Aerating

[Olivia Letemplier]

On a tank my size (55 gallon) and with its inhabitants (see below), do you think it's necessary to add air stores or powerheads to increase oxygen?

My four ottocats have all died in the past two weeks though I think that's because the nitrates were too high - or maybe they needed more oxygen?

[fischkopp]

What is the temperature? Are you using hang-on-the-back filters like auqaclears? Is there anything in the tank that creates surface movement?

[Olivia Letemplier]

I have a fluval 450 and one that hangs on the back of the tank that came with the tank when I bought it.  I use them both at the same time.

The norm for me is to change 20% of the water weekly and I haven't been unplugging the filters (oops, because I just read somewhere that I should be unplugging them) during the water changes.  That creates a lot of air bubbles for about 10 minutes until I add new water.  The temperature always reads at 25 degrees but I have my suspicions about that thermometer (although maybe I shouldn't because my heater heats to 25 on a constant basis and is designed for a 60-70 gallon tank).

The last ottocat that I found was stuck to the heater - They all seemed to love feeding off the suction cup at the back so I don't know if that played a factor.

[fischkopp]

That sounds good. At that temperature you should have enough oxygen int the water, unless you see other fish gasping on the surface. But an airstone never hurts either.

Otocats known to be quite sensitive; high nitrates are certainly not good for them. To bring them down, you can increase the volume of your water changes, or add faster growing plants like vallisneria, hygrophilia, witsteria, etc. to your setup to absorb those nitrates.

[Olivia Letemplier]

Thx.  I love this site - experienced people like you really help us newbies!

[dan2x38]

Have you tested your NO3 (nitrates)? I see you have spotted pleco how big is he they are huge crappers create a sh%t load of waste.

Yeah the heater coming on could be harming them too I wouldn't want to me sucking on to those heaters when they came on... LOL I never had an issue with that but they sell covers for them - never used them though even on fry tanks.

[Olivia Letemplier]

I thought I was just imagining this but I swear he had a burn mark on his belly and he was stuck on the heater.  I've also noticed the gold gouramis and molly's nosing around it occasionally.  I thought that since the heater is designed to be in the water, how could it hurt them?

My pleco is still pretty small but he's pretty busy cleaning around the tank and has grown a lot since I got him.

I will test again for nitrates tomorrow; however the last time I tested, they were a little high and I had not changed the water for two weeks (that's a mistake I am learning from).

[dan2x38]

When you say pretty high what was it? Over 20ppm is high and lelow 40ppm is OK. In my cichlid tank though I have seen it up as high as 80ppm and there are three filters but is purposely over stocked to fight aggression. I do weekly 50% (or more) WCs. It went high when I left it go for 10 days I was sick...

[Olivia Letemplier]

It was a little darker than 40.

Tonight I fed the fish a nice variety and I saw one of my cory's "chewing" food. I was very happy. After lights out I put in a little more flakes for them.

When I got home today I saw two cory's basically lying together. One had his tail over the other and later I saw all three of them together - like they were cuddling. Amazing fish!

I just checked on the cucumber slice and guess who was on top of it!  The pleco. Also two snails.

I'm having such a great time with this tank and it's becoming better as I learn more. 

[Fishnut]

Eek! You're right.  Over 40 is kinda high for Nitrates.  Maybe hold off on the otto cats until the Nitrate is stable at a low reading.  My tanks have a barely detectable level of Nitrates at all times, so it's possible with the right balance of food, water changes, filtration and (if you like) plants. 

The biggest contribution to high Nitrates between water changes is an excess of food.  Maybe cut down on the food a bit to see if that helps keep it stable between water changes.

Adding an air stone to a tank like yours is really just for aesthetics rather than functional.  I have one in one of my tanks because I like the look of it.  I've also seen some beautiful tanks with an air wand buried in the gravel so the bubbles come up from below the gravel.  When you see fish gasping at the surface for air, that's when you should add one right away...then test the water to see what else could be causing the lack of oxygen!

[Olivia Letemplier]

I thought I'd give an update on my tank and (of course) ask more questions. My tank is now testing between 10 and 20 - closer to 20 for nitrates so I seem to beon the right path. I bought two nitrogen loving plants, increased the volume of water changes and feeding less.

Now I'm turning my attention to gravel cleaning. 1. To make sure my cories don't damage their barbels and 2. To try and control my exploding snail population (I culled over 40 of them by hand last week).

My python doesn't suck up even the smallest baby snails or little black dots (I'm guessing that's waste?) Is it supposed to?

If not, can someone recommend a good vacuum (sp?) 

[bergenm]

I would check your python for a blockage - my python sucks up fully grown snails...

