Please Help A Newbie Choose My Fish

[marieukxx]

I have a 60 litre tank with pump filter heater and light. Got all the stuff just need to set it all up.

I am not getting my fish until it's been set up and running ok for a while.

These are the fish I wanted can you tell me if it's overstocking. Also will they all get on? My research said they would but I wanna be sure.

Clown Fish 11cm max if female
Aquatic Frog 6cm max
Snakeskin Guppys 6 in total 4cm max
Fighter Fish 7cm (not sure on this as it said beware some fish that will nip it's trailing fins)
Neon Tetras 6 of those 4cm max
Sucker Loach apparantly good for cleaning the tank? 5cm
Yellow Rainbow 10cm max
Pyjama cardinal 10cm max

Am I out of my league with all these? Is it too many?
Also is it ok to get all this at once?

 

[Liamm]

Clown fish are marine fish and thus require a totally different water chemistry compared to tropical fish, although aquatic frogs are cool, imo I wouldn't keep them with any fish because they eat very slow and would lose out if kept with other fish (I've never kept them though so maybe I'm wrong!). Guppies are fine just be aware that they are very delicate so you have to be aware of the the ammonia, nitrite and nitrate readings in your tank, Fighters, I wouldn't really mix with guppies because he may interpret their big tails as other fighters and will attack them, some people on here say you shouldn't keep them with other fish but as long as you find one that has a good temperament then there's no reason why you can't mix them with other fish (try and avoid fish with big flowing tails like guppies and gouramis, for the reason stated above, also don't go for fish that are likely to nip fins as they'll have a field day when they see the fighter). Neon tetras are fine but do not like new aquariums, sucking loaches aren't as good as your LFS will make them out to be, as for the rest I'll leave them to someone else as I don;t know about them.

As for alternatives, I'll suggest some: Mollies, Platys, Dwarf Gourami, Honey Gourami, alot of the tetra species, cherry barbs, otocinculus, pygmy corydoras. Thats all I can think of right now and bare in mind not all the ones I've stated can be mixed together

 

[nessar]

from that list looks like you'd be overstocked.

Clown Fish 11cm max if female -clown fish are marine, so you cant keep them in a fresh water tank.
Aquatic Frog 6cm max - depends how tall your tank is, as they need to come up for air, and they like to live in pairs/groups. You'll need to handfeed them in a community and this can be tricky, as they are excellent hiders. Otherwise fine as long as you get an African DWARF frog, not an African CLAWED frog. The CLAWED frogs will get big and eat your fish.
Snakeskin Guppys 6 in total 4cm max - guppies breed very fast, you'd become quickly overstocked, so best have either all females (you'll still get some babies as they can store sperm) or all males (will be agressive. I would stick with females myself, some guppies are NASTY.
Fighter Fish 7cm - some are okay, but many will attack other tankmates, particularly brightly coloured/long finned ones like guppies. Your filter for a 60l will probably be too strong for it, they are poor swimmers so you'd probably have to adapt the filter.
Neon Tetras 6 of those 4cm max - likely to nip bettas fins but without the betta you'd be okay with these. They are sensitive fish though and should only be added AFTER 6 months of the tank being established.
Sucker Loach apparantly good for cleaning the tank? 5cm - depends what breed you mean , 'sucker loach' covers a few
Yellow Rainbow 10cm max - no idea, but how long is your tank? some 60ls I wouldnt put a 10cm fish in, it would be like you only living in your bathroom and never being able to exercise properly.
Pyjama cardinal 10cm max - again I think this fish is marine


If you do a fishless cycle and get your tank turning over a good amount (say 8ppm) of ammonia in 12 hours, you can add many fish at once. I would strongly reccommend you fishless cycle, have you researched it? Fish-in-cycling takes much longer, is more expensive and you'll likely get ill/dead fish. Also if you fish-in-cycle you should only add a couple at a time.

I would reccommend you fishless cycle, then add some guppies and possibly the frogs if you decide to get them. Like I said the tetras cant go in straight away. If you decide to get a betta it MUST go in last, or it will see any new fish as invading its territory and attack them. If you ever do need to add fish after the betta, you will need to remove it and completely rescape the tank, changing it around, then add the new fish back in before the betta.

edit - also frogs can be a right headache as many get or carry a bacteria which develops into a nearly untreatable, nearly always fatal disease.

 

[marieukxx]

Thanks. I'll leave out the Fighter then. That's off my list.

So best maybe to get Tetras after a while maybe?

Should I not mix the marine and tropical then?

 

[nessar]

Thanks. I'll leave out the Fighter then. That's off my list.

So best maybe to get Tetras after a while maybe?

Should I not mix the marine and tropical then?

marine fish cant survive in fresh water and fresh water fish cant survive in salt water. So no There are a few 'brackish' fish that like it to be a little salty, but otherwise no, never.

 

[Fish Guy]

Marine is salt water and tropical are fresh. Best option for a beginner would be danios or live bearers.

 

[marieukxx]

from that list looks like you'd be overstocked.

