Thetownend.com

Took the plunge and bought a complete set up on e-bay.
i'm not totally new to fish keeping as i have had a goldfish tank a few years ago.But aint kept tropicals.
Any of you keep fish?got any tips?
currently have it up and running but without fish or plants yet.

Make sure you walk them daily.

You'll need to cycle the tank before you add fish. The easiest way to do it is get a couple (i.e. only two) of hardy fish and leave them on their own for a few weeks. Danios are usually good for this. Some people don't approve of this method though because it effectively poisons the fish.

What kind of filtration system are you running?

it's an elite stingray 15 which goes in the tank.

Fish AND exercise?  for that reason I'm out!

Add Ammo Lock and then let the tank go natural for a week before fish.

Zebra Dannios are excellent as Sam says as they are very hardy.

DO NOT ADD ALL THE FISH AT ONCE. Bit by bit is best.

I miss fish keeping...

Bennett knows loads about this, I'm sure he'll have some decent advice...

i've done a bit of research about cycling and taking time etc.currently all i have done is get the pump and heater up and running, and put the bog wood in.
it's a 60 litre tank and i want easy to keep fish.
aint bought any accesories yet or plants.i want plants that wont die and will continue to grow,could any of you reccomend which is best?
also what water additives are essential,etc...

Good stuff. Just wanted to check whether you were using a power filter or an under gravel system. With a power filter it's easier to keep plants (depending on what substrate you're using).

I wish I'd never used large gravel because it's a bastard to keep clean. I keep meaning to drain the tank and replace it with fine gravel/sand.

gravel is around 2-5 ml.

Is the bog wood new or re-used? If new, did you soak it first?

Java ferns & moss and anubias are generally the easiest to keep.

I don't use any additives. Just a pH balance for when I do water changes.

all second hand,samdy.
bog wood has been used but i gave it a good rinse.also took the filter apart and cleaned all the parts-sponges, etc.

So now you just sell them after keeping them while they are dead ;)

Come on down ...........the price is wrong!

All good stuff, apart from cleaning the sponges :) If the setup was complete when you bought it then the sponges would've been well matured and you could've used them to cut down your cycling time.

My advice would be to make sure you do regular water and filter changes. I do them every other week which is slight overkill but it keeps the tank clean and healthy. I like to alternate between changing the water and changing the filter (i.e. one week I'll do just the water, the next week I'll do just the filter) but that's just personal preference so as the changes aren't too harsh on the fish.

Most filters have two sponges in them, only change them one at a time so that you've always got a matured filter in.

Clean any algae at the same time you do water changes. As you're using large gravel it's probably best to do your water changes using a gravel cleaner so you can clean all the crap out of the tank at the same time. Always let any debris settle before switching the filter back on.

cheers samdy.
just bought some replacement filters-carbon and sponges as for a new set up i thought best to start from scratch.they are now in.mixed in some fine sandy gravel into the coarser stuff too.got some stress coat and some stress zyme which i will add after the tank has settled a bit.

No need to add carbon filters unless you've got discoloured water. They should only be used for a week at a time to help clear the water.

eh? they go in the same filter as the sponges(just in a different part) and according to the instructions need changing every 2 months ditto the sponges

http://www.thetropicaltank.co.uk/carbon.htm

cheers.that article is kinda contradictory and has confused me a bit.
i dunno if i need it or not?

 http://thetownend.com/index.php/topic,23772.0.html

 That's over 3 years now, that we've been waiting for the definitive Bennett take on matters piscatorial....

I agree with Samdy

but i wouldn't cycle with fish. get some food pellets and let them go off in the tank, and add the cycling bacteria. the ammonia from the rotting foody stuff will be eaten by the bacteria, then you add a bit more a few days later and continue adding the magical bacteria/cycle potion and boom, you've got a cycled tank without hurting any guppies.

that said you could just use goldfish, fuck me i hate them

actually thinking about it my parents are getting a bit (a lot) fucked off i've got loads of my stuff at theirs, does anyone want any more lighting units or an external filter or some co2 cannisters and diffusers? (basically does anyone want to go into aquascaping?)

i've outed myself

My step dad might have it, Bennett. I'll ask him this weekend and let you know.

dont diss the goldfish man !

or you will have me to answer to

 :D

Nor me, I've got gold fish in my water butt

We had tropical fish for a bit - Pain in the arse to keep clean.

