Total beginner please help

[Noura]

hi all

i just purchased a 84L fishtank and want to start but dont know how and what with?
how many fish what types and plants?

is there any preconditioning necessarry?

thanks a lot for any practical advice.

newbie me

 

[Mebbid]

I would first start off with reading both of these guides and choosing how to proceed.

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forum...guide-and-faq-to-fishless-cycling-148283.html

and

Fish-in Cycling: Step over into the dark side - Aquarium Advice

Either one you pick you will absolutely need a http://www.amazon.com/API-Freshwater-Master-Test-Kit/dp/B000255NCI or something comparable. Forget about the strips.

I would also highly recommend seachem prime as a water conditioner.

Fishless cycling is the preferred way and tends to be a bit less work. Fish in cycling is a lot more work but you get instant fish. Either way it's up to you.

Once you decide on that, then you can start researching for fish. Generally I would suggest starting your search at:
Aquarium Fish: Tropical Freshwater Fish and Saltwater Fish for Home Aquariums
It has rough statistics and tank sizes for most common fish. Just be sure to check compatibility because some fish will be more aggressive than others.

This site will also help you figure out stocking:
AqAdvisor - Intelligent Freshwater Tropical Fish Aquarium Stocking Calculator and Aquarium Tank/Filter Advisor
Ignore the water change % and the filtration capacity as they are largely useless measurements.

 

[lunch]

I did a 'fish in' cycle, wasnt hard, 20% water change every 2nd day until cycled, had fish in my tank since day 2, so much better than staring at an empty tank.. .

 

[ImACoolguy]

+1 to Mebbid. Cycling is very important in your aquarium and it's crucial you understand how it works. It's basically the Nitrogen Cycle and how bacteria convert waste like leftover food, plant material, and fish poop into what's known as nitrates. You then remove those with water changes every week. Those articles will go much more in depth on how the cycle works, with or without fish in the tank.

Tetras, danios, guppies, platy, swordtail, Molly, Kuhli loaches, etc are all great starter fish once your tank is cycled. They are hardy and forgiving of beginner mistakes.

I did a 'fish in' cycle, wasnt hard, 20% water change every 2nd day until cycled, had fish in my tank since day 2, so much better than staring at an empty tank.. .

Though you may stare at an empty tank for a while you have plenty of time to design it how you want plus at the end of the cycle your bio filter will be so strong you can add 6-7 fish at once depending on species and size with no ill effects.

And some of us don't want to do daily water changes when you could just throw in a table shrimp or dose some ammonia.


Caleb

 

[lunch]

I'm sure a fish less cycle is just as effective, I just dont see why a noob needs to be told its the prefered way cos its not to me, I had no ill effect, I still have all the fish I used to cycle my tank with the exception of 2 white clouds ( and they looked pretty average from the start ). If you're like me and always want your hands in the tank, do a fish in cycle, if you're happy just testing an empty tank, do it fish less.

Re choosing fish: my first tank has been up and running for 6 months and I'm still trying to work out what I want in it, a good lfs will always take back healthy fish if you change your mind though you may find they will only refund u a % of the original cost, if any

 

[Mebbid]

I'm sure a fish less cycle is just as effective, I just dont see why a noob needs to be told its the prefered way cos its not to me

Because the people that choose to do a fishless cycle are far far more numerous than people that do a fish in cycle. Hence the preferred

Experienced aquarists are more apt to choose a fish in cycle, but even then it's easier because we have cycled aquariums to pull media from. I have 6 tanks and haven't had to cycle a single one since my first. I will always recommend fishless to a new aquarist over fish in, but there's absolutely nothing wrong with choosing either.

 

[ImACoolguy]

Because the people that choose to do a fishless cycle are far far more numerous than people that do a fish in cycle. Hence the preferred

Experienced aquarists are more apt to choose a fish in cycle, but even then it's easier because we have cycled aquariums to pull media from. I have 6 tanks and haven't had to cycle a single one since my first. I will always recommend fishless to a new aquarist over fish in, but there's absolutely nothing wrong with choosing either.

Exactly, and as long as you keep dosing ammonia it's really hard to go wrong in a Fishless.


