Nice Easy Starter Tropical Fish?

[firstfishies]

Hi. We've just bought a tank/filter/heater .. a 40 litre, it's all set up (bio and water treater) and we'll go an buy some fish next week.

Would like some suggestions on nice easy (colourful/tropical) starter fish pleaseggs and maybe a couple of snails.

We've read up.. previous experience has only been goldfish.. quite successfully considering it came from a fare and only had one eye.. was looking at starting on 5 leopard guppies?

 

[DWC]

Guppies good choice if you get all males or you will soon be heavily stockedwith offspring. How about Zebra Danios; a very active hardy colorful fish? I have a small a shoal of 6 in a similar sized tank and they have thrived for the last couple of years. Some individuals are more blue and silver, some blue and gold, and though mine are standard in fin size they are available with long more flowing fins.

David

 

[Ch4rlie]

I second the guppy choice as there are many colourful varieties of guppies available in just about any LFS and yes, stay with all males to avoid breeding as this would quickly overcome your tank size. Male guppies tend to be more colourful than females anyway

 
Though I would not put in Zebra Danios as DWC suggested, these are fairly active and are about 5cm, so not the smallest fish for a 40 litre / 10 gal US tank. In fact probably double the size of this tank, 80 litres / 20 gals US would be more appropriate for Zebra Danios.
 
But there are small fish such as Celestial Pearl danios that may be ok for a 40 litre / 10 gal US tank. These tends to do best in larger groups though as they are fairly skittish little fish.
 
But the most important thing I would suggest, is to cycle our tank first, just waiting a week with the tank set up with water and filter and heater running is simply not going to do anything much to be fair.
 
You DO need to get the tank and filter ready before getting any fish, very simply to deal with the fish poop and ammonia that WILL happen and ammonia is toxic to fish so they will quickly become ill and likely die

 
So please read this Fishless Cycle article before you start buying any fish to get an idea on how this nitrogen cycle work and how this benefits the fish and you in the long run.

 

[firstfishies]

That's awesome thanks. Yeah we were thinking male and definately starting small.. no fun in our tank . We did have the cycle explained briefly to us today and that's a great link thanks. The guys in the shop are pretty good and said theyd test the water to see if it's OK before we buy.. he didnt actually suggest buying something to test it ourselves. So I'll do that when we go back for in the future

 

[Ch4rlie]

Can you repeat what the guy at the store said to you?
 
Its just that a lot of LFS staff and owners do tend to say just about anything to sell stuff and/or do not actually know much regarding fishkeeping. Not ALL stores are like that but is far more common than we'd like tbh.
 
So again, i'd urge you to be sure you are informed about the nitrogen cycle and to actually do this before purchasing any live stock. The usual time to proeprly cycle a tanka nd filetr is around 4 to 8 week with a test kit and ammonia dosing at periodic times.

 

[cooledwhip]

Guppies are cool. They will breed in your tank and you will see babies.

 

[cowgirluntamed]

Do you know if your water is hard or soft? Some fish like soft and some hard. Guppies prefer harder. But it is easier to get soft water to become harder than the other way around. The ph(and gh/kh) can tell you this information. Or if you have a link to your water authorities website you can post that for people on here that know how to read it.

And I agree with Ch4lie and make sure you know what the nitrogen cycle is all about and how it impacts fish. I'm not sure what the Petstore told you but just filling the tank and running the filter for a few days does not cycle it. And some bacterial supplement things don't always help. It depends in what they are. There are really only two that are recommended. The first one is called dr. Tim's one and only. The second is tetra safe start(this was actually made by dr Tim before he went out on his own.)

 

[marnold00]

Ive just finished a fishless cycle and the one thing i regret is not finding these forums before i started it.

Get some dr tims ammonia off amazon or somewhere and follow the fishless cycle guide on these forums.

Its the most control youll have whilst cycling, which will reduce the stress and uncertainty of it also. And then once its finished you wont be as worried about adding fish

Then use the time whilst its cycling to learn how your tank behaves, and to do lots of research about what fish youd want.

If you do it prooerly these fish will last you years in the grand scheme of things 4-6 weeks is nothing and it will save a lot of hassle later on

 

[firstfishies]

Hi sorry. . Been looking at loads of posts on here but only just came back across mine . The chap in the shop explained about nitrites and the need for cycling and told us to set up and come back in a week with the water sample. Being more of a visual learner I came back and researched. We were due to go back this week. We've decided to hold off going back for a longer period. The whole exercise is not only because we want fish but also about teaching the kids about keeping something alive!! I'm not the most patience of people but I want to relax a little when we have them and not be worrying we'll come down to 5 little fish floating in the morning.

