Pretty new (8 years since last tank) to hobby! Advice welcomed!

[pilotian]

Hey everyone,

I am pretty new to the fish owning hobby it has been probably 8 years since I last had my tank of Mollies. Well I have wanted to get back into it forever and finally it took a coupon that my girlfriend and I won at bingo to jump start this now hobby I am constantly thinking about *BOUNCINGS ......... Anyway small story to set this up...

We went to the local fish store and decided to put the coupon to good use... turns out it was a pretty useless coupon so we decided to get "Real" fish, none of that 10 cent goldfish stuff. In result, I let her pick out a fish (Gourami), and I got myself a Bala shark. We got a very small tank to start with and set up the tank and had it all going great.

4 days passed and my bala died... sad but o well there are plenty of fish in the sea (pun intended)

Yesterday I decided to screw the stupid crapo tank and take it more seriously. So I got out the 10gal (I know its small) out and washed it, added some funny ornaments, went and bought a filter, more gravel, and some salt stone things, and some liquid stuff that i forget what its called off the top of my head.

Anyway, We got it all set up nice a pretty, and decided to introduce the Gourami to the new tank (now I know that this is a stupid idea without cycling the tank... sorry) Longer story short, about 15 minutes later it had died as well (I think it could have possibly been pregnat as well).

SO I FAIL AND I KNOW IT! I FEEL BAD!

After much research and a nicely prepared tank, I am ready to start a 10gal home for fishies... (I would love to have bigger but space doesn't allow currently).

My girlfriend wants a: Goldfish
My mom wants a: Catfish
I want a: really anything that looks cool + a crab!

Help me out, what other things should I do to make this family work, and what fish are recommended... opinions welcomed. I know I screwed up.

Thanks,
Pilot trying to be a fish man!

 

[Thyra]

Welcome to the forum! My suggestion is to read up on "cycling" so that you understand the ammonia, nitrite, & nitrate situation and then you will need a test kit, preferably liquid and a siphon for vacuuming your tank. Gold fish need a massive amount of room - between 20 & 30 gallons for one and I believe another 10 g for each additional. Also you can't mix them with tropical fish - gold fish are cold water fish. A 10 g tank is only going to have room for probably 2 - 4 fish, so choose wisely. Aqadvisor.com will give you some idea of what will work together. Anything that says, "shark" will be too big and also beware of algae eaters - some get really big also and they don't really eat that much algae anyway. I don't know what "salt stone" is, but you don't need any salt in a freshwater tank and you didn't mention a heater. What did you wash the tank with? That is rather quick for a fish to die unless it was really stressed by temperature change. Anyway get some sort of plan together, then post it and several of us will probably give advice. Good Luck!

 

[pilotian]

Yes, I have read a lot here about cycling and now know that that is a big part of the whole process, I think I may go get a kit tonight for the water and test it and what not. As for vacuming my tank, I never have done that before, I usually just clean it all out instead of just the gravel.... But then again now I learned that this is probably not the best idea! As for a goldfish perhaps, I can get one and then give it to my highschool tank when I leave for college or some sort of deal, because I have to please the girlfriend haha! Any other sort of fishes I am open to consideration, I have a lot of fish I dream about having (dwarf spotted puffer etc..) but I know I just cant (probably). Mollies are what we used to get, but it seemed like they always got sick !!!!!! To many choices.... yet not enought!

As for the salt I was trying to explain, here is a link to the salt I believe I got .... Aquarium Pharmaceuticals Aquarium Salt-33oz - Freshwater - Water Care - PetSmart I put it in per the directions for my tank. I also want to say I put AquaSafe stuf in or something like that. The tank is cycling in that format as of now... I should probably put some food in it to add bacteria if I have learned from reading.

I don't have a heater in the tank currently, because I am confused why it needs a heater if the water is remaining at about 78-80 degrees constantly?

Can I still have my crab?? or bad idea?

