Chicken boarders

[xChicken04x]

Hi all,

 

I'm just wondering if there are any fish-keepers on here? I've loved fish for a while now and kept goldfish some years ago. They all lived until about 8/9 years old and were all happy and healthy, never really had any problems with them.

 

However, I would love a tropical/marine tank. I've been to our local water world and they have an amazing variety of fish, I asked the staff about the different kinds of fish ect, but they weren't very knowledgeable . They showed me to the 'starter' kits, but couldn't advise me on how many fish could live comfortably in the tank or what fish are suited to each other, so I didn't bother.

 

I have asked Mr. Google, but everything is so hard to understand! There seems to be a lot of mixed opinions.

 

I have some very basic questions, that if anyone could answer, I would appreciate it.

 

*What is the difference between tropical fish and marine fish? Which are easier to keep?

 

*What do they like to eat?

 

*What sort of maintenance do they need on a daily/weekly basis?

 

*I've read about 'cycling' a tank, how is this done and how long should it take? I understand there is a humane method and, perhaps, a less humane method. I would like to opt for the humane one!

 

*Can other creatures, such as a crab or starfish be kept in the same tank?

 

*How big should the tank be? Any tank recommendations? I don't have masses of room (enough for a medium/large tank though).

 

*What kinds of fish can go together? I've read that some fish are more aggressive than others?

 

*This is probably a stupid question, but, where do I get the salty water from? Is there a substance you add to tap waer to make it salty?

 

And finally,

 

*Can anyone recommend a good book or website?

 

Thank you for any replies!

[Guest]

Freshwater Tropical are easier and cheaper to keep. They do take so much work.

 

I have given up on them and am waiting for them to pass now.

 

They need constant cleaning and eat A LOT.

[karlotta]

I think the trick with fish is to get a great quality filter and build up your stock VERY slowly. I had fish years ago (4 tanks!) and got a tank again after Christmas. The bigger the tank the easier the conditions are to keep stable. Try at least a 3ft one.

 

You do need to be scrupulous about cleaning especially at the beginning, but I wouldn't say it was a LOT of work - a 25% water change and tidy up takes about 20mins max.

 

It's great to find a helpful and knowledgeable store... do you have a Maidenhead aquatics near you? My local branch are excellent.

[coco]

We have 3 tanks, one coldwater, one tropical and one with a lone Convict Chichlid [nasty little fish , very agressive].

Tropical are defiantely easier than marine. Marine tanks are fairly specialist and the fish can also be expensive to buy.

I clean all the tanks out once a week doing about a 25 percent water change, I rinse the filter sponges out once a fortnight in tank water [never use tap it kills all the filter bacteria.] Go for the biggest tank you can and stock it slowly. There are plenty of small tropical fish to choose frrom. Good luck wahtever you go for.

[victoriabunny]

Tropical are freshwater, marine are sal"Ooops, word censored!"er. Both types require heating. Tropical are a LOT easier as with marine you have to check salinity levels constantly as there must always be a certain concentration of salt in the water (you have to use proper marine salt, not domestic salt) and levels obviously change due to dehydration. Plus the fish are a lot more expensive, and there are ethical considerations - the majority of marine fish and corals won't breed in captivity so are imported from the wild. Marine tanks do look spectacular when set up properly and run well, but they are a huge and expensive commitment - I would have a go with tropicals first.

 

Tropicals are pretty easy - I think much easier than goldfish as they don't need as much space and are cleaner. Get the biggest tank you can afford - bigger ones are easier to maintain than smaller as the waste is more dilute so they don't get as dirty. Get one with a heater, light and filter built in (although I wouldn't buy fish from there, Pets at Home have a good range) and you just plug in and off you go.

