Tank selection help?

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NHnewbie

Aquarium Advice Newbie
Joined
Dec 2, 2007
Messages
3
I have a very small house and want to start a small aquarium. I was considering an All Glass 7 gallon Bow front to start but by the time I have bought everything I would spend as much as a 12 gallon Aquacube ($113.95). Can an Aquacube be used for freshwater? It seems a nice self contained system. Any advice?
Thanks!
 
I have never used one myself but i dont see why it couldn't. What kind of fish are you planning on putting in it?
 
Well, probably some neons, platys or mollies and an auto cat or 2.
Or maybe just some guppies. I don't know much about brackish water fish so I thought to start small.
I had a tank years ago but so long ago I don't remember much.

I thought the lights on the Aquapod might be too much for fresh water and was concerned about algea. And if it's set for salt how do I make use of the bio chambers for freshwater?
 
Otos can be very sensitive fish so I would hold off a while on them and they like lost of plants. With only 12 gallons you can't put a lot of fish in there. I don't know alot or really anything about brackish water fish Out of the fish you mentioned mollies are the only ones I know that can take very much salt in the water. I hope someone else can help you out with this. Be sure you do your homework on it and to cycle your tank.
 
Tanks for a small house

Thanks for getting back to me. I don't plan on doing brackish. My take on that is you need a bigger tank since they are so territorial. I was going small. Maybe something small that likes to school so there is movement. Or guppies since there tail makes it seem that way. I will plan for a while before I spend the money. Does anyone know if All Glass is out of business?
 
All Glass shouldn't be out of business. They make the tanks for PetCo or PetSmart. I don't recall which one.

As far as schooling fish go, larger tanks are preferable. If you get a 20-gallon long, you'll be better off. If you don't have the room, I would pass on schooling fish unless you want Nano Fish.

Guppies would work in a 12-gallon.
 
It seems that AllGlass has changed their name to Aqueon, and has started selling filters, food, and accessories in addition to tanks. I think they are still owned by Oceanic. I recently bought a 15 gal Aqueon tank.

Anyway, I once owned a 7 gal minibow complete with glass lid and fluorescent light for which I spent about $70. Unfortunately, I thought that the bowed glass grotesquely distorted the fish as they moved. It was like viewing an aquarium in a funhouse mirror. I just found the distortion too distracting. Perhaps the bow effect is just better suited for bigger tanks (40+ gal). Also, the minibow tank took up the same amount of space as a 10 gal. I'm sticking to rectangular tanks from now on.

I can see the appeal of those compact systems, but boy do you pay a premium for them! You should be able to get a 10 gal tank with glass lid for about $30, or a 15 gal tank/lid for about $50. Add $30 for a flourescent light, $25 for a good HOB filter, and $15 for a heater . I think you get more tank for less money if you buy quality components separately. Of course, it doesn't look as sleek as an all-in-one system, but the tradeoff is a slightly larger tank and some money left over for substrate, plants, fish, and food.

As far as stocking, guppies would be good. So would a small school of cardinal tetras, neon tetras, or harliquan rasboras. If you can find them, Endlers livebearers are very pretty fish too. These fish all stay small - one inch or less. The general rule of thumb for such small fish is one per gallon.
 
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