Newbie with a 10g

[quicksilver22]

Well, I am new here in the Tropical world of Fish Keeping....

I have always been amazed by the sea and aquatic life, so I figured that I might as well start learning about it and enjoying it a lot more on a first hand basis.

I recently bought a 10g starter kit from Wal-mart.... cheap i'm sure, but I am on somewhat of a budget... I have just regular gravel-rock in there right now, the assorted color, with a few plastic plants and a single hole rock.... I have been cycling for, o say....., about a week now. but I am getting these little tine white bubble looking things in my tank, that slowly float to the top, that weren't there on the second and third day that the tank was perfectly spotless... I haven't gotten my water checked yet, but will be doing that this coming week.

I guess my real question here is, pending the water tests.. what kind of fish should I start out with? Considering I AM a beginner and it is a rather small tank.
I have thought about a dwarf gouramis and say 3-5 tetras... not sure though.. I want something that will be active, but very hardy and peacefull at the same time (oxymoron mabey??)

any suggestions for a first time tank keeper would be great.. thanks for everything in advance!!!

 

[Shizat]

Just remember the only way to "cycle" your tank is to have an ammonia substance present in your tank which is cause by either adding fish or adding pure household ammonia.

 

[ECH2005]

hey quicksilver, im relatively new to this great hobby as well and have chosen to start off with a 10gal for myself. Let me be the first to point you over to the thread about cycling, just so you have the right idea of what you're doing. http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showtopic=10099. I myself am doing a fishless cycle, which more info can be found on that post.

You actually have the same plans that I do for a tank, a dwarf gourami and a school of tetras. From all I've read, 5 is probably the minimum you should have. There's many tetras you can chose from, I have chosen Serpae Tetra's myself because I love their color and they're supposed to be very playful tankmates. Neon tetras have a bad rep since Neon Tetra disease is quite common, so I have chosen to stray away from them. But whatever you chose should be fine (as long as they don't grow too big!
Oh, and those white bubbles are just air bubbles, which means you're getting good aeration. I asked the same question a few days ago .

Other than that, just browse the forums and you'll learn everything you need to know!

Also, did a heater come with your kit? If not, you should probably pick one up. Since they are tropical fish they need a tropical climate, most people seem to suggest temps around 74-78 degrees F.

 

[quicksilver22]

thanks for the posts thus far...

in cycling... what fish do you reccommend to go w/ it? or should i stick w/ the current ammonia cycling?


and yes, i did receive a heater with the tank.... i have the heater set on 76, but the water temp won't go lower than 80... i keep working with it though

 

[ECH2005]

I'm currently doing a fishless cycle according to this link http/www.aaquaria.com/aquasource/cycle2.shtml... if you are already doing a cycle using pure ammonia then just keep at it, from what I've learned it is usually its faster and more effective.

 

[modernhamlet]

Great advice all around, ECH2005!

Welcome to the forum, quicksilver! I hope you learn as much as I did when I started fishkeeping. It's a great hobby. Enjoy your new tank and new fish...

 

[MXPX4318]

I have always been amazed by the see and aquatic life

"see" is "sea" guess they'll take anyone there at FSU, even if you can't spell ;-)

ok enough joking around, to really post something significant here, I believe that as far as stocking goes, I'd go with 1 dwarf gourmai (as males can get territoral and will kill each other if they get aggressive in such a small tank) a school of 5 harlequin rasporas (have a nice red tint to them with the black triangle on the back towards the tail, a very nice looking fish if I do say so myself), and 3 otos (for algea control). I think this would make for a nice community set up in that tank, and wouldn't be overcrowded and would defiently look nice.
You said you got your tank from wal-mart? PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE don't get your fish from there, as I don't know to many people that have had success wal-mart fish, if your not a local to the area, find a phone book, look up some fish stores, and give them a look, you'll find much better quality fish, and I'm sure Tallahassee will have plenty of options there for you (as far as stores go) and good luck with your first tank. (if you're not cycling with pure ammonia at the moment you will need fish for the tank to cycle and in that case I would recommend starting with the bloodfin tetras, and check the water every day, if anyting starts to spike do a 10-20% (or more) water change ( I ended up changing 20% a day while cycling) this may slow down the cycling process but it will keep your fish alive.

