Question:First, what are some good snails that go well in freshwater aquariums (10 gallon)? I already have 1 betta, 3 cory cats, and 5 neon tetras so keep that in mind.
Second, what are some good products to test my aquarium water besides the ph. Like ammonia and stuff like that.
Thanks to all that answer.
Answers:
You and I have talked about this before, you do not have too many fish in your 10 gallon tank. A couple of large mystery snails will go well in a 10 g with those fish. Your betta may nip them a few times till he decides they aren't food and then he should be OK with them.
If you do your weekly 25-30% water changes as you should, there is no need to spend money on water testing products. Your weekly water changes will keep the ammonia, nitrites and nitrates at optimum levels.
pH is the only thing you would need to test if you add new fish. You would test the bag water and test your tank water to make sure they were close on the scale. More than .5 of a difference can send your new fish into pH shock and possibly kill them. Tetra makes very good testing products, that is what I use when I test.
The difference in the two pH readings will determine how long you spend acclimating them to your water parameters by adding a quarter or half cup of tank water to the bag every 10-15 minutes for at least an hour. I have spent up to 3 hours acclimating delicate, expensive fish to my tank water.
Temperature is the least of your worries when adding new fish, the pH difference is what kills new fish. or ammonia if you don't do your water changes every week.
I have tanks that have not been tested for anything except pH in years. Like I said, there is no need if you do your water changes regularly.
Keep up the good work with your tank, I bet it looks really nice.
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First you have to many fish in a 10 gallon unless you do very freq. water changes. But aquasafe and seachem prime are excellent products
Well I was looking for the same thing for my tank but all the ones i saw were marine/saltwater but here are some pics.
http://www.petco.com/shop/searchresults.
!BUT YOU HAVE DO A LOT OF STUFF IN YOURE TANK!
Your best bet for snails is the apple snail or the ramshorn snail. If you are going to get an apple snail, make sure it is a pomacea bridgesii, as they are the variety that are the least likely to eat any healthy plants in your aquarium. They only eat dead or dying vegetation and algae and fish food. They also reproduce sexually and lay eggs above the water line, so it is easy to make sure you don't get a snail outbreak. Similarly, the ramshorn snails will rarely bother your live plants. Malaysian trumpet snails are also good. Watch out for other types as you can have your plants mowed down by plant eating snails or get asexually reproducing snails and have your tank completely taken over by baby snails!
The main things you need to test for in a new tank are ammonia, nitrite and nitrate. PH is nice to know, too. Most "Master Test Kits" will test for at least 3 of these, but your best bet is to find one that will test all of them. Strip tests are cheapest, but not as reliable as the drop tests. Many people use strip tests as rough gauges and then do drop tests if they see any worrisome results, especially if they have multiple tanks. The cheapest Master Test Kit I could find that covered all the basics is here:
http://www.amazon.com/aquarium-pharmaceu...
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