I have a new fish tank that I was setting up, I poured the water in and am giving it a few days before I buy the fish. The guy at the fish store said I would need declorinators, conditioning salts and some pH balancing thing. I called my brother who has fish and he said that the pet guy just wants to sell useless stuff. He said he always uses tap water and as long as you let it rest for a day the water will be fine, I just wanted a final opinion before I got the fish. Can the tap water kill my fish, or will they be fine because of the water being filtered for a few days without any fish in it.
It's a 10 gallon tank and I will put in some ghost shrimp, a few of these blushing tetras a couple scissortail rasboras a ghost catfish or 2 maybe a loach, and a couple snails.
>>2146227
2 things here:
1. Some tap water has chlorine, this goes away by itself if you let the water sit for a while. Other tap water has chloramine, chlorine bonded to ammonia, this absolutely needs a water dechlorinator to get rid of.
2. You need to cycle the tank before putting fish in it, or the fish will die of ammonia poisoning.
Definitely get conditioner, ammonia in the water is bad for fish. Get a live plant in their too, it absorbs that and other bad stuff.
I don't even know what "conditioning salts" are. You do need dechlorinating solution. You don't need "some pH balancing thing" unless your tap water has a funny pH.
>Can the tap water kill my fish, or will they be fine because of the water being filtered for a few days without any fish in it.
I think by this point the chlorine will have evaporated. You still need to dechlorinate water that you add to the tank.
>It's a 10 gallon tank and I will put in some ghost shrimp, a few of these blushing tetras a couple scissortail rasboras a ghost catfish or 2 maybe a loach, and a couple snails.
Slow down there. It sounds like you're on the way to overstocked. And I can't think of a species of loach that is suitable for a 10 gallon. Loaches, tetras and rasboras are both going to want to be in groups of at least 5~6. I would pick either tetras or rasboras.
>>2146251
I don't think you need aquarium salt, but your tank seems overstocked, that's way too many creatures for a 10 gallon.
>>2146227
you're doing everything wrong and all your animals will die.
I think that's normal though.
carry on.
>>2146243
It was a black kuhli loach, it looked tiny in the store and there was only one when I went in.
I thought it was big enough, but you are right, I might just do the rasboras and get more of them and if I upside to a 20 gallon I will get the blushing tetras.
Do you think the ghost shrimp would be fine? They would be on the bottom of the tank and wouldn't bother the other fish.
This is my tank right now, I have a few decorations coming tomorrow, like a skull and some barrels they can swim through. Plus the plants when my brother gets down
>>2146273
ghost shrimp will be okay unless you dont dechlorinate. ammonia will kill Ghost Shrimp overnight so better safe than sorry.
Also hope you've cycled that tank for at LEAST 2 weeks. Make sure you get some plants
