bro...like u said..."you are new to the hobby" u should at least listen to these guys that have been raising piranha for years...im pretty sure most of them know what they are talking about. I learned everything I know about raising and taking care of p's on here and mines are all fine and healthy. I must agree with what everybody's been telling u and u should test your water with your own kit unless u used this stuff called bio-spira (all the other stuff they sell on the shelves at your local lfs won't cycle your tank any faster than this). I'm pretty sure when u bought your tank and all your accessories that your lfs didn't tell you about cycling process (ammonia, nitrite, nitrate) or the importance of having beneficial bacteria established before u put in your fishes. If you don't believe me about all this stuff...bring up this stuff up at your lfs that sold u your fish and if they tell u it's not important...they are bullsheiting you and should not even be running a fish store! Being a serious fish hobbiest isn't cheap and you will learn that...trust me, I was once in your situation a little over a year ago. However, regardless what anybody tells you on here, just remember....THEY ARE YOUR FISH! do whatever you want with them but if they die for some reason like an ammonia spike...you shouldn't come back on here making a new post wondering why they died because all your gonna get is an "i told u so" from a lot of people who gave u helpful info beforehand. One more thing I'm gonna add is....your water may look as clean and clear in the tank but you will never know how pure the water is unless you test it. It's just like saying...I can drink water straight from a river just because it looks clean and not have to worry about getting any diseases.
