What it do

[jstone8952]

Joined to ask questions mostly.
Totally new to fish in general.
Bought a 10 gallon on a whim about a month ago and then found a deal on a 38 gallon about two weeks later.
Ive killed 11 fish so far doing a cruel in fish cycle so go ahead and hate on me now. I'm impulsive and did zero research before taking my kids to pet supermarket in a desperate attempt to escape my mother in laws unannounced arrival at 9am on a Saturday. Walked out with a fish tank. It halpens.
If I'm reading this api freshwater master kit correctly I have just about finished cycling (0 ammonia/0nitrite/15nitrate) and am looking to add some new or replace some old fish.
The tank currently has a white gravel substrate with one live anubis, an assortment of other plastic and silk plants, one small cave structure and a small "mountain "- both made of resin.
For fish I have about 15 rosy red minnow feeder fish and 5 black neon tetras.
For equipment I have a penguin 200 and a penguin 100 hob filters situated on either side of the tank (not enough room behind tank), two air stones and a heater off amazon. Glass top.
My lighting is also from amazon- two submersible led tube style lights w white blue and white/blue

I am planning on this being a sort of community tank but don't want to stick with just these minnows.

I have been googling my thumbs off trying to figure out a decent fish setup and every time I think I've figured out what I want I find a reason that option might not be ideal.

I suppose what I'm looking for are solid ideas on fish to stock this tank with that will occupy all levels of water column, get along with each other, have similar requirements on harness, alkalinity, pH etc and... well fish that aren't minnows. These little guys are cute and all but if I needed to feed them to a cichlid I wouldn't mind.

I suppose I should mention I have very hard water (300gh), alkalinity that ranges from 180-300, calcium carbonate levels that are about 150. My ph stays at 8.0 solidly. I have tried using a water softener pillow for a few days but the hardness is still pretty high.

Roast me fish peeps.

[Autumnsky]

Welcome.
https://www.aquariumadvice.com/guide...ater-aquarium/

https://www.aquariumadvice.com/i-jus...fish-what-now/

You could rehome the little fish too. Or have 2 different tanks for community fish and Cichlids.

One thing which could help for your water would be to use a portion of your tap water with other amount of RO or RODI water for a ratio to match the fish you want to keep. You can start with a half and half mixture and see where the numbers hit for the desired fish community.



https://www.aquariumadvice.com/lake-...king-cichlids/

[FishTankCait]

No, why am I roasting you dude! It take some serious balls to you on a whim buy an almost 40 gallon fish tank. It took me like three years to work up to that lol I will say though, there is a marine aquatics store local to me, and it’s owned by a retired Marine biologist and his wife. They have taught me everything I know. My tank runs so efficient now and I have all the right fish that do all the right things to keep it clean, etc that I really don’t have to do much. I would definitely recommend getting some Coryandas(Cory Cats). They are seriously so easy to care for, and they will eat all of the excess fish food that the fish miss while eating, as well as any algae build up off your rocks. There’s so many different kinds of them, they come in so many different colors. I would recommend getting at least three or four. I’ve always had 4, but lost one last month. . The three that I have now have lived for around 3 years, and they all do their jobs perfectly. The only other thing I would reccomend getting would be a mini Plescomus. Any bristlenose breed is the easiest to care for, is very low maintenance, calm temperament, and will legit be a fish tank cleaning FOOL. Just make sure it’s a mini, bc those only get up to 3-4 inches max in size. And only get one. They shouldn’t be housed together because as they get older one can dominant the other. When I had my 29 gallon I always just had random schools of fish, but made sure to keep my 4 Cory Cats and mini Plesco in it, and that sucker looked clean and pristine 24/7. I actually would have to add a few algae wafers into my tank once a week or so, because it was THAT clean that the Plesco and Cory Cats needed more algae, etc to eat. I have a 65 gallon now, and my goal is always to get the tank running efficiently on its own, with me having to do very little to keep it that way haha By getting all of the right marine life for your tank, it will make your life a lot easier, and all the little fishies in your tank will be happy! Plus, in my opinion Plesco’s are the freaking coolest thing you will ever own.