Thanks
-Ian

 

[Thyra]

Wow, I don't know where to start! I don't know where your live that you can keep your water at that constant temp without a heater but I suppose its possible. If you've read about cycling than you probably know about the beneficial bacteria that grow on the surfaces of objects in you tank so therefore you shouldn't be scrubbing them. That's the idea of the siphon - you vacuum up the debris on the gravel, taking about 25% - 50% of the water out and putting new water in. You will do this as often as necessary to keep the ammonia and nitrite at zero. (It might be daily) Eventually you will show some nitrate and that means your tank is cycled. You then keep the nitrate at 20% or less. Nitrate is not as harmful to fish, but even the slightest of the other two is toxic - which may have been the problem with your mollies in the past. Some LFS will promote a lot of things including salt, that you don't need. I have never used it in any of my tanks. Here is a website you can read:
Aquaworld Aquarium - Adding Salt to a Freshwater Aquarium

(Actually I have well water, so I have never added anything to any of my tanks)

I have never had a puffer, but from what I have read on this site they are a "one to a tank" fish and 10g might not be big enough. You can't mix goldfish and tropicals and if your tank is already at 78 - 80 a goldfish won't thrive long. Also some fish do better in groups (shoals) and a 10g won't hold a very big shoal. Shoaling fish are frequently more active, although I, personally don't find neons that active and so you might get away with four of them and a couple of platies. Mollies are bigger fish and rightfully need more room than a 10g tank. Platies come in enough colors that they should keep anyone happy. Right now I have bumble bees (yellow & black) some that are sort of blue gray with red orange finnage, and some that are bright orange with red fins. Advice: start with inexpensive fish until you get the hang if it - flying is expensive! I have no experience with crabs - but I do know they eat fish. You are going to have to research that one.

 

[OrangeCones]

A dwarf freshwater puffer would be fine in a 10 gallon (can go smaller) but they are hit/miss as far as tank mates are concerned. They are also more sensitive to water parameters so I would not recommend them for anything but a well-established tank.

I've always kept them in tanks with fish and have never had fin-nipping or other behaviors that a lot report. Keeping them well-fed is a plus!

 

[Thyra]

Thanks OC, for stepping in. I thought puffers weren't recommended for community tanks from what others have said, but I guess I should not have spoken up without any experience.

 

[pilotian]

Funny story, I got my little cousin a puffer a couple years ago for their 55gal tank.... I guess it ended up dominating a lot of the fish! But I thought it looked cool.....

BUT!!!!!!

I went to the pet store, got myself a heater, because I checked and the water is colllllld! Then I got a siphen, an air pump, a water test kit! So I think I am all ready to get going! I feel like this thing is turning into a true hobby (like flying wasn't enough). Thanks for the help guys and girls!

 

[OrangeCones]

Thanks OC, for stepping in. I thought puffers weren't recommended for community tanks from what others have said, but I guess I should not have spoken up without any experience.

I don't pretend to be a puffer expert, but the dwarf freshwater puffers I think have a bad rap. If you provide for their needs, and the needs of their tankmates, they can do fine in a 'community' type tank. My current puffer is a female named "Miss Puff" of all things, and is the 3rd I've kept in a community tank with no problems.

Some are too timid to compete for food within a large group of active fish, so you have to 'target' feed them. Rarely do they eat 'flake' type foods, as they are a meat-eater only. Blood worms, blackworms (live or frozen) and of course snails, are all on the menu. With coaxing, they MAY take freeze-dried worms.

My little girl puffer is bold as brass but does not bother others. If she wants a worm she sees, she will chase off others to get 'her' worm, but it has never resulted in nipped fins. Mostly she bluffs, stands her ground (err, her 'water'?) and the others back off. It helps to have a LOT of sight breaks (rock work, plants, etc), because 'out of sight, out of mind' is the norm for them. Once the 'offending' fish has left her direct sight, she forgets that she was chasing it.

