What Fish Should I Get?

[chigwellhammer]

Ive decided i am gonna start a tropical tank, I was just wondering what fish i should get? Not to expensive? all will get on and can all be in the same tank when i first get etc.


Any help much appreciated.

 

[james_fish]

You have a huge selection to choose. A good starter fish would be either Tetra's or Livebearers. Inparticular, Glowlight Tetra's, Mollies or Guppies.

 

[chigwellhammer]

I no i would have lol, Just interested what people think would be best for first fish etc , because i aint got a clue what fish can go together.

 

[Wills]

First off what size tank are you thinking of getting? That dictates what fish and how many you should get.

Then as for James fishes advice I would stay away from livebearers, always sold as a beginners fish but IMO come with quite a few issues attaches, if you mix genders you will be innundated with fry very quickly and for a new fish keeper thats quite daunting as in dealing with how to get them rehomed etc? And then you have the issue with them being massivly produced all over so are quite low quality and prone to disease.

With all tanks you need to do a cycle, 2 ways of doing this. First way is fish in this means putting fish in straight away to poop in the tank to feed a bacteria colony in the filter that will keep the water healthy, however doing this means that until the bacteria is colonised in the tank you need to do daily 50% water changes. The other way is fishless - this is where you add a few mililiters of ammonia to the tank each day with no fish present to replace the fish poo. The first way is sometimes hard work but you get fish quickly the second way is dead easy but you need to wait a few weeks (about 5) to add fish. Both ways work fine as it all reaches the same goal, just to add if you add fish and dont do the daily water changes before a fishless cycle the same chemicals are still released and the fish become stressed and often diseased and even more often die so they are two processes that you do need to do at the start of the hobby but it will keep your tank healthy in the long run

Wills

 

[chigwellhammer]

Thanks wills, And answering your question im not quite sure what size tank im getting at the moment! , I no it isnt going to be that spectacular as i cant really afford it.

 

[Assaye]

Ive decided i am gonna start a tropical tank, I was just wondering what fish i should get? Not to expensive? all will get on and can all be in the same tank when i first get etc.


Any help much appreciated.

I no i would have lol, Just interested what people think would be best for first fish etc , because i aint got a clue what fish can go together.

We need to know what kind of tank you're looking at getting. The size of the tank will massively affect what fish are suitable.

We also need to know what kind of cycle you are planning. Despite what shops might say, cycling a tank is essential for preparing the eco-system in the tank for the fish. Without a cycled tank, the fish get exposed to lots of nasty chemicals and can become very sick and even die. There is information about cycling here - have a read and a think and let us know what approach you're considering. Your choice will affect the fish choice as well.

 

[PDSimon]

I imagine on his budget (he did a thread in new tank section) the tank will be below 20US gallons but ones we were talking about were ~30litres


I saw a nice tank with a betta and a few neons or something..maybe that would be ok? I don't really know.

 

[chigwellhammer]

Ive been doing some research and i like the sound of some guppies , Neon Teras and maybe a angel fish? I herd sometimes the angel fish can eat the tetras but this isnt always the case. What do you lot reckon on this?

 

[Paradise3]

For the angelfish your looking at needing to get a tank that is 48"x18"x12" at least. Guppies breed worse than rabbit's and tetra's need to be in a tank that is 6months old at least. If you want guppies you might need to get just males so they don't overpopulate your tank.

Alessa x.

 

[james_fish]

You don't have to rehome fry, just don't feed your fish that day.

James.

 

[chigwellhammer]

I wouldn't actually mind if they did breed tbh , I would find it quite exiting as im only 17 ! , But i thought you needed to do something for them to breed and get babies...

 

[james_fish]

Breeding livebearers is easy, in my experiance they will do it whenever about once every 2 months. The thing is the fry get eaten by other fish, including the mother very quickly. So an extra tank is needed and a breeding basket, so the fry can be raised correctly and be seperated from the mother at birth. It's great, but you might want to get settled with your tank before going into raising fry as they are very sensitive. But it's definately something to consider in the future!

James

 

[chigwellhammer]

Just what i was thinking james! Im getting a bit carried away.. So does Neon Tetras , Guppies and maybe a angel fish sound good starting fish?

 

[james_fish]

No, not Neons. You want a 6 month old tank for them, they are pretty sensitive. Try glowlights or silvertip tetra's. Angelfish no also, not quite yet. A special fish that will need good care, research them for a few weeks and then consider them in a month or so when your tank is up and cycled. Also, these two fish don't mix, as when the Angels get bigger, they may eat your Neons. Personally, I think Guppies will be fine.

*edit* Zebra Danio's are also a good starter fish.

James

 

[OohFeeshy]

Ultimately it depends what tank size you end up getting. On the stated budget you're unlikely to get a tank large enough for angels, or even zebra danios.