odenata
Aquarium Advice Apprentice
So, two weeks ago, we decided to get fish. I posted here ("Help me get started?" thread), got some advice, and went about getting the things I needed.
Supplies arrived in the mail, set up my tank. Realized the air wand and air pump needed tubing. Went and bought tubing. Then saw I needed a check valve. (Why don't they sell these things as a set?) Sigh. Got check valve.
I want live plants, so I got several of those plants they sell in the tubes at PetSmart. Planted them, they look nice. Then read that PetSmart is notorious for selling non-aquatic plants for aquariums. Panic a little. Dig containers out of trash. Phew - I got Amazon swords, wisteria, and an anubias, which, after looking them up, all seem okay.
My tank is now cycling and I'm hoping my plants do alright. I used API First Layer Pure Laterite when setting up the tank. Should I be adding any fertilizer for the plants now or later on?
Now my research into stocking the darned tank has me completely flustered. Wanted to get some glofish, peppered corys, and a crown-tail Betta. Some people think that's okay, others say the Betta may attack/eat danios or that small fish might nip at Betta's fins. Some suggest that Bettas should only live alone. One site says not to have catfish with gravel, just with sand. Then there's the issue of if the fish will eat the plants...
I'm an over-researcher. I admit it. Please help assuage my fears! Will this stocking work? How many schooling fish should I get? And when it comes time to put them in, what order should I add them into the tank?
in advance.
Supplies arrived in the mail, set up my tank. Realized the air wand and air pump needed tubing. Went and bought tubing. Then saw I needed a check valve. (Why don't they sell these things as a set?) Sigh. Got check valve.
I want live plants, so I got several of those plants they sell in the tubes at PetSmart. Planted them, they look nice. Then read that PetSmart is notorious for selling non-aquatic plants for aquariums. Panic a little. Dig containers out of trash. Phew - I got Amazon swords, wisteria, and an anubias, which, after looking them up, all seem okay.
My tank is now cycling and I'm hoping my plants do alright. I used API First Layer Pure Laterite when setting up the tank. Should I be adding any fertilizer for the plants now or later on?
Now my research into stocking the darned tank has me completely flustered. Wanted to get some glofish, peppered corys, and a crown-tail Betta. Some people think that's okay, others say the Betta may attack/eat danios or that small fish might nip at Betta's fins. Some suggest that Bettas should only live alone. One site says not to have catfish with gravel, just with sand. Then there's the issue of if the fish will eat the plants...
I'm an over-researcher. I admit it. Please help assuage my fears! Will this stocking work? How many schooling fish should I get? And when it comes time to put them in, what order should I add them into the tank?
in advance.