I just put the soil/sand substrate in last night.  I've got bubbles going and the Penguin bio-wheel filter running, heater on(water is at same temp as holding tank now) with the filter from that tank.  I've put back in all the original rock(added some) and all the original plants.  The water is surprisingly settled- much more so than when I did the other two tanks.  Maybe because I had the filter going RIGHT away?

I have no idea how long I need to wait before I can safely start adding fish back?  When I set up the native tank, I was so paranoid after the mass death the first time I tried it that I had that thing up and running over a month before I put more fish in it.  The 10g I have the endlers/cory cats in, I had it sitting for a week before I added fish, but it was started from scratch.  This one is not.

pundam said :

I just put the soil/sand substrate in last night.  I've got bubbles going and the Penguin bio-wheel filter running, heater on(water is at same temp as holding tank now) with the filter from that tank.  I've put back in all the original rock(added some) and all the original plants.  The water is surprisingly settled- much more so than when I did the other two tanks.  Maybe because I had the filter going RIGHT away?

I have no idea how long I need to wait before I can safely start adding fish back?  When I set up the native tank, I was so paranoid after the mass death the first time I tried it that I had that thing up and running over a month before I put more fish in it.  The 10g I have the endlers/cory cats in, I had it sitting for a week before I added fish, but it was started from scratch.  This one is not.

 

 

Pundam, when I did mine I put the fish in right away. I was more afraid of leaving them in a bucket. I think I may have lost just one Neon.

RJS8540 said :

Pundam, when I did mine I put the fish in right away. I was more afraid of leaving them in a bucket. I think I may have lost just one Neon.

Thanks RJ!  Susan had thought maybe I could put them in right away too, but after the whole "Tank of Death" experience I'm a bit nervous, lol.

I'm sure you'll be O.K. as long as you don't have any of that "over fertilized" soil.

RJS8540 said :

I'm sure you'll be O.K. as long as you don't have any of that "over fertilized" soil.

Did you put dechlorinator in?  That's what I get paranoid about.  Some people just let the water sit overnight and then use it, but I worry about that.  Our water department sometimes uses chloramines.  It's more stable than chlorine, that's why it is used. 

I'm so paranoid, I treat my water and THEN I let it sit while I filter and aerate it!  The filter is more to move the water around, it doesn't need actual filtering.  I use carbon and a Poly Filter in the filter, more from paranoia than any other reason.  When Toledo City's water comes out of the faucet, the pH is around 9.0 or 10.0.  It has to be that high, it's a regulation.  If you call the water department and ask them, they will tell you the exact number.  After I've treated and aged the water overnight, the pH falls to around 7.8 or so.  I feel a lot better about using that water.  I used to sometimes lose fish because of pH swings, I haven't had that happen in a long time. 

I also buffer the water, because Toledo's water is low in hardness.  I've had people tell me our water is hard, and it just isn't so.  If you have Toledo City's water and you are having rust stains, it's coming from inside your pipes.  You can tell because it wipes off, it's not really a stain.  I've had rusty water before - the kind that stains everything and ruins your clothes.  It's nearly impossible to clean off of stuff.

schambers said :

Did you put dechlorinator in? 

I'm thinking I'll put the fish in tomorrow.I haven't lost any in the holding tank(a 29 High, running airstones, light and filter).

pundam said :
I am wondering if I should siphon out about 10 gal and add it back from the holding tank, so it is less of a shock to the fish? Or is that just overkill? 

I dunno.  I would, but I'm paranoid.