First tank...ever!!

[Nightvision]

Hi,

So I’m new to the world of fish keeping, aside from spending the last 6 months researching bits and pieces whilst I acquire equipment and ideas!

I have a 200l tropical tank that will, finally, be full of ‘hard’ water and ornaments by the weekend!

*having seen requests on other posts for water hardness details, please see the photo

I’m not looking to introduce fish for a few weeks yet so I can get used to cycling and tank maintenance and level testing.

I’m aiming for a selection of blue and red fish (cardinal tetra and guppies as a start, possibly with leopard danios because they look cool). Now here is my first question...I would love a Betta but I understand this is not a good idea...would I be ok with a female in this community or should I just look at a different ‘feature’ fish?

Second question: I will be looking at some kind of ‘clean up crew’, such as bottom feeders but does anyone have any suggestions on other species I can have that would all live happily together?

 

[fluttermoth]

Hi there, welcome to the forum

Your water is very hard; much too hard for cardinals, I'm afraid, and bettas. On the plus side, your cycle should go faster, and there are some lovely hard water fish you could have, your tank's a lovely size Some of the rainbowfish and most livebearers would be okay in it.

I would forget about the idea of 'feature fish' and 'clean up crews'. A large shoal can be a feature, and no fish ever cleans up more mess than they make, and all need proper food of their own.

Have fish because they'll suit your tank and you really like them

 

[Nightvision]

Hi,

Thank you for your reply and advice. Could you suggest some suitable fish so I can have a read about them please?

Thanks

P.S. No cichlids as I would like a mix of species

 

[Ch4rlie]

Hello and welcom

I too, have hard water in my area and I did have to do some research into what fish species would be suitable for my water hardness.

Having had a look at your pic of water hardness, it’s similar to what I have.

What I currently keep in my tank just for you to have a ponder over and research are lamb chop rasboras (trigonostigma espei) which are similar to harlequins. They are, I've found, are to be pretty hardy little colourful fish which actually according to SF are more suited to slightly softer water but as long as your water is steady and ph being around 7.4 ish they should be fine.

http://www.seriouslyfish.com/species/trigonostigma-espei/

Another nice species you want to have a look at are the small danios such as emeralds or celestial pearls, not particularly hardy and can be somewhat hard to find and pricey depending on where you are.

http://www.seriouslyfish.com/species/celestichthys-margaritatus/

And perhaps you may like some small loaches such as rosy loaches, I love these guys and would recommend them as they are fairly active and interesting to have.

http://www.seriouslyfish.com/species/yunnanilus-sp-rosy/

Of course as fluttermoth mentioned in previous post that there are a few species of rainbow fish that would be fine in your water such as featherfins which are lovely and I’ve kept those in the past but there are other species which should be fine but do research them first.

And lastly, not a clean up crew as such but perhaps some shrimps and snails may be something for you to consider. Red Cherry shrimps are pretty hardy and a nice addition provided your tank is more established after a few month and don’t have large mouthed fish that would snack on those shrimps as pretty much ALL fish would snack on shrimps dependant on shrimp sizes and their mouths as. Shrimps are mostly a natural food source.

Do perhaps have a look at having some live plants as those are beneficial for most tanks imho and shrimps and fish do appreciate having live plants to find food and to hide in.

That should be enough for now for you to have a look online and ponder over for now

 

[seangee]

But not rainbow fish together with Celestial Pearls. CPD are lovely (I am about to get some) but quite expensive as fish food.

Livebearers are also an option: guppies, mollies, swords etc.

 

[Colin_T]

Your water isn't that hard, it's only 250ppm GH and that isn't a big issue for most fishes.

Have you looked at rainbowfish? Melanotaenia lacustris and praecox are blue, Melanotaenia herbertaxelrodi goes yellow with red fins, Glossolepis incisus is red and G. wanamensis is a dark greeny colour.

Check the following link for Adrian Tappin's rainbowfish book. There is a free to download pdf copy somewhere online but I couldn't find it. It might be on the ANGFA website, and has all sorts of pictures and information about them.
http://rainbowfish.angfaqld.org.au/Rainbowfish.htm
Use the above link to view the online copy and click "Contents" in top right of screen to see the different species.

 

[thrujenseyes]

And lastly, not a clean up crew as such but perhaps some shrimps and snails may be something for you to consider.

Yay for this crew!!!! Shrimp are so much fun to have and observe! As are snails! Your water will keep their shells in perfect condition!
And as mentioned by ch4rlie, they are actually a Fabulous clean up crew!!! Forever busy!

 

[fluttermoth]

But not rainbow fish together with Celestial Pearls. CPD are lovely (I am about to get some) but quite expensive as fish food.

I'm sure some of the smaller rainbows, like featherfins (Celebes? Dwarf neons? I'm not up on hardwater fish) would be fine with CPD or erythromicron, and possible shrimps too, they have very small mouths.

