Starting Out Small

[tnice17]

Hello everyone at TFF!

Im Tom, i recently adopted a 10gal tank from a good friend that was moving and i started my own aquarium.

my current set up now is

-2 filters ( 1 Whisper(10-20gal), i forgot the name of the other one, but combined they flow 190 GHP)
-1 channel catfish ( about 4-5 inches long)
-4 guppys ( less then 1" each)
-1 Pleco (3-4")

I recently picked up a Albino Oscar, he is less then 2" long currently. I go to school 4 hours away from home, and i need to travel with my Oscar to put him in my 10gal tank tomorrow. I was reading on here before that my channel catfish is frendly, so since my catfish is twice the size of my oscar i think it should be ok.

I owned a 20 gal tank in the past and i know how big the Oscars get, lol.

a few things i learned already that i should stop doing
- cleaning the filters with tap water
- 80% or more water change. ( i currently do 80-90% a week)


i am open to all suggestions! thanks everyone!

i forgot to add, my oscar is in his own little tank now ( less then 1/2 gallon, no filtering) should he be ok until tomorrow?

 

[Assaye]

Hello everyone at TFF!

Im Tom, i recently adopted a 10gal tank from a good friend that was moving and i started my own aquarium.

my current set up now is

-2 filters ( 1 Whisper(10-20gal), i forgot the name of the other one, but combined they flow 190 GHP)
-1 channel catfish ( about 4-5 inches long)
-4 guppys ( less then 1" each)
-1 Pleco (3-4")

I recently picked up a Albino Oscar, he is less then 2" long currently. I go to school 4 hours away from home, and i need to travel with my Oscar to put him in my 10gal tank tomorrow. I was reading on here before that my channel catfish is frendly, so since my catfish is twice the size of my oscar i think it should be ok.

I owned a 20 gal tank in the past and i know how big the Oscars get, lol.

a few things i learned already that i should stop doing
- cleaning the filters with tap water
- 80% or more water change. ( i currently do 80-90% a week)


i am open to all suggestions! thanks everyone!

i forgot to add, my oscar is in his own little tank now ( less then 1/2 gallon, no filtering) should he be ok until tomorrow?

Hi and welcome!

What upgrade plans do you have for the catfish, plec and oscar? Channel catfish can get to around 4 foot long and will die in tanks that are too small. Short of converting your garage into a fish tank, I'm not sure what you're going to do about this one as he'll need 20-25 foot long tank as an adult. I would honestly rehome him because he won't survive long term in your care unless you can afford to build a truly huge tank. Plecs (depending on species) get between 1 inch (for otos) and 3 foot plus (for things like adonis plecs). Most plecs commonly sold are the so called "common" or "sailfin" varieties wich while fairly inexpensive, do reach between 12" and 24" (1-2 foot long) and require 6 foot long tanks as adults and 4-5 foot tanks as sub adults.

In a 10 gallon you shouldn't really have anything that gets bigger than 3 inches longterm, although if you are waiting to upgrade the catfish, oscar and plec will be OK in the very short term in that tank. You don't want them in there for more than a couple of months as a maximum, though, or you will start seeing filtration problems and the fish may start to become destructive if they feel stressed and won't grow properly.

You say you know how big oscars get - did you keep on in your 20 gallon? For an adult oscar you should have no less than 55 gallons (a good 4-5 foot tank) with 75 gallons being necessary if you want to keep it with a few other large fish.

I don't want to sound mean but I'm rather astonished at your stocking for what is a very small tank. Did you know how big these fish would get before you bought them?

In terms of tank maintainence, you are correct that you should never wash sponges in tap water

Large water changes are good when they are needed and simply unnecessary when they are not. If carred out correctly they shouldn't stress the fish or affect the cycle in the tank too much. Do you test your water? What sort of results do you get?

The oscar will be OK overnight but must be moved into a filtered tank ASAP.

