Starting Small

[Jethro]

HI, I have had a few fish over the years but never really took it seriously. The last fish i had was when i was around 13 or 14 and he lived less than a year (male betta) and after that I just kinda gave up.

Completely on impulse yesterday i bought a one gallon talk with a undergravel filter/bubble stone setup. It has a lid with a light in it and is triangular shaped. I set up the tank and put about 2 inches of gravel on the bottom and filled it with fresh spring water. the entire setup cost less than $15.

I then bought one black moor (Yin) and one mostly white calico fantail (Yang) from walmart (the only place to buy fish within 20 miles of my house) i brought them home and put them in my tank, and they are there now. they are swimming around happily and seem to be doing fine other than yang beats up on yin sometimes. they are both just under an inch long excluding tails.

I have been reading about fish most of the day and now i'm under the impression that this tank is not large enough for both of my goldfish. i read somewhere that a 10 gallon tank was only big enough for ONE goldfish. is this true? if so then how long with my 2 fish live in this one gallon tank before i have problems? If i move them to a larger tank will this one gallon tank be large enough for a single male betta?

 

[MollyFresh]

I think the size tank you need for the fish and how much fish you can put in a X gallon tank is highly over rated..

 

[adam98150]

HI, I have had a few fish over the years but never really took it seriously. The last fish i had was when i was around 13 or 14 and he lived less than a year (male betta) and after that I just kinda gave up.

Completely on impulse yesterday i bought a one gallon talk with a undergravel filter/bubble stone setup. It has a lid with a light in it and is triangular shaped. I set up the tank and put about 2 inches of gravel on the bottom and filled it with fresh spring water. the entire setup cost less than $15.

I then bought one black moor (Yin) and one mostly white calico fantail (Yang) from walmart (the only place to buy fish within 20 miles of my house) i brought them home and put them in my tank, and they are there now. they are swimming around happily and seem to be doing fine other than yang beats up on yin sometimes. they are both just under an inch long excluding tails.

I have been reading about fish most of the day and now i'm under the impression that this tank is not large enough for both of my goldfish. i read somewhere that a 10 gallon tank was only big enough for ONE goldfish. is this true? if so then how long with my 2 fish live in this one gallon tank before i have problems? If i move them to a larger tank will this one gallon tank be large enough for a single male betta?

For goldfish it is generally recommended that you provide the first goldfish with a 20 gallon tank, and then add an additional 10 gallon's for each new goldfish that you introduce. For example: 30 Gallon tank / 2 goldfish, 40 gallon tank / 3 goldfish.

Hope i helped, also you should of cycled your aquarium before introducing fish.

http/www.fishforums.net/content/New-to-t...shless-Cycling/

 

[Jethro]

thanks for the quick replies.

alright well i'm going to take the fish to a pet store in a town nearby mine this weekend. i will be coming home sunday or monday with a betta fish.

can i leave the water i already have in the tank to "cycle" while i'm away over the weekend? will this water be safe for a betta?

 

[lym]

thanks for the quick replies.

alright well i'm going to take the fish to a pet store in a town nearby mine this weekend. i will be coming home sunday or monday with a betta fish.

can i leave the water i already have in the tank to "cycle" while i'm away over the weekend? will this water be safe for a betta?

Cycling a tank can't be done within days, it can take a few weeks. This topic will help you cycle your tank: http/www.fishforums.net/content/New-to-t...shless-Cycling/

 

[jaffee2k8]

I think the size tank you need for the fish and how much fish you can put in a X gallon tank is highly over rated..

hi i really need some help i have a 70 litre tank wot would u say is the biggest fish i could hav in the tank plz help

 

[waterdrop]

I think the size tank you need for the fish and how much fish you can put in a X gallon tank is highly over rated..

hi i really need some help i have a 70 litre tank wot would u say is the biggest fish i could hav in the tank plz help

Help for stocking an aquarium properly is quite complicated and depends on the individual species of fish you want to try and keep. Many fish that grow large must be kept in extremely large tanks. Many fish that are very fast swimmers need long tanks. Individual types of fish have very individual quirks.

For normal freshwater tropical community tanks there is a guideline used for medium to smaller sized fish. It is one inch of fish body (excluding tail, fins etc.) per US gallon of water. You have a 15 gallon tank with maybe 13 gallons of water probably, so this starting guideline would say that you should look up all the fish you are interested in and find out what there maximum size is that they grow to and then add all these up and not exceed 13. So, for instance, you could have a small group of corries on the bottom, a school of tetras in the middle and maybe a couple of "centerpiece" fish of a smaller variety, that sort of thing. It doesn't say you can put any huge fish that grow to over 4 inches in there.

