Please Help A Newbie Choose My Fish

[nessar]

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?

yes, ammonia is highly poisonous to fish so it mustnt be used after the fish are in there. Have a look at the cycling threads in the begginners section, you really need to know about the nitrogen cycle before you start. And remember to ignore your fish shop, most talk rubbish, they just want to sell you suff.

Do you have any friends that have tanks? If you can get a piece of their filter sponge, or even just squeeze their filter sponge gunk into your tank, that would make your cycle go a lot quicker.

 

[marieukxx]

Thanks eveyone yeah I am thinking smaller now.

Still unsure on the frog situation. I would like one. It was suggested using a turkey baster to pop food at the bottom of the tank?

Leaving out the Yellow rainbow it's too big for the tank

Still thinking of the dwarf neons rainbows and platy

what about galaxy rasbora?

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?

yes, ammonia is highly poisonous to fish so it mustnt be used after the fish are in there. Have a look at the cycling threads in the begginners section, you really need to know about the nitrogen cycle before you start. And remember to ignore your fish shop, most talk rubbish, they just want to sell you suff.

Do you have any friends that have tanks? If you can get a piece of their filter sponge, or even just squeeze their filter sponge gunk into your tank, that would make your cycle go a lot quicker.

Right so I'll get the amonia for the cycling and the test kit and look all that up.

My whole setup is second hand. I got it in the paper. The filter is mature they said as it had 6 months use is that any help?

 

[marieukxx]

Ok so what about:

1 red Sword Fish max 8cm
6 Dwarf Neon Rainbow Fish
1 white Micky Mouse Platy
2 Sunset Platy
Shrimp - how many can I have of these?

Are my choices ok? Is this the right amount for my tank?

Rest assured I am cycling first I am just one of those that likes to set out what I'm gonna do step by step lol. I like to have my plan of action

 

[Liamm]

You mean a sword tail right? Those fish will all be fine together, ill leave the stocking to someone else.

 

[marieukxx]

You mean a sword tail right? Those fish will all be fine together, ill leave the stocking to someone else.

lol yeah.

 

[Jenste]

I am going to weigh in on the frog situation, very simply - don't. For their and the fish's health and happiness, do not mix the species. But especially for the frog, it will be added stress, and a death by either starvation or mutilation. Frogs are best kept in a species only tank. Frogs are not fish, their needs are different and should be treated as such.

 

[jkilby]

As far as I have been told 'critters' so your snails and shrimp do not count towards your bioload in a tank to any significant level. I have a bigger tank than you, but I have 9 assassin snails (max out at 3cm), three golden apples (get quite large) and 12 cherry shrimp. My sons have a 60L and have 3 assassins and 2 golden apples and that feels about right in that size personally. Shrimp are great characters, but be aware you won't see them that often, they can blend in very well and I find mine come out mainly as the lights are starting to dim.

The Borneo sucker loach is good, but they like it a little cooler than most tropicals (around 20-22 degrees) where the other fish prefer the 24-26 range. That is the one reason I didn't go for that particular type.

I have fancy guppies (cobra snakeskin, diamond blue and red blonde) I went the all male route, which does mean a more boisterous tank, but my stocking suits that. If you do go the livebearer route (platys, guppies, mollies) then be prepared for a lot of babies as they breed very rapidly and often. I can totally recommend the diamond blue guppies, they are truly a stunning fish with a metalic blue glimmer to them, pictures online don't do them justice, you have to see them in a shop to realise how much they stand out from the croud.

 

[lilfishie]

i'd personally not have the swordtail, they get quite large and are very active, get another platy or 2 instead

 

[marieukxx]

Ok the swordtail is out. I'm not getting the frog as it's not right. Will the platy breed?

I wanted guppies but will I have trouble with loads of babies. What do I do if that happens

 

[jkilby]

Any of the guppies, platy's and mollies will breed rapidly if you have the male/female mix correct. The females can store sperm, so if you only have females, there is still a chance of having babies for quite some time, this is why I went male only. If you do go for both sexes then make sure you get the right quantity mix, else you will end up having all the males hounding two few females and they will get stressed.

 

[jkilby]

There is always a level of natural selection when you have fry, when they are very small, some fish will see them as food and eat them. The other thing is you have a good LFS, have a chat to them, as sometimes they will take them off of you, however I have found it more rare with the livebearers, as they are so rapant the fish shops have all their own popping out babies all the time.