Giant Gourami

How to cycle a fish tank?

2012-07-04T10:16:00.001-07:00

Some people clean their tank thoroughly by removing the gravel, removing the filter sponge and carbon and rinsing them with tap water. Then they would suck the muck from the base of the bare tank. Some will even remove the fish from the tank for this purpose. Well, that use to be what people do back in the 90s, we've learned a lot from science and now cleaning a tank is so easy after cycling that we recommend everyone to do it. So let's get to it.

There are 2 ways of cycling a tank.

1. Fish cycling

This means you cycle the tank with fish already in it. Note that this is very stressful for the fish and can kill the fish but the Giant Gourami since we are dedicated to these beasts, can take this type of cycling just make sure not to over do it by leaving the parameters are extreme levels. Other fish can take it too but just be extra careful not to kill them in the process.

2. Fish-less cycling

This means you cycle the tank without fish in it. It is better but beginner aquarist usually have already bought their fish so fish cycling is what they should do.

Cycling means : Establishing your tank to mimic the natural environment for nitrogen control. This is grow beneficial bacteria in your tank which will break down toxic products into less toxic ones.

To be successful in cycling a tank you must fish understand the Nitrogen cycle. I'll briefly explain here this will be more than enough for you to do a tank cycling.

The nitrogen cycle:

Fish go to the toilet, well, they don't really give a damn they just drop it anywhere, so because of that they add a lot of Ammonia. Its not just fish excrement, its fish respiration, excess food, plant remnants and even any dead fish that cannot be found. If you had a huge amount of water, the ammonia would dissipate quite well, but where you have a new aquarium ammonia tends to concentrate. This is a vulnerable time as no fish will enjoy such high levels, but some are tough (platys, barbs) and can withstand these levels. But your ammonia level is just a stage, as biological filtration and beneficial bacteria will reduce it, but it takes time to do this.

To remove ammonia altogether would be bloody hard: instead, we use numerous bacteria that uses ammonia as a food source. The bacteria strain that is important is Nirosomonas. This strain needs time to colonise the aquarium, the desired population doesn't just happen overnight. This is useful as it absorbs ammonia, and reduce it to Nitrite.

Once Nirosomonas have reduced ammonia to nitrite, beneficial bacterias isn't finished yet. Nitrite can be reduced further to Nitrate. The next step is the bacteria strain of Nitrobacter. Nitrobacter takes even more time to adsorb nitrite, and in this stage nitrite is prominent and it is another dangerous time for a fish, even a hardy one. But, after a while, nitrite levels have reduced and the less toxic compound nitrate is left. Although this toxin is far less dangerous than the earlier two, you must not let it build up in your anquarium. Standard water changes are a chore, but I would recommend you to do them as this reduces nitrate concentrations, and your fish will then be more healthy and will appreciate you for it!! (Well, maybe not but it can prolong the life of your fish). In technical terms, the Nitrogen Cycle process is called Nitrification - the oxidation of nitrogen by bacteria.

This diagram shows the basic Nitrogen cycle in a tropical freshwater aquarium.

So in a nut shell,

Ammonia from your fish waste and repiration is converted to nitrite by a bacteria and then nitrite is converted to nitrate by another bacteria.

Now that you've understood the basics of nitrogen cycle, you can now learn how to establish your tank.

Why knowing the cycle is important?..because cycling a tank is a subjective matter things may change from what we've outlined for you. By knowing the basics of the nitrogen cycle you can manipulate the cycle to suit your need or to adjust the parameters as we will explain below.

Things you will need:

Ammonia test kit
Nitrite test kit
Nitrate test kit
pH test kit

I understand that some of us live in areas where the Local Fish store are not educated about tank cycling and will not have the test kit for sale. I will explain later below how to do an observatory fish cycling without the need of a test kit - this is even more dangerous and can kill your fish! Be extra careful!

How to do a fish cycling?

Well, its easy just follow the steps below.

1.Setup your tank and fill it up, the water should be crystal clear like tap water. Please remember to add dechlorinator to your tank it is extremely crucial, because the beneficial bacteria are easily killed by chlorine and other tap water chemicals.

1. Drop your fish in and feed it like usual - PLEASE TAKE NOTE FISH CYCLING IS VERY HARMFUL TO THE FISH AND CAN KILL YOUR FISH IF THINGS GET OUT OF HAND SO PLEASE BE CAUTIOUS.

2. Over a few days you will notice that the water gets cloudy. This is when in olden days people do a FULL 100% water change. But in Fish Cycling you NEVER EVER remove 100% of water. So, when the water gets cloudy, immediately stop feeding and keep a close eye on the fish and the water cloudiness. This water cloudiness is Ammonia in the water. If you have a test kit use it and you will find positive ammonia reading as well as the concentration. If this Ammonia levels gets too high it can kill your fish. Just leave your cloudy tank don't clean or feed your fish.