[Brent Shaver]

Pythons will block or at least partially.  I have to take mine apart often and clean it out.

[cdylnicki]

How big is the siphon?  Is it made for your tank size (some of the small ones don't provide much flow).  Or if it is a python, is there something caught in the piece connected to the sink?  How high do you turn on your tap?  These will all affect suction.

I would add an airstone, but keep it on a different plug.  That way, if the power goes out & your power bar does not restart, you will still have backup oxygen.

What were you feeding the ottocats?  If there is not enough foods being supplemented they may starve.  Make sure you are offering these foods when the lights go out for the night.  Keep an eye on your pleco with the ottos.  Plecos get huge (24 inches) very quickly (assuming its a common pleco) and will become more predatory with age.  Plus, they create a lot of waste!  Plus, I just see it becoming a problem fish in your (assuming) peaceful community tank setup.

Be careful with the heater during water changes.  They can possibly shatter due to the sudden change in temperature (think hot light bulb meets splash of water).  This is a rule more for your safety then anything else.

I would pick up an assasin snail or a clown/yo-yo loach.  They are quite good at killing off pest snails.

Cheers!

[dan2x38]

One way to clean a Phyton is use that plastic garden whip for weed whackers, it is cheap. You can attach a smallpiece of a pot schrubby or similar to the end and fish it through then pull it out to clean. Works great.

You mean the syphon that attachs to your tap? Just make sure the water is turned up high enough. I carefully hang a dish cloth over the tap to prevent splash. Watch that doesn't fall in the sink and plug it while draining though... 

[Fishnut]

When your python is de-clogged...if that's the issue, you don't want to let any gravel go down your drain.  There is a chance that it can get stuck in the U shaped pipe under the sink or in a other part of the drain system, accumulate over time, then it'll cost a few hours of plumber time to fix it.

[Olivia Letemplier]

What were you feeding the ottocats?  If there is not enough foods being supplemented they may starve.  Make sure you are offering these foods when the lights go out for the night.  Keep an eye on your pleco with the ottos.  Plecos get huge (24 inches) very quickly (assuming its a common pleco) and will become more predatory with age.  Plus, they create a lot of waste!  Plus, I just see it becoming a problem fish in your (assuming) peaceful community tank setup.

*sigh* ottocats need food other than the algae on the glass?  And my sweet little pleco isn't just a vegetarian?   

[dan2x38]

In a mature established tank with good water quality feeding regular amounts to the other fish is all the is need. For bottome feeders add some algae wafers or such every so often after lights out. The algae growing on the glass, on plants and decorations should sustain Ottos. Algae is always present in aquaria. If your concerned take a few auqarium safe rocks and place in a container of water in a sunny window. In a short time it will have some algae. Then just swap back and forth the rocks. I've done this to supplement shrimps diet when raising dwarf shrimp it worked great.

I've not heard of common plecos chowing down on others? Guess it is possible but think it unlikely.

[cdylnicki]

Not so much chowing on others, and more stealing their food and ignoring algae.  They can get aggressive during food time and become territorial (I have experience working at a store that took in trade-ins - Plecos usually being the #1 traded in fish along with Oscars). 

Stores sell common Plecos because they are cheap, not because they are the best.  There are other pleco options which most people are not properly informed about (bushynose/rubbernose).

In a new tank setup, most individuals do not have enough algae to support the diet of algae eaters.  Especially if there is already a dominant algae eater present.  Also, different algae eaters will eat different types of algae.  What generally happens is that they quickly eat up the natural food supply, and slowly starve as the algae cannot replenish itself quick enough.  It will depend entirely on your tank as the amount of algae between my 7 fish tanks differ depending on light types/hours on/feedings/water changes/etc.

Ottos are slow, shy fish that are happy eating algae off of plants and glass (I know this may not apply to everyone's otto cats).  When nighttime comes, who dominates but the big pleco.  The Ottos are left to feed off of whatever spaces the pleco can't get to (eg the heater).

Olivia:  I am a manager at a pet store which offers a 14 day health guarantee on our animals.  If you would like to try ottos again please let me know; together we can make this work.  I completely understand if you do not wish to support the larger stores (I myself support smaller stores when I can and have also worked previously in small pet stores), but as a fish obsessive individual my goal is to help people obtain their objectives.  Sometimes its not worth it for the beginner fish-keeper to take the monetary loss - they usually end up leaving the hobby and my goal in life is for everyone to own a fish tank that survives past 6 months.  I am not representing my location of work, just my own opinion as a fish lover.

[Olivia Letemplier]

I would like to try again with the ottocats. I really love those fish. Can you send me a pm with your store details?

Thx for the help. I'm eager to maintain a healthy tank that meets all of it's inhabitants' needss.