Fish Tanks & Fish

[bobbledude25]

Alright so here has has some pet fish? I'm thinking about get a sweet fish tank with some fish but I'm not sure it going to be worth all the trouble,(especially this expensive fish tank).I here the tnaks are hard to take care of. What are your thoughts fish owners.

 

My vote is for a reptile but my gf wants the dang fish

[fondybrewfan]

I wouldn't go reptiles. Fish can be a pain in the rear, make sure you by a could filter and really keep up with replacing it. As long as you replace about 1/3 of the water every 1-2 months the tank won't get to dirty. Algae Eater are also a plus. I have always gone with the standard fresh water fish but very soon I am going to be starting up a salt water tank which I am sure will be much more work

[bobbledude25]

I wouldn't go reptiles. Fish can be a pain in the rear, make sure you by a could filter and really keep up with replacing it. As long as you replace about 1/3 of the water every 1-2 months the tank won't get to dirty. Algae Eater are also a plus. I have always gone with the standard fresh water fish but very soon I am going to be starting up a salt water tank which I am sure will be much more work

 

Ok thanks. I hear tap water can't be used in fish tanks because it can lead to many problems. I hear you have to put a bunch of chemicals and stuff in the water. How often do you have to replace filters and are they expensive?

[wibadgers23]

You can use tap water and all you have to do to make the tap water safe is to put some dechlorinator in it. I usually replace my filters every 3 to 4 weeks. When cleaning your tank, use a gravel vacuum and an algae scraper. Cleaning your tank is actually really easy. I clean mine every two weeks or so and it usually takes about 20 minutes at most. You can get the filters at wal-mart for about $7 and they come in packs of three.

[Katuluu]

Go as big a tank as you can. The bigger the tank the harder it is for you to screw it up.

 

What kind of fish are you thinking of getting?

[bobbledude25]

Go as big a tank as you can. The bigger the tank the harder it is for you to screw it up.

 

What kind of fish are you thinking of getting?

Yeah but the bigger the tank the more work you have. As for fish, not really sure. Algae eater for sure and I know I'd like some little sharks. Anyone have any fish they'd recommend?

[bobbledude25]

This is the tank I would get.

 

http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h11/numberonewadefan/fishtank.jpg

[Katuluu]

Yeah but the bigger the tank the more work you have. As for fish, not really sure. Algae eater for sure and I know I'd like some little sharks. Anyone have any fish they'd recommend?

Actually the bigger the tank the less work you have to do, as the increased amount of water provides for a more stable environment.

[burniebrewer]

Go as big a tank as you can. The bigger the tank the harder it is for you to screw it up.

Tell that to an old roommate of mine. Roomie #1 left town for the week and put me in charge of his tank (probably 10 feet long) and all was well. Then I headed out for the weekend leaving Roomie #2 in charge. His idea of taking care of the fish was to dump a ton of food in there and he considered it done. I got back and they were all dead--the sheer amount of food polluted the waterand killed over 50 fish that I had to clean up.

 

[iHARTbrewCREW]

I bought some gold fish about four years ago for a science experiment, to see if I could make some lost their color, and it worked. Then i ended up keeping the goldfish which I had for 3 years til i went to college. My sister greatly overfed them for a month straight. Instead of dying, they grew to about half the size of the 10 gallon tank, so I had to buy a 38. I would say they are the easiest to take care of, unfortunately they can live 20 years if you actually take care of them. If you want fish to make babies, get some guppies. It is the easiest thing to do. Get four of the ugly brown ones, the girls, then a cool lookin male and give it about a month. Once the chick gets fat get her in a small tank, like a gallon or something, and she will pop out a bunch. The lifespan is about a year.

[UndraftedFA]

Fresh Water fish aren't that bad. I acquired two of them once. One was a red-tailed shark and the other was some type of Guarmi (sp). They were both pretty neat. The red-tailed shark would eat off the bottom, so that helped keep the tank clean too. They both seemed to be tough fish. I am not sure how long they lived before I got them, but the red-tailed shark lasted a couple of years. The other one was still alive when I moved, so I gave it to someone else. It was doing fine, but her roommate and her had a bad separation, and the bitter roommate took the fish. I don't know what happened after that. The 2 fish I had in a 10 gallon tank, were not much trouble at all. Hopefully someone at a pet store can help you get some compatible fish that help keep the tank clean.