We had some Chinese Algae Eaters, but one got a bit vicious and stopped the other from feeding properly. It also sucked the scales off some of the other fish.

We kept Neon Tetra, Black Fin Tetra and some orange things with big tails - Forgotten what they were.

Don't forget to fill with 1 inch of fish per gallon.

Goldfish can only remember the last 15 seconds.

Goldfish can only remember the last 15 seconds.

I had a shoal of Black Neons and another of Cardinals.....looked fucking ace!

still got cardinals and a dwarf gourami along with some of bennetts old prawns.

tank has settled down nicely.looking good.gonna put some plants in tomorrow and leave it for a few days before adding the first fish to it.

If you want any Mollies arriba (or anyone else for that matter) I've got a load I want to get rid of. The fuckers keep having babies and my tank's getting a bit too full.

Not true. They know when I tap on the side of the butt, it's lunch time. Trained goldfish

they get massive, get some otto's (otocinclus) and you're golden. and imagine they're all called ricky

plants now added.amazon sword, 2 java ferns,a moss ball and some java moss which i've attached to the bog wood.(thanks samdy for the advice)
very helpful woman in world of water who was full of good advice helped me with the purchases.

I've got a Leopard Cory which does an equally good job.

They're good in there. I also use Maidenhead Aquatics.

Made the mistake of buying some fish from Pets At Home before and they were dead within weeks. I only go in there for accessories now as they're generally cheaper than other places.

Genuine question, what enjoyment is there to get out of keeping fish. Not having a dig, I know sod all about what it consists other than the contents of this thread, but it does seem a lot of work for little reward.

Fish tanks look pretty cool, if they made a self-cleaning one which didn't make a noise then I would get one for my bedroom maybe.

Cory's are bottom filtering fish though aren't they? do you mean a pleco?

No, it is a Cory. I got it to keep the substrate nice and clean.

that's what i thought, it just didn't follow from algae eaters n all that

did you see if your dad wanted any of my kit?

what set ups do you fellas have then?

I'm going round tomorrow night so I'll ask him then.


Just a two foot tank at the mo. The missus won't let me have anything bigger because we haven't got the space.

Thats precisely what happened and what we did in the end. We gave the algae eaters back to the shop - Couldn't face 'disposing' of them ourselves! They become like part of the family, don't they. The Otto's were much better tank cleaners anyway!

Got rid of the lot when we left the US. Wife was quite pleased as she got fed up with hoovering out the tank every 10 days.

It was really relaxing just watching the fish slowly swimming around the tank - A real stress reliever!

I got a goldfish bowl

Dave died but Wanda is still going strong

i did have a 55gallon tank (5 by 2 by 2 foot, i think) but moving to a flat meant i got shot of it.
i still want a tank but priorities n all that. sob

My mate's got some huge goldfish. You never see them though.

Apparently they're koi.......

how dare you belittle this thread!

yesterday added 6 white cloud minnows to the tank after testing the water.
all good so far....

lost 2 of the buggers last night.they got stuck behind the filter and have gone to the big fish tank in the sky.(i hope god as better filters than me)

Maybe they were trying to get a stone lodged in the fan to make the water go cloudy so that they'd be taken out when you cleaned the tank and then they'd swim into the ocean to find the youngest ones father

i've got an external filter you can have for free if you want mate?

cheers for the offer.i'll see how things go and may well take you up on it.still earlydays so will persisit with what i have for now.

put 3 of those in at the weekend.cool fish.dunno what i'm gonna add next?

Does anyone know of anywhere in or around Swindon that will rehome fish?

My Mollies are taking over my tank and I need shot of them.

i'd take a couple off you, but my odessa's would nip them i think.

Coate

This is getting a bit ridiculous...

The only good fish is a dead one.....preferably in fresh batter and tartar sauce.

BBQ Baracuda, now thats what im talking about!

Have you got a jedi fish? Thats a hell of a light sabre for a fish!

http://www.hotukdeals.com/deals/complete-aquarium-set-54l-at-aldi-t/825854


wanna start up!!!?

i'm already planning on getting a bigger tank.
mrs has ok'd it too  :clap:

A Sherman maybe... ::)

You haven't had your current one for five minutes!

i should have bought bigger in the first place.
will probably flog mine on when i get a new one.there are some cracking deals on e-bay

there's never any point in buying a brand new one, they depreciate ridiculously!