My family had a 75 gallon gold fish tank in the basement when I was a kid in the 80s. I remember my dad using a 13 gallon kitchen garbage bin with a water pump submerged at the bottom as means to filter the water. If I remember correctly we had 5 layers of filter material in that garbage bin.
We had that tank for a good 5 or 10 years and ended up giving it away (along with the fish) when everyone lost interest in it.
Fast forward 20 years and the aquarium interest sparked within. I did a little research and boy ol boy, the technology has sky rocketed. I see canister filters now! I see LED lights! Master test kits, etc. Back in the day, I remember my dad filling up 3 or 4 five gallon buckets and allowing them to sit for a week before changing the water. After changing the water, he'll fill up the 5 gallon buckets and allow them to sit for another week for next week's water change.
To be completely honest, I'm not sure what size tank I want yet. Maybe 20 gallons. But I do know, NO MORE GOLD FISH! They just poop and eat and poop and grow non stop.
I would prefer to stick with tropical fish. Smaller fish. Maybe guppies, mollies, swordtails or other schooling fish like tetras or danios.
I plan on getting a canister filter like the Penn Cascade 1000 and get started on the right foot with a filter that's capable of handling a larger tank if I eventually get really into this hobby.
So, I'm here looking for advice and guidance. I'm excited to get started, but I know I 'll have to be patient and so I'll do things right the first time (read up on fishless cycle already).
My budget is a little tight for now. I'll have to wait for sales for equipment. Questions:
1 - Is there a particular brand of tank I should avoid at all cost? Or are all tanks decent nowadays? Where should I purchase the tanks from? From my quick research, I see Petco run sales for $1/gallon tanks a few times a year. If I go the craigslist route, what should I look for?
2 - Is a stand mandatory? Will a few pieces of painted 2x4s nailed/screwed together in a sturdy fashion be looked down upon?
3 - What color/type/size of substrate should I look at? I don't want your typical beige pebbles that I had as a kid. Maybe a darker substrate?
4 - Would the Penn Plax Cascade 1000 cause too strong of a current for a 20g tank for these smaller fish?
5 - I plan on making a DIY lid out of plexiglass or using a ceiling light panel like this and put a light fixture directly on top of it.(Plaskolite 4 ft. x 2 ft. Suspended Light Ceiling Panel-1199233A - The Home Depot). Would that be OK to use? I heard fish tank covers and lights are pretty expensive.
I'm open to all ideas and suggestions. And if you can provide links to equipment, that would be greatly appreciated! And if there's a "deals" section of this forum somewhere, please point me to it. Again, I'm excited and eager, but I'll try to be patient and wait for sales before jumping in head first in purchasing equipment.
We had that tank for a good 5 or 10 years and ended up giving it away (along with the fish) when everyone lost interest in it.
Fast forward 20 years and the aquarium interest sparked within. I did a little research and boy ol boy, the technology has sky rocketed. I see canister filters now! I see LED lights! Master test kits, etc. Back in the day, I remember my dad filling up 3 or 4 five gallon buckets and allowing them to sit for a week before changing the water. After changing the water, he'll fill up the 5 gallon buckets and allow them to sit for another week for next week's water change.
To be completely honest, I'm not sure what size tank I want yet. Maybe 20 gallons. But I do know, NO MORE GOLD FISH! They just poop and eat and poop and grow non stop.
I would prefer to stick with tropical fish. Smaller fish. Maybe guppies, mollies, swordtails or other schooling fish like tetras or danios.
I plan on getting a canister filter like the Penn Cascade 1000 and get started on the right foot with a filter that's capable of handling a larger tank if I eventually get really into this hobby.
So, I'm here looking for advice and guidance. I'm excited to get started, but I know I 'll have to be patient and so I'll do things right the first time (read up on fishless cycle already).
My budget is a little tight for now. I'll have to wait for sales for equipment. Questions:
1 - Is there a particular brand of tank I should avoid at all cost? Or are all tanks decent nowadays? Where should I purchase the tanks from? From my quick research, I see Petco run sales for $1/gallon tanks a few times a year. If I go the craigslist route, what should I look for?
2 - Is a stand mandatory? Will a few pieces of painted 2x4s nailed/screwed together in a sturdy fashion be looked down upon?
3 - What color/type/size of substrate should I look at? I don't want your typical beige pebbles that I had as a kid. Maybe a darker substrate?
4 - Would the Penn Plax Cascade 1000 cause too strong of a current for a 20g tank for these smaller fish?
5 - I plan on making a DIY lid out of plexiglass or using a ceiling light panel like this and put a light fixture directly on top of it.(Plaskolite 4 ft. x 2 ft. Suspended Light Ceiling Panel-1199233A - The Home Depot). Would that be OK to use? I heard fish tank covers and lights are pretty expensive.
I'm open to all ideas and suggestions. And if you can provide links to equipment, that would be greatly appreciated! And if there's a "deals" section of this forum somewhere, please point me to it. Again, I'm excited and eager, but I'll try to be patient and wait for sales before jumping in head first in purchasing equipment.
