when should i get other fish?

Question

i got a fish tank a few days ago
and i got a few white cloud fish
i want to get more
should i wait a lil bit or should i get more white cloud fish?
how long does cycling take?

Answer 1

A brand new tank goes through a process called cycling, during which the helpful bacteria that keeps a tank healthy become established. It can take about a month for the cycle to complete. If you add more fish while it's cycling, you can throw the cycle out of whack and prolong how long it will last. Also, tank cycling is very hard on the fish, so better to only put a few fish through all that.

So, if you can muster up enough patience, wait a month. After that, you can slowly add more fish. 1-3 at a time. Each time you add more fish, the tank will go through a new mini-cycle to accomodate the extra workload that more fish (more fish poo, more fish food) put on the aquarium.

Probably the most common mistake made by new fish hobbyists is overloading their tank too early.

Here's a great website that explains it:
http://www.bestfish.com/breakin.html

Answer 2

In order to really answer your question, we need to know a little more about your tank. How big is it, how many fish are in it, has it cycled?

Cycling can take up to a month. You should have a test kit to test for ammonia, nitrate, and nitrite. You should also have a test kit for ph. Find a book about cycling or try a few google searches for information.

Also, I would find a store that specializes in aquariums. Stay away from the chain stores like petsmart, petco, petland as they tend to be more interested in the sale than the actual care of the pet. I have found at petco and petsmart that when I ask questions they have a file cabinet that they pull out a paper on the individual fish and either give it to you or read it to you. Either way, that tells me that they really don't know the proper care for the fish.

Also, you can search for compatability. A lot of the aquarium sites have a compatability chart that you can use to get an idea of what types of fish get along together.

Hope this helps, Good Luck

Answer 3

The general rule of thumb is one fish per gallon of water in your aquarium, but that doesn't mean you can put ten whales into a ten gallon tank! (FYI: since nobody fills tanks 100% to the top, the water volume is actually less).

Of course, you have to ensure that the species get along with each other, too!

Go to your library, book store, or local aquarium retailer (most general department store pet centers aren't experts).

Answer 4

U should go where ever you got them from and ask them, they prolly kno the most :P

Answer 5

put fish in and leave the tank for a month so you can make sure there is no diseases

Answer 6

You should get more as soon as some pass away

Answer 7

when the cycling ends