Newbie about to buy a 10 gallon tank..

[sdadlani]

Hey, i was just wondering what are the best fish to buy? I think im going to be purchasing a 10 gallon tank soon. I want some aggressive fish, fish that eat other tiny fish. Any help will do guys. thanks!

also, what type of fish would help keep the water changing to a stop.

How many times will I have to change the water? and for how long.

btw-great place!

I'm also tryin to look for fast respones, becuase I might go later tonight, or tomarrow after school. thanks again!

 

[DUECE69]

if you can afford a bigger tank it would be better if u want more than 1 aggressive fish.... i think they like their space... im not a expert kinda new myself i was gonna get a 10 gallon but i decided to save a lil bit more and bought a used 30 gallon with all the goodies for they same price as a new 10 gallon ...maybe try and look in your local newspaper might get lucky hope it works out ........my friends has 2 oscars there the most popular as far a fish that eat little fish

 

[sdadlani]

yeah, actully I was talking to an old freind, and hes getting rid of his 20 gallon tank, so I guess im just lucky. But anyways, he said to get 2 oscars, and just add another fish every 2 months or so.. He said that would be fine, but don't exceeed liek 12-13 fish.

well, anyways, How do you guys feel about this advice?

 

[cichlidmaster]

But anyways, he said to get 2 oscars, and just add another fish every 2 months or so.. He said that would be fine, but don't exceeed liek 12-13 fish.

well, anyways, How do you guys feel about this advice?

NOT VERY GOOD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Oscar's can attain an adult size of 16" and require a minimum of 40-50 gallons of tank water each and massive filtration to live a healthy life!!

They also require a varied diet, NOT JUST LIVE FISH!!!!

Oscar's are prone to HITH (hole in the head) disease and IMO a poor diet contributes to the outbreak of this disease with oscar's.

Depending on the species of fish you plan on keeping, 12-13 fish would work, but only if they are small say like 2" maximum size each!!!

This forum is a great place to learn about fish and how to successfully keep them. Feel free to ask all the questions you like.

You will receive honest answers to your questions that will help you succeed in this hobby!!

CM

 

[mathman]

I have never heard of any fish that stops water changing. It is an on going forever sort of thing for as long as you own your tank. If you dont want to spend the time and money just go watch at the local fish store (lfs) at feeding time.

 

[sdadlani]

nah, i didn't mean it that way, i Heard if you get a snail( I odn't know which kind) it will kinda clean the tank. My freind was saying you only have to clean the tank ever 3-5 months, and thats fine, I was under the impression that I have to clean it every month. As for the fish selection, I want something aggressive, liek I said before, are there any Oscars that don't exceed the growth size of lets say, 5 inches? just help me think of other agressive fish...

thanks guys, today, im going to come home, then check the boards... then off to the petstore it is...

thanks again!

 

[cichlidmaster]

sdadlani,

One of the best things you could do for your friend is to tell him to register here!!

Water changes are a requirement for a healthy tank and therefore healthy fish!! Water changes every 3-5 months is not enough. Water changes should be done every 1-2 weeks depending on the species and amount of fish in the tank!!

There are no oscars that stay small unless you intentionally stunt their growth!! This is not good for the fish and it will eventually die an early death as a result of this!!!

As I stated earlier, if you want agressive fish you will need a larger tank....simple as that!!!!

CM

 

[sdadlani]

1-2 weeks? thats crazy! Thats A lot of wok. But anyways, what Fish should i get then?

 

[Xxzsdrklakdfj]

Your choices are pretty limited in a 10gal. anyways and you want an agressive fish. To be honest I only see one choice there and that would be shellies. In a 10gal. i wouldn't recomend more than a pair. You could get away with a harem(1m/2fm). Considering their size shellies are pretty tough. If you go with the 10 why not go with a pair of ocellatus "golds" or a pair of meleagris(both of these are IMO some of the nicest looking shellies)

Now if you go with the 20gal. that would open up a few more options, and if it's a 20long a few more after that. You could start out with 6 smaller species of Julidochromis (transcriptus or ornatus) and let them pair off, and once you get a pair trade the remaning 4 back to the lfs you bought them from. If you go this route you have to avoid disturbing their territory too much because(mine are still juvi's so i couldn't tell you off first hand experience, maybe somebody else could help me out here) I have heard doing this could possibly destroy the weak bond between male and female.