 

My sister also had a gold fish. They are pretty messy, and can grow huge. The fish I had were probably only 4-6 inches tip-to-tip. I liked them a lot.

[GAME05]

goldfish are pretty easy, they can withstand almost anything. i've got a 16-gallon. the tank itself is about $30 and the filter is about $30. one of the problems that i've had is that if the power goes out for just a little bit, the filter loses it's prime and most of the fish die.

 

but yeah, don't worry about using tap water, you will get some of that water stabilizer with a whole tank setup, and it'll be fine.

 

I have tropical fish now. the pet store people always tell me they'll grow a bunch and not to have too many in the tank, but none have grown or just die, so you can fit a lot more in there.

 

the neon tetras are my favourites; they're pretty, small (to have a bunch instead of a few big fish in the tank), and they're very cheap. I just got some glowfish and didn't realize they were $6 each. ouch. otherwise you'll pay about $2 for each tetra. i feed mine every other day and have a couple snails in there to clean up the gunk in the tank.

 

another thing i've found is not to turn your filter intake up too strong. it's down now, but those mutant tropical fish can barely swim and i'd regularly find them stuck dead to the intake. but otherwise it's not really that expensive to have fish as long as you don't buy the expensive kinds. it's limiting on the niceness of the fish, but whatever. or just go goldfish--they take any punnishment and live forever. also at a lot of pet stores i've looked for labels according to how delicate the fish are, whether they're "beginner" or "expert" fish, for just how perfect you need to maintain the conditions. but otherwise tanks are pretty nice. they're really nice and visitors like to look at your fish, and they're not like real pets that you can get one of those 7-day feeders and take a vacation and not worry about them dying on you.

[dadofandrew]

Unless you are gone for 10 days or more, you don't need to set up a feeding substitute. When we moved here, we got rid of all but one tank and I fed them once every 2-3 days...didn't lose one for over a year. Took 3 years for them all to go.

 

Oh, and they will die. If you are prone to crying, don't bother. If you want a 10 year pet, get a dog.

[Thurston Fluff]

Big tank is better than small and wide is better than deep. The more surface area the better oxygen exchange. More important with saltwater than fresh. As far as filters go there are plenty of different types. Some don't like under gravel but I'm quite fond of them. They are about as close to the naturally occurring filtration as you can get and are the easiest to maintain and cheap to maintain. Stir the gravel around once once in a while and make sure the airflow is adequate. If you have good lighting you can grow real plants and that will help stabilize the nitrates so you don't have to do water changes as often. Just be sure you are getting actual aquatic plants. Some stores sell live plants that can live underwater for a time but are not really underwater plants. They will die quickly and add more crap that needs to be filtered. Once a fresh water aquarium is established it's really not at all hard to maintain. Saltwater is a little more work and a lot more expensive but well worth it.

Fondybrewfan I've had saltwater tanks for a couple decades now if you want some help with setup or anything just pm me. There are several types of filters and lights to chose from. They all have their good and bad points so I might be able to help you avoid buying the wrong type and having to spend more getting the right one. It takes a couple years for the tanks to fully establish themselves for invertebrates and some of the more sensitive fish but many fish can be added after a month. To start the tank the only fish I would get are damsels. They are far and away the hardiest fish and can survive the ammonia and nitrite phases of the tank establishment.

[bobbledude25]

Big tank is better than small and wide is better than deep. The more surface area the better oxygen exchange. More important with saltwater than fresh. As far as filters go there are plenty of different types. Some don't like under gravel but I'm quite fond of them. They are about as close to the naturally occurring filtration as you can get and are the easiest to maintain and cheap to maintain. Stir the gravel around once once in a while and make sure the airflow is adequate. If you have good lighting you can grow real plants and that will help stabilize the nitrates so you don't have to do water changes as often. Just be sure you are getting actual aquatic plants. Some stores sell live plants that can live underwater for a time but are not really underwater plants. They will die quickly and add more crap that needs to be filtered. Once a fresh water aquarium is established it's really not at all hard to maintain. Saltwater is a little more work and a lot more expensive but well worth it.

Fondybrewfan I've had saltwater tanks for a couple decades now if you want some help with setup or anything just pm me. There are several types of filters and lights to chose from. They all have their good and bad points so I might be able to help you avoid buying the wrong type and having to spend more getting the right one. It takes a couple years for the tanks to fully establish themselves for invertebrates and some of the more sensitive fish but many fish can be added after a month. To start the tank the only fish I would get are damsels. They are far and away the hardiest fish and can survive the ammonia and nitrite phases of the tank establishment.

