Splitting up one overpopulated tank into three

[Ionizer]

I've been trying to maintain a new, overpopulated 25 gallon aquarium for
nearly a month now and have just decided on a new strategy. I should
probably have done this sooner. I've just purchased two additional 10
gallon tanks and will be setting them up this weekend so that I can move
some of the fish out of our main tank some time next week. I'm wondering
how to most effectively make use of these new tanks, with a view to
establishing three healthy aquariums and saving the lives of all of our
fish.

Here's the current population of our 25 gallon tank, cut & pasted with
*very* minimal reductions from my first post to this group:
2 clown loaches, 4 rummy rose tetras, 4 balloon mollies, 5 red
wag platy, 4 penguin tetras and a few gold barbs and marigold flame
platys. Total population: approximately 35 fish.

I intend to set both new tanks up with a couple of live plants and let
them run for most of a week before transferring any fish, so I have time
to consider my options. My initial thought is to move the eight tetras to
one 10 gallon tank and the five red wag platys to the other, leaving the
remaining 22 fish in the main tank.

I'm currently battling high nitrite levels in the main tank with some
success thanks to daily 20% water changes, and I am considering using some
of that water in my two new tanks on the assumption that this will assist
the establishment of the bacterial cycle in them. (Nitrite levels
approximately 0.3) Is that a good or bad idea?

Thanks,
Ian.
(Now Playing: Doin' It Right - The Powder Blues Band)

[dfreas]

I would leave the loaches, tetras, and barbs in your main tank since
they aren't going to reproduce like rabbits. Then divide up your
mollies and platys between the two ten gallons in whatever way looks
good to you. This would also give you the option of adding salt to your
ten gallons - which many people seem to favor in molly and platy tanks
(I have never raised either so can't comment on the effectiveness or
lack thereof in adding salt to the water). When your mollies and platys
start breeding you can net the babies and dump them into the larger
tank and the barbs and tetras will eat them - that will prevent
overpopulation of the ten gallons and provide your tetras and barbs
with a fairly regular live food treat.

-Daniel

[Mary Burns]

My clowns and platies get on really well, always swiming together, so I
would leave your 2 clowns with the platies. They love the same food, either
all swimming up or all eating of gravel together.The clowns will need a much
bigger tank as they grow, but for now, up to 3" each, 25g will be ok.
Allowing 8" for 2 clowns to grow and platies x 2.5," as they grow quickly,
makes it overstocked a little in time, but fine now. Your platies will breed
quickly, unless they are same sex. In one 10g, you could get away with 8
tetra and ballon mollies (1.5" allow) with regular water changes. Gold barbs
can be fin nippers, so be careful who they are with, fast swimmers may
unsettle clowns and get the food too fast for the clowns to get their share.
I started a 25g with 2 clowns and platies, who are now in 65g. The clowns
need the space, and now a group of 5, the 10 platies love the space, with 2
angels who keep the platy population stable. Only one fry has made it in 5
months. And that tank is full, allowing free space for the clowns to grow.
The clowns have gone from 2" to 3.5" in 6 months, so be ready. If you don't
want a bigger tank sooner than later, you could take the clowns back and get
3 cories who stay much smaller. Your clowns will get to 6", many get to 8 or
9" in big tanks. I will need an even bigger tank when mine reach 6"!!! Mary
"Ionizer" > wrote in message
...
> I've been trying to maintain a new, overpopulated 25 gallon aquarium for
> nearly a month now and have just decided on a new strategy. I should
> probably have done this sooner. I've just purchased two additional 10
> gallon tanks and will be setting them up this weekend so that I can move
> some of the fish out of our main tank some time next week. I'm wondering
> how to most effectively make use of these new tanks, with a view to
> establishing three healthy aquariums and saving the lives of all of our
> fish.
>
> Here's the current population of our 25 gallon tank, cut & pasted with
> *very* minimal reductions from my first post to this group:
> 2 clown loaches, 4 rummy rose tetras, 4 balloon mollies, 5 red
> wag platy, 4 penguin tetras and a few gold barbs and marigold flame
> platys. Total population: approximately 35 fish.
>
> I intend to set both new tanks up with a couple of live plants and let
> them run for most of a week before transferring any fish, so I have time
> to consider my options. My initial thought is to move the eight tetras to
> one 10 gallon tank and the five red wag platys to the other, leaving the
> remaining 22 fish in the main tank.
>
> I'm currently battling high nitrite levels in the main tank with some
> success thanks to daily 20% water changes, and I am considering using some
> of that water in my two new tanks on the assumption that this will assist
> the establishment of the bacterial cycle in them. (Nitrite levels
> approximately 0.3) Is that a good or bad idea?
>
> Thanks,
> Ian.
> (Now Playing: Doin' It Right - The Powder Blues Band)
>
>
>

[Derek Benson]

On Sat, 23 Apr 2005 10:09:59 -0400, "Ionizer" > wrote:

>I've been trying to maintain a new, overpopulated 25 gallon aquarium for
>nearly a month now and have just decided on a new strategy. I should
>probably have done this sooner. I've just purchased two additional 10
>gallon tanks and will be setting them up this weekend so that I can move
>some of the fish out of our main tank some time next week. I'm wondering
>how to most effectively make use of these new tanks, with a view to
>establishing three healthy aquariums and saving the lives of all of our
>fish.
>
>I intend to set both new tanks up with a couple of live plants and let
>them run for most of a week before transferring any fish, so I have time
>to consider my options. My initial thought is to move the eight tetras to
>one 10 gallon tank and the five red wag platys to the other, leaving the
>remaining 22 fish in the main tank.
>
>I'm currently battling high nitrite levels in the main tank with some
>success thanks to daily 20% water changes, and I am considering using some
>of that water in my two new tanks on the assumption that this will assist
>the establishment of the bacterial cycle in them. (Nitrite levels
>approximately 0.3) Is that a good or bad idea?
>
>Thanks,
>Ian.

Definitely use water from your main tank in the new ones; fill them
about half with your tank water and half with tap water. Treat the tap
water with whatever water treatment chem that you're using. Note I do
not write "dechlorinater", whatever you use should do three things:
remove chlorine, remove chloramine, and bind heavy metals. You want to
use your old water in the new tanks to help with establishing
bacteria, yes, but also so that your fish are placed in water which is
not completely different from their current water; there will be no
shock to the fish from being moved into brand new water. Also it's a
good idea if you're using the same kind of gravel in the new tanks to
take a handful of gravel from your established tank and spread it into
the new ones, this will help seed the new tanks with the bacteria you
want.

I would not wait a week or most of a week before moving your fish; I
would fill up the tanks, everything is ready, move the fish at once.
If you're concerned that there are gases in the tap water dissipating
or chlorine dissipating or whatever, I would wait no more than a day
before moving the fish. My thinking is that you are seeding these
tanks with bacteria from the first tank; you want to keep these
bacteria going with fish producing ammonia immediately, you don't want
these bacteria to die out from lack of food, hence you need fish in
the tanks right away.

I would do as Daniel suggests. Move the mollies and platies. The
mollies in one tank with salt added, mollies really need salt to do
well, at least IME. The platies or the largest group (color) of
platies in the other new tank.

-Derek