Pre-tanker

[Fishtanknoob2012]

Howdy everyone I'm new to all the fish stuff but my step brother got a tank and all he has is some glass catfish and kois. It intrigues me and I was thinking about starting an aquarium. I want a predatory tank and I seen a hifin wolf fish or erythrinus erythrinus and I'm fascinated by them. Could someone assist me on what all I need?

[Coryluv]

Just wanted to say welcome and glad you are here. Be sure to read the articles here. They are general and not specific to those fish, but they will really help get you started.

Guide to Starting a Freshwater Aquarium - Aquarium Advice

[Convict2161]

Welcome to the forum!

[Fishtanknoob2012]

Thanks I was thinking about getting a 55 gallon FW tank what would I need to get it going?

[Coryluv]

Wow, that's a nice size tank. That link I posted will give you most of the information you need to get started. If you have specific questions about what filtration, heater, etc. and what others here use and recommend, you might start a thread in "getting started". By the time I had been here a while and read others posts I had a good idea of what I needed when I started my first tank after a long hiatus from fish. Please, if anything is confusing, or not answered in your reading or research, please ask. People here are really nice about sharing their experience. While some people will be pretty direct if they notice something that isn't optimal for the living things you are keeping, in my experience the spirit here is one of helpfulness to keep your fish healthy and you successful. Best wishes, ask questions, and please share your experiences.

[Fishtanknoob2012]

Thanks a lot I read that page that you added it and it answered most of my questions I appreciate it now I'm on a mission!!!!

[Coryluv]

I'm so glad it helped. It sounds,like a great mission to me. Have fun!

[Fishtanknoob2012]

Haha appreciate it

[Taiken5968]

Originally Posted by Fishtanknoob2012

Howdy everyone I'm new to all the fish stuff but my step brother got a tank and all he has is some glass catfish and kois. It intrigues me and I was thinking about starting an aquarium. I want a predatory tank and I seen a hifin wolf fish or erythrinus erythrinus and I'm fascinated by them. Could someone assist me on what all I need?

Hey. I am glad to hear that you are wanting to start a tank. The biggest thing is to make sure a new tank is fully cycled before adding fish. You can add water and some gravel from another aquarium to help start the cycle. It may help to poor in some that was vacuumed from the bottom of a cycled tank. You can also run the new filter in a cycled tank to collect good bacteria on your new media.

Hope that helps some. Good luck and let us know what happens.

[Fishtanknoob2012]

I plan to do sand and make it a planted tank should I add everything while cycling?

[Fresh2o]

Originally Posted by Fishtanknoob2012

I plan to do sand and make it a planted tank should I add everything while cycling?

Yes, add everything except the fish (and inverts like shrimp and snails).

[Taiken5968]

Originally Posted by Fishtanknoob2012

I plan to do sand and make it a planted tank should I add everything while cycling?

Be aware that some plants may need special lighting, and Co2. Swords are a good type to get that don't require extra CO2 or lighting.

[Fishtanknoob2012]

Alright appreciate the info guys and btw how long does a fish less cycle take isn't it like 3 months

[Fresh2o]

Originally Posted by Fishtanknoob2012

Alright appreciate the info guys and btw how long does a fish less cycle take isn't it like 3 months

It depends on several factors including temperature, seeded media (vs starting from scratch), oxygen/aeration, pH, available ammonia. It could be weeks or months.

I ran the new filter in an established tank for 9 days, moved it and some media from the existing filter to the new tank and started dosing with ammonia. 6 days later, it was converting 4 ppm ammonia to zero in about 24 hours, nitrites spiked and dropped to zero. Temp was between 80-82 and pH was 7.8. About 15 days total.

[Fishtanknoob2012]

That ain't bad at all

[Fishtanknoob2012]

Change of plan guys I'm gettin a 100gallon! Super excited I know ill have enough room for a red wolf now but what else could I put with the wolf???