Complete Novice!

[racholio]

Hello

I've been wanting to get a fish tank in my bedroom for a few years now and I've decided this year I'm going to finally do it. I cant decide between making my tank a tropical tank or a marine tank so I'm getting all the information I can before I decide. My dad has got a 22 gallon tropical tank downstairs but I want one of my own.

So I've got a few questions -

First of all, whats the minimum size tank you would recommend and are nano cubes and bioorbs really any good?

Second question is, is it difficult to start and maintain a tropical fish tank?

Thanks in advance.

 

[Rafael Dilone]

Hello

I've been wanting to get a fish tank in my bedroom for a few years now and I've decided this year I'm going to finally do it. I cant decide between making my tank a tropical tank or a marine tank so I'm getting all the information I can before I decide. My dad has got a 22 gallon tropical tank downstairs but I want one of my own.

So I've got a few questions -

First of all, whats the minimum size tank you would recommend and are nano cubes and bioorbs really any good?

Second question is, is it difficult to start and maintain a tropical fish tank?

Thanks in advance.

Well i recommend you start of with freshwater if this is your first tank. For 2 reasons. Freshwater tanks are generally cheaper but not always. Marine has more expenses and requires a bit more experience. I would recommend getting the largest tank you can possibly get. The bigger the better since water quality changes slower in bigger tanks in general unless you take large bio loads into account. I think nano cubes and nano tanks in general are great. But they take much more experience and patience than people think. Water quality changes drastically in small tanks. So you will have to be on top of your water changes and water testing. I have many nano planted tanks and used to have nano reef tanks. Maintaining tropical fishes in a tank is very easy if you follow all the correct steps. Cycle it(recommend fish-less cycling), adding fish slowly, etc. With the exception of a few tropical fishes that must have pristine water conditions like German Blue Rams for example you should not have trouble with the fishes. There are TONS of fishes that are very hardy and look very nice in a aquarium setup. Also what is the largest tank you can afford getting? What type of filtration are you looking into getting?
Ok i wont ask any more questions for now.

 

[Assaye]

Hello

I've been wanting to get a fish tank in my bedroom for a few years now and I've decided this year I'm going to finally do it. I cant decide between making my tank a tropical tank or a marine tank so I'm getting all the information I can before I decide. My dad has got a 22 gallon tropical tank downstairs but I want one of my own.

So I've got a few questions -

First of all, whats the minimum size tank you would recommend and are nano cubes and bioorbs really any good?

Second question is, is it difficult to start and maintain a tropical fish tank?

Thanks in advance.

Heya racholio!

There isn't really a minimum tank size or such a thing as a really bad tank, unless you start getting into 0.5 gallon tanks shaped like lava lamps or something else silly. However, there are some combinations of fish and tanks that just don't work.

Bigger is usually better for a newbie. Obviously you can go too big so I wouldn't recommend anything larger than a 4 foot tank to start off with. If you go too small you'll find the water is actually very difficult to keep stable and the chances of something going wrong are much greater. Additionally, in a small tank you can have far less fish and the consequences of putting the wrong fish in are greater due to the lack of space. I'd honestly recommend you start off with a 3-4 foot tank (so about 100-250 litres) and I'd recommend you go no smaller than 60 litres for your first tank (that's the size of the largest BiOrb).

As for nanos and BiOrbs - they can be great, if used right. I wouldn't recommend them to a newbie though. Besides, you can generally get a much better deal by buying a second hand 'traditional' tank than you can by getting a designer or specialist tank.

I'd definitely recommend you start with tropicals. They are generally hardier than marines and require less work once the tank is set up and cycled. They are usually slightly more tolerant of mistakes and a tropical set up is generally much cheaper than a marine tank.

As for how to set up a tropical tank - have a really, really good read of this. The stuff in this link is some of the most up to date fishkeeping information you'll find and will probably replace some or all of the information your dad knows.

 

[racholio]

The information on this website is great! I have no clue sometimes what my dads talking about when I've asked him about all this but everything I've read on here makes things so easy to understand

I think the maximum I could afford would be about £300-400 for the tank. This would be a long hobby to undertake because each thing I do would have to wait until pay day before I could do the next stage so chances are the tank would be sitting there for a month before I could buy the filter/heater and so on...

As for what filter to go for, I really havent a clue. My dad has an aqua pro 1 so I was debating whether to just go along with him and get the same but I think he paid a wedge for it. Any suggestions?

