New member looking for tips

[Chevy_Cowboy]

Hi guys, I saw a link to this forum posted on another board (Cz28.com) and have spent the day reading all the great information here, and its given me a urge to get back into aquariums.

First some background, I've had a 10gal aquarium for close to 20 years, and made so many mistakes over the years its not even close to funny. As you can imagine I've killed more fish in it than I care to admit , and finally gave up and stuffed the tank and accessories in the closet. hopefully with this site's help I can avoid future mistakes.

I'd like to start small and perhaps progress into bigger and more expensive setups if all goes well. For now I want to stick with FW and probably fake plants (although planted tanks sound like something I'd like to try in the future)


I've got a few options for tanks. I still have my old 10gal that still holds water as far as I know. It has had pretty much every fish disease possible in it at one time or another, along with bleach once when my brother decided to clean it for me (after the fish died)

My brother also has a 55 gal tank that I think he would probably sell to me, his history with fish isn't much better than mine. His last attempt in this tank was a Saltwater setup that cost him a small fortune.

The last option would be buying a new 20-29 gallon tank. I'm not on a unlimited budget so buying a real big new tank isn't an option, and I'd like to avoid spending a fortune on this until I'm more confident.

I could possibly use a combination of these tanks too.

My main concern with the older used tanks is getting them clean. As I said one has been a SW tank and the other is full of no telling what kinds of diseases.... is there a good way to sterilize these tanks so I don't pass past mistakes onto new fish?


Any tips at all you guys can give me concerning initial tank setup and choosing accessories and fish would be very helpful.

Thanks a lot for your help

 

[QTOFFER]

Welcome to AA, Chevy_Cowboy!

If you haven't tried keeping fish for a few years, you'll be pleasantly surprised at how far the hobby has advanced in terms of technology - especially in regards to filtration.

If you're thinking about giving it another go, then I would get the biggest tank you can afford/have space for. Simply put, it's alot easier maintaining a big tank than a small tank because the extra volume of water gives you more room for mistakes. Also, the bigger the tank, the more options you have for stocking it. You could do alot with a 29 gal - even more with a 55. I would keep the 10 gal as a quarrantine/hospital tank for newly purchased/sick fish.

I strongly recommend "The Simple Guide to Fresh Water Aquariums" by David E. Boruchowitz ( http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0793821010/102-9082735-7279338?v=glance ) It's a good basic overview of modern fishkeeping - including the cycling process. I would also poke around this forum and ask questions - that's what I did for a month before I bought my first tank.

As far as cleaning, a 15 minute soak in household bleach (1:10 in water) will kill any diseases that may be present. White vinegar can be used to remove water stains and mineral buildup. Just remember to rinse the tank many, many times after you do this. I would do this outside in case the tank leaks. You may also want to test the tank by filling it and watching for leaks (again, preferably outside).

You'll have to get a filter (most people here use cannister or hang-on-back filters) rated for your size tank, a glass top, and lighting. Some of these you or your brother may already have. I would check out the lfs, but keep in mind that ordering online is usually alot less expensive. Good luck!

 

[Chevy_Cowboy]

Thanks for the warm welcome and tips QTOFFER. I'll head to the bookstore tomorrow to see if they have that book.

Well I talked to my brother and he doesnt seem as willing to part with his 55gal as I'd hoped, so I'll probably go with a new 29gal and use my 10gal as a QT.
Tonight I swung by walmart to see what they had in the way of fish supplies. I know wally world isnt the place to get most stuff, by my small town doesnt have a lfs. This weekend I'll trek to a bigger town to see what the pet stores there have.

I was looking at Walmart's Aquarium kits, they're made by Aqua Culture. The 29gal is less than 100 bucks and comes a full hood, a hob powerfilter and a heater... are these worth while or complete junk? I've heard alot of good stuff about marineland's filters and heaters... would I be better off buying an aquarium by its self and the buy the accessories seperately or would these starter kits be ok for a newbie like myself? I don't want to spend a fortune, but I dont want complete junk either.

