More questions!

[Fish-Fanatic]

ok so im thinking about a 10-20 gallon tank but then i have a few more questions for those:

• 1. what is best sand or gravel?
• 2. Should i get plants and would they do better in either the sand or the gravel?
• 3. What fish would be best for a begginer and for a tank that size?
• 4. Is fishless cycleing or fish cycleing best and which one works faster?

those are my only questions for now but i bet ill have more !

 

[Cheese Specialist]

Ok

IMO sand is better than gravel for a few reasons:

- It looks better IMO
- It's easier to clean as the waste etc sits on top of the sand instead of going into it like gravel
- Fish seem to prefer it, my loaches love playing around in it

- Just be sure to stir it around every now and again (weeklyish) to ensure no build up od a bacteria that can grow. Not sure what.

I think plants are always good in an aquarium environment and they use NitrAtes as a food source. I also think they grow better in sand, well that's what I have read.

As for fish, it depends what you want. It also depends on whether you go for the 10 or 20. I think it's always good to have a good mixture of top middle and bottom dwellers.

I don't know which works quicker. I think fishless cycling is better because there's always a chance that the fish who's job it is to cycle the tank will feel bad effects from the toxins in the water.

HTH... for now! LOL

 

[thecichlidaddict]

Sand or gravel: in general sand is closer to a natural substrate, but it only really matters if you have fish that interact directly with the substrate, like catfish, loaches, and cichlids. Sand is also cleaner because debris sits on top of it instead of sinking in the way it does gravel. The down side is you can see it collect, where with gravel it is out of sight. Also gravel can be vacuumed easily, where with sand you need to be careful not to suck up too much of it.

Plants are always a nice addition, but keep in mind it is also a different aspect of the hobby, requiring more work on your part and a slightly different process to setting the tank up.

both methods of cycling can be done fairly quickly if you take the right approach. A Fishless cycle means that you will be staring at an empty tank for a while, but you can also stock a lot of fish at once when it is done. Cycling with fish you will have fish in the tank, but you can only buy a couple of small fish at a time.

 

[Alien_spawn]

One thing that I would like to comment (sorry if its slightly off topic)

That if like me, you are based in the UK, it can be quite hard to do a fishless cycle, I have not found a source for ammonia in order for me to do this yet.....

I'm proberly going to be told where I can get ammonia in the UK now lol (hopefully!)

 

[Fish-Fanatic]

Plants are always a nice addition, but keep in mind it is also a different aspect of the hobby, requiring more work on your part and slightly different process to setting the tank up.

What do you mean more work?

And also it looks like sand is the best choice so i think thats what i will be getting.

 

[thecichlidaddict]

What do you mean more work?

Well, for one they grow. That means they need to be pruned. With some plants this needs to be done every once in a while, with others it needs to be done very regularly.

For another, plant leaves die, they need to be cleaned out or it could build up in more heavily planted tanks.

Then there is the matter of what plants need to thrive. light, nutrients, co2. Some thing else requires exactly the same things to thrive - ALGAE!

 

[Alien_spawn]

Plants are always a nice addition, but keep in mind it is also a different aspect of the hobby, requiring more work on your part and  slightly different process to setting the tank up.

What do you mean more work?

And also it looks like sand is the best choice so i think thats what i will be getting.

I've been keeping fish for a couple yrs now, without to much trouble. Plants??? I just cannot seem to keep them. Although I think im getting better now. Its a totally different end of the spectrum of the hobby. But I now have algae problems with live plants which I didn't used to get with plastic plants

 

[Deano]

[/QUOTE]I'm proberly going to be told where I can get ammonia in the UK now lol (hopefully!)



I had the same problem Alien_spawn im in the UK and could not find a source of ammonia

 

[Fish-Fanatic]

So what you guys are getting at is that i need to get plastic plants instead of live plants for now?

 

[Cheese Specialist]

I don't agree, I think live is always best.

Only my opinion. I have fake ones too.

 

[Alien_spawn]

Personally to start off with, I would get some plastic ones, otherwise you'll be trying to learn about 2 things at once (if your like me I prefer learning one thing at a time)

Then once 100% happy then give live plants a go.

I agree with cheese that live is better, once everything is running okay

But, your plants, if you go for some Cichlids or Clownloaches, when they get a bit bigger will just end up being lunch for them!!!

so its worth considering what fish you like to have in the tank as well before putting plants in

 

[thecichlidaddict]

No no, I'm not trying to dissuade you from live plants, although it sure sounds like it. It's just a warning that most aquarium plants aren't a plant it and forget it decoration, they take extra care and certain conditions to thrive and look good. It's a form of gardening, more or less. It is a question of what you want out of the tank. If you want a little project in which you can make a natural biotope then by all means go for it, but if you just want something that requires minimal maintenance plastic is probably the better choice.

Sorry for the confusion fish-fanatic