Clown Fish 11cm max if female -clown fish are marine, so you cant keep them in a fresh water tank.
Aquatic Frog 6cm max - depends how tall your tank is, as they need to come up for air, and they like to live in pairs/groups. You'll need to handfeed them in a community and this can be tricky, as they are excellent hiders. Otherwise fine as long as you get an African DWARF frog, not an African CLAWED frog. The CLAWED frogs will get big and eat your fish.
Snakeskin Guppys 6 in total 4cm max - guppies breed very fast, you'd become quickly overstocked, so best have either all females (you'll still get some babies as they can store sperm) or all males (will be agressive. I would stick with females myself, some guppies are NASTY.
Fighter Fish 7cm - some are okay, but many will attack other tankmates, particularly brightly coloured/long finned ones like guppies. Your filter for a 60l will probably be too strong for it, they are poor swimmers so you'd probably have to adapt the filter.
Neon Tetras 6 of those 4cm max - likely to nip bettas fins but without the betta you'd be okay with these. They are sensitive fish though and should only be added AFTER 6 months of the tank being established.
Sucker Loach apparantly good for cleaning the tank? 5cm - depends what breed you mean , 'sucker loach' covers a few
Yellow Rainbow 10cm max - no idea, but how long is your tank? some 60ls I wouldnt put a 10cm fish in, it would be like you only living in your bathroom and never being able to exercise properly.
Pyjama cardinal 10cm max - again I think this fish is marine


If you do a fishless cycle and get your tank turning over a good amount (say 8ppm) of ammonia in 12 hours, you can add many fish at once. I would strongly reccommend you fishless cycle, have you researched it? Fish-in-cycling takes much longer, is more expensive and you'll likely get ill/dead fish. Also if you fish-in-cycle you should only add a couple at a time.

I would reccommend you fishless cycle, then add some guppies and possibly the frogs if you decide to get them. Like I said the tetras cant go in straight away. If you decide to get a betta it MUST go in last, or it will see any new fish as invading its territory and attack them. If you ever do need to add fish after the betta, you will need to remove it and completely rescape the tank, changing it around, then add the new fish back in before the betta.

edit - also frogs can be a right headache as many get or carry a bacteria which develops into a nearly untreatable, nearly always fatal disease.

Goodness thank you soooooo much for your advice. So the marine fish are off the list.
The sucker loach is a borneao one.
I'm gonna forget the frog
The tank is 22 inches long.

\What fish do you recommened?
And yes I have looked at the fishless cycling but need proper info and it. Do I need amonia? What levels should it be. What do I do if the levels are wrong?

 

[twodoctors]

Thanks. I'll leave out the Fighter then. That's off my list.

So best maybe to get Tetras after a while maybe?

Should I not mix the marine and tropical then?

Two things.

Are you sure your LFS stock what you want?

Are you sure your pH is suitable for your fishes/frog?

Adrian

 

[nessar]

Goodness thank you soooooo much for your advice. So the marine fish are off the list.
The sucker loach is a borneao one.
I'm gonna forget the frog
The tank is 22 inches long.

\What fish do you recommened?
And yes I have looked at the fishless cycling but need proper info and it. Do I need amonia? What levels should it be. What do I do if the levels are wrong?

I would reccommend livebearers (so mollies, guppies, platies and swordtails) but as you are just beginning try and get all female ones, check out the livebearer section for a pinned thread about how to tell male from female. If you do get males at all, make sure there are 3 or more females to every 1 male, or they will become bullies. I have had fish bully others to death. No more than 1 male swordtail should be kept in a tank that size as they will fight. With livebearers, never buy as many to fully stock your tank, as you'll get some babies.

I have kept both honey and dwarf gouramis, male dwarves are more aggressive and should be kept alone or with 2 females. Honeys are much more docile. Dwarves may be aggressive with your fish but I found mine was much slower than my livebearers, so couldnt catch them to do any damage. I really like gouramis, they have great characters. Bear in mind you shouldnt keep gouramis with bettas though, so one or the other.

Tetras are fine as long as you keep the numbers up, the less of them there are, the more shy they are. I have 1 left from my group now, and I hardly ever see him.

I think shrimp would be good for cleanup, they are much less messy than fish and they do look cool. Ghost shrimp are probably best as they are more easy to find in shops, but cherries and ammano are good too. They will eat anything but you should buy the algae/pleco tablets/wafers, your other fish will enjoy them too.

You can also get some snails. Most snails breed VERY rapidly though so can be a pain, you'll have to sell or kill them, or get an assasins snail (kills other snails). Apple snails dont breed fast though and you can clearly see the eggs so can just remove them. I love apple snails you can get some lovely colours. Again you do have to feed them algae wafers, and sometimes calcium tablets (Tums) , especially if you have soft water.


edit: forgot to add about fishless cycling... yes you'll need ammonia. If you live in the UK you can get it for about £3 in Boots. Its fine, the trick is to make sure the bacteria never run out of ammonia or they starve, but if you did put WAY too much in (unlikely) you just do a water change

 

[marieukxx]

Ok so I can get the fish I list in answer to a question.
I still have to do my cycling first and all that. I'm just resarching so I know.

