Quality of Water

[ehlim]

For a new tank and especially for a newbie, what are the "must do" and "good to do" water parameter checks? Req advice on the regime to follow and the recommended brands. Tks.

[|squee|]

Um, I'm not sure how to answer you but when I have a new tank set up, I generally wait for the tank water to clear adequately first before adding in shrimp and otocinclus, and once my aquascape has more or less started to kick off in growth, I add the main fish.

Ammonia, nitrite, nitrate testing has never been done, since you can easily observe the health of a tank and in fact it's all about patience.

If you want to check how good your water has become, I'd say check for clarity, presence of ammonia/nitrite, pH, kH and gH levels.

[bleez]

I check only for pH and kH to monitor the co2 levels. Also use mulm from established tanks to kickstart the bb colony. Adding in ammonia suckers like hornworts and floating plants are also important to prevent unwanted algae visits. Oh and start with a low bioload too....

Overall, I'd say maintaining good co2 levels is of utmost importance else the plants don't grow well and the whole system remains screwed

[barmby]

new tank - keep your lighting period in check is also important.