 

[OrangeCones]

I went to the pet store, got myself a heater, because I checked and the water is colllllld! Then I got a siphen, an air pump, a water test kit! So I think I am all ready to get going! I feel like this thing is turning into a true hobby (like flying wasn't enough). Thanks for the help guys and girls!

What kind of test kit? You are doing wonderful!!! Spread your wings and FLY (or is it FISH?) !!!

 

[Andrew Castagna]

If you just add tap water and the Jungle start right your tank will be ready for fish the next day if the levels are good. But a Bala Shark, they could grow to 15". The rule is one inch of fish per gallon of water. Also with the gourami's that is already 4 gallons of your water if it is a normal one. If you really want gourami's get the dwarfs they only grow to 2.5" but are not as hardy. When I had my ten gallon I had a Balloon Belly Molly, a female Beta Fish, two Cory Cats, a Pearl Gourami, and a Paradise Fish (Related to the gourami's). It was a little over stocked but it worked for almost 5 years.

 

[Thyra]

Sounds like its a bad rap like bettas get for community tanks. So far IME the male bettas I have put in community tanks have worked out very well and I actually think they are happier (if you can tell when a fish is happy) They just are more active, get more colorful and use the whole tank. I have never had one flare and have had no fin damage either way. Of course I observe them closely to be sure they are a good fit and I actually find them rather shy until they get acclimated which seems to take two or three days. I keep the tank lightly stocked so they have plenty of room. I was concerned they might be territorial but as long as they have the right tank mates that hasn't been the case and they mingle in the entire tank.

 

[OrangeCones]

The rule is one inch of fish per gallon of water.

This 'rule' does not work for larger or thick-bodied fish. You can't expect to keep a 10" oscar in a 10gallon tank alive and healthy for long.

 

[pilotian]

Thanks for all the advice, I will be getting my first fish for the tank tonight! I decided on 2 zebra danios to start with.

1. They look cool
2. They are small
3. They are cheap and cheap is good if they need sacrficed in the name of begining a good cycle!

I already want a 20 gal tank

Will keep you posted on how it works out,

Excited!!!
Ian

 

[OrangeCones]

They are cheap and cheap is good if they need sacrficed in the name of begining a good cycle!

No fish need be sacrificed to start an aquarium. My advice if you do not do a fishless cycle (most humane) is to

1) Use a dechlorinator such as Prime that can bind ammonia. It can also be 'overdosed' to detoxify nitrite (follow label instructions carefully).

2) Test your water daily for ammonia and nitrite

3) Do water changes if you detect any ammonia or nitrite

Happy Fishkeeping!

 

[KcMopar]

A fish does not need to die because of a cycle. Please read up on fish less cycle. Its as simple as putting a peeled shrimp in the tank and waiting the ammonia and nitrite out.

 

[Thyra]

I couldn't find any pure ammonia when I started and by the time I heard about the shrimp thing I already had fish in the tank and what I was doing was testing the water daily but also doing 25% - 30% water changes daily even with zero ammonia and nitrite readings. I did that until I got a nitrate reading. I didn't lose any fish and I never got a reading for ammonia or nitrite and as I remember it took about 3 weeks.

 

[Andrew Castagna]

This 'rule' does not work for larger or thick-bodied fish. You can't expect to keep a 10" oscar in a 10gallon tank alive and healthy for long.

You're right, but who would put a ten inch fish in ten gallon tank. That is like three fourths of the tank. I wouldn't be able to swim around.

 

[pilotian]

2 Zebra Danio in the tank now, they look quite happy if I mays say. I never meant to sound "inhumaine" just was saying that if I messed up it would be less stressfull than a super intense fish.... I will check levels, but seeing how I got the danio's from the store in yellow water I can tell these are pretty tough fish

 

[pilotian]

By the way, all the tests are looking to be great.... the only thing that is a bit off is the hardness... (a little to hard) but other than that it is a healthy tank that I can tell! WOOOHOO!

 

[KcMopar]

Harness is nothing to be concerned with as long as you acclimate your fish to your tank.