 

Cycling means getting the levels of beneficial bacteria in the tank ready to deal with fish waste. Fish waste breaks down into ammonia, which is toxic to fish. Over time, bacteria breed in the tank which neutralise this ammonia so that levels in a mature tank should be zero. Putting fish into an uncycled tank is a common beginner's mistake which usually kills them quickly. Unfortunately, cycling takes time, and it can be hard to wait. The humane method is to set the tank up with heater and filter going, then add something to the water which will trigger the growth of this bacteria - you can buy drops that will do this, or add a couple of pinches of fish food. You then monitor levels of nitrates and ammonia until everything is at zero, then you can very slowly add fish ( a couple at a time, no more than once a week, so the bacteria have chance to increase the numbers to cope with the ammonia). The process will take about a month before you can start adding fish. A fish shop can give you more info and sell you testing kits to check water levels. The inhumane method is to add "sacrificial fish" to an uncycled tank - people used to recommend putting a few hardy fish in, like harlequins or danios, and then using the ammonia they will produce to cycle the tank. Some survive this, but a lot die and if they don't the poor water quality stresses them. It's totally unnecessary as there are alternative ways of getting ammonia into your tank to cycle it, as I've already suggested.

 

Once your tank is cycled, good first fish are danios, harlequins, all varieties of tetras (keep a group of at least 6), corydoras catfish, platies and guppies. The last two will have babies if you keep both sexes, but if you want to avoid this they are easily sexed so you could just buy boys (girls will probably already be pregnant in the shop). Any babies are likely to be eaten though so I wouldn't worry too much. Some gouramis are very peaceful and look great - lace (sometimes called pearl) ones are my favourites. A red-tailed black shark is a nice addition if you buy a big tank, but they are territorial and can be nasty if they don't have enough space so make sure it has plenty of room. You must only get one too as more will fight. Angel fish are very pretty and easy to keep but only get them if you have other fish of a similar size, as they will eat smaller fish like tetras if they get the chance.

 

Sorry, this has turned into an essay! Track down your nearest specialist shop - should be some in yellow pages. Don't go to Pets at Home - their fish are often diseased and I have time and again seen completely unsuitable fish housed in the same tanks at their shops - they have no idea about fish. Also, the forum at www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk has a wealth of advice from expert fishkeepers - I highly recommend having a read. There's a whole section about setting up a new tank.

[Gem_Seb]

we have a 4ft marine tank and a seahorse tank.marineis easyonce youe water qualityis right a weekly water change of at east 10% should be enough. You just need to keep an eye on the salinity and nitrates which you van buy test kits for. We are forunate tohave a very good specialist shop near us, who advie us what we can mix with each other. It id a lot more expensive than tropical but it is very much one of those things that can be as epensive as you make it. What size tank would you be looking at?

[Seagazer]

We (or rather YS) has a tropical fish tank. He got it for his 6th birthday he's now 12. One fish I would recommend is a plecostomus fish as they like to eat algae and keep the glass nice and clean. They do grow big though. YS's one (Percy) died a couple of months ago at aged 6 and he did a sterling job of cleaning.

 

You do need to keep up the cleaning as the others have said. I would also not recommend PAH as when we bought two new Angel fish from there they brought in a disease and our original 2 Angels died shortly after as did the new ones.

 

They are very relaxing to watch.

[SarahJo]

Unless you have a good Marine Stockist locally - go for the tropical fish.

 

I look after a HUGE marine tank - talking 1/2 tonne water, the fish do go well together and we have corals too - baby star fish and an urchin who likes to dress up in shells and things The problem has always come down to maintenance of the tank - we now have a man that comes and does water changes etc.

 

Tropicals are less "fussy" and if you have even simple tetra species they are stunning under the correct lighting.

[karlotta]

Tropical (freshwater) maintenance is a doddle. A simply water change (not filter or cleaning gravel etc) took me 24 mins this morning and that included popping out to give the girls some corn in the middle because they had all lined up watching me!

 

I agree about getting a plec (maybe not a hypostomus as they get big) - I love catfish more than any other fish. Go for a Peckoltia or a Ancistrus instead.