Help To Sort Tank Out 5'

[trapidz]

hi, im hopeing to be in my new place next week or the week after, and i will takeing my parents 5'

60''+ 2ft high and 2ft wide.

thing is, there is no lid as it snaped off, and i dont want the fish to jump out. and also what lighting would i use for it?

would playsand from argos be fine to use?

many thanks

 

[Wills]

Hi so long as all the brace bars are in place I would not worry about a lid too much - you could get a sheet of perspex to cover the top of the tank and make a box out of some mdf and paint it etc to match the room if need be. Lights can be attached to the hood - most come with attachments.

Argos sand is great I used it in the past with good success but you can get a wider variety of colours from regular fish shops for about £15 which is not bad for a full tank - though I only used half a bag in my 6 ft

Wills

 

[hamfist]

Personally, I think tanks look better without big wooden hoods. Although glass/perspex covers definately help to stop jumpers and reduce evaporative water loss. Perspex tends to warp and bend so safety glass is the best option.
Without a hood, a lot more light is allowed into the tank from the top too.

For lighting, this unit is what I use on my 5x2x2. It looks very smart ... http/cgi.ebay.co.uk/CLASSICA-LUMINAIRE-T8-1500MM-2-X36w-OTL-LIGHT-/200555376694?pt=UK_Pet_Supplies_Fish&hash=item2eb2083036

Argos playsand is fine, although will need a lot of washing/rinsing out before use.

 

[trapidz]

hi thanks for the replys. "wills" no the brace bars did snap a while ago. didnt know you yould replace it? its a jewel tank and the hood wasn't attached to the tank.

that light looks really nice, but for £138.99, for a light that is out of my budget.
if i had a light to just clip on the back of the tank i dont think i would worry about the top then.
any other lights i can get alot cleaper?

the stocking i was thinking about this tank is.

1 Oscar
1 JD
1 Firemouth
1 Pleco
I was thinking maybe a breeding pair of Blue Acaras. but im not 100% yet

would any of them jump out of tank. and they all will be around 1" - 2.5" in size when i get them.

many thanks.

 

[Wills]

The brace bar is any bits of glass/plastic connecting the front and the back near the middle - this is important as without it the middle parts of the glass get a lot of stress and pressure building up. If these are missing I would consider adding them back in place with a strong aquarium sealant.

Stock wise in a 5x2x2 I reckon your looking good All fish have a tendency to jump so I would put a lid/cover on of some kind. A cool lid I thought of the other day was a piece of perspex with strips of L.E.D's on. You can get LED strips quite cheap on ebay now and simple to put together

Wills

 

[trapidz]

yeah i will buy 2 brace bars of ebay to replace with the 2 broken ones, that lid sounds really good
what size would i be looking at for the perspex to fit on top of the tank?

another question is i forgot to ask, what watt heater should i have in their 300W ?

i have 2 filters, 1 external and 1 internal which both will be going on the tank.

what other differs, bottom feeders could i add in there?

many thanks Jon

 

[Wills]

I would go for 2 300 watt one at each end to keep the temp level. Adding the new brace bars is an excellent idea

The lid I would go for a 5x2x2 sheet or 2x 2.5x2x2 pieces to meet in the middle or something.

Bottom feeder wise a lot of options really, hoplos are always nice as are pictus a good group of either would work well. Pleco wise, any thoughts on what you will get? Royals are nice if not a little large But there are a lot of nice large L numbers that would go well in this tank for you L14 are nice the sunny plec I love love love L095 but they are mega expensive and really rare.

Also instead of the Firemouth have you considered any of their relatives like Ellioti or Aureas?

Wills

 

[trapidz]

where could i get the perspex from? is ebay any good.

i was thinking of a sailfin pleco?

i really like the Pim pictus. how many could i have in the tank?

i also like the Surinam Geo, if i could have that with the fish i want in their how meny could i have?

oooo the ELLIOTI is stunning. if my LFS does them i will have to get one of them, but i have a feeling they dont so i might just have to go with the firemouth lol

thanks for the replys wills

 

[minnnt]

Regards to the Plec, look at the L001, mine is a stunner!

Regards to the Ellioti and Firemouth, the Ellioti 'should' be less aggressive, but don't have both together due to them being from the same family. They're not too keen on each other. lol. Also look for the Aurem/Aureus (can't remember exactly, but they are totally out of this world.

Here is my Ellioti:

Argos play sand is fine. Make sure you rinse well though as it is quite 'dusty' if that makes sense?

 

[trapidz]

there so lovely looks like ill be getting L001.

yes i will clean the argos playsand really well, with my tanks everything will have to be perfect.

i think i may have OCD lol, i really want a Ellioti. i hoping my LFS will be haveing some in when i go there if not ill have to get them to order some for me but its a cycled tank anyway, but i will not be getting these fish "oscar, JD" ect for a month after i set it all up. and be puting guppys mollies and platys in just to be 100% sure its all ok.

oh yeah will i be wasteing my time puting live plants in there with the oscars and the tank mates?

forgot to add the playsand will be 15kg, would i need 2 or 3 of them?

thanks again

 

[minnnt]

I would get 3 bags. I used 1.5 in my 2.5ft tank. It's a good depth though, but I would still get 3 just to make sure. Where abouts are you? Me (nottinghamshire) and littlemonkey (Erm... worcestershire?) have juvies at about an inch and a half. If you want fully grown then have a look on Aquarist classifieds etc. MA will be able to order you one or two in anyway I reckon.

 

[trapidz]

i live in london ( Hertfordshire ) how much you selling them for and would you consider sending them?

 

[trapidz]

minnnt you there mate?

 

[minnnt]

Hey, sorry, only just read it...

No idea on how to post fish mate otherwise i would.

 

[trapidz]

ok so i was thinking really hard about this tank this is what im going to do, im haveing the brace bars replaced, then ill be puting this light unit on, and then i was thinking of puting mesh over the top of the tank...

how does that sound?