Starting a fish aquarium

[User 180565 is taking donation]

I've always had the thought in the back of my head to start a fish aquarium but I'm looking to do it on the cheap I'm unsure of what kind i want yet which is where you come in. Which kind are easy to care for and survive the longest? Also as for aquariums any to recommend?

[richardemott]

Don't waste your time with a 10 gallon tank. Get something bigger. Bigger is easier to maintain. I have a 37 gallon tank and it's really easy, and it isn't so huge that it takes over the room. When you get it, set it up with what you want inside for decorations and fill it up. Then go to the local pet store and buy a bunch of feeders (goldfish). A good rule of thumb is 1" of fish for every gallon. Get your feeders and put them in. The best way to add new fish is to leave them in the bag of water they come in when you get them for a while, like 15 minutes or so. This gives them time to acclimate to the temperature of the water in your tank. Once in, leave these fish in there to get the water to cycle into water capable of sustaining fish. The reason I said to get feeders is because they are cheap. Many are going to die while the water cycles. After a week or two, take a water sample to the pet store. They can tell you if it's ready or not. If it is, catch all the goldfish that are still alive and return them to the pet store, or just put them in a pond or something. Then get tropical fish. They are much less messy and if you get beginner fish you can learn how to take care of them. Be sure to get an algae eater. They will keep the inside walls of the tank clean. To take care of the fish and the tank you need to service the tank. If it's a 10 gallon tank you need to do this weekly. a 10% water change every week, and once a month a 25% water change. With a bigger tank you can get away with every two weeks and every other month doing the bigger water change. Same amounts though. 10% and 25%. Don't clean out the pump either. Change the filter, but leave it dirty. It builds up enzymes they need in the water to keep them healthy. Enjoy! I love my fish

[richardemott]

 You can't see him really well because he was kinda hiding. He was two inches long when I got him about eight years ago. He's my algae eater and about 14 inches long 

[Shady]

Sept 26, 2020 20:57:39 GMT -8 richardemott said:

Don't waste your time with a 10 gallon tank. Get something bigger. Bigger is easier to maintain. I have a 37 gallon tank and it's really easy, and it isn't so huge that it takes over the room. When you get it, set it up with what you want inside for decorations and fill it up. Then go to the local pet store and buy a bunch of feeders (goldfish). A good rule of thumb is 1" of fish for every gallon. Get your feeders and put them in. The best way to add new fish is to leave them in the bag of water they come in when you get them for a while, like 15 minutes or so. This gives them time to acclimate to the temperature of the water in your tank. Once in, leave these fish in there to get the water to cycle into water capable of sustaining fish. The reason I said to get feeders is because they are cheap. Many are going to die while the water cycles. After a week or two, take a water sample to the pet store. They can tell you if it's ready or not. If it is, catch all the goldfish that are still alive and return them to the pet store, or just put them in a pond or something. Then get tropical fish. They are much less messy and if you get beginner fish you can learn how to take care of them. Be sure to get an algae eater. They will keep the inside walls of the tank clean. To take care of the fish and the tank you need to service the tank. If it's a 10 gallon tank you need to do this weekly. a 10% water change every week, and once a month a 25% water change. With a bigger tank you can get away with every two weeks and every other month doing the bigger water change. Same amounts though. 10% and 25%. Don't clean out the pump either. Change the filter, but leave it dirty. It builds up enzymes they need in the water to keep them healthy. Enjoy! I love my fish

I kept fish for a long time, and although it is true that a dead fish helps to cycle your tank, it is absolutely unnecessary to buy cheap fish just to kill them to get your water right. Google tank cycling. It means you have an empty tank for a few weeks while the water sorts itself out, but that’s better than buying disposable goldfish.

Cold water fish like goldfish are easier to care for as they are pretty hardy and you don’t need a heater or really even a filter if you only one or two. However, you can’t have as many in a tank because they create a lot of mess and can make the water toxic for themselves.  Tropical fish require you to keep on top of the water temperature and pH a lot more, and your tank must be properly cycled before they go in, but you can have a bigger variety of fish. I used to have a 3 fighting fish (a boy and 2 girls...you can’t keep boys together because they literally do fight), some bottom feeders (help keep the tank clean), some tetras (like to be kept in a group) and...I actually don’t remember what the slightly bigger tropicals we had were called as it’s been a while. We had a few tanks on the go at one point, including one with shrimps in. They were fun.