3. Over the next few days without feeding your fish(don't worry they won't die of starvation fish,ANY FISH can go months without food) you will notice that your water gets less cloudy and become more clear. Still don't feed your fish. Leave it, this stage is Nitrite in the water. Ammonia(cloudy) has been converted into Nitrite which is clear, but your cycling is just not over yet.

4. Once the tank is completely clear, still without feeding your fish keep a close eye and leave the tank for 1 week. This gives time for the slower bacteria to convert Nitrite into Nitrate. This takes quite a while. After 1 week your tank will be looking crystal clear this is because Nitrite has been converted into Nitrate. If this doesn't happen in 1 week give it more time it depends on your water temperature and pH.

5.Once you water is absolutely crystal clear do a full water chemistry test, at this stage your reading is suppose to be Ammonia 0, Nitrite 0, Nitrate NOT ZERO, you will get a value. This is a good sign. Meaning your tank has beneficial bacteria in it already.

This whole process takes about 4 weeks. You can feed you fish very very small amount of food the reason is when the bacteria is busy converting ammonia into nitrite and you feed your fish you are adding more ammonia to the cycling process this is slow the process or completely disrupt it so just stop feeding or reduce to only 3 pellets per fish(doesn't matter what fish).

6. Once your reading are as shown above in 5. Do a partial water change 20 -25% use a gravel vacuum an suck the muck in the gravel or on top of the sand. Remove 20 -25% of the water during this suck the muck out of the gravel using a gravel vacuum. If there are still muck in the gravel ignore it as the bacteria will need them for ammonia supply.

7. Add dechlorinated water, if you don't dechlorinate it the bacteria that you have been trying to grow over the past 4 weeks will die in a few minutes so DECHLORINATE the water.

8. Now you can feed your fish as usual again, the water will get cloudy due to the new bio-load in the tank when it gets cloudy stop feeding and in one day the water will get clear. Because, when you overload your tank with new ammonia you bacteria number are not enough to convert this, so give them some time to multiply.

9. The water will get clear and you can resume feeding. Since now you have enough bacteria you won't face cloudy water again. But a change in diet from pellets to fruits can add more ammonia to you tank so, when the water gets cloudy just stop feeding and let the bacteria multiply.

Once your tank is fully established, you need to only change the water every 2-3weeks to remove the nitrate and to suck the muck from the gravel or sand. IF you have plenty of live plants then they will use up the nitrate use your nitrate test kit to check if the plant are using them and whether you are at balance(between using and producing).

This Aquarium Might Look Like Fake but we couldn't believe our eyes when we saw this pristine water - Complete Cycling

In fishless cycling, its relatively the same but you need an additional product which is pure ammonia, your local fish store should have it.

You technically use the same method as described just that the ammonia you add manually.

You should use your test kit to check the progress of the cycling process.

In Observational Fish Cycling, you observe the water colour from cloudy to clear then after 1 week it remains clear you can assume that your tank is cycled. But remember when you resume feeding the water will cloud up, so stop feeding and give it some time for the bacteria to multiply and increase in number.

I hope I have explain thoroughly and have introduced you to this new system.

If you have any questions please leave them below.

Have fun!

My Giant Gourami Is Not Eating, What to do?

2012-06-22T00:26:00.000-07:00

Good question,

Some owners sometimes encounter this problem, and in this post I'm going to clear things up for you.

1st of all, why did this condition alarm you, well its simply because usually your Giant Gourami would devour and eat like a crazy hungry fish and when suddenly he stops eating......of course you're worried.

The first thing to do is check the water quality, although the Giant Gourami is an EXTREMELY HARDY FISH...if the water is close to toxic muck....don't expect your Giant to thrive in there.

Recall when you last made a water change, was is long time ago?...if yes change 50% of the water and replace with de-chlorinated water (use the water conditioner/de-chlorinator)
If you recently made a water change and he's not feeding.....then check whether you added de-chlorinator...if not quick and add the de-chlorinator!
If you think nothing is wrong with the water then, this is what this article is about....continue reading....

Ok, if you are absolutely sure that the water is absolutely ok, then this must be nature's course in action.

In the wild, during the monsoon season water levels in rivers and lakes rise and many vegetation drown and feeder fish/shrimp disperse in a larger than usual body of water, sometimes carried away in the monsoon flood. What happens is, the Giant Gourami fails to get food and through the period remains alive without food. This natural phenomena although cruel has a good effect, it gives time for the Giant Gourami (and other fish) to rest their intestine and stomach (gastrointestinal system). They will defecate as the final remaining food is digested and eventually remain without any food at all. This gives time for its intestine to heal and grow and prepare for when food is available - in the aquarium the Giant might take small bites but never finish the portion you give.

When the monsoon is over and water levels return to normal and the now well fertilized soil(due to rotted matter) allows vegetation to bloom, food supply increases exponentially for the Giant.

