Koi Nami
Aquarium Advice Newbie
Hi
I've recently decided that I wanted to try my hand at fish keeping.
The only prior experience I've had in fish keeping was a Betta in a 5 gallon tank. Technically he belonged to my dad, but he was kinda lazy so I took care of him for the most part (feeding, weekly water changes, etc.).
He passed away about a year ago at 4 years old (rest in peace little buddy, I miss you </3 ).
I had fun taking care him and watching him swim about, so I wanted to get my own tank this time.
I bought a 10 gallon tank and I was hoping to get Pygmy Corydora's since they are peaceful, easy to care for(I've been told) and super cute <3
Now, for the questions:
I know they are social fish and do best in groups, but while I was researching, I found conflicting answers. Some sites say getting just 2 is fine, but others say less than 8 is unacceptable. So how many should I get? I was thinking of getting 5-6.
The 10 gallon tank came with gravel, but I wanted to use sand instead since I read it's easier on their barbels. How and how often do I clean this sand?
What are some nice tankmates for them? I was hoping for other fish who swim either in the middle or the top of the tank to keep things interesting everywhere and not just the bottom of the tank.
And finally, I wanted to add some live plants to provide hiding places and give a more natural look. What plants would you guys recommend?
Sorry for a long-ish post, I'm still relatively new to this and I'm kinda excited to care for my own fish ^.^
Thanks in advance.
I've recently decided that I wanted to try my hand at fish keeping.
The only prior experience I've had in fish keeping was a Betta in a 5 gallon tank. Technically he belonged to my dad, but he was kinda lazy so I took care of him for the most part (feeding, weekly water changes, etc.).
He passed away about a year ago at 4 years old (rest in peace little buddy, I miss you </3 ).
I had fun taking care him and watching him swim about, so I wanted to get my own tank this time.
I bought a 10 gallon tank and I was hoping to get Pygmy Corydora's since they are peaceful, easy to care for(I've been told) and super cute <3
Now, for the questions:
I know they are social fish and do best in groups, but while I was researching, I found conflicting answers. Some sites say getting just 2 is fine, but others say less than 8 is unacceptable. So how many should I get? I was thinking of getting 5-6.
The 10 gallon tank came with gravel, but I wanted to use sand instead since I read it's easier on their barbels. How and how often do I clean this sand?
What are some nice tankmates for them? I was hoping for other fish who swim either in the middle or the top of the tank to keep things interesting everywhere and not just the bottom of the tank.
And finally, I wanted to add some live plants to provide hiding places and give a more natural look. What plants would you guys recommend?
Sorry for a long-ish post, I'm still relatively new to this and I'm kinda excited to care for my own fish ^.^
Thanks in advance.