Newbie

[Bojangles]

Alright everyone

I have just bought my first tank an elite style 60 (60 litres)

* Sun-glow fluorescent bulb - 15W
* Elite Stingray filter
* Elite 100W heater
* LCD thermometer
* Marina Plant Rock
* Nurafin AquaPlus - 30ml
* Nurafin Cycle - 30ml
* Nurafin Max complete flake food - 12g
* Basic Aquarium guide

[URL="http/www.seapets.co.uk/gallery/660247-large.jpg"]http/www.seapets.co.uk/gallery/660247-large.jpg[/URL]

And was looking for some advice on what fish i can stock it with tho i am not looking to stock it at this moment because i want to do a bit research about cycling the tank and stuff first but im off in to town later and i just want to price some stuff up for later

Any advice will be gratefully accepted

 

[Corleone]

Welcome, and first off, you're about 10 steps ahead of a lot of new hobbyists by seeking help before getting fish. It simplifies a lot of the usual stuff that gets posted in this situation.

First step, buy a liquid based test kit. It'll be the best investment you can make for fishkeeping. The strips are inaccurate, and since they give few tests per purchase, actually work out quite a bit more expensive. The API Freshwater Master kit is the most widely used on the forum.

Cycling, since you don't have fish yet, it's a good time to point out that the method of cycling often taught in pet stores and even filter/tank documentation is just to run the tank empty for a while. This actually accomplishes very little, as the cycle requires ammonia (be it fish or otherwise).

Review this thread first on fishless cycling, it'll give you a good start and put you in a good place:
http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showtopic=113861

Also review all the stickies in this thread, particularly ones on setup and weekly maintenance. Fishless cycling is the first step, though.

As for stocking, 60l gives you a lot of options in the small fish department. The tank is 15 US gallons, and the rough guideline is 1" per US gallon - this is a very rough guideline, only applies to fish up to the 4-6 inch range, but it's also usually an underestimate, so it's a safe starting point. Mature tanks (6 months after the cycle) can generally support a higher stocking level - the only real way to see where you stand is by regular water testing.

Anyway, there's literally thousands of options, despite the tank's limitations. I'd suggest browsing this site's species index, and other fish sites that have species lists, or going to the library and looking for a species book. Look for some fish that you like, or just browse your local fish stores and put together a list of fish you like and posting here - we'll be able to help you determine which will be suitable for the tank size and compatible tankmates, as well as offer other options or alternatives.

One thing to decide is what kind of tank you want. A tropical community is probably about the easiest tank to stock with some simple rules, and it seems to be most people's first tank, but you might prefer a semi-aggressive tank or even more aggressive cichilds, where there's a few options open for you.

 

[Miss Wiggle]

yes well done for researching before buying fish, as you quite rightly say you need to get the tank cycled before you add them, it can be frustrating waiting a few weeks for it to complete but it's a whole lot easier than cycling with fish.

in addition to the link above also read the links from my sig 'step by step guide to setting up an aquarium' and 'whats cycling' which will give you a bit more insight.

with regards to the fish because there are so many options and different things available in different locations that it's often hard for us to make recommendations as we may say something that you set your heart on and then can't get hold of for love nor money which is always a bit depressing! I'd suggest you take a trip to your local fish shop (lfs) or more than one if you have them. I know it's a bit geeky but take a notepad with you and make note of a few things, it'll help enormously with working out where to buy your stock from in the future.

Firstly write down the name (scientific or latin name if possible, common names are often made up by the fish shop, a decent shop will be able to tell you the proper scientific species name) of every fish that you like the look of, when you come back here then post the list up and we can go through and try to decipher a stocking list from your choices. You are lookin g at small fish with that tank, nothing much over 3" adult size although it does depend on the species.

Secondly pick a few bits of standard dry goods, like food, hardware etc and note down the price in each store so that you can work out where is the best value for dry goods.

Thirdly ask the shop about quarantining new fish, all new arrivals should be quarantined for at least a week, preferably a month, the longer they quarantine before the fish goes on sale the less likely they will be to bring a disease into your tank.

and lastly make a note of the number of tanks with a dead or unwell looking fish in it. Point out one of the dead fish to an employee, don't be confrontational just mention it in passing and see how they respond. A good employee will immediately remove the fish, inspect it's body for signs of illness, inspect the rest of the fish in the tank and most likely mark the tank up as 'quarantine not for sale' or something similar.

From these few things you'll start to build up a picture of the best shops in your area and where to trust, if possible speak to a few staff in the store, it's inevitable that places will have good and bad employee's so don't judge a whole store on the actions of one person, but just get a feel from speaking to a few people.

 

[Corleone]

One thing I meant to add in my last post: Nutrafin cycle is, generally, junk. Since you have it, when you start your fishless cycle, add the whole bottle of Cycle. It might do nothing, it might help a bit, it probably won't work as advertised, but you might as well give any good bacteria in the bottle the best chance.

 

[chesterscot]

to tff
scot

 

[Bojangles]

Thanks for the replys

Bookmarked all the links so i can have a proper read later on

 

[Miss Wiggle]

excellent, there's a fair bit of reading to do but it's definately worth it in the long run!

Have a look through and post back with any questions for us

 

[Lord Fishheart]

Thanks for the replys

Bookmarked all the links so i can have a proper read later on

Now then matey, its houst69 off the SMB, you will get all the info you need off here. Research everything before you start!

 

[waterdrop]

Yes, Welcome to TFF!

Agree with all the above posts. Reading about the Nitrogen Cycle can be particularly fascinating if you get into it in my opinion.

