honey gouramis could be added at a later date definitely, you just need to gradually add new stock especially in a new tank.
Another species I’d recommend is Pygmy cories, they are really fun to watch and are so small with a low bioload.
Don’t know exactly what plants you have but adding some fast growing stem plants or floating plants can be helpful in keeping in keeping parameters in check as well as helping in outcompeting algae.