80 degrees is fine, don't worry about getting it down, my tank stays at 80-82 degrees all the time, just make sure your tank temp stays pretty consistent.

PS- not trying to be mean with the spelling joke, just a joke from one ACC school to another, no hard feelings just messing with you.

 

[purple_drazi]

1 dwarf gourmai, a school of 5 harlequin rasporas , and 3 otos

I too have a small tank so I've been doing the research and I'm wondering if this isn't overstocking.
gourmai: max out at almost 2 inches
harlequin rasboras: grow up to 2 inches each (x5 is 10 inches of fish)
otos: Otocinclus, one of the smallest, still grows to almost 2 inches (x3 is 6 inches of fish)

When they mature that could turn out to be 18 inches of fish in a 10 gallon tank. sounds overstocked.

 

[Cheese Specialist]

gourmai: max out at almost 2 inches
harlequin rasboras: grow up to 2 inches each (x5 is 10 inches of fish)
otos: Otocinclus, one of the smallest, still grows to almost 2 inches (x3 is 6 inches of fish)

When they mature that could turn out to be 18 inches of fish in a 10 gallon tank. sounds overstocked.

Please remember that it's not only about inch per gallon rules (or at all IMO). There are many other considerations like maintainence, filtration, overcrowding (where the fish swim, an understocked tank can be overcrowded) and fish needs (not only size, habits, territory, waste, husbandry...)

I personally wouldn't say that's an overstocked 10 but I do not know of some of your variants.

 

[purple_drazi]

cheese opined:

There are many other considerations like maintainence, filtration, overcrowding (where the fish swim, an understocked tank can be overcrowded) and fish needs (not only size, habits, territory, waste, husbandry...)

for sure. but getting a handle on all that stuff comes from experience.
which being newbies (as quicksilver22 said he/she was, and I *know* I am) we don't have an abundance of at the moment.

I know I need to stay on the "better safe than sorry" side of the fish pond until I know a lot more about what perimeters I can push without harming my fish.

 

[Cheese Specialist]

cheese opined:

There are many other considerations like maintainence, filtration, overcrowding (where the fish swim, an understocked tank can be overcrowded) and fish needs (not only size, habits, territory, waste, husbandry...)

for sure. but getting a handle on all that stuff comes from experience.

Definatley, that's why you are here!

What I mean is that you can be following the 1" per gallon rule but still have an unsuitable environment for your fish because of all the other factors.

 

[MXPX4318]

sorry I was assuming he could take care of a tank... guess I shouldn't assume, but if he has good filtration and keeps up with water changes I don't think what I recomended will be a problem at all. Those are all low waste fish (well maybe not the otos) so I don't think he'd see any problems at all... just my thoughts on it.

 

[BobK]

How about 3 cory cats and maybe zebra danios? Cory's will keep the bottom of the tank clear of uneaten food and don't produce much of their own waste. Zebra Danios are quite active, hardy and peaceful. If you like livebearers, guppies, endlers, platies or mollies are quite easy to care for and you'll definitely get some fry. Best advice is not to over stock and do frequent partial water changes (once you're completely cycled). Welcome and good luck. Keep us posted on your progress.

 

[sylvia]

I wouldn't put zebra danios in a tank that size - they need swimming space and like a current. 3 cories would be nice and I would keep away from tetras or dwarf gouramies if you're looking for hardy fish. Try some platies instead - they are colorful and very hardy. If you get a male and 2 females and later added 3 bronze cories you would have a nice colorful and active little tank and it wouldn't be overstocked. Harlequin rasboras look best in a well-planted tank in shoals of 5-7 so I wouldn't put any more fish in if I chose these for a 10 gallon. That would also keep maintainance to a minimum.

 

[NinjaSmurf]

Look, seeing as you are a beginner, I would advise against getting any female livebears. Male guppies, mollies, whatever are okay, but if you get any females, there will be fry, regardless of whether you have a male with them or not. I don't think it would be a good idea for you to have any sort of fry right now, because if you don't have something in there to eat them, you'll be overstocked eventually, and then you'll have to deal with finding homes for the fry. Besides, with most of them the males have more coloring anyways.