First Timer Starting a 150 Liter Aquarium

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atgm

Aquarium Advice Newbie
Joined
Jul 20, 2010
Messages
6
Hey, guys -- I'm a first-timer, though I've been reading about aquarium stuff off-and-on for the last few years, ever since my friend got me interested in the idea. I moved recently and have a lot of room available in my living room, so I figure I'll take the plunge and get an aquarium.

Right now I'm looking at a Nisso tank with rounded corners that comes with light (30W) and filter. It's 90 cm wide and holds 150 liters (edit: 36 inches and 40 gallons), so it's a pretty decent-sized tank and probably the biggest I'd be able to fit/afford. I understand that larger tanks are better for newbies since they're more stable. Also included with the tank is a large, stable cabinet.

What I'm thinking about is trying to build a natural riverbed-type habitat, with large stones/pebbles for the bottom (substrate?), some plants/moss, and some bogwood. I figure I'll get the tank, set all of that up, and let it sit for a week to cycle/stabilize before I put in the fish.

Speaking of the fish, I'm planning on getting one kind of fish every weekend, so there'll be a week or so for the tank to stabilize and the fish to get used to the environment -- does this sound like a reasonable plan?

The fish I'm looking at now are Zebra Danios first (10), then Neon Tetras (10), a few Clown Loaches (perhaps three), and then either a harem of Marbled (Opaline?) Gourami (M/FFF) or a matched pair of Dwarf Gourami (M/F).

Does this seem reasonable, or is it overcrowding the tank? I don't think there are any potential community conflicts in there, since the tank is pretty large and I'm planning on putting in plenty of hiding places; additionally, the fish are all on various layers.

There are three other things I'm concerned and/or wondering about, as well:

1. What about a cleaner fish? Perhaps an Albino Pleco or two, since they stay small?

2. I saw a few tanks with axolotls together with fish and they seemed happy, with no signs of stress or harrassment; the store owner said that as long as you put them in early and there are no aggressive fish, they tend to work out just fine. Second opinions?

3. I also saw a few tanks with small water-only turtles together with fish, and that seems interesting too, of course... though growth and waste would both be large factors in not keeping one, I think.

Thanks in advance for any comments!

Edit: I live in a smaller city in Japan, so the brands/items/fish available here can be different from those available in America.
 
You should also read the articles in that section of this forum.
I haven't had a FW tank in years, but it takes longer than a week to cycle a tank.
I think you may be overstocking and adding fish in too large a quantity without enouhg time between additions, but that may just be my SW background showing here. I'll let some of the FW experts chime in on that part.

In the meantime let me just say,
welcometoaa.gif
 
Yeah, I've been reading through the articles, too. The fishless cycle one in particular is pretty interesting; it's more in-depth than most of the other ones I've seen.

Looking at other people's setups, it really does look like I'd be overstocking!
 
Thanks for the welcome!

Do you have any suggestions for a Clown Loach replacement? I was trying to find something a little larger than the shoaling fish that could hang out mostly by itself.
 
A 40g is a great starter tank. It's large enough to be forgiving and the maintenance won't kill you.


1. Plecos really make more mess than they clean up. I prefer snails for cleanup duty. My malaysian trumpet snails do a fantastic job of keeping my sand clean. They're almost too efficient. If a fish dies, I'm lucky to find it and get it out before the snails make it disappear. Makes warranty returns a little tough.

2. Axolotls can work as long as you have fish that are too large for the axolotl to eat and fish that won't nip at an axolotl's exposed gills. It's a tough combination to find.

3. Turtles are messy and would try to eat your fish. They also need somewhere to get out of the water. I wouldn't mix turtles and fish unless you have a pond.

Your stock list seems reasonable with the exception of the clown loaches. As meegosh pointed out, they will get too big for your tank eventually, up to a foot long in some cases. Look at smaller botia type loaches. Maybe a yo-yo or something like that.
 
Plecos really make more mess than they clean up. I prefer snails for cleanup duty.

Are there any snails in particular that are good? Also, how many can I put in safely?

I don't know if the store has any Botia-type loaches available, but there are some Kuhli Loaches, which are also supposed to stay small-ish...
 
Khuli loaches are fun. Get at least six if you do get them. They're more fun in bunches.

With snails, it all depends on what you want. I started with malaysian trumpet snails (MTS) because I needed something to stir my sand to keep it from going anaerobic. They burrow through the sand and stay hidden most of the day.

I got some ramshorns as hitchhikers and they've grown on me. I think I have a small breed as most don't get larger than a pea. There are different colors available if you look.

I hate pond snails. They take over everything. They're little and brown. Some like them. Not me.

Mystery snails are more of a feature critter than a cleanup crew member. They're fun to watch, but they don't do a good job of clearing algae.

Nerite snails will do a good job of cleaning algae. They have some really neat shells too. They're a little harder to find over here than mysteries.

Rabbit snails are relatively new to the hobby. They come in bright colors. I'd like to get some, but I need to make sure they won't eat my plants first.
 
Six? Do you think my tank is large enough for that many?

Yeah, I was looking into snails a bit, but I worry about them eating the plants...


One thing that occurred to me -- will the tank actually end up being too warm for an axolotl?
 
I have three kuhlii's in my 10g so I think you will be just fine. They do like a sand substrate but will do fine in gravel. They love the occasional shrimp pellet also.
 
Your tank is plenty large for six khuli loaches. I have the biggest striped khuli loach I've ever seen and it's only about five inches long. They're usually skinny too and they don't create much bioload on a tank.

MTS, ramshorns, mysteries, and nerites won't eat healthy plants. They'll snack on dying plants, but they'll leave the good ones alone. Pond snails and rabbit snails may eat plants, but there's a lot of conflicting information out there.
 
So after considering all of the advice I've gotten (thanks!), I'm looking at:

Environment: Sand substrate, plants, wood/rocks for hiding places.

Fish: 10 Zebra Danios, 10 Neon Tetras, 6 Kuhli Loaches, and a M/F pair of Dwarf Gourami, plus some trumpet snails and possibly an axolotl...
 
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