I would say go the shelly route untill you get a little more experience in Tangs. but regardless of what you do decide to get, wether it be the aggressive cichlid you set out for or some smaller peacefull community fish, no matter what else you add with them you are still gonna have to do those water changes. I do weekly water changes on all my tangs. and bi-weekly water changes on all my others, and this is just something that comes with the hobby, but once you get set up doing these water changes should be greatly surpassed by the delightment you recieve from your fish, and if not then you shouldn't be in the hobby.(but don't worry i'm pretty sure as long as you don't go with the 2oscars in a 20, you won't have this problem)

Whatever you decide to do make sure you do your research first. Doing a simple google search and posting your questions here could save you a lot of money in asprin from all the potential headaches you could be facing. You see,and i'm sure the majority of the people on this forum would agree, you have to be pretty knowledgable in what you want before you get to the lfs because I wouldn't recomend just taking the word of the employee at your lfs because a lot of them don't have a clue beyond the basics.

Well all in all if you plan your tank out well you will definately enjoy it!! so welcome to both the hobby and the forum!!

-"letters"

 

[sdadlani]

Well, I just came back from the lfs.... and they said to get some cichilds.. they said i woudl be able to put at most 3 fish.I am not too sure what cichilds they said, I could only describe them, they were blue, and around 16.99

On a side note, I talked to my freind, and he said he only has the tank and gravel. so that means i have to buy a Filter and Heater, anyone want to guide me to real inexpensive ones?

Thanks!

 

[sgtbirch]

sdad, I'll give you what little I know after 3 years. Aggresive fish are hard to keep and make the hobby expensive. If you have your heart set on aggresive I would stay with a south american cichlid or a dwarf cichlid. Its a bad idea to get an oscar though. Maybe a couple of firemouth cichlids would do the trick. water changes are necessary unless you wanna run a deathcamp in your tank. I would listen to CM. Everything he has said seems to be very true. You get to be very good and quick with changes after a couple of times anyway. Just curious is your friend getting rid of the tank cause all his fish died?? 4-5 months/water change sounds crazy. But if you really want aggresive fish it really takes a lot of money as they tend to get large fast and require extra tanks. sorry but thats the sad truth. As for the employees at the LFS they are resposible for several deaths of my fish. They once told me to feed my fish only plant products and come to find out the fish was a strict meat eater. I did the research and discovered this before it was too late. Did they also tell you that your tank should be set up for 6 weeks or until it cycles before you can add the fish you plan to keep or do they just want your 16.99 and to see you back in a couple of weeks for a couple of more 16.99 fish.

 

[cichlidmaster]

sdad,

I moved this topic here to Tropical Chit Chat. It should get a good response for you!!

CM

 

[mathman]

Water changes are actually very easy. YOu need a vacume to clean the gravel. While your doing that the water goes into the bucket also. Treat your water and get it as close as possible to the same temp as your tank, pour it in slowly and remember not to change but about a third or less at a time. When I started my 1st tank I thought I had to take everything out and clean it all. Then I went to watch a friend do his and whoa was I suprised at how easy it was. So, my recomendation is to find someone with a successfull tank and ask them to let you watch how they do it.
( wish I knew of a forum when I started out)

 

[CFC]

If you want a fish that you can feed smaller fish to that dont grow big try leaf fish,they only get to around 3-4" and will take guppies and other small fish.Theyre not very aggressive but thats probably the closest to a predatory fish your going to get in a 10g.

 

[sdadlani]

yeah, thanks guys for all the responces!! very quick indeed. Anyways, yeah, well, as far as filteration goes, i need some advice in that area. As far as the fish go, I won't be getting fish for another week or so, becuase i want to cycle it. So tell me what Filter i should buy!

Thanks guys once again!

also, do you mind posting soem pics of your 20 gallon tanks? I just need to get the right lead on the set up....