Hi from the Cotswolds

[cotswolds_fish]

Good morning everyone, newbie to both the forum and fish.

I’m looking to set up a tropical fish tank in the home office, probably a tank in the region of 60-70L.

I don’t as yet have much of an idea about exactly what fish to put in the tank, ideas and suggestion would be very welcome. Also would people advise buying from a store or are there good online stores for fish tanks, accessories and fish.

Thank you so much in advance.

 

[PlasticGalaxy]

Welcome! You could make a journal on here that documents your progress on setting up and maintaining your tank, if you'd like.

There's a lot of people here that have only recently started up with fishkeeping, such as @Tank Sinatra, @Fishfaced and @david.molloy2009 for example.

I'm sure at least one of the members here can answer a few of your questions, so ask away.

 

[Anonymous Fox]

welcome!

 

[PheonixKingZ]

Welcome to the forum!

If you have any questions, just ask!

 

[Essjay]

The first thing when deciding what fish to buy is to find out how hard your water is. We should aim to keep fish which come from water with roughly the same hardness as our tap water. Look on your water company's website for hardness. Look for a number rather than vague words (though not all companies give a number), and the unit of measurement as there are several they could use.

Then look up the fish you like on https://www.seriouslyfish.com/knowledge-base/ The profiles on there tell the tank size they need, the hardness and temperature they need, whether they need fast flowing or slow flowing water, and many other things.


The main downside to buying fish on-line is the delivery cost. Sellers must use an approved courier, and delivery can cost more than the fish. If you can find a good local shop near you, I would try there first. Avoid Pets at Home.




Are you aware that a fish tank needs to be cycled before fish can be put in it? Cycling is the name for the growing 2 colonies of good bacteria which remove fish waste.
There are two ways to cycle a tank, depending on whether you want live plants or not. These two links explain why we need to cycle a tank and how to do it, with plants and without.

Cycling Your New Fresh Water Tank: Read This First!

Cycling Your First Fresh Water Tank What is Cycling and Why is it Important? Fish waste, and especially fish breathing, plus uneaten food and other organic matter breaking down in a tank all produce Ammonia. This can quickly become toxic to fish if it is allowed to build up to any measurable...

www.fishforums.net

Planted/silent cycling

So ya got yourself a fish tank, and now you're wondering how to cycle it. You have a few options: 1) Fishless cycle: Set up your substrate and filter (decorations and plants are optional), buy pure ammonia, add enough to your tank to read 3ppm, wait. Full instructions here...

www.fishforums.net

 

[Naughts]

Hello and welcome
For fish knowledge, you are in the right place and Essjay has pointed you to Seriouslyfish, the best site for your research.
I 100% agree to avoid pets@home for fish but their Tropica plants are pest free so I do recommend those.

Tanks and accessories are fine from a store or, with a bigger choice, online. Just check that the tank is carefully delivered - I used Swell UK and the driver waits for you to check the tank is intact before they leave.

You are ahead of the game in working out that sourcing quality fish makes the hobby so much easier as you can reduce the risk of having to deal with disease. http://shop.sweetknowleaquatics.co....bc9/?ObjectPath=/Shops/950007385/Categories/4
is an online shop but they are open to customers (currently 10-4 but not Saturdays) so, being in the Cotswolds, you could avoid the shipping charges and have the opportunity to see before you buy. It's also a nice scenic drive

 

[cotswolds_fish]

Bought A 70L starter tank, took about 2-3 hours to clean the substrate but the water is still a bit cloudy. I’ve added the water conditioner and waiting for the temp to rise before adding the plants later tonight.
Is there anything I should be doing in the meantime ?

 

[Essjay]

You just need to wait for the water to warm, then plant the plants.

What type of plants? Some grow rooted in the substrate, others are grown attached to decor. Some feed through their leaves and need liquid fertiliser, others feed through their roots and need tablet fertiliser inserted into the substrate.

If you have a lot of them and they are fast growers, you can do a silent cycle as in the link in my last post.

 

[cotswolds_fish]

You just need to wait for the water to warm, then plant the plants.

What type of plants? Some grow rooted in the substrate, others are grown attached to decor. Some feed through their leaves and need liquid fertiliser, others feed through their roots and need tablet fertiliser inserted into the substrate.

Good morning Essjay, I bought some rooted substrate plants from my local aquarium. The tank is now looking very clear, but lots of bubbles. Been reading up and hoping this is nitrogen bubbles from the substrate ?

 

[Essjay]

Cold water can hold more dissolved gasses than warm water so when you fill a tank with cold water then heat it up, the water can't hold all the air gasses that were in the cold water so they come out of the water as bubbles. You see these bubbles stuck to the glass and other decor. Of course there could have been air tapped in the substrate as well, which will also come out. But it would be all the gasses in the air not just the nitrogen part.


All the plants look to be those which are grown planted in the substrate. We do see tanks with plants like java fern and anubias with their rhizomes buried (which will cause them to rot) but your photo doesn't show any of those