OK... long story. I have a 35 gallon tank. It used to have the following fish in it (with some live plants, sand, and decorations):
1 Betta
2 Colored Skirt Tetras (got them before I knew about their coloring and the cruelty involved)
1 Three Spot Gourami
1 Plecostomas
1 Fantail Goldfish
No, they were not all technically supposed to coexist together... especially the difference with the betta and the fantail... but my betta has ALWAYS preferred colder tanks. I don't know why, but when I got the water any more than 78 degrees... he would become lethargic and wouldn't eat. So, started keeping it colder, and he thrived. No clue why. Moved into an apartment, decided to try him out with the other fish... and he fit in very well.
So... yeah. They were all happy. It was a great tank.
Until two weeks ago. My roommates just up and decided that they no longer wanted me to live with them, and kicked me out. One of them drained my tank, put ALL of my fish into a tiny tupperware. My pleco was a good 6-7 inches long, my fantail was a good 4-5 inches... and my other fish were all stuck in there too. My plants all died, and by the time I got my tank set up at my parents' place, due to the filter being off for so long, the tank getting literally washed out and scrubbed from top to bottom (again, without my knowledge or anything), and the filter, while it was kept wet, who knows how much of the media actually survived. And due to all of the stress and everything of all of this craziness, my goldfish and both tetras died. The other still lived... but I have no idea how.
Anyways... I have the tank "set" up... which means I have a few decorations, and that's it. No substrate, just the fish and the filter.
So... now for my questions:
1. If I wanted to add substrate... not sand, but some say... small stones and/or glass marbles... would I have to remove my fish once more and add it, allow it to run, and then add them again?
2. Any advice for some good hardy plants that will stick to small stones and/or glass marbles? I'd really love to use live plants again, my fish definitely prefer them to the plastic ones I'm using now... but what will work with something other than sand or gravel?
3. What would be some good fish to add to my currents? I'm considering a couple more goldfish as I really loved my Aunt Fanny (I actually cried when she died on me, she was the one I was trying SO SO SO hard to make sure she lived more than any of the others... but apparently the stress was just too much. When my roommate had drained the tank she apparently didn't end up getting her, so she was stuck for a good 3-4 hours in maybe two inches of water. It was just way too much stress on her.
But yeah... any advice for more fish I could add to a 35 gallon tank? It will be staying in the same place until at least December, probably until summer. So no more crazy moving. If I do goldfish, it would be 1 or 2, and it would not be a forever home. It would be a home until the fish became almost too big for the tank and rest of the fish, and then it would be transferred into a filtered backyard pond. But... just a thought with the goldfish... not necessary. But right now the tank is VERY empty... just needs something in it.
1 Betta
2 Colored Skirt Tetras (got them before I knew about their coloring and the cruelty involved)
1 Three Spot Gourami
1 Plecostomas
1 Fantail Goldfish
No, they were not all technically supposed to coexist together... especially the difference with the betta and the fantail... but my betta has ALWAYS preferred colder tanks. I don't know why, but when I got the water any more than 78 degrees... he would become lethargic and wouldn't eat. So, started keeping it colder, and he thrived. No clue why. Moved into an apartment, decided to try him out with the other fish... and he fit in very well.
So... yeah. They were all happy. It was a great tank.
Until two weeks ago. My roommates just up and decided that they no longer wanted me to live with them, and kicked me out. One of them drained my tank, put ALL of my fish into a tiny tupperware. My pleco was a good 6-7 inches long, my fantail was a good 4-5 inches... and my other fish were all stuck in there too. My plants all died, and by the time I got my tank set up at my parents' place, due to the filter being off for so long, the tank getting literally washed out and scrubbed from top to bottom (again, without my knowledge or anything), and the filter, while it was kept wet, who knows how much of the media actually survived. And due to all of the stress and everything of all of this craziness, my goldfish and both tetras died. The other still lived... but I have no idea how.
Anyways... I have the tank "set" up... which means I have a few decorations, and that's it. No substrate, just the fish and the filter.
So... now for my questions:
1. If I wanted to add substrate... not sand, but some say... small stones and/or glass marbles... would I have to remove my fish once more and add it, allow it to run, and then add them again?
2. Any advice for some good hardy plants that will stick to small stones and/or glass marbles? I'd really love to use live plants again, my fish definitely prefer them to the plastic ones I'm using now... but what will work with something other than sand or gravel?
3. What would be some good fish to add to my currents? I'm considering a couple more goldfish as I really loved my Aunt Fanny (I actually cried when she died on me, she was the one I was trying SO SO SO hard to make sure she lived more than any of the others... but apparently the stress was just too much. When my roommate had drained the tank she apparently didn't end up getting her, so she was stuck for a good 3-4 hours in maybe two inches of water. It was just way too much stress on her.