Here is a link to our guide on tank filtration, the nitrogen cycle (essential reading) and various other fishkeeping gems. Please have a really good read =)

 

[tnice17]

when i had them in my 20 gal tank, they got to be around 7-8" big. they did what you said and destroyed everything in the tank! so thats when i called the quits and threw them into a lake and said good bye

what i was planning on doing for the catfish/oscar/pleco, was when i noticed they were getting to big, i would try to give them back to the pet store and ask for other fish in return. i love how interactive aggressive fish are, especially with feeding, which is why i chose them.

in the future i can see my self getting a bigger tank, but nothing that would require most of my time.


i had a test kit back at school, so i dont have the results right now.

 

[tnice17]

when i had them in my 20 gal tank, they got to be around 7-8" big. they did what you said and destroyed everything in the tank! so thats when i called the quits and threw them into a lake and said good bye

what i was planning on doing for the catfish/oscar/pleco, was when i noticed they were getting to big, i would try to give them back to the pet store and ask for other fish in return. i love how interactive aggressive fish are, especially with feeding, which is why i chose them.

in the future i can see my self getting a bigger tank, but nothing that would require most of my time.


i had a test kit back at school, so i dont have the results right now.

 

[flip]

you may want to see if your lfs will take them back before you get them. i know mine wont even take my platy fry! if they dont have tanks big enough to house them they wont take them. it is not good to release them into the wild, i do believe there are laws about that on at least quite a few fish. Oscars grow quick so you will have to get him either a bigger tank or rehome him in a few months but he will be alright for the night. be sure to get him to a filtered tank asap though!!

 

[Assaye]

when i had them in my 20 gal tank, they got to be around 7-8" big. they did what you said and destroyed everything in the tank! so thats when i called the quits and threw them into a lake and said good bye

what i was planning on doing for the catfish/oscar/pleco, was when i noticed they were getting to big, i would try to give them back to the pet store and ask for other fish in return. i love how interactive aggressive fish are, especially with feeding, which is why i chose them.

in the future i can see my self getting a bigger tank, but nothing that would require most of my time.


i had a test kit back at school, so i dont have the results right now.

You threw the into a lake?



Serious? Do you know what an awful idea that is? It's done now but please never, ever do it again. It's illegal, it risks introducing a non-native species into the environment which is very destrucive, it risks introducing exotic diseases into the eco-system and it leaves the poor fish open to a very nasty death. Would you throw your dog out into the wild because it got too big for its kennel?

As for your large fish - I'm being honest here, it is incredibly irresponsible to get monster fish (a term for fish that get too large for many fish tanks) simply because you like the look of them when you don't have the right tank for them and simply intend to give them away when you can no-longer look after them. It's like getting a puppy but giving it away when it gets older because you don't like adult dogs and can't look after one.

What happens if the store won't take them back?

You also might not notice them get too big because small tanks are a death trap for fish that are too big for them. They cause them to become stunted and even deformed which leads to a lot of pain and often a slow death. It also causes them an incredible amount of stress, even if they don't suffer physically, which can then lead to them getting sick. Your fish are already too big for your tank if we work on the basis that a fish should have at least 6 times it's one body length in horizontal swimming room. Even this is a very limited amount of room and is like us living in our bathroom for our entire lives.

You said you were open to suggestions so here are mine:

1) Rehome the oscar and catfish now. They are already too big and you are risking their lives by keeping them in a small tank.
2) Turn your small tank into a guppy tank or with other small fish that don't get bigger than 1.5-2 inches (such as small gouramis and tetras).
3) Don't get any fish because you like them without being 100% sure that your tank is suitable for them for their entire lives - do research before you buy, not after!
4) Do some more research into fishkeeping in general, starting with the link I put in my last post.
5) find out what species the plec is and rehome him as well if he gets bigger than 4" as a fully grown adult.

Please don't ignore this or leave the forum. It's hard to be told that you've made mistakes, I know. When I first joined a fishkeeping forum I was told I was a total idiot and was being cruel to my fish. I was initially very upset that people were being mean but I decided to listen and do some research and now I realise why I was being selfish and hurting my fish. I've changed a lot and now can honestly say I look after my fish very well and feel happy that I keep suitable fish for my time and tank space. So, please stay and please understand that we want you to have a tank you love to look at but we also don't want any fish to suffer.

 

[walkers101]

make sure you do listen you may not know it but what you are doing is evil and cruel