Fish?

Faerie

Hi, we're looking into getting some fish. Either tropical or coldwater. I've only had goldfish before so I think we should start with coldwater first. Are tropical hard to care for? Has anyone got any recommendations for tanks, (for either tropical or coldwater) heaters, filters etc?

newyearnewstart_2

we have a bio orb with cold water fancy goldfish...

while it looks pretty I wouldn't recommend it, they are a nightmare to keep clean and maintain a balance on them!

shellyruby

will work out cheaper for goldfish as you dont need a heater only a filter but they get big very quickly.tropical fish arent hard to look after and look beautiful and quickly became an obsession..

once youve made an initial purchase on a tank.[we got all of ours on ebay]get the biggest you can afford to save money in the long run..fluval are the best filters and can be bought cheaply on ebay second hand..heater as well on ebay and you can get all this with the tank plus the bottom covering stones etc.
sometimes gum tree advertise free tanks or a nominal price if you will take it off their hands.
once you have it set up once a week clean with a tank cleaner which is easy to use.tropical fish are much nicer to look at than goldfish and the only difference is that you use a heater.
good luck its a really nice ehobby to have:).

Mercy

Hiya!

I kept fish for many years but only cold water types. I got 4 goldfish for my 18th birthday and Porta (one of those) died 1 week before my 36th birthday

They aren't just for Christmas :rotfl:

I mostly had a 3ft by 18in by 2ft deep tank. In that I had many over the years. The variety of coldwater fish is great. Many colours shapes and much health - if from a good dealer.

Do follow protocols with setting up a tank. It's important to get the balance right with excreta vs other things - few strong fish at first. I didn't personally do much research but had used water from a small tank to add to the bigger one. This, and the fact that Porta was already 5 and had put up with much, seemed to help season the big tank.

I specialised in goldfish variations. All of them loved the filter which made a wave on the surface, They would queue up for a go on the ride:)

I've never done warm water - just cold. I've seen many deaths - well all of them now. But as well as Porta lasting nearly 18 yrs (simple shaped primal goldfish) I also had Colin last 19 yrs. He was a bit huge at the end. 8 in from nose to where the tail starts, 3 in deep and with a tail which extended above but also reached a depth of 5 inches from his bum. 2.5 inch little squirt all told when I bought him

After 25 yrs I decided I'd proved I could do fish

Don't forget, once your tank is up and running any new fish MUST be put in quarantine for at least 2 weeks. I've saved my tank 3 times by using this method. Don't get complacent.

Best of luck
MX

loztiggy

I love my tropical fish! I started with a small tank and quickly upgraded to a fluval roma 200Litre, which I adore. If you buy one of these they are complete, IE you get an appropriate heater and filter for the size of the tank included, as well as two bulbs. I paid £210 for my roma 200. Generally bigger tanks are easier to care for in the long run.

If you do go for tropical make sure to read up about cycling the tank before adding fish, or you will lose many. You can buy a supplement called nutrafin cycle which is great to help boost the healthy bacteria that eat all the fish waste.

Tropical are much nice to look at, I have some lovely fish. ?My favourites are my ghost knife fish, and my elephant nosed fish. You can also keep shrimp and small frogs in the tank (which I have) as well as crabs and crayfish!!

Mercy

Oh yeah,

Whilst having experimented with many cold water fish I can say that the more odd they are the less of a lifespan they have. Concupicentia was a velvet looking fat bodied fancy tail. She was in perfect health but only lived 5 years. Great personality though :rotfl:

Tried 2 Golden Orfe as was given false information. They are really pond fish. Eric accidentally committed suicide by leaping out of the tank and Claude lived to 5 but bent tragically in the middle.

Schleppel was a yellow goldfish. Very deep in depth. Flat kinda guy. Lived to at least 9 and was sorely missed.

Good tip - buy your fish smaller and grow them on. That way they will stay perfect. Bigger fish have often been packed tightly at some point and had lumps out of each other through frustration. Smaller fish grown on tend to be more perfect and You Grew Them!

Guess it depends what you want. A perfect picture with aberrations dealt with and/or sold on, or a family :rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:

All fish are great! The filter I used was a Fluval one and never let me down.

MX

celyn90

newyearnewstart wrote: »

we have a bio orb with cold water fancy goldfish...

while it looks pretty I wouldn't recommend it, they are a nightmare to keep clean and maintain a balance on them!

I had a bioub (the cylinder one) with tropicals - I got rid of it and went back to a normal tank in the end as I found it hard to maintain. I've kept tropicals for years, but never got on well with these tanks either. cel x

Froglet

Lots of research before you start is the key to having a healthy set of fish that won't cause you problems and end up with the fish suffering.Tropicals are easier than goldfish and can be kept in a smaller tank than is right for coldwater fish.if you don't have the correct size for the latter you get the sort of problems that Mercy talked about.

The best place to start is here http://forum.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/ the bible for all fishy info.They are a lovelty friendly bunch and will answer any query though there is a mine of information you can find with out even needing to register or post.

The most important factor in keeping fish is the quality of the water.Get that right with a good filter and the correct maintenance and you won't go far wrong.

Faerie

Thanks for all the advice. I bought a 20L tank with filter today, just waiting for the fluval heater from ebay to arrive now. It looks so pretty all set up, can't wait until the fish are in! Think we're getting some neon tetra, a few guppies, glass catfish and some shrimp

Froglet, that link is now bookmarked. Thanks again, I'll post an photo update when we get the fish.

faded_flowers

Rough stocking guide for tropical is 1 cm of fish = 1 litre of water

What you've just listed at minimum shoal sizes (x3, not ideal) is
- 12l for neons (4cm)
- 18l for guppies (6cm)
- 20l for glass catfish (2 at 10cm!)

50l worth of fish, not including shrimp. You may have to look at less fish or a bigger tank

Remember that even though the tank holds 20l, this doesn't take into account any decor you put in and the tank is unlikely to be filled to the brim, so you can easily lose a couple of litres of space.

Froglet

Faded flowers is right,you will overload the tank to the extent you will probably see most if not all the fish die.And that is even with doing fishless cycling first which is vital if you want them to be healthy.That is why i gave you the link to practical fishkeeping.It tells you exactly how to achieve that.Please think again,your small tank will only hold one species ,or perhaps a small shoal of neons and a couple of corydoras catfish.I would not recommend guppies.Quite apart from the fact that they will breed and cause problems with overstocking,they are not easy to keep as so mnay are inbred.And they need more room to swim.

Personally i would get a much bigger tank then you can have a much wider choice.The present one is probably only useful for a hospital tank or a quarantine one.