First Freshwater tank in 12 years...

[MyMonkey]

Well, I have been out of the Aquarium scene for a long time now. I had several tanks untill I went to college. I have been into saltwater now for a few months and thought I would start up a small FW aquarium. I found a nice 29 gallon actually. Thought that would be perfect for some Mollies, a gourami, Clown Loachs, Red Tailed Shark, maybe a few Danios and a snail or as many inverts as I can fit actually.

I have a few questions though.
First, I am curious about substrate. The last time I had a FW it was bright gravel all the way. I know Cichlids like a sandy bottom. How about these fish I have mentioned? What is the best substrate for a community type tank such as this?

Next, what type of rockwork or hiding places would anyone recomend. I like the natural look of most Cichlid tanks. Shale, etc. ANy suggestions? I don't want to use the wrong type of rock. No Granite I suppose.

Also, are underwater filters still in use? I assume not, but I see them everywere? I plan on using either a HOB or canister but, should I worry about the undergravel?

Lastly, what type of live plants will be the easiest to maintain. I will likely get some floating and planted plants. Looking for those with low light needs.

Thanks.

 

[krap101]

the gravel/sand wont matter unless you have corys or something like that. you can use any type of rock as long as it doesnt have rustish stuff or metals. some rocks or sand will change your ph, but slow enough that if you do weekly water changes it should stay about the same.

 

[Tiffi]

If you don't want to have chiclids or corys I would go with black gravel. It brings out the colors of the fishes nicer, is not that easily affected by algae and better for shy fishes.

For low light plants look here:
www.tropica.com
www.plantgeek.net

To buy some online look here:
www.aquariumplants.com

 

[MyMonkey]

Great. Looks like Java Moss and Anubias nana and a few others are perfect. Black gravel. Sweet, that's what I had in my tanks long ago. With a darker image background it should be very nice looking.

 

[odobenus]

Don't get an under-gravel filter. They are difficult to clean and generally unnecessary. You can get plenty of biological filtration with either a canister or HOB, which require much less maintenance.

I'm not sure that shale is a good rock to use in an aquarium. Are you thinking of slate? Granite actually should be fine. What you want to avoid are rocks that will change the water chemistry. Limestone will often raise the pH, for example. There is a list here of some safe and unsafe rocks. If you find rocks that you like, but won't stack nicely, you can use aquarium silicone to hold them in place.

 

[MyMonkey]

Ahh. Limestone is what I was thinking of. Well, it seems as though the plans for a FW may have fallen through. The wife put a damper on things. Just when I was getting going. Darn. 8O We shall see.

 

[fishilover]

Isn't a 29g to small for clown loaches?

 

[MyMonkey]

Yes. Thanks. I noticed that once I posted. Thanks for all the input folks.

 

[MyMonkey]

Well. I came upon a great deal. And, here it is:

I think it's a 47 Gallon Bowfront. Made my MarineLand. Has NO 30 watts. (need to up that) Emperor 400, heater and all the decor you see. I need to add some rockwork.

Should I add anything. Recomendations are appreciated. I notice nobody uses Airstones any longer?

I was trying to figure out what kind of fish these are, so I don't mix anything bad later on. I might add some Bio SPira to help along the cycle. I would have preferred a fishless cycle but, had to take the fish. I kept the filter media in order to help cut down the cycle time as well. Not sure but I think I will swap out the gravel with Black and add some rocks.

Fish:

There is one other that I can't get a pic of. These are very shy fish. They are not used to being able to see in the water at all. 8O The water was green. I could not even see the fish before I drained the tank to about 2 inches of water. Ewww. ANyway, I wanted to say thanks for all the input. Very helpful.

 

[Toirtis]

Very nice catch. Time to go get a whack of live plants, I think. As for airstones, they are still used....but not as much as with the aeration provided by the filters these days they are not required much.

 

[MyMonkey]

Any idea what fish these guys are shown? I would like to go the planted route. However, I'm not sure I want to invest in more expensive lighting for this tank. I might just use the 198 watt PC fixture I use on my 58 gallon. Not sure.