This is what I'm thinking of getting now lol

Dwarf Neon Rainbow x 6
Sunset Platy x 3
Yellow Rainbow x 1

maybe shrimp?

What's your view on this?

 

[nessar]

If you havent already done so you'll need a test kit before you start. Preferably a liquid one, the dip-sticks dont give as accurate results.

Ok so I can get the fish I list in answer to a question.
I still have to do my cycling first and all that. I'm just resarching so I know.

This is what I'm thinking of getting now lol

Dwarf Neon Rainbow x 6
Sunset Platy x 3
Yellow Rainbow x 1

maybe shrimp?

What's your view on this?

I have no experience of rainbows so I dont know much about keeping them. However you are choosing fairly hard to source fish there! Rainbows are not common, platies are very common but to get a certain colour you'll have to look around a bit.

 

[marieukxx]

Goodness thank you soooooo much for your advice. So the marine fish are off the list.
The sucker loach is a borneao one.
I'm gonna forget the frog
The tank is 22 inches long.

\What fish do you recommened?
And yes I have looked at the fishless cycling but need proper info and it. Do I need amonia? What levels should it be. What do I do if the levels are wrong?

I would reccommend livebearers (so mollies, guppies, platies and swordtails) but as you are just beginning try and get all female ones, check out the livebearer section for a pinned thread about how to tell male from female. If you do get males at all, make sure there are 3 or more females to every 1 male, or they will become bullies. I have had fish bully others to death. No more than 1 male swordtail should be kept in a tank that size as they will fight. With livebearers, never buy as many to fully stock your tank, as you'll get some babies.

I have kept both honey and dwarf gouramis, male dwarves are more aggressive and should be kept alone or with 2 females. Honeys are much more docile. Dwarves may be aggressive with your fish but I found mine was much slower than my livebearers, so couldnt catch them to do any damage. I really like gouramis, they have great characters. Bear in mind you shouldnt keep gouramis with bettas though, so one or the other.

Tetras are fine as long as you keep the numbers up, the less of them there are, the more shy they are. I have 1 left from my group now, and I hardly ever see him.

I think shrimp would be good for cleanup, they are much less messy than fish and they do look cool. Ghost shrimp are probably best as they are more easy to find in shops, but cherries and ammano are good too. They will eat anything but you should buy the algae/pleco tablets/wafers, your other fish will enjoy them too.

You can also get some snails. Most snails breed VERY rapidly though so can be a pain, you'll have to sell or kill them, or get an assasins snail (kills other snails). Apple snails dont breed fast though and you can clearly see the eggs so can just remove them. I love apple snails you can get some lovely colours. Again you do have to feed them algae wafers, and sometimes calcium tablets (Tums) , especially if you have soft water.


edit: forgot to add about fishless cycling... yes you'll need ammonia. If you live in the UK you can get it for about £3 in Boots. Its fine, the trick is to make sure the bacteria never run out of ammonia or they starve, but if you did put WAY too much in (unlikely) you just do a water change

Thank you sooo much. I would have had a disaster without your advice. Gutted I can't have my Nemo though lol.

I was wondering where I get amonia I'll get down to boots tomorrow. I'm setting up and starting the cycling this week. I wanted to get all the gear first. Is the amonia just for the cycling stages?

 

[Jacko-Ainze]

I would really suggest starting with tropical as It is twice as easy as marine, also twice as cheap. Keep you first tank simple and learn the basics of the hobby, then move on to bigger tanks then, if you still are keen start to consider marine but only if you deffinatly have the time and money, If your going to do it do it properly
If in doubt Google aquarium advisor that will help allot.

 

[marieukxx]

If you havent already done so you'll need a test kit before you start. Preferably a liquid one, the dip-sticks dont give as accurate results.

Ok so I can get the fish I list in answer to a question.
I still have to do my cycling first and all that. I'm just resarching so I know.

This is what I'm thinking of getting now lol

Dwarf Neon Rainbow x 6
Sunset Platy x 3
Yellow Rainbow x 1

maybe shrimp?

What's your view on this?

I have no experience of rainbows so I dont know much about keeping them. However you are choosing fairly hard to source fish there! Rainbows are not common, platies are very common but to get a certain colour you'll have to look around a bit.

I have found this place for fish
http/www.aquaticstoyourdoor.co.uk/search.php?mode=search&page=2

I would really suggest starting with tropical as It is twice as easy as marine, also twice as cheap. Keep you first tank simple and learn the basics of the hobby, then move on to bigger tanks then, if you still are keen start to consider marine but only if you deffinatly have the time and money, If your going to do it do it properly

Yes I'm doing that now thanks

 

[micko]

Personally I'd stay away from the "sucker fish" in a 60 ltr tank. They can grow very big (not sure about the one you are talking about though)

I started off with livebearers after it was suggested to me to do so by a friend. They are easier to keep, fish such as plattys, guppys, mollys. I got a few tetras and danios too. The tetras and danios are suggested to be in groups of 6 or more, and the livebearers are suggested to be a ratio of 1male:3female.

In time I changed fish like many others do. I'm glad I started the way I did though as I think without some knowledge of fish I would have given up long ago if I started off with cichlids.