Yo Yo Loaches Questions?????!!!!

[Yo_Yo_Luver_69]

he he ok.

[Yo_Yo_Luver_69]

BTW i am putting effort in. for all u ppl who think im not.
i'm sorry im not as educated as u, im sorry that u think im not trying, im sorry that u think that im this total loser, but wutev.
i just wanted to ask a few questions, not start a war.

[Mark in Vancouver]

We all come to this hobby with different experience, and we come to this forum with different questions and needs. Please understand that when people want to help, they need information.

You also need to understand that advice, once given, is what it is. It is the help you are asking for - even if you didn't expect the information. The learning curve is very important for all people keeping loaches - or fish, or any other animal.

[helen nightingale]

how do you think some people here got educated? we all have to start from scratch, ask questions, and most importantly, LISTEN to the advice we were being given. it is also important to realise that the fixed ideas we hold, may not always be right, and we have to sometimes accept we were wrong, and change our actions and our attitudes

do you know how much ammonia, nitrite and nitrate there is in your tank water?

[Yo_Yo_Luver_69]

u think im not listening to what u guys are saying?
and i don't think your wrong, and i don't think im right.
if i thought i was right, I would have never asked the question in the first place.
i don't know wut the nitrates or nitrites or ammonia is in my tank.

[starsplitter7]

Where are you at? If you live in the US, take your water from each tank to PetSmart and ask them to check the water for you. Ask them to tell you the readings and write them down and post it here. It is Free. Most Fish selling stores will do it for you for free as a service. Above .25 for Ammonia and Nitrite will make you fish sick. It needs to be 0.

When your fish goes to the bathroom in the tank, they produce Ammonia. This is extremely toxic for your fish and will kill them within days. But the good news is that when your tank ages it grows bacteria (in the filter, on the walls, gravel, decoration) that eat Ammonia and turn it into Nitrite. Unfortunately Nitrite is also toxic, but another bacteria eats Nitrite, and turns it into Nitrate. The Nitrate is much less toxic, and when you change water you remove the Nitrate. That is the reason you should remove about 25% of your fish water every week. It keeps the fish from swimming in their waste. When they do that, they get sick. Imagine living in your bathroom and never leaving, and the toilet won't flush.

I am new too. I have been learning a lot and applying it to my fish. I have seven tanks, and I remove about 25% of the water from every tank every week. I consider it a work out as I schlep a 5 gallon bucket of water from my tank to outside to water my plants. Then I schlep water from the sink to the tank. I have calculated that I can lift and carry a total of 800 pounds during a water change. Very important to add some water conditioner to the water coming from the faucet. I use Prime. It is the cheapest and removes the most junk from the water. It is the cheapest because you only use 1 mL per 10 gallons of water.

Good luck.

[Yo_Yo_Luver_69]

funny, i put the water from my tanks, in the flowers too!
yea, that's a good idea.
i hear that you can get like a kit that tells you what the nitrates, and ammonia is.
do these work?
and how much would they cost.

(BTW i dont live in the U.S. i live in Canada.
but the pet stores here will do the same thing)

[starsplitter7]

funny, i put the water from my tanks, in the flowers too!
yea, that's a good idea.
i hear that you can get like a kit that tells you what the nitrates, and ammonia is.
do these work?
and how much would they cost.

(BTW i dont live in the U.S. i live in Canada.
but the pet stores here will do the same thing)

Yes, there are kits. That's what most people use, because then you can test anytime, or everyday. The liquid tests are better than the strips.

My kit was about $30 and it is good for hundreds of tests (and it saves gas). It tests Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrate and pH. It is one of the most important pieces of equipment I use. I keep a chart of daily fish activity. I write down each tank, the temp, when I change or rinse my filters, how much water I change, if I treat my tanks and the readings. I keep the chart so I do not lose of time, and so if there is a problem, I can go back and figure out what may have caused the problem.

I have another chart to track my fish. What fish I have, births, eggs, problems, compatibility issues . . .

I use API Freshwater kit, and I am sure those are probably sold in Canada. Which Province are you from? Most of my family lives in Ontario. I used to live in a suburb of Windsor.

[Yo_Yo_Luver_69]

I live in Burlington, Ontario.
Yea, I might look into those kits.
they look like they're worth the money.