Newbie Wanting Tank In Conservatory

[basil1]

Hi all, brand new to this forum, and need some advice please, ok, I used to keep tropicals years ago in the seventies, in the days when you had undergravel filters, heater one end of tank and thermostat the other, guppies were twenty for £1.00 and were as tuff as a pit bull, and normally introduced them first into a new tank within 3 days of setting it up, and the nearest thing to cycling was on your bike

Anyway, I would love to get back, only problem is the ONLY place I have to keep tank is, dare I say it, a conservatory yes, I can hear the gasps of is he right in the head already, I know I will have a problem with agae and temp in summer, as for the winter would 2 heaters solve that problem, I have been looking at the interpet 64l fish pod, before I go any further surely there must be someone out there who's got there's in a conservatory or is it totally impracticle and knock it on the head, thanks

 

[walkers101]

My dad used to keep marine in a conservatory 6x2x2 and he had to set up a freezer to keep it cool in the summer

you really have to think about this its a pain in the backside

 

[Wills]

I think there are a few members on here that keep tanks in conservatories, if I were you I would get a bigger tank as I think smaller tanks will heat up faster than big tanks.

I mean if you set it up you could go for fish that love and need high temps which in that size tank would be rummy nose tetras and a blue or gold german ram which would be a very nice tank in its own right but I dont know how hot the water would get in the summer? If it were a bigger tank the obvious warmer water fish is discus - bet thats got you tempted now haha

There are various ways to cool tanks down like pointing fans at the water surface and having the water well oxygenated with powerheads or bubble bars etc you could even cover it with black fabric with a foil outer to reflect the heat away from the tank. If its possible I would try to mount a small fan above the tank and keep the windows open when possible.

Wills

 

[basil1]

Hi, how did he cope with so much agae, as with so much light I presume would be a problem, I would think that plenty of plants to compete would be helpfull,

My dad used to keep marine in a conservatory 6x2x2 and he had to set up a freezer to keep it cool in the summer

you really have to think about this its a pain in the backside

HHi, how did he cope with algae, as with so much light it would be a problem, I would think that plenty of plants to compete would help.

 

[mattlee]

Hi Basil,

i keep a 4ft tank in my conservatory with no issues at all except possibly slightly more algae than if it were in the house. but with good maintenance and planning it will be fine. i used to keep discus in it so the higher temps wer fine as it was set at 30 degrees and never went higher even in the hot weather we have had here recently.
but to be honest even now at 26 degrees there isnt much change in temp. if you conservatory has a wall at an end then use this as your first choice of tank positioning. this is where mine is and luckily enough the sun moves around the house behind the wall so the tank receives no direct sunlight it just obviously gets more light than if it were indoors. if its going to be hot then leave a few small wndows open to circulate the air in the conservatoryand most have a ceiling fan which is also handy to use. i know of people that totally cover their tanks in conservatories during the day and uncover them when they get home, this also will help reduce algae.
dont be put off its not as bad as you would think.

 

[basil1]

I think there are a few members on here that keep tanks in conservatories, if I were you I would get a bigger tank as I think smaller tanks will heat up faster than big tanks.

I mean if you set it up you could go for fish that love and need high temps which in that size tank would be rummy nose tetras and a blue or gold german ram which would be a very nice tank in its own right but I dont know how hot the water would get in the summer? If it were a bigger tank the obvious warmer water fish is discus - bet thats got you tempted now haha

There are various ways to cool tanks down like pointing fans at the water surface and having the water well oxygenated with powerheads or bubble bars etc you could even cover it with black fabric with a foil outer to reflect the heat away from the tank. If its possible I would try to mount a small fan above the tank and keep the windows open when possible.

Wills

Im breaking the bank now for a new tank etc if I mentioned marine tank to the wife she would probably leave me, ( then again that's got me thinking, not such a bad idea, and marine isnt that expensive, especially if your on your own )good job she can't use a computer
(BOY DO I DICE WITH DEATH)

 

[Wills]

woah dont blame me for marine haha I said discus

 

[arobinson1984]

None of the ideas mentioned were marine, discus are not a marine fish.

Sterbai corys are another fish that dont mind the higher temperatures.



Andy

 

[basil1]

woah dont blame me for marine haha I said discus

Ooops, sorry thought discus was marine, divorce on hold

 

[mattlee]

None of the ideas mentioned were marine, discus are not a marine fish.

Sterbai corys are another fish that dont mind the higher temperatures.



Andy

not exactly true andy all corys prefer temps lower than 25 degrees even sterbai. they are not truely happy at higher temps but lots of people use them with discus. all it will do is shorten their lives and cause stress on them. people use all sorts of cory with discus and say that they are fine but they are much more happier at lower temps. ive kept lots of corys and bred them and had them at all temps trying to make them happiest and 30 degrees is way out for them.....

Hi Basil,

i keep a 4ft tank in my conservatory with no issues at all except possibly slightly more algae than if it were in the house. but with good maintenance and planning it will be fine. i used to keep discus in it so the higher temps wer fine as it was set at 30 degrees and never went higher even in the hot weather we have had here recently.
but to be honest even now at 26 degrees there isnt much change in temp. if you conservatory has a wall at an end then use this as your first choice of tank positioning. this is where mine is and luckily enough the sun moves around the house behind the wall so the tank receives no direct sunlight it just obviously gets more light than if it were indoors. if its going to be hot then leave a few small wndows open to circulate the air in the conservatoryand most have a ceiling fan which is also handy to use. i know of people that totally cover their tanks in conservatories during the day and uncover them when they get home, this also will help reduce algae.
dont be put off its not as bad as you would think.

