New Tank Fish Questions

[Assaye]

Assaye
thanks for the info that was just a rough list i had i have had a quick look at adult sizes but havent looked at it enough
i choose most of those fish as i thourght they were peacefull lol
will look in to the fish you advise seems not ok tbh just think the sharks look cool as do the fighters there seems to be a smallish shark on the site below
i was judging this using the info on here http/www.aquaticstoyourdoor.co.uk/

All the sharks on there get too big, mate. The smallest one needs a 150 litre tank minimum (and most people would say it needs bigger).

It's easy to think "oh, a 6 inch fish would be fine in my tank", because to a person, it seems OK. You know, the fish can swim around, etc. However, what is good for the fish is often very different to what we think is OK.

Trust the people on here. They want you to love fish and have a great fishkeeping experience as well as making sure you get the right fish and treat them well.

The fighters are awesome fish (I have 9, lol) but they are best in their own tank. If you want a fighter, I'd strongly suggest getting a 20-30 litre tank, stuffing it full of plants and a cave or two, and doing a fishless cycle. A fighter plus a few pygmy corys (tiny catfish) and an apple snail or two would be great in there!

I can show you some photos of my tanks, if you want some ideas. I have two tanks that are 65 litres with plants and wood in them, plus some smaller tanks.

 

[Assaye]

truckasauras123
ok i didnt want to go ott on plant will get 5 smallish potted ones? will looking to the type u have advised

If you want the plants to help you do a fish-in cycle, you'll need more than that. You'll probably want 6 or so tall plants for the background and sides, 4 or more bushy plants for just in front of the background ones and 3 small plants for the front of the tank.

Post in the planted tank section for more specific advice.

Are you doing a fish-in cycle then? If you are, you MUST have a decent test kit (API Freshwater Master Test Kit is my recommendation - get it online to get it cheaper). You need to test your water every single day (ideally twice a day) and do a water change if you see ammonia or nitrite get higher than ZERO.

This might mean two or three water changes a day, or if you start small (i.e only buy a couple of fish at a time) you could get away with only one.

The shop might say "there are loads of bacteria in the water, only change 30% at a time" or "if you do too many water changes, you'll slow down the development of good bacteria" but this is rubbish. If it takes you two months to cycle your tank that is better than doing it fast but killing your fish. There are also tiny amounts of bacteria in the water and you can do 90% water changes without losing enough to matter.

 

[arobinson1984]

Assaye
thanks for the info that was just a rough list i had i have had a quick look at adult sizes but havent looked at it enough
i choose most of those fish as i thourght they were peacefull lol
will look in to the fish you advise seems not ok tbh just think the sharks look cool as do the fighters there seems to be a smallish shark on the site below
i was judging this using the info on here http/www.aquaticstoyourdoor.co.uk/


truckasauras123
ok i didnt want to go ott on plant will get 5 smallish potted ones? will looking to the type u have advised

If you mean the silver shark 2.5" and 4" then thats the size they are sold at now as babies. They reach 12-14" adult size and require 6ft x 2ft x 2ft tanks.

The ruby and black tail sharks only grow to 6" but have an aggressive nature and all hell breaks loose when kept in tanks smaller than 55 gallons / 210L

Andy

 

[drobbyb]

Trust the people on here. They want you to love fish and have a great fishkeeping experience as well as making sure you get the right fish and treat them well.

I couldn't have said it better myself.

I would trust absolutely the advice from a few members on here, but that doesn't mean that I wouldn't do some research on my own. Fishkeeping can be complicated, and with all the facts involved, it's easy to sometimes confuse them. That's what's so great about this forum. Usually there are users that have unique experience with just about any aquarium fish and plant, and those users can offer a unique perspective, and then have the facts verified by other users. LFS advice is patchy and geared towards getting you to buy more fish or other dry goods that you may not need. They are in the business to make money. We do this for free.

Really, we only have your best interest in mind, and we can guide you along the way.

 

[tom130691]

If you mean the silver shark 2.5" and 4" then thats the size they are sold at now as babies. They reach 12-14" adult size and require 6ft x 2ft x 2ft tanks.

The ruby and black tail sharks only grow to 6" but have an aggressive nature and all hell breaks loose when kept in tanks smaller than 55 gallons / 210L

Andy

no i was on about the ruby as its small lol ok well judging by this i wont be getting a shark


Assaye

i will probably get 2 hardy fish to start with and leave it a month before anything else

as for plants the pics would be usefull ill go to the store tomoz and check out the plants wont be getting fish till this time next week when ill be around to feed them lol

 

[erk628]

If you mean the silver shark 2.5" and 4" then thats the size they are sold at now as babies. They reach 12-14" adult size and require 6ft x 2ft x 2ft tanks.

The ruby and black tail sharks only grow to 6" but have an aggressive nature and all hell breaks loose when kept in tanks smaller than 55 gallons / 210L

Andy

no i was on about the ruby as its small lol ok well judging by this i wont be getting a shark


Assaye

i will probably get 2 hardy fish to start with and leave it a month before anything else

as for plants the pics would be usefull ill go to the store tomoz and check out the plants wont be getting fish till this time next week when ill be around to feed them lol

Eat them wheaties and get that bucket ready!

 

[Munerz]

Assaye
thanks for the info that was just a rough list i had i have had a quick look at adult sizes but havent looked at it enough
i choose most of those fish as i thourght they were peacefull lol
will look in to the fish you advise seems not ok tbh just think the sharks look cool as do the fighters there seems to be a smallish shark on the site below
i was judging this using the info on here http/www.aquaticstoyourdoor.co.uk/


truckasauras123
ok i didnt want to go ott on plant will get 5 smallish potted ones? will looking to the type u have advised

alot of fish are aggresive but u wouldnt think they are, Assaye has some really good points in the info he wrote,
sharks do look great i have 2 a bala shark (silver shark) and they are generaly peacful but do get pretty big
and a rainbow (red finned black shark) but is very aggresive especialy towards other sharks and get big aswell
that site says different sizes to what ive researched the red tail and red finned sharks ive found get bigger then it says there
and the silver shark im not sure coz research ive got is really spotty but most ive found says they get between 15-20cm but
dont quote me on that one