Marine fish are not for beginners as they require a salt water tank, and that’s an extra thing to get right so that you don’t kill them. I’d stick to tropicals, unless you’re willing to pay someone to do your set up. My friend used to own a tropical pet store, and he used to do this for customers if they hadn’t done it before, as it is a lot more complicated than setting up a cold water or tropical tank.

[recycledferret]

Will you get a Nemo?

[wildmaven]

Having worked in an aquarium store for 4 years during college, I can tell you that the number of people who set up a tank and then abandon it in under a year is incredibly high. Ask yourself this:

* Are you prepared to feed the fish daily?
* Are you prepared to clean the tank on a regular basis?
* Are you prepared to test the water, check the thermometer, change the filter, make sure the oxygen isn't blocked by mineral buildup?
* Will you clean the algae that will build up?
* Will you pledge never to overload your tank with fish? The usual rule of thumb is one fish per gallon.
* Will you always make sure that the water you use does not contain chlorine and is of the appropriate temperature?
* Will you NEVER use chemicals to clean any part of your tank or spray them in the vicinity of the tank?
* Will you NEVER VAPE or SMOKE near the tank?
* Will you always have someone who can look after your aquarium when you are out of town?
* Will you be able to afford medications if your fish get sick?
* Will the death of a fish cause you undue mental stress?
* Will you read about the proper care of your fish and take the advice of those who sell the fish to you?
* Will you ALWAYS ask the aquarium store worker about EVERY piece of decor/gravel/rock that you're thinking about putting in the tank?
* Every time you buy a new fish, will you tell the aquarium store worker what kinds of fish you already have?
* Will you ONLY feed what is required and never more?
* Will you prevent yourself/friends/loved ones from tapping on the tank?

If the answers to the above are yes, then GREAT! You're ready for an aquarium.

Do yourself a favor, and DON'T buy the "starter kit." Those are usually filled with products that will not last and you'll end up having to buy something better. Buy quality from the beginning.

[User 180565 is taking donation]

Sept 27, 2020 15:01:24 GMT -8 wildmaven said:

Having worked in an aquarium store for 4 years during college, I can tell you that the number of people who set up a tank and then abandon it in under a year is incredibly high. Ask yourself this:

* Are you prepared to feed the fish daily?
* Are you prepared to clean the tank on a regular basis?
* Are you prepared to test the water, check the thermometer, change the filter, make sure the oxygen isn't blocked by mineral buildup?
* Will you clean the algae that will build up?
* Will you pledge never to overload your tank with fish? The usual rule of thumb is one fish per gallon.
* Will you always make sure that the water you use does not contain chlorine and is of the appropriate temperature?
* Will you NEVER use chemicals to clean any part of your tank or spray them in the vicinity of the tank?
* Will you NEVER VAPE or SMOKE near the tank?
* Will you always have someone who can look after your aquarium when you are out of town?
* Will you be able to afford medications if your fish get sick?
* Will the death of a fish cause you undue mental stress?
* Will you read about the proper care of your fish and take the advice of those who sell the fish to you?
* Will you ALWAYS ask the aquarium store worker about EVERY piece of decor/gravel/rock that you're thinking about putting in the tank?
* Every time you buy a new fish, will you tell the aquarium store worker what kinds of fish you already have?
* Will you ONLY feed what is required and never more?
* Will you prevent yourself/friends/loved ones from tapping on the tank?

If the answers to the above are yes, then GREAT! You're ready for an aquarium.

Do yourself a favor, and DON'T buy the "starter kit." Those are usually filled with products that will not last and you'll end up having to buy something better. Buy quality from the beginning.

Great info, if i want a mix of fish do i need to seperate them when feeding or will certain fish just not eat types of food and fine with mixing it? I also never leave so i can clean it. Also when cleaning the tank can i just scoop the fish and add thrm into a different bowl as long as the waters in the bowl is from the aquarium

[Shady]

Definitely do some reading on cleaning. We would take our fish out when it needed a thorough clean, but for a regular water change (look up how regularly you should do that as I don’t remember) where you take out and replace 25%, you can leave them in. No need to separate when feeding as they’ll eat what they need. Just do your research. Definitely ask fish store staff for advice, but not all of them will be experts on every fish so do your own reading too. When we first got tropicals, we spent weeks reading up on the right things to get to live together happily before going out and buying, and asking advice from the store staff too.