Cant decide 5ga or 10 gal need input.

[Mgonza11]

After having a horrible experience with buying a 3 gal tank I have not completely given up on the hobby and have decided to get a "real" tank. However, I am not sure if I should go with the five or ten gal set up. Also are the kits available any good or should I get the pieces individually?

 

[Fishie]

I would go with a 10G. The kits are better IMO because when I added my cost up for reg. 10G it added up to about 89$ and a 15G kit was $40. 10G cost included gravel and fish (platys and ghost shrimp). Maybe try platys or live bearers for 10G but if you do 5G maybe do Betta or shrimp tank. I started out with a 10G now obsessed .

 

[Mgonza11]

Thanks for the tip. So how many fish would be good for a 10 g after a fish less cycle?

 

[absolutangel04]

I agree with Fishie about getting the bigger tank. There are not too may commonly available options for a 5g tank. There are some cool nano fish, but they cost more money and you usually have to order them. Honestly, a 20g tank kit isn't usually too much higher than a 10g tank kit and if you are able to swing it, I think you would be much happier with the amount of choices for stocking a 20g tank. There are some really cool options for a 10g too, but a lot of them are not readily available in your average lfs and are more expensive.
As for the kits, I have had good luck with using kits before. You can always go to the store, write down the kit names and then look online for reviews about that exact kit.

 

[Hobgob]

Always go with the biggest tank you can get. It's easier to maintain and you will have more stocking options. Also, something bad won't have as big of impact on a bigger tank. Kits are good, depending on the make. I purchased some kits before and they came with aquatech filters which I don't like imo aqua-clears are way better.

 

[Mgonza11]

I'm kinda limited on space for now so 10g is as big as I can work with. Any suggestions on stocking the tank after the cycle?

 

[absolutangel04]

A lot of the species are commonly available in the aquarium trade are not suitable for a 10g tank, but there are still some really awesome ones out that are very rewarding to keep, but you may have to order them online.
A few to consider are dwarf puffers, ember tetras, shell dwelling cichlids (specifically look at L. multifasciatus), clown killifish, Norman's Lampeye killifish, neons, green neons, bettas (there are more species than just the Betta splendens you always see in cups), dwarf gourami, croaking gourami, sparkling gourami, scarlet badis, pygmy cories (C. pygmaeus, habrosus, hastatus), Asian stone catfish, otos, jellybean tetras, chili rasboras, celestial pearl danios, gold ring danios, micro rasbora (like emerald and dwarf spot rasbora to name a couple), guppies, platies, Endler's livebearers, least killifish, and pygmy sunfish. There are more too, but those are the ones that pop to mind. Keep in mind that not all of these fish are compatible and some have very different needs, so I suggest researching them to see if you are interested in any.

 

[Josh1158]

Get the biggest you can easly handle . Evaporation is a problem with smaller tanks.
Platies and guppys would be able to handle all the hiccups that might happen along your quest, and they will populate the tank. Get a one male and two females of each and you'll have a tank full in no time. If you get perents that are different the babbies look like fish you can't buy. I've had platies that were orange with little black mustaches. And some that looked like negatives of there parents.

 

[Hobgob]

Get the biggest you can easly handle . Evaporation is a problem with smaller tanks.
Platies and guppys would be able to handle all the hiccups that might happen along your quest, and they will populate the tank. Get a one male and two females of each and you'll have a tank full in no time. If you get perents that are different the babbies look like fish you can't buy. I've had platies that were orange with little black mustaches. And some that looked like negatives of there parents.

Evaporation is a problem with everytank... You can actually use evaporation for temperature control. But it's different for ever tank. Trust me my 110g has a way faster evaportatio. Rate then my 35g, 20g, and 10g. It was so bad I had to get glass lids to find under the wood canopy. There was two many spots it was getting out and couldn't insulate itself so more and more water evaporated. Also if you put a fan over the tank, your water will evaporate faster... It's not to do with size more of the canopy...

 

[HeatherW]

I wuld do the kit - definitely the 10 gallon and if you can find the space go with the 20gallon. you will be happier with the 20 I think. I started out small - with the 5 gallon but wanted more fish. I got the 20gallon for christmas and absolutely love it! both the 5 and 20 were kits. I like the marineland kit - I think it has a better filter. that is what I would look at when choosing which brand of kit - check out the filters. you can ask here and people will help you with all that fun stuff!

good luck and let us know what you get!

 

[Mgonza11]

So I've narrowed to down to the topfin or marine land 10g starter kit. The marine land is a costs a bit more so input regarding either kit would be helpful. ( so far one vote for marine land).

 

[phoenixkiller]

That is a good plan. I see that others will agree with me that the phrase "The bigger, the better" works very well in this case as with any other. Please remember that you should be very careful with stocking a 10 gallon, as nitrates and ammonia levels rise faster when the tank is overstocked. Trust me. This statement is from pure, unfortunate, and costly experience...

 

[HeatherW]

I think another question is are you wanting to do plants. Marineland has led lights and that is very low light for growing plants and the other has a fluorescent bulb right?

 

[josh7]

I would go with marineland a few stock options are 5 male guppies or else the tank will get loaded with fry if you get females I would also get 12 ghost shrimp and maybe some oto cats like 4. Another option would be 6 neon tetras and a sparkling gourami with 12 ghost shrimp.

 

[Mgonza11]

I don't think I will be doing live plants for now I want to get the basics down solid before adding anything else to the mix.

 

[HeatherW]

I don't think I will be doing live plants for now I want to get the basics down solid before adding anything else to the mix.

Then I would go with the Marineland tank. I think you will really like it

 

[mjrobbins2]

Actually, you can buy a 10 gal at Walmart for like 12 bucks. 10 gallon is good for if you want to have a lot of fish and want to breed, well that's what I bought one for. I quickly outgrew a 2.5 gallon but I am keeping it for when my fish lay eggs

 

[absolutangel04]

Actually, you can buy a 10 gal at Walmart for like 12 bucks. 10 gallon is good for if you want to have a lot of fish and want to breed, well that's what I bought one for. I quickly outgrew a 2.5 gallon but I am keeping it for when my fish lay eggs

The kits my WalMart has are like $25. I have never seen a $12 kit there. What brand is it?

 

[Cichlid Kid]

There isnt a 10gal. $12 kit at walmart. A bare 10gal cost $12.

 

[Hobgob]

That is a good plan. I see that others will agree with me that the phrase "The bigger, the better" works very well in this case as with any other. Please remember that you should be very careful with stocking a 10 gallon, as nitrates and ammonia levels rise faster when the tank is overstocked. Trust me. This statement is from pure, unfortunate, and costly experience...

Also if you get something in the tank, it has a greater impact on the smaller tank.