Which Fish For My Tank

[rsturbo666]

hi all newbie here just got a fluval roma 240 tank and i am wondering whats everyones opinions on which fish to get for it im looking at tetras, mollys, guppys, barbs, danios and plattys also want a few larger fish what do you think


any help would be great



thanks


scott

 

[Wills]

Hi welcome to the forum!

With fish choices the best thing you can do is read and read and read. All the fish you have listed there are the basic fish and cover a broad spectrum of fish but after spending a couple hundred pounds on a tank surely you want to make it special A few good sites for researching fish based on profiles are seriouslyfish.com planetcatfish.com loaches.com and also the profiles on this website are pretty good though perhaps a little dated. If your in the UK it would be worthwhile picking up a copy of Practical fishkeeping magazine from WH Smith as well though their website is pretty good as well

Now the first thing to do before getting your fish is get your tank ready for fish and to do this you have to do whats called a cycle and info in this is in the beginners resource section of this website, but it is brilliant and a lot to learn in there! Here is a link to it http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?/topic/277264-beginners-resource-center/ I would read the articles about the Nitrogen Cycle and also the one on Fishless cycling its the only 100% safe way to add fish to a new tank and is the way I would recommend to start off the hobby

Wills

 

[rsturbo666]

cheers for the help wills im currently cycling the tank as we talk could you recommend any bigger fish to make it special

 

[Wills]

Cool how are you cycling the tank? With pure ammonia or shop bought products? A lot of what the shops tell you just does not work and fish die or get ill early on.... Just want to make sure your aware of your options

So far as big fish, it really depends on what small fish you want to keep. I have a Roma 240 at the moment as well though mine is a bit of a stop gap for a bigger 6 foot tank coming soon.

But it is still an excellent sized tank for mid/larger fish. A few for you to have a look at would be stuff like Pearl Gourami, Thick Lipped Gourami or Opaline Gourami. Then you have your more community friendly cichlids mostly Americans but a few Africans, but your looking at things like, Blue Acaras, Festivums, Cupid Cichlids, Firemouths, Ellioti, Honduran Red Points, Apistos, Guianacaras quite a few more mainly stuff that stays around 5/6 inches IMO a few dwarf pike cichlids are always nice with some angels and larger tetras and a few pictus catfish

Wills

 

[OldMan47]

Welcome to the forum RSTurbo.
Your choice of fish for a roughly 65 gallon tank is quite large. Have you been to your local fish shop to see what they have that really grabs you? I recently bought some Apistogramma Caucatoides, triple red apistos, at a club auction, and am finding them delightful little fish. I am a long term livebearer enthusiast with lots of hard to find livebearers but that is not for everyone either. What it comes down to is two things. You want to get fish that will thrive in the particular water type coming out of a home faucet where you live and you want something that really grabs you and says "This is all I could ever really want". If you can tell us about your tap water in terms of mineral content and pH and can tell us what fish you really like, we can probably guide you to a successful tank stocking. Please visit your LFS and take notes of what you like.

 

[rsturbo666]

hi again i have just been to my lfs and they tested my water for me and told me it was perfect so im very happy they advised me for now to get a small number of fish for now so i have just got 10 neon tetras for now as i love them so much still trying to choose which larger fish to make it special any other suggestions want bright and colourful


thanks scott

 

[Gazanimal]

Scott I'd consider getting a test kit yourself to get your own results.

A lot of LFS will say your water is perfect when it isn't just so you buy live stock from them.

For the sake of £20, get a water test kit (API Freshwater Master Test Kit).

You will still need to test your water at a later date, so you'll need one & don't rely on your LFS. You might think why waste £20, but you could end up spending more on replacing fish if your water isn't right.

Hopefully you do have a genuine LFS who will correctly test the water.

 

[rsturbo666]

hi there my local fish shop is very good they tested the water there in front of me using the api kit they told me not to bother buying one and will test my water everytime i buy new fish to make sure it is perfect they are very helpful

 

[Jamepsss]

In that case you need to at least get them to write the results down for you. You need to keep a close eye on the stats especially during the first few weeks. Neons are beautiful little fish but notoriously fragile in new set-ups.