 

[BrianNY]

Hi Chevy Cowboy. I think your success is assured by the nature of your questions and your desire to learn. . QTOFFERs given you some good advice.

IMO it always pays to have the best possible heaters and filters. My suggestion (since you're on a budget), would a 150W Ebo Jager heater, and the Penguin 330 HOB filter for a 29g. You're also going to need some test kits. Bigalsonline is usually half the price most retail places for all these items.

 

[deli_conker]

Definitely good advice from both qtoffer and brianny. Might I also suggest that you check out the articles section on this website. The only link I've seen to them is on the home page. The two must reads, IMHO, are the ones concerning the nitrogen cycle and fishless cycling.

Since you are starting a tank from scratch I heartily recommend doing a fishless cycle. You'll save a lot of frustration and probably money in the end.

 

[tmurphy171]

Hello and Welcome. If you have a PetSmart in your area you can get a 29g tank with hood and light for $69.00. Don't know about PetCo but it might be worth a try. definitely (as BrianNY said) buy your filter, heater, testkit and startup chems (water treatment for the inital tank fill, chlorine and chloramine remover for water changes) from an online discounter like Big Al's The filter alone will be half of what you'd pay at a lfs or national chain. I have a Penquin 330 and would recommend it or the Emporor 400 both made by Marineland. The Emporor imho is a better filter and only a few dollars more.

Good luck

 

[jaysono]

You may even want to check eBay on accessories. Seems to have some great deal on slightly used or even new equipment.

Welcome!

 

[Menagerie]

[center:4502d4dd93] Welcome to Aquarium Advice, Chevy_Cowboy!! [/center:4502d4dd93]
Definitely check out eBay for tank accessories. I have saved a ton of money on there! Plus, ask questions as they come up.
The best advice I will give you now is to research in advance (which, you have a great start on ).

 

[Chevy_Cowboy]

Wow lots of good advice

I've been browsing around some online retailers (mostly Big Al's) and looking at stuff. I really like the looks of the Penguin 330, and the Emporor 400, but they're rated for much bigger tanks than the 29gal I plan to get... is that a problem or is it a good idea to get bigger than I need?

tmurphy171, thanks for the tip about Petsmart... I'm pretty sure theres one about 30 miles down the road, thats where I plan to go this weekend.

I've been reading the articles here as I get time to, and I was wondering... will the fishless cycle method listed under saltwater (using the raw shrimp) work for freshwater tanks or is there another route for FW?

Thanks again for all the help guys, I wish I would have had folks like you around when I was 7 with my first aquarium!

 

[QTOFFER]

The filter manufacturers tend to be a bit generous when touting their products' capabilities. In the end, you want your filter to pump about 8 - 10 tank volumes per hour. If you're planning to get messy fish like goldies, you may want even more filtration. You really can't overfilter a tank, but obviously, you don't want so much current that the fish are battered about.

You could use the raw shrimp or even fish food as a source of ammonia. Although I didn't do a fishless cycle myself (I used Biospira cuz I'm lazy and impatient ), I think using household ammonia would give you more control over the process. This link pretty much says it all...
http://www.tomgriffin.com/aquamag/cycle2.html
Just check the label and be sure to use ammonia that contains no perfumes or detergents.

 

[jawzforlife]

Hay Chevy_Cowboy I'm sure you know me
These guys are great here, they been helping be with my tank diaster.
I hope to be on the road to fish happines within the next couple weeks.

I too have a 29 gallon tank. The size works great for where I have it. My dad has a 55 gallon tank I could have, but I would have to rearange my house to make it fit. But it would be so much nice to have. I would like to get large fish and but them in the 55 gallon, but I'll have to settle for meduim size fish in the 29 gallon. Something to remmber when picking you size of tank.

 

[Chevy_Cowboy]

Hey Jawz, It was your thread on Cz28 that made me find this place. I'd been thinking about getting back into aquariums for the last few months and this place gave me the last lil push I needed.

Yeah someday I'll want a bigger tank but for now a 29 will seem huge to me, all my previous attempts were in a 10gal. I've been following your threads for the last couple days... I hope you get your fishy problems figured out soon.