Interestingly I went to pets at home with the boys to choose some ornaments. There was a couple who'd just set up their tank the day before and wanted to stock their tank up *I shamelessly earwigged to see what advice he gave (no harm in hearing something a few times lol). He refused to sell them what they wanted but did sell them 2 .. without a water sample. I suppose getting the sale is more important to some.
Cooledwhip. . Haha I love the idea of having little fishies swimming around. But my save the babies attitude would mean I'd turn into a stress head with 6 tanks and only half a clue as to what i was doing. I think males are our best bet

 

[marnold00]

Hi sorry. . Been looking at loads of posts on here but only just came back across mine . The chap in the shop explained about nitrites and the need for cycling and told us to set up and come back in a week with the water sample. Being more of a visual learner I came back and researched. We were due to go back this week. We've decided to hold off going back for a longer period. The whole exercise is not only because we want fish but also about teaching the kids about keeping something alive!! I'm not the most patience of people but I want to relax a little when we have them and not be worrying we'll come down to 5 little fish floating in the morning.

Interestingly I went to pets at home with the boys to choose some ornaments. There was a couple who'd just set up their tank the day before and wanted to stock their tank up *I shamelessly earwigged to see what advice he gave (no harm in hearing something a few times lol). He refused to sell them what they wanted but did sell them 2 .. without a water sample. I suppose getting the sale is more important to some.
Cooledwhip. . Haha I love the idea of having little fishies swimming around. But my save the babies attitude would mean I'd turn into a stress head with 6 tanks and only half a clue as to what i was doing. I think males are our best bet

http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?/topic/421488-cycling-your-new-fresh-water-tank-read-this-first/#entry3557617 follow the advice here for cycling. It allows you to control it better. Seriously, i really wish i found that topic before i started and my help request turned into a 90 post thread sorting everything out....

Following those instructions would mean that you know it is fully cycled, and the survival rate of your fish will be better


The advice ive been given on here with pets at home is that generally the advice is rubbish, but it sounds like one salesperson there is genuinely interested which is good - that doesnt mean all of their advice is good though. Also, ive been warned not to buy fish from there as they tend to use one single big sump filter, which means the tanks all use the same filter, so any disease etc would go amongst them all.

Id recommend looking for a few other shops. I looked around 4 or 5 different ones before deciding on the one which would be my regular store too soon to say if the fish were healthy there though.

Im an impatient 22 year old who also happens to be rather spontanious and indecisive... Apart from my line of work, this is the first time since finishing university that ive sat down with a book to research stuff.. I learnt loads even whilst the tank was cycling, and the extra time meant i found a nice hardy beginner fish that has really caught my interest. I also had the time to get the stocking advice off these forums

 

[Ch4rlie]

The advice ive been given on here with pets at home is that generally the advice is rubbish, but it sounds like one salesperson there is genuinely interested which is good - that doesnt mean all of their advice is good though. Also, ive been warned not to buy fish from there as they tend to use one single big sump filter, which means the tanks all use the same filter, so any disease etc would go amongst them all.

 
Not just P@H, a lot of LFS are like this, though like I have said before on various threads, not all staff and store are liek this. There are a few exceptions and when you do find someone who works at a LFS, ask them for advice every time you go there if you need to, of course keep doing research first and ask on forums such as this to be sure.
 
A lot of LFS uses the single RO/Sump type set ups for their display tanks, not uncommon at all. Even established breeders use this type of set up as well, its a much easier and cheaper mehod of doing this for a large number of tanks is all. But yes, any diseases from any one tank can quickly spread to the other tanks, thats the drawback.
 
So therefore when you go to a LFS, always choose one that has a good maintenance schedule and tanks are nice and clean, no dead fish and rotting plants etc. Then choose the healthiest fish you see, don't feel sorry for the ones with the bent spines or gasping/lethargic ones and take them home only to find they won't last very long etc, so do go for the best and healthiest live stock as you can get.

 

[eaglesaquarium]

Hi sorry. . Been looking at loads of posts on here but only just came back across mine . The chap in the shop explained about nitrites and the need for cycling and told us to set up and come back in a week with the water sample. Being more of a visual learner I came back and researched. We were due to go back this week. We've decided to hold off going back for a longer period. The whole exercise is not only because we want fish but also about teaching the kids about keeping something alive!! I'm not the most patience of people but I want to relax a little when we have them and not be worrying we'll come down to 5 little fish floating in the morning.

