Greetings: 1st set up

[campeaux]

Hello fish community,

This is my first set up, a 55 gallon freshwater tank. Finished resealing this week and filled it up to test for leaks this evening and so far so good.

I have white sand for bottom, a marineland bio-wheel power filter emperor 400.

I am also ordering 2 Aqueon pro submersible heaters, 200w and 48" LED light fixture with aqueon LED bubble wand 14in.

-What kind of air pump do I need to run the bubble wand? Tubing I assume?

This is my first set up and I am taking my time and trying to do it the right way. I'm going to start filling it up tomorrow and treating the water with some tetra aqua safe plus.

Any beginner recommendations is appreciated! I am sure I will have many more questions for you.

 

[jwh0818]

Hello and welcome! You don't need a bubbler but any will do as long as its rated for your tank, I recommend getting an API master test kit asap to test parameters and definetly read up on these articles!

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/showthread.php?t=154837

 

[venymae]

Hello and Welcome to a wonderful hobby! Sounds like you are off to a good start. I would agree with fishrfriends that the API master test kit will be incredibly valuable to you and your fish. As for a bubbler, as far as brand I think they are pretty much equal.
The next thing I would recommend is reading up on cycling (very important) and research what fish you want in your tank. Some things to think about with this are:
1.What is their activity level
2.How big will they get eventually
3.Are they peaceful or aggressive
4.What are their temperature/pH/water recommendations
5.Do they need to be kept in a school?
6. What part of the tank do they swim in
7. Do they need special decor (exlecos need wood, betta males need nothing they can catch their fins on)
8.What are their dietary needs

A really helpful tool for this is aqadvisor.com It takes into account your tank size, filtration type, fish needs, etc. It's free and simple to use and highly recommended by many people in this forum community.

When getting food I recommend you read the ingredient labels and make sure whole fish is listed first and any fillers (wheat, potato protein, etc) are listed farther down the list. Quality food will keep your fish healthy and less susceptible to disease.

The last little bit of advice I would give is to make sure you set your tank up in a place that you can sit back and enjoy it. It's so nice to sink into a comfy chair with a hot cup of tea (cold beer) and relax while watching your fish.

 

[campeaux]

with your recommendations I ordered the test kit.

is there anything that I am essentially missing to start treating the water and cycling the water?

also, what kind of air pump would I need to run the bubble wand?


also.. I'm sure I can research this further but what kind of plants/grass can i get with a sandy bottom? i really like the way hay grass look flowing at the bottom.

Thank you for your help!

 

[venymae]

As long as you have the test kit, a dechlorinator and a pure ammonia source (I'm assuming you're doing a fish-less cycle) and a vacuum hose to get water out of your tank, I think you are good to go until you get fish.

I am not sure about the bubble wand (or plants), maybe post another thread about it specifically? I just use whatever one is the cheapest. Ha.

 

[venymae]

Here is an article on plants in the aquarium