 

[jawzforlife]

I thought a 29 would feel huge too, but then I went to the store today and saw this real nice bright blue cichlid, about 8 inches long. Well if I got it, that would be the only fish in my tank . Oh, well just got to convince the wife to let me get my dad's old 55 gallon

 

[Chevy_Cowboy]

Well I just found out that theres not only a petsmart nearby but theres a petco across the street from it, so in the morning we're headed there to look around.

We'll probably pick up a 29gal tank/stand, and If the prices are comparable to what I've seen online I may go ahead and get either a penguin 330 or a Emperor 400 and some other goodies to get started.

Looking at petsmart and petco's website, it doesnt look like either one of them sell Ebo Jager brand heaters, is there another brand thats as good or should I just order one online?

Also is there a guideline on how much gravel/substrate to get per gallon or does it really matter how deep it is?

 

[tmurphy171]

Have fun on your shopping trip. Prepare for sticker shock with the filter. The Penguin 330 is about $49.95 and the Emperor 400 is higher. I've read here that a few people are successful in negotiating a lower price at the pet chains if they show a few printouts of pricing from online shops. Reading about these filters around the internet will show that people either swear by these filters or hate them with a passion especially the Emperor 400 because of noise and filter replacement expense. My 330 is quite and I just swish the pad around to clean it when its dirty in used tank water during a water change and pop it back in. If you want to use gravel the pet chains will tell you need 1 1/2 lbs of gravel per gallon which seems alot to me. I used a 20lb bag of gravel in a 29g tank which equaled a depth of about 1 1/2 inches. Let us know how you make out

 

[Chevy_Cowboy]

Well we hit up Petco and Petsmart, along with a massive walmart supercenter today. You guys were right about the filters and heaters, WAY overpriced. The cheapest Emperor 400 I saw was 76 bucks 8O

I picked up the 29gal tmurphy171 suggested from Petsmart, guess it was my lucky day, the black 29gal was marked down to 65 bucks instead of 69. We also got 30lbs of Estes "lake green" gravel, a tank stand, and a few fake plants and decorations. We Probably spent 2 hours total just staring at the fish lol.

Also stopped at Borders and bought 3 books.
The Simple Guide to Freshwater Aquariums
The Aquarium Fish Handbook
and The Aquarium Owners Manual

I'll be making a order to Big Als sometime in the next couple days for a emperor 400, a Ebo-Jager 150watt heater, a good liquid test kit a Rena Air pump and other assorted little stuff.

I still need some kind of Dechlorinator... what brand do you guys recommend? Is there any other chemicals I need to get this tank running? (other than ammonia from the grocery store)

Is there any other hardware I'm forgetting about or will this list pretty much cover it?

Thanks again for all the help guys, I feel like I'm finally armed with the knowledge to do it right this time 8)

 

[tmurphy171]

$65? Good deal! I use Bio-Coat from Marineland. I detox's the water, doesn't touch the ammonia and aids the fishes slime coat. Others will have their favs too. What type of fish are you thinking about for your new tank?

 

[Chevy_Cowboy]

I'm not real sure about fish yet, we're gonna spend the next couple weeks looking through these books trying to decide on that. My wife really likes Neon and cardinal tetra's, and we deffinatly want a pleco of some kind.

We also kinda liked the Ghost Catfish we saw at petsmart, and a few different barbs have caught our eyes... I don't have a clue if any of these fish will get along with eachother, I figured I'd get the tank running first and then spend the next few weeks researching fish

 

[Chevy_Cowboy]

Well I just ordered a bunch of stuff from Big Al's, all that little stuff adds up pretty quick

I can't wait to get all this stuff, this empty aquarium next to me is calling my name

I'm sure you guys will be hearing alot from me over the next few weeks as I attempt to setup and cycle this tank

 

[MrsPeel]

Did you order your filter yet? They have the Emperor for $37 at Petco.com. And that item has free shipping plus you can get a 20% online coupon to get it for about $30. I got my Emperor from them for that much.