First Tank

[STINKYFEET]

Hi there I am 32 and live by myself, after my best friend died the other month (my dog) I took it upon myself to get a few new friends so i went a little walk down to my local pet shop. I looked around for ages and there it was my next big project a 60L Jewel fish tank. I bought it there and then. I was like a kid. Could not wait to get it home and get it set up.
I took my time setting it up and gave it a 'cycle' after 3 weeks of just looking at a box of water i decided i need something 'hip' to put in it so i went and bought myself a Bubble Diver, i called him Roger. Anyways, i got my plants and my 'cave of death' set up, it is a cave that looks like a skull. I never knew this was so much fun.
My first fish i introduced was 3 black phantoms, they were fine so i though it would be good to give them some friends i went and bought Silver shark and a common Pleco called Marvin cause he is always starvin
I am looking into getting an albino Pangas.. I would be happy if anyone can send me feedback regards to my tank, i know it is only the start of a long relationship with my new friends but we are willing to listen to feedback.

Thanks.

 

[catxx]

i'm afraid to say your tank is going to be too small for the silver (bala) shark and the common plec. the silver shark needs to be in groups, and will grow to 12". the common plec will grow to 14-16" and be a real poop machine. i understand you will have grown attached to these guys, but it's in their best interest that you either return them to the store, or look into buying a very LARGE tank (over 100 gallons and long).

albino pangas? what is this? you don't mean pangasius do you?! they'll grow bigger than the common plec!

if you returned those guys, you could look into getting some more black phantoms so they have a nice school going, and either a smaller plec, such as a bristlenose which is easy to come by, or a group of corys (as long as you have fine gravel or sand, no sharp gravel or large gravel for these guys!)

 

[STINKYFEET]

Thanks for the feed back, yeah it is a pangasius (something like that). I will just get another couple of Silver Sharks then and get rid of the plec.

That ok?

 

[catxx]

you'll need a 55 gal+ for more than one bala.
when they're full grown they need a very long tank as they can be pretty skittish and jumpy.
you see a lot of these guys in public aquaria full grown that have been rescued from small tanks. thats the kind of tank they really need heh!

 

[STINKYFEET]

I really like my fish though, i might just get rid of the Phantoms and that will make some more room. Everything is fine, my little friends and loving the tank and so does my cat

 

[catxx]

it may be ok for a while, but once your shark (or plural) start to get larger and hit 8-9" they're going to be VERY cramped. a bit like you living in a cupboard heh. they're active lateral swimmers and need lots of room to stretch their fins. i know you have become attached to them, but you need to do whats best for the fish and not whats best for yourself. a small silver shark is FAR easier to rehome than one thats pushing 6"+. your fish store is more likely to tell you to piss off with a big fish than with a small fish that hasn't grown yet.

 

[Miss Wiggle]

yeah you really need to find a bigger home for the bala and common plec. if you get an 80+g tank you can maybe keep the, even then it's tight! just getting rid of a few tetra's isn't gonna give them anywhere near enough room.

 

[newtotropical]

Hi there I am 32 and live by myself, after my best friend died the other month (my dog) I took it upon myself to get a few new friends so i went a little walk down to my local pet shop. I looked around for ages and there it was my next big project a 60L Jewel fish tank. I bought it there and then. I was like a kid. Could not wait to get it home and get it set up.
I took my time setting it up and gave it a 'cycle' after 3 weeks of just looking at a box of water i decided i need something 'hip' to put in it so i went and bought myself a Bubble Diver, i called him Roger. Anyways, i got my plants and my 'cave of death' set up, it is a cave that looks like a skull. I never knew this was so much fun.
My first fish i introduced was 3 black phantoms, they were fine so i though it would be good to give them some friends i went and bought Silver shark and a common Pleco called Marvin cause he is always starvin
I am looking into getting an albino Pangas.. I would be happy if anyone can send me feedback regards to my tank, i know it is only the start of a long relationship with my new friends but we are willing to listen to feedback.

Thanks.

Hi im new to this as well, but i think you need to do more research. I have read any book i can find and also everything on the net. You do get some conflicting info but for the most part it does really help.

 

[big mick]

A bit off topic but where in Ayrshire are you?

 

[STINKYFEET]

A bit off topic but where in Ayrshire are you?

even more off the subject, thats a nice baby you got there!!!

 

[lilfishie]

i agree you should get rid of the bala and the plec, and maybe get a few more phantoms as they a shoaling fish at least 6