Hope that helps,
~~waterdrop~~

 

[ALEXF]

I think the size tank you need for the fish and how much fish you can put in a X gallon tank is highly over rated..

its only over rated if you plan to cramp your fish, stunt their growth and have them die sooner than they should. So if you dont really care about living creatures than mollyfresh would be right. otherwise you need a much bigger tank for those goldfish, plus a filter.

 

[Jethro]

well i talked to a guy on the phone that works in the pet store in the town next to mine. i'm taking my two goldfish to the store on friday and coming home with a betta on sunday or monday. the guy told me that my 1 gallon tank will be enough room for a single beta and a single beta seems like enough for me to get started in this hobby.

after i get a job i plan on getting a 10 to 20 gallon tank for my living room and populating it with a variety of fish, but for now i guess a single betta next to my bed will have to do.

i have a few new questions now:

1.do goldfish have any kind of bacteria or anything that would be harmful to the betta i plan to bring home next week?

2. can i use the same water or should i start with new water?

3. can the betta eat the goldfish flakes i already bought or should i buy betta food?

4. should i ask for some used gravel from the pet store to speed up cycling?

5. and finally: will the undergravel filtration system (gravel on a tray with holes and a bubble stone beneath) be enough filtration for a single betta?

 

[ALEXF]

1.do goldfish have any kind of bacteria or anything that would be harmful to the betta i plan to bring home next week?
Not sepcifically unless your goldfish were sick.

2. can i use the same water or should i start with new water?
there would be no benefit either way.

3. can the betta eat the goldfish flakes i already bought or should i buy betta food?
no, bettas need betta food

4. should i ask for some used gravel from the pet store to speed up cycling?
your not really going to be able to keep that little tank cycled so its really not going to matter

5. and finally: will the undergravel filtration system (gravel on a tray with holes and a bubble stone beneath) be enough filtration for a single betta?

in my opinion, i would say no, that you need to get a bigger set up for even a betta. your going to do water changes often to keep your betta alive for the years it is possible to live

 

[Corleone]

1. Not that I'm aware of. Some people have kept them with tropical fish safely, if not bettas in particular. Provided the goldfish are healthy you should be ok.
2. Since the tank isn't cycled, I'd do a water change. 100% isn't necessary, but 50%, or whatever it takes to get ammonia and nitrite down - cycling with fish, your goal should be to keep them below .25 ppm at all times, the lower the better.
3. They can, but it's probably not the best. Processed foods like flakes and pellets are specifically tailored to the fish they're meant for, with different mixes of plant and animal matter and specific protein and vitamin levels. Most fish will eat anything that fits in their mouth, but they'll be healthiest on the best fit food.
4. It probably won't hurt, but it might not help that much. Chances are, the store won't be using undergravel filters, so the bacteria won't live in the gravel, but in media inside their filters. I don't really know how to use mature media from a canister or HOB filter to seed an undergravel filter, but I'm sure it's possible.
5. It should be. I don't know if there's any other option in such a small tank, anyway.

Edit: ALEXF is probably right about getting it and keeping it cycled. You'll probably be forced to depend on water changes. 1 gallon is enough for a betta in the same way many pet stores say 30 gallons is enough for an oscar: They'll fit and probably have room to turn around. Between fit and thrive, there's a difference of a couple gallons.

 

[tenohfive]

Alot of people keep betta's in one gallon tanks, personally I prefer to give mine a bit more room (3g, and he seems happy.)

Read the pinned topic on cycling and pick up a testing kit (liquid type) that measure ammonia, nitrate and nitrite. If you can't bring yourself to wait and do a fishless cycle you're going to have to do daily tests and 50% ish water changes daily to be sure that as soon as you're detecting ammonia, you're removing it with water changes.

 

[jaffee2k8]

so i could have a fish that grows no bigger than 6 cm in my 70 litre tank

 

[waterdrop]

so i could have a fish that grows no bigger than 6 cm in my 70 litre tank

Certainly, 2.4 inches in a 15 gallon (I'm a USA guy) is fine size-wise. For a particular fish, a particular species, there may be other considerations and depending on the community of fish you want it to live with, there may be still other considerations.

 

[jaffee2k8]

so i could have a fish that grows no bigger than 6 cm in my 70 litre tank

Certainly, 2.4 inches in a 15 gallon (I'm a USA guy) is fine size-wise. For a particular fish, a particular species, there may be other considerations and depending on the community of fish you want it to live with, there may be still other considerations.

thanks waterdrop for the advice