Interestingly I went to pets at home with the boys to choose some ornaments. There was a couple who'd just set up their tank the day before and wanted to stock their tank up *I shamelessly earwigged to see what advice he gave (no harm in hearing something a few times lol). He refused to sell them what they wanted but did sell them 2 .. without a water sample. I suppose getting the sale is more important to some.
Cooledwhip. . Haha I love the idea of having little fishies swimming around. But my save the babies attitude would mean I'd turn into a stress head with 6 tanks and only half a clue as to what i was doing. I think males are our best bet

 
 
Yeah... this shop is NOT promoting actual 'cycling'.  They are promoting running your equipment for a week, waiting for no reason and testing for no reason.  The 'CYCLE' being discussed is the nitrogen cycle, but the water will OF COURSE come back as good as there is nothing in your tank ADDING ammonia (the deadly poison excreted by the fish as they 'breathe') that would cause a problem.  But as soon as you add the fish, BAM!  Ammonia starts to rise and far before the nitrite. 
 
Follow the directions on our fishless cycling, and do your research ahead of time.  Personally, I wouldn't believe much you hear in ANY fish shop.  Remember, those folks are primarily there to sell you stuff.  There are altruistic shops out there with great employees and great owners, etc.  But, honestly, these shops primarily are there to make a profit.  If they don't, then they don't stay in business very long.  So, their goals and your goals aren't always aligned.
 
 
As for stocking a 10 gallon tank, unless we know your water parameters we will have a tougher time advising.  Guppies are nice, but endlers might be better.  A small tank like that really is best with SMALL fish... the smaller the better, as they will have more swimming space.  

Snails... nerite are great for algae.  Mystery snails are also quite fun.
 
 
In that little tank, you might want to consider some ghost shrimp or red cherries as well.  The endlers or guppies might get a 'shrimplet' or two, but they won't mess with the adult shrimp, and vice versa.  If you decide to go with ghost shrimp... get a VERY GOOD look.  Occasionally a different species is sold as 'ghost' shrimp and they are NOT the same.  Ghosts are small and primarily scavengers.  They snack on what they find, including algae.  The other species is from a different genus and is actually predatory and will kill your fish.  As juveniles they look almost identical.  The predatory one is from the genus 'Macrobrachium', while the true 'ghost' shrimp is in the genus 'Paleomonetes'.

 

[firstfishies]

Thanks eaglesaquarium .. we've had a good read through the cycling page which has set us straight and we ordered a tester kit .. so no doubt I'll be back with questions on that at some point! We're very lucky that the boys are patient and love planning their plants and ornaments. Obviously want to do it right.

I must say the more I read the more I feel fish keeping is dumbed down (for want of a better phrase). We bought a 'qubie' in the manual they do a 10 step set up .. step 7 informs you to wait at least 2 days before putting fish in.. but 7 days is better. If it wasnt promoted so simply I'd have done the reading before hand and not faffed around so much! No harm done though I suppose.

I love the idea of cherry shrimps and my youngest is snail mad! .. we want to make it as colourful as possible (while still being as pretty to look at) but more importantly healthy!

 

[eaglesaquarium]

Yes, the reality of fishkeeping is far different from the common (and advertised) perception.
 
 
Proper fishkeeping really starts with proper bacterial colonization.  How many starter kits include any comments about the need to properly propagate a bacterial colony?  Without the proper bacterial colonies... the entire thing will collapse.  

I love the idea of cherry shrimps and my youngest is snail mad! .. we want to make it as colourful as possible (while still being as pretty to look at) but more importantly healthy!

 
Cherry shrimp come in a variety of colors... so you have options there, not necessarily just red.
 
Horned nerite, 

zebra nerite, 

 
Lots of options... ramshorn, mystery, even apple snails (which get quite large, hence the name).

 

[marnold00]

 
Lots of options... ramshorn, mystery, even apple snails (which get quite large, hence the name).

Apple snails are banned in the EU I believe as they are an invasive species *sob*




I think companies want to sell aquarium stuffs as a quick easy hobby, otherwise people will be put off. I think thats stupid. Sell it in a way to get people to be successful and then theyll buy plenty more tanks, filters etc in the long run!

Im glad youve got it all planned now OP

I love the idea of cherry shrimps and my youngest is snail mad! .. we want to make it as colourful as possible (while still being as pretty to look at) but more importantly healthy!

I nearly went for a shrimp and guppy tank juat because how pretty itll look

I think a nice school of male endlers and shrimp is gonna look fab!

Its also great that youre doing live plants theyre a fun challenge in their own right, and ofcourse look good