 

[Twinklecaz]

If you're like you'll find lots of hidden expenses so look out for that. I thought the tank would be the most expensive thing I'd buy but I've bought so many bits of equipment/accessories since I started they've added up to loads more.

You'll be able to get a really good second hand tank for way way less than £400 though. Mine is 60L and was only £80 new!

As for the filter is you want an internal then I can recommend the Fluval U range. External not a clue lol.

 

[Assaye]

The information on this website is great! I have no clue sometimes what my dads talking about when I've asked him about all this but everything I've read on here makes things so easy to understand

I think the maximum I could afford would be about £300-400 for the tank. This would be a long hobby to undertake because each thing I do would have to wait until pay day before I could do the next stage so chances are the tank would be sitting there for a month before I could buy the filter/heater and so on...

As for what filter to go for, I really havent a clue. My dad has an aqua pro 1 so I was debating whether to just go along with him and get the same but I think he paid a wedge for it. Any suggestions?

Given that you can get tanks of almost any size for very little money, it's best to pick the size of tank you want and then shop around for one. I've seen 3-5 foot long tanks going for as little as £30-50 for a second hand tank. That's not very much for a lot of money! If you look on Ebay you can often find complete set ups with all the filters, heaters, etc for not very much. As a newbie I'd advise you to avoid buying something that comes with fish as you could get lumped with a really bad combination.

Filters entirely depend on the size of tank and what you have in it. For example, I have a Fluval U2 in one of my main tanks. The tank is lightly stocked and only 65 litres so the U2 is more than adequate. It would still be adequate for a 100-120 litre tank that was very lightly stocked. However, if I had a pair of goldfish in a 120 litre tank I'd probably need to Fluval U3 or maybe the U4!

If you want lots of plants, you should look for the filter that pumps through at around 10x the volume of the tank per hour. For a lightly planted or unplanted tank, 5x is fine. If you want goldfish or something else big that poos alot, think about 7-10x per hour.

For individual filters you'll just need to shop about and read reviews.

The benifit of getting a new tank kit is that you can get a tank, heater, filter and lights all at once. This means you'll have the right lights and heater for the tank and don't need to worry about finding them yourself. Filters are trickier. Manufacturers often put the smallest/cheapest filter they can into a tank which means you often get a filter that can barely cope with a moderately stocked tank. This is easy to remedy by getting a second filter, though. I run two filters on three of my tanks.

 

[racholio]

I'm really glad you told me I could get tanks cheaper than 3-400 because I'd of gone out and bought one and probably felt robbed! haha I'll shop around.

So what your basically saying is its a good idea to get a package tank but a better filter?

I think I want an external filter because I want as little in the tank as possible apart from the fish and plants etc.

 

[arobinson1984]

Hi Racholio

Welcome to the forum, its full of wonderful, experienced members and is packed full of great information

As mentioned, you have the option of paying a higher price for a new tank, some good options for a tank could be the 2 below providing you have the room to house them

Juwel Rio 180L

Juwel Rio 240L

Or as mentioned, you can pick up great bargains on ebay for second hand tanks, you would ideally have to be prepared to travel to pick any tank purchase up on ebay.

Little tip on ebay, "juwel" is a good brand of tank and is popular brand of tank among fishkeepers. On ebay, sellers quite often spell the name wrong by putting either "jewel" or "jewul" so it always worth searching for incorrect spellings like that as them listings will often get less views and therefore quite often can finish cheaper if it is on an auction format.

Whatever you choose, there are lots of members on here who will be happy to guide you through the process of getting a nice, healthy tank up and running.


Andy

 

[racholio]

Thanks so much for all your advice everyone, its been so helpful

I'm thinking I'll get one of the tanks from Juwel that Andy just put up...I'd love to get the bigger one but the sensible side of me is saying get the smaller one because it'll be a full months wages otherwise haha!

You've all been great though and as soon as I get my tank I'll let you all know how I'm getting on

 

[arobinson1984]

The rio's are great tanks and both would be good starting size tanks to provide good stocking options. I have the rio 125L because I dont have the room for a bigger tank although I wish I did.

Have a search round on ebay, there are plenty of juwel rios for sale, plus the classifed section of this forum. If you can find someone selling a 2nd hand one close to where you live you could easily get one for about half the price of a new one


Andy