But look that up or wait for another expert opinion, OP; as I said, this is not my area; I live in a soft water area and find adjusting pH and hardness far too much hassle, although I have done it in the past

 

[stanleo]

When I was researching fish when I started I fell in love with the variety of rainbows and wanted to do Australian type fish. Then I discovered that the water I had was too soft for them so had to change gears. Try looking up Australian biotopes. Lovely fish and I think they would work for your water. It’s been a long time though so I could be remembering wrong.

 

[Nightvision]

Wow! Thank you all so much for your input! Enjoyed reading about all of the suggestions!

Seriouslyfish still blows my mind with the depth of info! :O

Still learning the forum but someone mentioned a planted tank, I’m only going to be using a very small amount of moss, as far as live plants go, with a range of natural-looking synthetic plants - don’t want to complicate my entire world before it even exists! Haha

Hoping to have substrate (washed) and laid by Friday in time for when my water containers arrive!

Will post up some pics when it’s done

 

[Colin_T]

Most true aquatic plants are relatively easy to keep. Light and water will suffice but if you want to go extreme you can add carbon dioxide (CO2) and all sorts of fertilisers, but that can get expensive. Plus there is plenty of CO2 in the atmosphere and in the tank from the fish and bacteria.

If you want to try a few real plants, look for Water Sprite (Ceratopteris sp.), Narrow Vallis, Hygrophilla polysperma, Ambullia and the common Amazon Swordplant. Water Sprite can float on the surface or be planted, and the others need planting. You can grow them in small plastic containers and this can let you move them around whenever you want, or just plant them in the gravel.

I use a 1 litre plastic icecream container and put an inch of gravel in the bottom, then a thin layer of garden fertiliser, a thin layer (5mm) of red/ orange clay that has been dried and powdered up goes on top of the fertiliser, then fill the pot up with more gravel. The plant gets planted into the gravel and as its roots grow into the clay and fertiliser, it takes off. The clay stops the fertiliser leaching into the water.

Alternatively just plant them in the gravel and add a liquid iron fertiliser like Sera Florena once or twice a week.

 

[Nightvision]

Most true aquatic plants are relatively easy to keep. Light and water will suffice but if you want to go extreme you can add carbon dioxide (CO2) and all sorts of fertilisers, but that can get expensive. Plus there is plenty of CO2 in the atmosphere and in the tank from the fish and bacteria.

If you want to try a few real plants, look for Water Sprite (Ceratopteris sp.), Narrow Vallis, Hygrophilla polysperma, Ambullia and the common Amazon Swordplant. Water Sprite can float on the surface or be planted, and the others need planting. You can grow them in small plastic containers and this can let you move them around whenever you want, or just plant them in the gravel.

I use a 1 litre plastic icecream container and put an inch of gravel in the bottom, then a thin layer of garden fertiliser, a thin layer (5mm) of red/ orange clay that has been dried and powdered up goes on top of the fertiliser, then fill the pot up with more gravel. The plant gets planted into the gravel and as its roots grow into the clay and fertiliser, it takes off. The clay stops the fertiliser leaching into the water.

Alternatively just plant them in the gravel and add a liquid iron fertiliser like Sera Florena once or twice a week.

Thanks Colin. Once I’ve established keeping my fish alive I will use your advice and move on to plants

 

[Essjay]

There are a lot of plants that are grown attached to decor rather than rooted in the substrate and can make it easier to start using live plants. Other members will be horrified to know that none of the plants in my tank are rooted in the substrate
I used to have all plastic plants and decor, then moved on to silk plants, then finally tried java fern attached to a fake log. The effect was so much better than fake plants that now I have no fake plants and no plastic decor.
One advantage to having plants attached to decor is that you can move them if you want to alter the arrangement


I have - java fern, four different species of anubias, bolbitis and bucephalandra attached to wood; hornwort stems wrapped round branches of wood, and floating on the surface, and water sprite floating on the surface.

 

[NickAu]

Do you want a few big fish or lots of small ones?

Endlers ( Poecilia wingei ) are cool. I have some in my Bumblebee Goby tank,

 

[Nightvision]

There are a lot of plants that are grown attached to decor rather than rooted in the substrate and can make it easier to start using live plants. Other members will be horrified to know that none of the plants in my tank are rooted in the substrate
I used to have all plastic plants and decor, then moved on to silk plants, then finally tried java fern attached to a fake log. The effect was so much better than fake plants that now I have no fake plants and no plastic decor.
One advantage to having plants attached to decor is that you can move them if you want to alter the arrangement


I have - java fern, four different species of anubias, bolbitis and bucephalandra attached to wood; hornwort stems wrapped round branches of wood, and floating on the surface, and water sprite floating on the surface.

When it arrives I will be having some moss that I’ll be attaching to some driftwood but that’s as far as I want to go for now