Caleb

 

[sinibotia]

I would call fishless the preferred method because no matter what happens there are no fish on the line. For a first-time fishkeeper, that's a big deal because it's easy to end up with a whole bunch of dead fish (which is exactly what happened with my first fish tank). With fishless cycling you've got nothing to lose except some ammonia from a $1 bottle, or some cocktail shrimp.

Also, I think that fishless cycling teaches one of the most important lessons in fishkeeping (and in life), which is patience. Take the time to do things right and you'll be rewarded.

There's a lot more work and nuance to fish-in cycling and it just ends up being a lot more stressful. Plus, it takes a lot longer to fill up your tank with fish because you have to add them so gradually with a fish-in cycle. With fishless cycling you have an empty tank for a month but then you can stuff it to capacity as soon as it's done.

 

[lunch]

Thanks for the life lesson

 

[Delapool]

I would call fishless the preferred method because no matter what happens there are no fish on the line. For a first-time fishkeeper, that's a big deal because it's easy to end up with a whole bunch of dead fish (which is exactly what happened with my first fish tank). With fishless cycling you've got nothing to lose except some ammonia from a $1 bottle, or some cocktail shrimp.

Also, I think that fishless cycling teaches one of the most important lessons in fishkeeping (and in life), which is patience. Take the time to do things right and you'll be rewarded.

There's a lot more work and nuance to fish-in cycling and it just ends up being a lot more stressful. Plus, it takes a lot longer to fill up your tank with fish because you have to add them so gradually with a fish-in cycle. With fishless cycling you have an empty tank for a month but then you can stuff it to capacity as soon as it's done.

Plus one - by the time you get around to the fish shops to check stock and plan your tank about a zillion times, the time does pass fairly well.

http://www.aqadvisor.com

 

[thing fish]

I will always recommend fishless to a new aquarist over fish in, but there's absolutely nothing wrong with choosing either.

This. You can do it either way, responsibly, but if you go with the fish in cycle, be prepared to do a whole lot of water changes. If youre not prepared to do lots of water changes for several weeks, then go with the fishless cycle. Anything less will be stressful to your fish. I am lucky in that my lfs is glad to give away bags of bacteria. In fact, any time I add fish to my established tanks, I am sure to add some additional bacteria and never see any spikes.

 

[Chels10117]

Honestly, I did a fish in cycle and my fish are fine. My tank has been set up for a month now and has plenty of fish in it. If you use a bb additive before you add fish you should be good to go. Safe start worked great in my tank. I let it Cycle for 2 days fish less and then added 3 fish on the third day. All went well. Next week I added 4 more. Then next week 4 more. And so on and so forth until my tank was stocked. I still am going to be adding 1 more fish. My tank always tests great and I test it before each weekly water change. Within the first 2ish weeks I did water changes two times a week. There is nothing wrong with either method in my opinion. But I don't like staring at an empty fish tank that's for sure. So the fish in cycle worked great for me. Also make sure to research your fish before you buy them. And be prepared to take fish back if it does not workout.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G900A using Aquarium Advice mobile app

 

[Mebbid]

Honestly, I did a fish in cycle and my fish are fine. My tank has been set up for a month now and has plenty of fish in it. If you use a bb additive before you add fish you should be good to go. Safe start worked great in my tank. I let it Cycle for 2 days fish less and then added 3 fish on the third day. All went well. Next week I added 4 more. Then next week 4 more. And so on and so forth until my tank was stocked. I still am going to be adding 1 more fish. My tank always tests great and I test it before each weekly water change. Within the first 2ish weeks I did water changes two times a week. There is nothing wrong with either method in my opinion. But I don't like staring at an empty fish tank that's for sure. So the fish in cycle worked great for me. Also make sure to research your fish before you buy them. And be prepared to take fish back if it does not workout.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G900A using Aquarium Advice mobile app

It's important to note that 9 times out of 10 the bacterial additives do absolutely nothing.

 

[Chels10117]

Well it must have worked because my tank is fully cycled, tests great, and my fish are healthy.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G900A using Aquarium Advice mobile app