New RBP Mom- Need advice and help

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
Matteus said:
Hi T Tnballgirl - welcome to mfk. Happy to have you here with us.

a couple quick things that I would like to address that I’m not sure if we’re already addressed

you said your heater was going on intermittently. That should be normal. Tank heaters typically have a thermostat in them and they shut off when they reach temp according to that heaters calibration. The best heaters are fully submersible, this way you can put them horizontally in a tank to avoid them turning on and off so much because of the internal thermostat shutting it off when the warm water rises to where the thermostat is. Another little gadget you could pick up is an inkbird controller which has a separate thermostat and will add another layer of protection to a heater being stuck in the on position. It has its own separate probe that reads the temp that you can place on the opiate side of the tank to ensure the heat is regulated better.

piranhas are typically quite shy until they are almost fully adult size/age. So they would be quite skittish and hide lots. It is good for them if you have hiding spots, not so much for you wanting to see them ?.

it’s good that you are putting together the 70 g. They will act differently once they have more room.

I’m not sure if you have them in the 70 or not yet, but you mentioned bacteria growing in it. The nitrite cycle doesn’t start unless there is an ammonia source, I can’t remember if you had been versed with this yet or not. A good start of the new tank is that once the smaller filters have bb established them you can transfer that seasoned media over and you don’t have to start over again.

great job so far. You seem to have the right attitude.

ps. The fluval canisters you are mentioning here have leaking issues that are caused from faulty o-rings. They can get gunk caught in them or even break and cause leaks. I had this happen to my 70g (now) piranha tank. The 07 series that you are talking about are a newer more improved-version that they may have fixed these issues on. If I were in your position about to choose which one to use- would pay a bit more and get the fx4 personally knowing what I know now. But if you do get the 307 it should work fine.
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Heater: I'm referring to the one in the new tank, wasnt sure if I was clear. But yes, I turned it on set at 80 and the next morning it was warm water to the touch. Ever since, it's cold. I cut it off and back on again, same thing. Water warmed overnight, and then cold ever since. I've read the reviews and they arent favorable for this particular one. But to be honest, I cant find a brand that DOES have overwhelming good reviews. And i certainly dont want boiled, shocked or frozen fish.

New tank: That is my plan. I have everything set up and put the smaller filter on just to get the water flowing etc. I have read that you can add bacteria OR add flake food to start the cycle. But I have not done that.

My attitude SUCKS right now. I didnt mean to like fish. But now I do, and tonight there was a BIGGER chunk from ones back. I DO feel pressured to get them moved but understand that it's not the best thing.....very anxious. I am afraid that I will end up with one....or .......? none.
 
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Keep your head up. We have a saying in this hobby- “fish die”. All we can do is learn from our mistakes and aim to keep the next ones in better health than before.

it can be hard to get started. Especially starting without an understanding of the nitrate cycle. But once you get over that hump of a learning curve it is fairly simple and typically easy sailing from there.
 
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Maybe cut up some egg crate and segregate the current tank into 3 parts, add salt get them healed, then transfer to 70 after cycled...
 
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Struggling. One is eaten up pretty bad.. along back and tail fin. One has a chunk missing and one is normal. Eating aggressively for the first time since theyve been here.
 
Tnballgirl said:
Struggling. One is eaten up pretty bad.. along back and tail fin. One has a chunk missing and one is normal. Eating aggressively for the first time since theyve been here.
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Do have any small aquarium's or air pumps ? The one that is probably not nipped as bad is the dominant one of the group. I suggest you seperate them. If possible let the one badly chewed up be placed in a fish net.
 
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I dont as of yet. The one that's unharmed completely always stays to itself and almost burrows down into the gravel. I think the ones with the bites are fighting each other.
 
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