The Giant Gourami will then resume its heavy eating diet and starts to put on body mass.

In the aquarium or pond setting(I don't like to use the word "captivity")...this natural phenomena does not occur and the biological drive of the Giant will cause it to stop eating at any time(not according to the monsoon season which usually takes place between early October to the end of December) for the benefit of its intestine and stomach.

So what do you do?

Simple, don't feed your Giant. Leave it for 7 days at least(you can go up to a month but you will notice your Giant losing body mass, so 7 days is better)...feed nothing he will beg for food just ignore, if you at anytime break this 7 day period of "fasting" his intestines will not have healed and he will restart "fasting" any another period of time and you'll have to do it all over, don't feed him for 7 days.

If you have other fish in your tank(read my other post on how to trick the Giant into accepting tank mates), they can enjoy the benefit of healed intestine, boosted immunity, and increased activity after the 7 days. So bottom line, when your Giant goes into the "monsoon fasting phase"(although its not exactly monsoon in your aquarium or pond) stop feeding all your fish for 7 days. Resume feeding on the 8th day.

You can use this time to clean the tank, resupply food stock and just watch your Giant interacting with other mates in the aquarium.

I hope I've answered your question, I included solid proof from nature itself in the hopes that your Giant will live to its best.

All the best and WE LOVE GIANT GOURAMIS!!!!

Space requirement for a Giant Gourami.

2012-06-20T01:23:00.000-07:00

Well any website you visit or anyone you meet when you ask them the space requirement for the Giant Gourami they would say a very large tank and we have agree with them.

The Giant Gourami needs a massive aquarium or a deep pond for it to attain maximum health and size.

A young under 1 foot Giant Gourami can be housed in a 100gallon tank but must be relocated into a larger tank soon when he exceeds 1 feet.

An adult would be best housed in a 1000gallon tank and no one will tell you its wrong. Because they need the huge space for their huge body. But don't get me wrong 1000gallon not with just one Giant Gourami you can put in an Arowana, Red Tail Catfish or pretty much any monster. So you can have a community of Giants. Beautiful isn't it.

Remember that The Giant Gourami when on a herbivorous diet tend to excrete alot we are talk about large amounts of waste and most aquarium will get cloudy very soon. But the solution for this is to install or upgrade you filter system with about 1 cycle an hour(meaning if your tank is 1000gallons, your filter will have filtered 1000gallon in an hour, you can find this information on your aquarium pump - usually this figure is used to gauge the power of a pump)

Apart from that get your tank cycled. More details in my other post on How to cycle a tank with a Giant Gourami.

With a cycled tank, your Giant's waste will be converted to ammonia(harmful) which the good bacteria will convert into nitrite(harmful) and finally into nitrate(less harmful). Cycle means to introduce good bacteria into your tank.

Thats all for now, 100 gallon tank for 1 feet Giant and 1000gallon tank for an adult.

Have fun.

How Large Can A Giant Gourami Get?

2012-06-20T00:59:00.001-07:00

The Largest Giant Gourami ever recorded was 2.5ft in length. It was a Black Original Giant Gourami without the red fin.

Apparently they are of the purest genetic pool since the commercialization of Giant Gourami's began.

Though 2.5ft is the maximum size ever recorded specialist believe they can grow bigger than this in the wild.

Many website will tell you that they never get more than a foot or at most 1.5ft. All that matters is the type of food you give and the space he has. Check out my other post on the diet plan of a Giant Gourami and Space Requirement.

The Picture is a Black Original Giant Gourami the Purest of the Gene Pool

Take up the challenge and beat that figure - 2.5ft . If you have a Giant Gourami and want to share with us please send us an email at thegiantgourami@gmail.com and include your name, your fish name and we'll create a post specially for you and your giant.

Have fun beat that figure and once you have a Giant bigger than that sign-up for the Guiness Book of Records Evaluation you might just be the record holder.

Have fun people.

An Introduction To The Giant Gourami

2012-06-19T08:43:00.000-07:00

The Giant Gouramis are a native fish in South East Asia - Thailand, Myanmar, Malaysia, Indonesia, some parts of India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. However reports have been made that these giants are found in other parts of the world too. They do not pose any threat to the environment because of their gentle nature.

They are omnivorous all their lives but change in appetite do occurs through out their lives. At a young age they prefer meaty food like krill, feeder fish, pellets but as they grow older or mature they become voracious vegetarians.

They have shown the ability to personalize with their masters and can be trained to be hand fed or even patted.

Here's a video on of the above event:

So stay with us and learn more about these magnificient giants.

The Giant Gourami Specification:

Scientific Name:	Osphronemus goramy
Family:	Anabantid
Temperature:	20 - 30 C; 68 - 86 F
PH	6.5 - 8.0
dH	4 - 20
Size:	70 cm; 30 inches
Life Span:	20 years
Breeding:	Difficult, Bubble Nest