GouramiFanatic
Aquarium Advice FINatic
- Joined
- Apr 2, 2005
- Messages
- 598
Well, today I did it! I went to Petco and purchased a 75 gallon tank, stand, hood, and light as a package deal. They had it advertised for $475, but when they rang it up it was only $425. Can't complain with the $50 savings!!
I just got home with it about a half hour ago, but I can't set it up yet because I haven't gotten the filter for it yet. I'm still unsure of which one to get. I've decided that I want to go with a canister filter, but can't decide which one. I was originally looking at the Rena Filstar XP2 and Fluval 404 304, but someone said in the General Hardware forum that the XP2 wouldn't be good enough for a 75 gallon and that I should use an XP3. I dont' want to overfilter if it's going to have a negative effect on the fish, but I most certainly don't want to under filter either. What filter would you experts recommend?
Along with the tank I bought several plastic plants today, (2) 25lb bags of black gravel and (1) 25lb of white gravel for a little mix, and yesterday I made a 'double decker' cave made of slate and river rocks (from a craft store).
I'm planning on doing a fishless cycle which is going to be extremely difficult for me because I'm probably the most inpatient person on the planet. To try to speed it up I'm thinking of taking a couple handfulls of the gravel out of my 10 gallon along with some plants and maybe the large rock. I know that this can be done to speed things up, but I was wondering if I could also dump in the water from the tank after I do the gravel vac thing. Would this help or is not recommended for any reason?
I think that covers it for now. I'll continue to post updates as I start setting up the tank so you can see my progress. Just please don't expect to see anything fancy from me. I'm not using live plants and I don't like the cluttered look so there won't be much for decor (although I am going to have plenty of hiding spots!).
Here's a couple pictures of my new tank. I'll post more after I get the gravel and water in which won't be until after my filter arrives. When I can figure out which one to go with!
I just got home with it about a half hour ago, but I can't set it up yet because I haven't gotten the filter for it yet. I'm still unsure of which one to get. I've decided that I want to go with a canister filter, but can't decide which one. I was originally looking at the Rena Filstar XP2 and Fluval 404 304, but someone said in the General Hardware forum that the XP2 wouldn't be good enough for a 75 gallon and that I should use an XP3. I dont' want to overfilter if it's going to have a negative effect on the fish, but I most certainly don't want to under filter either. What filter would you experts recommend?
Along with the tank I bought several plastic plants today, (2) 25lb bags of black gravel and (1) 25lb of white gravel for a little mix, and yesterday I made a 'double decker' cave made of slate and river rocks (from a craft store).
I'm planning on doing a fishless cycle which is going to be extremely difficult for me because I'm probably the most inpatient person on the planet. To try to speed it up I'm thinking of taking a couple handfulls of the gravel out of my 10 gallon along with some plants and maybe the large rock. I know that this can be done to speed things up, but I was wondering if I could also dump in the water from the tank after I do the gravel vac thing. Would this help or is not recommended for any reason?
I think that covers it for now. I'll continue to post updates as I start setting up the tank so you can see my progress. Just please don't expect to see anything fancy from me. I'm not using live plants and I don't like the cluttered look so there won't be much for decor (although I am going to have plenty of hiding spots!).
Here's a couple pictures of my new tank. I'll post more after I get the gravel and water in which won't be until after my filter arrives. When I can figure out which one to go with!