None of the ideas mentioned were marine, discus are not a marine fish.

Sterbai corys are another fish that dont mind the higher temperatures.



Andy

not exactly true andy all corys prefer temps lower than 25 degrees even sterbai. they are not truely happy at higher temps but lots of people use them with discus. all it will do is shorten their lives and cause stress on them. people use all sorts of cory with discus and say that they are fine but they are much more happier at lower temps. ive kept lots of corys and bred them and had them at all temps trying to make them happiest and 30 degrees is way out for them.....

Hi Basil,

i keep a 4ft tank in my conservatory with no issues at all except possibly slightly more algae than if it were in the house. but with good maintenance and planning it will be fine. i used to keep discus in it so the higher temps wer fine as it was set at 30 degrees and never went higher even in the hot weather we have had here recently.
but to be honest even now at 26 degrees there isnt much change in temp. if you conservatory has a wall at an end then use this as your first choice of tank positioning. this is where mine is and luckily enough the sun moves around the house behind the wall so the tank receives no direct sunlight it just obviously gets more light than if it were indoors. if its going to be hot then leave a few small wndows open to circulate the air in the conservatoryand most have a ceiling fan which is also handy to use. i know of people that totally cover their tanks in conservatories during the day and uncover them when they get home, this also will help reduce algae.
dont be put off its not as bad as you would think.

also you have to remember that any excess food will go off very quickly at these temps so feed sparingly

 

[walkers101]

Hi, how did he cope with so much agae, as with so much light I presume would be a problem, I would think that plenty of plants to compete would be helpfull,

My dad used to keep marine in a conservatory 6x2x2 and he had to set up a freezer to keep it cool in the summer

you really have to think about this its a pain in the backside

HHi, how did he cope with algae, as with so much light it would be a problem, I would think that plenty of plants to compete would help.

He has used anti algae meds and cleaned every day was a pain

it all depends on position the closer the tank to the house the better

 

[arobinson1984]

not exactly true andy all corys prefer temps lower than 25 degrees even sterbai. they are not truely happy at higher temps but lots of people use them with discus. all it will do is shorten their lives and cause stress on them. people use all sorts of cory with discus and say that they are fine but they are much more happier at lower temps. ive kept lots of corys and bred them and had them at all temps trying to make them happiest and 30 degrees is way out for them.....

We will have to disagree on this one lol, I did say they 'dont mind' the higher temps, I wasn't insinuating that they like tempos as high as 30 celcius for discus but they are happy in temps upto 28 due to warmer weather etc. According to planetcatfish website temp range is 24-28 and mine have been at 28 as well for last few weeks due to weather with no probs at all. It even states on the planetcatfish website "One species of Corydoras that does not seem to mind higher temperatures


Andy

 

[mattlee]

not exactly true andy all corys prefer temps lower than 25 degrees even sterbai. they are not truely happy at higher temps but lots of people use them with discus. all it will do is shorten their lives and cause stress on them. people use all sorts of cory with discus and say that they are fine but they are much more happier at lower temps. ive kept lots of corys and bred them and had them at all temps trying to make them happiest and 30 degrees is way out for them.....

We will have to disagree on this one lol, I did say they 'dont mind' the higher temps, I wasn't insinuating that they like tempos as high as 30 celcius for discus but they are happy in temps upto 28 due to warmer weather etc. According to planetcatfish website temp range is 24-28 and mine have been at 28 as well for last few weeks due to weather with no probs at all. It even states on the planetcatfish website "One species of Corydoras that does not seem to mind higher temperatures


Andy

i will have to agree to disagree then discus are more happier at 30 degrees which is way out for any cory even sterbai, even according to planet catfish.... thet will live for a good while but not as long as one kept at natural temps for corys.

Matt

 

[arobinson1984]

I think you may have misunderstood me

I wasn't trying to say he should keep them with discus, all I was trying to say is that if he has trouble keeping the tank temp down due to it being in a conservatory (our conservatory is red hot in summer) then sterbais would be one of the cory's that "wouldnt mind" the slightly higher temps rather than other cory species.

Maybe I should have worded it better in the first place lol


Andy

 

[mattlee]

I think you may have misunderstood me

I wasn't trying to say he should keep them with discus, all I was trying to say is that if he has trouble keeping the tank temp down due to it being in a conservatory (our conservatory is red hot in summer) then sterbais would be one of the cory's that "wouldnt mind" the slightly higher temps rather than other cory species.

Maybe I should have worded it better in the first place lol

Andy

Andy , no worries. this is what a forum is all about and for.
i just dont like people using corys at such a high temp.... i know people do and will but its just not for this species.
i manage to keep my tank at a reasonable temp in the conservatory, obviously its going to warm up a bit in the few hot days we get but a few hot days compared to a life of hot days is totally different.
thye are said to deal better with higher temps but if it were me i wouldnt try it. when i kept discus i was a member on a discus forum and people had alsorts of fish combinations that shouldnt work with discus due to the heat but they all said they coped ok with it! i just bet they wont live as long as fish in more suitable temps....