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Posted by Zootal on January 23, 2009, 8:35 pm
Please log in for more thread options I would add a half dozen more Neons. That isn't that much of a load for a
tank that big, and the fish will be much happier with a few more of their
buds to socialize with. I've seen the same thing in large tanks with few
fish, especially if the fish aren't used to the tank. Give them a bit of
time and their appetites will improve. They won't starve.
> I'm setting up a new tank (29gal). So far I have only 3 neon tetras
> in the tank with no other fish. My problem is that the neons hang out
> near the bottom which wouldn't be a problem but they seem to not
> notice when I place food in the tank. I'm feeding them flake food and
> they often don't notice the food until it starts to get soggy and
> float to the bottom. often it makes it all the way to the bottom
> before they notice and as such, never gets eaten. I'm only feeding 3
> or 4 flakes so I'm sure I'm not really over-feeding but I'm not sure
> how to 'train' them to get them to notice the food floating at the top
> of the tank. Any suggestions regarding this?
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Posted by Tynk on January 23, 2009, 9:45 pm
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> I would add a half dozen more Neons. That isn't that much of a load for a
> tank that big, and the fish will be much happier with a few more of their
> buds to socialize with. I've seen the same thing in large tanks with few
> fish, especially if the fish aren't used to the tank. Give them a bit of
> time and their appetites will improve. They won't starve.
>
>
>
> > I'm setting up a new tank (29gal). =A0So far I have only 3 neon tetras
> > in the tank with no other fish. My problem is that the neons hang out
> > near the bottom which wouldn't be a problem but they seem to not
> > notice when I place food in the tank. =A0I'm feeding them flake food an=
d
> > they often don't notice the food until it starts to get soggy and
> > float to the bottom. =A0often it makes it all the way to the bottom
> > before they notice and as such, never gets eaten. =A0I'm only feeding 3
> > or 4 flakes so I'm sure I'm not really over-feeding but I'm not sure
> > how to 'train' them to get them to notice the food floating at the top
> > of the tank. =A0Any suggestions regarding this?
I wouldn't advise adding anymore fish, especially Neons right now.
It's hard enough to cycle a tank with neons, and you're advising to
add 6 more at once. Not a good idea.
As for the pH being 8.0 that's ok, as long as they were either
acclimated slowly, or came from the same water source (store has the
same source as your home).
I have very hard water that has a pH that runs 8.2 on a good day.
However, neons actually thrive in it. They also grow to maximum size
(1 1/2" long).
If you start monkeying around with the pH you risk screwing things up.
pH is usually better left alone. There are some types of fish that are
quite specific in their needs, such as Discus. However, Neons adjust
well to many types of water.
I've heard about too many tanks crashing because somebody advised that
the pH be messed with.
Unless you're breeding these fish, leave it alone.
Keep up with water changes (weekly) and vacuum the gravel monthly, or
more if needed.
Over feeding is a problem common to newcomers to the hobby, as well as
not cleaning the tank enough.
Adding a few more neons is a great idea in 2-3 weeks.
Then after a 2-3 more weeks you can add something else compatible.
When starting a brand new tank, patience is the key. Also good advice
is very important.
Sadly, many times the worst advise you can get will come from a pet
store. =3D /
If you add a bunch more fish now (like another poster advised) you
will then run the risk of harming these fish with what's referred to
as "new tank syndrome".
The bacteria that cycle the tank need to grow. They process the
ammonia into nitrites. Then another type of bacteria converts the
nitrite into nitrate.
This takes time. During the conversion the ammonia levels can become
toxic if you don't do water changes, or add too many fish too soon.
'The slower the better.
Don't bother with products like Stress Zyme, Bio Zyme, etc. They have
the wrong type of bacteria and will NOT cycle your tank.
It's a waste of money.
Products such as Bio Spira (and others that contain Nitrospira
bacteria) *do* cycle your tank and make it safe.
They're just expensive and hard to find.
Since you're already cycling with fish (bad choice on the neons
though), and since neons are sensitive to ammonia and nitrites, you
want to go as slow as possible.
Otherwise you'll end up with dead neons.
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Posted by Zootal on January 24, 2009, 6:04 pm
Please log in for more thread options > I wouldn't advise adding anymore fish, especially Neons right now.
> It's hard enough to cycle a tank with neons, and you're advising to
> add 6 more at once. Not a good idea.
I've done it many many times. Worked for me. Fish lived a long time. Eight
neons in a 29 gallon tank is not too many fish for a new tank IMNSHO.
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Posted by Ieyasu on January 24, 2009, 2:56 pm
Please log in for more thread options
> I'm setting up a new tank (29gal). So far I have only 3 neon tetras
> in the tank with no other fish. My problem is that the neons hang out
> near the bottom which wouldn't be a problem but they seem to not
> notice when I place food in the tank. I'm feeding them flake food and
> they often don't notice the food until it starts to get soggy and
> float to the bottom. often it makes it all the way to the bottom
> before they notice and as such, never gets eaten. I'm only feeding 3
> or 4 flakes so I'm sure I'm not really over-feeding but I'm not sure
> how to 'train' them to get them to notice the food floating at the top
> of the tank. Any suggestions regarding this?
Great advice from Jürgen and Tynk. I just wanted to jump in to address the
original question. Fish will sometimes be "shy" when they arrive in a new
tank, moreso when there are other sources of stress (such as amonnia/nitrite
levels from cycling your new tank) - the behavior you're seeing is not
uncommon.
My first suggestion is to make sure there are some hiding places in the
tank. A small plant or piece of driftwood they can hide behind will help
them feel more comfortable.
When you go to feed them, perform a noticeable behavior, but make sure you
do the same thing *every single time*. My method is to open the tank cover,
dip one finger into the water and splash around a bit. I put the food in
right after that. After doing this every day for a week or so, the fish
learn that finger splashes mean food and they all come up to the front of
the tank if I dip my finger in. I saw a video a while back of Takashi Amano
using a similar method when feeding angelfish - he took the food container
and tapped it in a fast rhythm on the corner of the tank before putting the
food in. After a few seconds, all the fish in the tank came over to the
corner where he was tapping and waited for the food to be dumped in.
-I
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> in the tank with no other fish. My problem is that the neons hang out
> near the bottom which wouldn't be a problem but they seem to not
> notice when I place food in the tank. I'm feeding them flake food and
> they often don't notice the food until it starts to get soggy and
> float to the bottom. often it makes it all the way to the bottom
> before they notice and as such, never gets eaten. I'm only feeding 3
> or 4 flakes so I'm sure I'm not really over-feeding but I'm not sure
> how to 'train' them to get them to notice the food floating at the top
> of the tank. Any suggestions regarding this?