New to my tank, Need advice, and also a question about substrate

[figuare9]

I bought a used tank from a guy that (by the looks of it when I got it) never took care of it. It was a freshwater tank, and still is.. When I got the tank, I cleaned it thoroughly, rinsed the gravel, took the tank outside and washed it, I also had to scrap and clean the inside and out with glass cleaner. I was told to avoid this, but I rinsed and scrubbed it down very well afterwards. I put water in it, and tested it multiple times to get the PH level where I wanted it.. Waited a few days, and dropped in two bala sharks. I was really excited! I know I should've waited longer to put fish in, but I kind of expected them to die because this is my first tank, and I've never before had to worry about owning/maintaining a tank. Long story short, It's now become a hobby that I really enjoy. I now have 3 bala's in it, 3 pictus catfish, 10 tiger barbs, and the gf just showed up with 3 fat ugly things.. don't care for them, nor do I know what they are.. haha but hey whatever they all seem to get along very well. I do have a few questions tho... First off, I shouldn't have rushed this, I know now looking back at it that I did things wrong, and I'm not happy with what I've got for a tank.. My fish seem perfectly healthy, they're energetic, eat right, i think.. lol and they seem pretty normal. I'm happy with my fish, but not the tank, or substrate. Now for the questions.

My bala sharks seem to NEVER go up top to eat.. they seem to eat off the ground, or my center log. is this normal? (my tiger barbs are pigs, and I almost need to watch my hand when I feed them lol, and i feed them 2-3 times a day!)

I really want to change my substrate.. I HATE the gravel in this tank.. Can I use pool filter sand? I want something white, and fine, but I want my filter system to last. If I can use sand, how do I change the substrate? do i need to drain the tank? transfer the fish? etc.

What should the water level be for my tank? its big (55g).. do i need a powerhead? Does having a 10 inch bubbler kind of do the same thing?

My heater keeps the tank at about 82-84 degrees.. on low.. is this too hot? I've been trying to meet the difference by unplugging the heater at night, only cools it by about 7 degrees by the following day..

I'd just like some pointers/tips. I'm new.. and I've become attached to my swimming little friends I'm feeding them Large tropical fish flakes, baby bites, and tetrafin floating pellets. but nothing is eating the pellets, is it because they're too big for my fish? my sharks are only 3-4 inches right now. the flakes get eatin by just about everything, and the baby bites get destroyed by the barbs along with the flakes. Oh, I also have 3 little algea bottom feeder things too. they seem to do really well. I forgot what they're called.

Here's a picture of my tank, you can see the water level, and design, and a few fish.

 

[figuare9]

Oh, I forgot to add.. My water has been in for almost 3 weeks.. its getting kind of dirty. Should I do a waterchange? How much water do i need to change out? And how often should i do it?

 

[tcarswell]

Oh, I forgot to add.. My water has been in for almost 3 weeks.. its getting kind of dirty. Should I do a waterchange? How much water do i need to change out? And how often should i do it?

Do you have a test kit? Is the tank cycled ?

Either way if its just started bare and has no cycling besides what has happened with you adding fish id do a 25% water change ASAP with a gravel cleaner then 2-3 days later a 50% water change. Im assuming you restarted the tank and did not keep any live bacteria from the previous owner...

PS is that a return air for your heating/cooling or a supply air that is underneath inside your stand...

 

[Poklei]

a bubbler is fine u dont need a powerhead unless u want more current, you dont need to do water changes as long as u have a decent filter for a 55 gallon. only time u may want to do a water change is if ur gravel is too dirty. i havent done any water changes except add water after it evaporates. some delicate fish like discus need a lot of water changes.
the hotter the water the less oxygen there is so keep a bubbler. you may not need to even use a heater, i only use my in winter time. bala sharks are bottom feeders its normal. if you want to change the substrate you can grab it out or use a large tube to suck it out and then replace the water and redo it over again until ur gravel is out.

 

[MonsterMinis]

1.) get your water tested on a regular basis. (minimal once a month, and at any time anything appears fishy.)

2.) 25-50% Water Change (WC) a week is reccomended. Not doing WC's increases toxic ammonia which is in a "dormant state" and an increase in temp iir over 82deg will trigger it to become toxic once more.. and obliterate your tank. I've personally had it happen.

3.) Sounds like your tanks about fully sticked. The size of the Bala's may become an issue eventually. and I've heard pictus can get territorial w/ eachother as they mature. 2 things to be wary of. and from your pictures it looks like your GF brought home some Dwarf Gouramis. which should be fine. They may squabble w/ eachother but a trio was good advise unless 2 gang up on one eventually.

4.) You'll also want to rinse your filter pads weekly ideally, and change them out compleately once a month.

5.) try moving the heater closer to the water ouput on your filter. more water movement should disperse the heat better. or by adding more water movement in general should drop the temp. 76-82 is generally an ideal range. turning the tank lights off, closeing shades in the room the tank is in. can also drop the temp. also make sure your useing an internal floating thermometer not one of those stick on the side ones. They tend to be wrong.

6.) Pool filter sand is great! The best way in my experiance of getting gravel out of an established tank.. is a handy dandy trusty fish net! scoop it out w/ a net into a bucket. Or you can also Syphon it out w/ multiple WC's

 

[figuare9]

Yea, the pictus are already territorial, and screaming at each other... I've heard them a couple of times although I think they're all retarded, because just about 90 percent of the time the sit and swim up and down against the corner in the glass. they do this all day.. Wonder if something's wrong with em.. I have made a nice deep cave for them, but only one goes in at a time. Also what do you mean by "is the tank cycled?" and as far as getting the water tested, are you talking about a PH test kit? or another kind.

 

[figuare9]

sorry to double post, twice now.. but there's no edit button, I'm still curious about the tetrafin floating pellets.. Any idea why they aren't getting eatin?

 

[knifegill]

you dont need to do water changes as long as u have a decent filter for a 55 gallon. only time u may want to do a water change is if ur gravel is too dirty. i havent done any water changes except add water after it evaporates. some delicate fish like discus need a lot of water changes.

 

[Fishman0]

make sure you cycle the tank so you dont loose any fish from sickness, try to do partial water changes, also regarding the sand, i use PFS in one of my tanks and it is good so far.

the PFS is not "white" but is light in color. many people use a collinder/strainer to remove the substrate and then add the thouroughly rinsed sand.

there are many threads about the sand as i have one and is pretty good on the advice from others.

good luck

 

[MonsterMinis]

PH/ammonia/nitrate/nitrite are the most important. KH or hardness isn't as important unless you're looking at more sensitive fish. The Pictus may be reacting to less then ideal water conditions.