First New Tank

[Scotty87]

Ok so i've bought my first tank. 10 gallons (all I have room for at the moment)

I'm just wondering if anyone could recommend a good filter for this size tank? Perferably I would like an internal one.

Also fish advice... I'm not going to be getting any soon just thinking in advance! I was thinking some neon tetras or a small school of danios, maybes a couple of barbs? Also is there any "bottom dwelling fish" i could get for a tank this size?

Sorry for the total newbie questions, i'm literally just starting out

Thanks very much

 

[ab420]

Ok so i've bought my first tank. 10 gallons (all I have room for at the moment)

I'm just wondering if anyone could recommend a good filter for this size tank? Perferably I would like an internal one.

Also fish advice... I'm not going to be getting any soon just thinking in advance! I was thinking some neon tetras or a small school of danios, maybes a couple of barbs? Also is there any "bottom dwelling fish" i could get for a tank this size?

Sorry for the total newbie questions, i'm literally just starting out

Thanks very much

For Barbs, you'll want a bigger tank. They like to be in a school of at least 6, and that would be too many in a 10ga. They can be a little agressive to eachother and even more so to other fish, and the smaller of a tank they are in, the more aggressive they will be. The tetras or danios would be fine, but again they like to be in numbers.

If you are just looking to have the most active and exciting tank possible, I would say get a school of 6 Zebra Danios, they are insane and never stop moving!

 

[Scotty87]

Ok, thanks for that! I heard 1 or 2 barbs would have been ok from another source but i'd rather be safe and go for a few danois or tetras.

Is there a bottom dwelling fish i could keep with either tetras or danios?

 

[ab420]

Ok, thanks for that! I heard 1 or 2 barbs would have been ok from another source but i'd rather be safe and go for a few danois or tetras.

Is there a bottom dwelling fish i could keep with either tetras or danios?

Yea, I tried Barbs in a small tank, and let's just say, there's a killer lurking in every Barb!
As far as adding more fish, the general rule is 1" of fish per gallon of aquarium, you've got a 10 gallon, and Danio's can get up to 2", most likely they'll end up being around 1.75". So, 1.75" X 6 Danios = 10.5" of fish in a 10 gallon tank, so you really would be stocked at that point. I'm not really sure about small bottom dwellers except the Cory's, but ya need to keep them in groups, so that wouldn't work.


Just to warn you.... this is how it starts....

I started with a 5 gallon tank....

within a week....

I had a 29 gallon tank! LOL!

 

[b.c.f.c]

imo id say no to danios and barbs, barbs are agressive and shoal as has been said earlyer etc.
as for the danios i think they need a tank of at least 20 gal with a shoal of 6 or 7 at the least.they are very active and 10 gal is too small.
as for another option id get 6 small tetras ie neons , maybe 6 or 7, then get 4 corys for the bottom.that would be fully stocked and a very peaceful tank.

 

[polypterus]

Ok so i've bought my first tank. 10 gallons (all I have room for at the moment)

I'm just wondering if anyone could recommend a good filter for this size tank? Perferably I would like an internal one.

My personal favorite filter for that size tank is an Auqaclear Mini. It's not internal but it just hangs off the back. It's very easy to clean, you can adjust the water flow and it has a lot of space to add carbon or whatever else you want. My usual set up is the Aquaclear + a reverse flow UGF. I think one with a little sponge pre-filter works best.

 

[mandi]

My personal favorite filter for that size tank is an Auqaclear Mini. It's not internal but it just hangs off the back. It's very easy to clean, you can adjust the water flow and it has a lot of space to add carbon or whatever else you want.

I second the vote for an AquaClear. They're very reasonably priced and I've had great luck with them!!

as for the danios i think they need a tank of at least 20 gal with a shoal of 6 or 7 at the least.they are very active and 10 gal is too small.

This is correct. Danios are hyperactive little things!!

Some pygmy corys would be great (maybe 3 or 4). Small Tetras. I'm not sure if you're interested in livebearers, but you could try some guppies -- they're very colorful and fun.

 

[MegTheFish]

You might want to look into cherry barbs, they don't need to be kept in big groups, are peaceful (compared to other barbs) and are small. A trio (1 m, 2 f) would work fine in a 10 gallon. The albinos are my favorite-the males are a very ribrant red, while the females are white-pink with reddish-orange fins.

 

[Scotty87]

Thanks very much for all your advice! I'll have a look around

There will probably be more questions coming in the future though!

Thanks

My personal favorite filter for that size tank is an Auqaclear Mini. It's not internal but it just hangs off the back. It's very easy to clean, you can adjust the water flow and it has a lot of space to add carbon or whatever else you want. My usual set up is the Aquaclear + a reverse flow UGF. I think one with a little sponge pre-filter works best.

Ok, i'll take a look at this. Is it relatively quiet? as the tank will be near my bed!

 

[voo]

My lfs told me that neon tetra's need a mature tank, one that's been running over 3 months or so...

Dont forget to cycle the tank/filter before adding fish

 

[Scotty87]

Dont forget to cycle the tank/filter before adding fish

I won't. Still reading up everything I can about it so I know i've got everything I need before I start to cycle it...

Thanks!

 

[l337dave]

Dont forget to cycle the tank/filter before adding fish

I won't. Still reading up everything I can about it so I know i've got everything I need before I start to cycle it...

Thanks!

Hi, as far as the filter goes I would go with a 'Interpet Internal PF'

you can see them here: http/www.aquatics-online.co.uk/Z015024.asp

I have the PF1 on a 7gallon that is in my bedroom, and when it's set up correctly it's very very quiet, if you have a shallow tank you just need to make sure that it's not touching on the substrate to cut down on vibrations and put a bit of slack in the power cable if it touches on the glass as this can vibrate a little too.

It has a built in venturi that will act in the same way as an airpump (don't leave this on when you are in bed tho!) so this will mean one less thing to buy. It also has an adjustable flowrate.

I have swapped out the carbon in mine and I have added another filter foam in its place - it handles the 2 Ranchu in the tank with ease:

NH3 : 0
N02 : 0
N03 : <5

hurrah!




dave.

 

[Scotty87]

Thanks for that dave.

Would you say these are easy to clean etc for beginners?

 

[voo]

I have the PF2 model and i guess they're pretty similar. Mine is easy to clean, it's not hard to take apart.

 

[cazs84]

I stand by the Fluval internal filters, they stick on the tank side via suckers and they are great if you can't afford the expense or room of the externals. I buy the next size up for what they recommend (e.g if it says for aquariums up to 10 gallons, I'd buy the next size up) then you can be sure its circling the water loads of times an hour