You have one of the clearest first posts I've seen, so congrats are in order. Right away you've picked up good advice regarding the irony of how the LFS will send you away with all those goodies, like an LCD thermometer, but nowhere in your bag will there be a master test kit, which has got to be the number one most important starting item for a beginner!

Once you do pick up your liquid test kit, get some practice using it by testing all the stats on your tap water a couple times and post up the results here. It will be good for later if we can all look back early in this thread and find them.

Couple of other oddball items that are helpful to have: 2x numbered syringes from the drugstore, one for leveling up test water in the test tubes of the test kit and the other for injecting pure ammonia into the tank in a repeatable amount. (I already have confidence you are going to figure out that Fishless Cycling, the best invention since the glass tank, will be the way to go, lol.)

One other exercise you may want to engage in is describing the media in detail that is inside your elite filter to the members and having a bit of discussion about it. It helps a lot to understand and feel confident that your filter hardware is truly what you want and is understood prior to pouring weeks of work into it, getting the two species of bacteria grown in it.

~~waterdrop~~

 

[Bojangles]

One other exercise you may want to engage in is describing the media in detail that is inside your elite filter to the members and having a bit of discussion about it. It helps a lot to understand and feel confident that your filter hardware is truly what you want and is understood prior to pouring weeks of work into it, getting the two species of bacteria grown in it.

~~waterdrop~~

My filter aint up to much to be honest i did abit of research on it and the results did not look too good i think i might be better off buying a new filter (recommendations welcome) before i start the cycle just to be safe.

The filter has 2 baskets are Carbon Cartridges and there is also a V shape foam filter pad in there.

Also can some one point me in the right diirection on where to get household ammonia in the UK ?

im going to have a look in Wilkinsons, Homebase and Boots tomorrow when im on my break so fingers crossed i will pick some up

Thanks for the replys

Bookmarked all the links so i can have a proper read later on

Now then matey, its houst69 off the SMB, you will get all the info you need off here. Research everything before you start!

How do Houst lad thought it might of been you when i noticed location

 

[Corleone]

I'm personally a fan of Aquaclear hanging filters, since they have a large media capacity compared to most hanging filters I've used. Ignore the tank size they say they're suitable for, particularly internal and hanging filters, these always seem to be hopelessly optimistic ratings - I have an aquaclear that says it's good for 110 gallons, but alone it can't even keep up with my 55 gallon. Look for the gallons per hour flow rate, and shoot for 5-10 times the volume of your tank. Higher filtration generally supports a larger stock of fish, but you also don't want your fish getting blown around the tank by very high flow.

 

[Lord Fishheart]

One other exercise you may want to engage in is describing the media in detail that is inside your elite filter to the members and having a bit of discussion about it. It helps a lot to understand and feel confident that your filter hardware is truly what you want and is understood prior to pouring weeks of work into it, getting the two species of bacteria grown in it.

~~waterdrop~~

My filter aint up to much to be honest i did abit of research on it and the results did not look too good i think i might be better off buying a new filter (recommendations welcome) before i start the cycle just to be safe.

The filter has 2 baskets are Carbon Cartridges and there is also a V shape foam filter pad in there.

Also can some one point me in the right diirection on where to get household ammonia in the UK ?

im going to have a look in Wilkinsons, Homebase and Boots tomorrow when im on my break so fingers crossed i will pick some up

Thanks for the replys

Bookmarked all the links so i can have a proper read later on

Now then matey, its houst69 off the SMB, you will get all the info you need off here. Research everything before you start!

How do Houst lad thought it might of been you when i noticed location

I looked for weeks mate, found some in Derbyshire in the local hardware shop, not the easiest thing to come across like, best bet is probably homebase I reckon

 

[waterdrop]

I'm personally a fan of Aquaclear hanging filters, since they have a large media capacity compared to most hanging filters I've used. Ignore the tank size they say they're suitable for, particularly internal and hanging filters, these always seem to be hopelessly optimistic ratings - I have an aquaclear that says it's good for 110 gallons, but alone it can't even keep up with my 55 gallon. Look for the gallons per hour flow rate, and shoot for 5-10 times the volume of your tank. Higher filtration generally supports a larger stock of fish, but you also don't want your fish getting blown around the tank by very high flow.

Yes, good advice. I'd stay closer to the 5x than the 10x because of the "blow-around" effect, which probably gets a bit worse in a smaller tank like the 60L/16G in question. The UK folks tell us the HOBs are harder to find over there, but I def agree that an AquaClear is often the most flexible (I've had them and like them.) You could also see what's out there in the world of small cannisters. An Eheim Classic 2211 or 2213 would probably be perfect. I'd avoid the Eheim Ecco range for now, but there might be a small Fluval that would work also. Also, the UK seems to have great choices among power internals, so there might be something that costs less but won't mess up your aquascape plans too much.

~~waterdrop~~

 

[Miss Wiggle]

there's a section on filtration in the link in my sig 'step by step guide to setting up an aquarium' which may be worth a little read, help you out with your research.

 

[Miss Wiggle]

oh yes following on from the other thread with your water stats (post them up here as well will you for contunity) they're spot on, as you've no ammonia or nitrite in the tap water you don't need to worry about any of that, nitrate is nice and low and a pH of 7.6 is going to give you loads of options for stocking, you'll have to steer away from anythign wanting an especially low pH but the vast majority of community trops will be absolutely fine at this level.

have you had a read through the links we gave you yet? in particular have you read up on fishless cycling and made any decisions on which way to go?