Newbie Needs Advise On What Fish To Keep And How Many

[josami]

Hi Everyone

I am a newbie to keeping tropical fish and would like some advise.

I have set up my tank to its requirements stated in the booklets i got with the tank and info off the internet and i am ready to stock my tank.
It is an elite 60 litre tank and in the booklet it gives me suggested community to help me get started.

The suggested community is

2 x Dwarf Gourami (1x Male 1x Female)
3 x Guppys
2 x Corydora
4 x Cardinal Tetra

Now i know i have to introduce them at different stages but does this community sound like a good guide also how many other fish would i be able to add if any in a 60 litre tank

 

[Wills]

Hi welcome to the forum and also the hobby

That stock list does not look great for a lot of reasons. Firstly Dwarf Gourami are best kept in trios 1 male 2 females as just 1 female would get too stressed from all the attention from the male as they grow up. Also Corydoras and Tetras are schooling fish an the general recommendation for is a minimum of 6 per species but more is always better. Also Cardinal Tetras are quite a large Tetra for this size tank you would probably be better off with smaller tetras like Ember Tetras or Green Neon Tetras.

The other thing worth saying is - do you actually like these fish? There are so many fish out there and that are so easy to keep that is such a dull list IMHO and actually quite limiting. The fish are actually quite big for this kind of tank and all of those species have smaller counter parts which will allow larger numbers and a greater level of enjoyment and energy in the tank. For example I would suggest

4 Sparkling Gourami or 4 Endlers - just male Endlers though to avoid babies.
8 Ember Tetras or Galaxy Rasbora
5 Pygmy Gourami
3 or 4 Cherry Shimp - they will eventually breed so numbers will raise but you can sell the young on later on.

You might even get away with 3 of the Gourami and 3 of the Endlers

When you say you have set up the tank as per the guide I am guessing you have had the tank running with no fish for about a week maybe 2, adding in some chemicals and perhaps a bit of food? If so its not the best method and I would suggest you have a read of the topics on this page http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?/topic/277264-beginners-resource-center/ in particular the section on the Nitrogen Cycle and the Fishless Cycle they both work together and are really important to learn about these before you add fish as without them you will run into trouble.

Hope thats helped
Wills

 

[josami]

Thanks Wills

I will look at the suggestions you gave me for fish to see what i like and will read the thread you have mentioned

Thanks again

 

[This Old Spouse]

I'm not going to suggest which fish you should get but I will stress that you should do a fishless cycle before adding any fish, PLEASE. Even better, find someone who has an established tank and ask them for some of their filter media to seed yours. It will allow you to add fish almost immediately if you can get 1/3 of the media from someone's 55g tank.

I'll also stress that you get yourself a liquid testing kit such as Salifert, Nutrafin or API. This will allow you to test your water whenever you feel the need, and you'll be testing it a lot for these first few months of having your tank.

Let us know of any questions you have an we'll answer them to the best of our ability. Just keep in mind that the LFS (local fish shop) has only one goal and that's to make money. Post all your questions here and you'll be much better informed than asking any LFS staff (unless they're good friends of yours who care about fish).

Welcome to the forum!

 

[Akasha72]

hi and welcome

Just to say I agree with the other two posts. Please don't add fish until the tank is cycled. Fish in cycling is a massive commitment and also dangerous for your fish.

all the best Akasha

 

[colleen0309]

Good morning and welcome to the forum!

 

[josami]

I am getting api water testing kit today and my daughters friend has an established tank so i will see about getting some filter media from her.
Now i know i read on this forum that there is no such thing as a stupid question but do i put her old filter into mine or place it in the tank as i have seen on a video on youtube

I really want to do everything right as i have been wanting to keep tropical fish for a very long time and dont want to create problems of my own doing and if doing a fishless cycle helps to achive this i am prepared to wait

Any advise is gratefully accepted

 

[biohazard156]

Hiya!

If your friend gives you some filter media (probably some sponge) then you need to keep it as wet as possible in transit and then put it into your filter box along with the sponge or ceramic media you have and then start it up. You then want to start dosing with ammonia as soon as possible as the bacteria in the donated sponge will need something to feed from!

 

[Wills]

Hi glad youve read into it Great attitude to start the hobby with as well

Biohazard156 has hit it on the head just take out some of your daughters friends filter sponge not all of it though other wise it will affect her tank, say about a third and keep it wet in the move in tank water though not tap water as tap water will kill off the bacteria. So just pop it in a lunch box with some of the friends tank water.

And then start your fishless cycle having the media from the friends tank will speed things up by quite a few weeks so just keep a log of the readings you get day to day and when you hit that 12 hour double 0 reading start to think about adding fish

Wills

 

[josami]

Thanks everyone for the help and advise i am trying to learn as much as i can from all on the forum have gone a bit bog eyed with all the reading i have done today but i hope it will all be worth the slog when i get an established tank and my fish.

I have had a look at your suggestion for fish wills thats a nice variety so much better than what was suggested in the booklet i got with the tank

Thanks again

 

[pkppv]

I'm not going to suggest which fish you should get but I will stress that you should do a fishless cycle before adding any fish, PLEASE. Even better, find someone who has an established tank and ask them for some of their filter media to seed yours. It will allow you to add fish almost immediately if you can get 1/3 of the media from someone's 55g tank.

I'll also stress that you get yourself a liquid testing kit such as Salifert, Nutrafin or API. This will allow you to test your water whenever you feel the need, and you'll be testing it a lot for these first few months of having your tank.

Let us know of any questions you have an we'll answer them to the best of our ability. Just keep in mind that the LFS (local fish shop) has only one goal and that's to make money. Post all your questions here and you'll be much better informed than asking any LFS staff (unless they're good friends of yours who care about fish).

Welcome to the forum!

+8585739374959!!!

Im tired of plus 1s

 

[josami]

what does that mean ?

 

[Rummynose]

what does that mean ?

Don't worry, what pkppv was saying is just a joke, he meant to agree with what has been said and usually people just write "+1", he was tired of just writing that so he made up his own number, lol

What I want to add to what has been said in regards to doing the fishless cycling after your friend's filter media has been added, is you have to feed the media with ammonia, pure ammonia without scents and dyes and such, otherwise the bacteria will die and you will have to start from scratch!

 

[This Old Spouse]

What I want to add to what has been said in regards to doing the fishless cycling after your friend's filter media has been added, is you have to feed the media with ammonia, pure ammonia without scents and dyes and such, otherwise the bacteria will die and you will have to start from scratch!

If you get 1/3 of your friend's mature filter media from their 55g tank, you can effectively use that in up to a 20g tank and add fish immediately.

 

[pkppv]

Hey this old spouse....that sounds rather rude to say your name...anywayyy, if i donate 1/3 of my media to someone, will that do me any damage?

Im sorry josami

Yes it was a joke, basically what i meant was that i STRONGLY agree with the suggestion that you should do a fishless cycle.