 

 

What are damsel fish? Are talking for salwater of fresh water?

[Katuluu]

He's talking saltwater. Saltwater is a lot of fun, and far easier then many would expect but the cost is quite a bit more then freshwater.

[SenatorShriv]

I've had a freshwater tank for about 6 years now. Over the years I've had two (purple) freshwater lobsters and a ton of different fish. Everything is super easy to run and use but our motor started making a TON of noise about 1.5 years ago and I've been too lazy to replace it. I want to get one of the filters that actually sit in the water so they won't make noise but I don't know much about them and am broke as a joke right now.

 

I would also recommend avoiding live plants. We have tried live plants three different times with it ending in a mess every time.

 

Overall I really like mine. I think it classes up my otherwise trashy establishment.

[aracko]

Fish are easy - my wife cleans them around Milwaukee. The biggest problem have is overfeeding. Fish are great if your using them as an accent in a room. But id also suggest going saltwater, because the colors and life in the fish is so much bigger.

[Mr QL]

I have a 55 gallon freshwater tank. Only paid $100 for it since it had a crack, I fixed that and haven't had any problem with that. I got about 9 or so tiger bards, a "rainbow" shark, and 3 weather loaches. Had some trouble in the beginning with some live breeding fish whose name slip my mind but they got pecked on by the tiger barbs and got ick and they all eventually died. Other than that I've had 3 tiger barbs die but have had 3 born in there so that even out. Other than that, completely fine. Had them for more year and half now. I should clean the tank more and change the filter more but the water has stayed clean and clear even tho Ive only cleaned and replaced the water a handful or times. Got an "infestation" of sorts of small snails that multiply like crazy when I overfeed but otherwise help keep the tank clean. I got natural plants too and the biggest hassle with them is trimming them or else they take over the tank. I really should pay more attention to the tank but fish getting by just fine. I'm thinking about revamping a bit with a couple new fish and other stuff. The water evaporates really fast.

[GAME05]

those stupid tiny snails multiply like crazy, and i don't think they're very attractive in the tank. they're so small, they seem to come free with any fish-related thing you buy. i get a chemical to get rid of the things, then let the chemical work its way out of the water and then get the big snails to clean the tank, though they die pretty quick.

 

I got myself a little frog which is pretty cool, though it hides and I only rarely see it.

 

any tricks to get your fish to breed? I have two of each kind, so it's a mystery which ones might be M/F combinations. but it'd be great if they breed so I don't have to buy new fish as often. (especially if the neons bred, since they're pretty but very expensive.)

[SquirrelMaster]

I suggest saltwater. The price tag is quite a bit more, but it is worth it. I currently have a 54 corner tank, AquaC pro skimmer, 6 gallon refugium, with a 250w metal halide light. I have 6 different corals, a crocea clam, skunk cleaner shrimp, boxer shrimp, a Sebae anemone, a matched pair of clownfish, a yellow tailed damsel and a flame angelfish. Many other invertebrates in my clean up crew. If you do go saltwater, the most important thing to remember, is to TAKE IT SLOW! There are a couple of picture in my profile, but they don't do the tank justice because it doesn't show how beautiful the tank really is.

[Thurston Fluff]

I would also recommend avoiding live plants. We have tried live plants three different times with it ending in a mess every time.

 

Adequate lighting and plants that are meant to be under water are the two secrets of plant life in an aquarium. If you have those two things they will live a long time and help keep the tank's ecosystem in balance.

 

Everything is super easy to run and use but our motor started making a TON of noise about 1.5 years ago and I've been too lazy to replace it.

 

That's a big reason why I like the under gravel system. If you use an underwater pump instead of the air pump it's real quiet and very easy to maintain.

[Beast Light]

On a side note, I am moving and can't take my fish with me. I have called everywhere in the Sheboygan area and can't find anyone that will take my fish. Has anyone else ever had to deal with this issue?

[SquirrelMaster]

Bummer you don't live in the Milwaukee area. Aquatics Unlimited usually takes anything.

[Beast Light]

Bummer you don't live in the Milwaukee area. Aquatics Unlimited usually takes anything.

SquirrelMaster,

 

I think that is what I am going to end up doing. I am going to have to drive 60 miles to get there, but I just don't have the heart to let my fish die. By the way, if anyone is interested in starting a tank, they should go and check this place out. It is a pretty cool fish store.