switching to freshwater

[stumpy]

After almost 1 year of trying saltwater ( and being frustrated for most of that time) I am going to try tropical freshwater. I feel like this will be somewhat easier on the budget and the nerves. I have a 30 gallon tank and want a community setup. I have already bought a book on freshwater tropical. I used to have 2 goldfish in the 30 before I converted over to saltwater. I put both of them into a 10 gallon. One died a few days after the move, the other is doing fine. I have had him for a little over 4 years. I am happy with the goldfish in the 10 gal and want to try something else in the 30. What are everyones thoughts on which fish I should get?

 

[TankGirl]

What fish catch your eye when you look through your book?

Do you want a happy, peaceful, schooling fish type tank, or do you want several strong individual fish with lots of personality? Also, do you have soft or hard water there in WV?

Don'tcha love it when people answer questions with questions?

 

[stumpy]

I definatly want happy,schooling fish. I would rather have alot of small fish instead of a few large fish. I'm not sure about the water quality in WV. After messing with saltwater fish for the past year, I would like colorful fish. Maybe neons? I'm still looking and learning the names of differant fish. I like the corys that hang out on the bottom. I did have a shrimp in my sw tank that I loved. Is there any fw shrimp? I would also like for my tank to be nautral looking.Lots of light color rock, fake greenery (for now), wood. Any suggestions?

 

[hashbaz]

TankGirl has an EXCELLENT point. If you don't know what kind of fish you want, base your decision (at least partly) on matching fish to your tap water.

Does your book give much info on what water conditions are best for each species? If not, here is a site I found kind of useful.

http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/categ.cfm?siteid=21&pcatid=830

I'm sure there are better sites but I don't know them. I would also suggest seeing what can be found locally. Shipping fish is expensive.

My thoughts on what fish to get: I have mostly danios and livebearers. Danios are practically bombproof as far as tropical fish. Livebearers are almost as hardy, quite colorful, and almost sure to breed. Neither are considered exotic but they are cheep - about $2. And of course every tank needs some sort of clean-up crew (catfish, and algae eaters).

Good luck!

 

[Fluff]

If your anywhere near the Martinsburg area, I can tell you the water quality is aweful. It comes from the tap with a nitrate level of 40. This could be part of your headaches with saltwater. I use an RO/DI unit for my tanks. Pure for saltwater and 50/50 for my freshwater tanks to help keep the nitrate levels in check. As for what fish? definitely get some cories. They are awesome. And they come in a huge variety. Also, if you don't mind traveling, there is an awesome fish store in Baltimore. Exotic Aquatics, near Towson. They have a huge selection and much better quality fish then you'll find around here. Good luck.

 

[TankGirl]

Test your tap water, after it sits out for 24 hours in a clean container, for pH, GH, KH and nitrate, and if you want to and have the test kit handy, phosphate. Tap water in my area is very high in phosphate, another possible problem for a successful SW setup (or algae-free FW setup, for that matter)

Post back with these values and it will help a lot. Neons can be tricky unless you have a well established, mature tank, but sounds to me like you could get a school of corys for the bottom, fake plants and wood or whatever, some serpae tetras, for instance for bright red color against the green plants, maybe a gourami, and some hatchets for the top. Add neons or cardinals after the tank is mature. Just an out-of-the-blue configuration - there are hundreds of options!

 

[stumpy]

Wow, thanks for the advice. I probly got ahead of myself asking so many questions so fast. I am going to drain the sw tank Sunday and take the remaining crabs,snails and live rock back to the lfs for a store credit (they are great to deal with). How would you suggest I clean the tank to get rid of all traces of sw? I will also get me a fw test kit. One more thing, can I use anything from the established goldfish tank to speed up the cycleing process in the new tank? I'll post again with my water values or if I can think of anymore questions.