Tropical fish forums

[jigsaw 11,809]

My sons are getting back to keeping a few fish of late again and have started with a 100 liter tank,,with the intention of going for a much bigger one in time ,so just getting some practice for a while..theyve started with the usual plattys and a few tetras and an upside down catfish...so they have introduced a few buenos eras tetras which have turned out to be rather vindictive ,,yesterday 4 shrimp of decent size were introduced and were quickly consumed by the tetras ,lol..so they need to do homework before buying more and the advice from the sales person in the shop isnt quiet right ,,so anyone got a forum they could ask questions on before they bring back more ''food'' for the tetras...thanks in advance,

[steve66 3,078]

Remember seeing a site that allowed you to build a virtual tank , you chose your tank size and then select fish , the site tells you if the fish are compatible or not 

I don't have a lot of fish in my tank afew glass cats and a bloody big plec lol 

[Greyman 25,164]

1 hour ago, jigsaw said:

My sons are getting back to keeping a few fish of late again and have started with a 100 liter tank,,with the intention of going for a much bigger one in time ,so just getting some practice for a while..theyve started with the usual plattys and a few tetras and an upside down catfish...so they have introduced a few buenos eras tetras which have turned out to be rather vindictive ,,yesterday 4 shrimp of decent size were introduced and were quickly consumed by the tetras ,lol..so they need to do homework before buying more and the advice from the sales person in the shop isnt quiet right ,,so anyone got a forum they could ask questions on before they bring back more ''food'' for the tetras...thanks in advance,

Loose the tetra,s and just go for good friendly community fish, like guppy,s, neons and glow lights, they are a friendly tetra and look great in big shoals, goramy,s, Molly,s platty,s and a couple of plecks to keep the bottom clean, avoid cichlids unless you go for an all cichlids tank like the Malawi cichlids, Angel fish are b*****ds as are most forms of catfish, sorry I don't no a website but hope that's a start

[jigsaw 11,809]

they have a few corydoras cat fish  too which are great to watch and an upside down catfish ..the tetras have to be rehomed ,the lads want to flush them but im trying to find some one that might integrate them into their tank system ...

[South hams hunter 8,816]

If you want a pretty community ditch the tetras and look at dwarf American cichlids such as kribs, rams and Maxie's.

Also don't get plebs, they do little cleaning but have high bioloads i.e create more waste than they clean. Look at things like panda garras, Hong kong plec (actually a loach) , kuhli loaches and wood/rock/bamboo shrimp are all much better cleaners. If you find bigger shrimp they won't get eaten. I have a pair in my tank

 

Guppies, platies, mollies and swordtails are all live bearers and will over run a tank if they have the cover to breed.

 

Also a large tank is easier to keep as little differences  don't affect the parameters

[ginger beard 4,652]

Cichlids are great fish to keep.

Not mine but my mate is keen on his fish and sends me photos.

[Greyman 25,164]

Nice set up, have a few mates that keep them, I used to have several tanks but just own this one large bow front tank now and here,s one of my plecks doing a sterling job of keeping it clean I also keep a humbug catfish in there that keeps a good balance with the live bearers, the tank has,nt been cleaned or had a water change in years so recon it's quite a good balance, best bit I bought it for £50 off a dude that had his house repossessed after getting into debt on finance

Edited October 14, 2018 by Greyman

[jigsaw 11,809]

9 minutes ago, South hams hunter said:

If you want a pretty community ditch the tetras and look at dwarf American cichlids such as kribs, rams and Maxie's.

Also don't get plebs, they do little cleaning but have high bioloads i.e create more waste than they clean. Look at things like panda garras, Hong kong plec (actually a loach) , kuhli loaches and wood/rock/bamboo shrimp are all much better cleaners. If you find bigger shrimp they won't get eaten. I have a pair in my tank

 

Guppies, platies, mollies and swordtails are all live bearers and will over run a tank if they have the cover to breed.

 

Also a large tank is easier to keep as little differences  don't affect the parameters

thanks SHH,,i will show the lads this ,they are doing their own thing with the fish and i try not to interfere..are the dwarf american cichlids good with plattys?the dam tetras ate and stripped own a few plants we had too,,we are finding it very hard to find a supplier of decent plants ,,they are all stalk like types they have for sale here ,,and poor examples too 

[peterhunter86 8,627]

1 minute ago, Greyman said:

Nice set up, have a few mates that keep them, I used to have several tanks but just own this one large bow front tank now and here,s one of my plecks doing a sterling job of keeping it clean I also keep a humbug catfish in there that keeps a good balance with the live bearers, the tank has,nt been cleaned or had a water change in years so recon it's quite a good balance, best bit I bought it for £50 off a dude that had his house repossessed after getting into debt on finance

Lurcher man has a few goldfish in a barrel out in his yard that you end up with in a few years

[jigsaw 11,809]

the next move is for a much bigger tank but only when they have their shit sorted out first ,,get educated in the ways to keep em clean and what fish to introduce,,your posts are a great help thanks .

 

[jigsaw 11,809]

15 minutes ago, ginger beard said:

Cichlids are great fish to keep.

Not mine but my mate is keen on his fish and sends me photos.

is that a foam liner for the rocks to rest on GB?

[South hams hunter 8,816]

5 minutes ago, Greyman said:

Nice set up, have a few mates that keep them, I used to have several tanks but just own this one large bow front tank now and here,s one of my plecks doing a sterling job of keeping it clean I also keep a humbug catfish in there that keeps a good balance with the live bearers, the tank has,nt been cleaned or had a water change in years so recon it's quite a good balance, best bit I bought it for £50 off a dude that had his house repossessed after getting into debt on finance

A water change will kill them, look at old tank syndrome. 

[Greyman 25,164]

4 minutes ago, jigsaw said:

thanks SHH,,i will show the lads this ,they are doing their own thing with the fish and i try not to interfere..are the dwarf american cichlids good with plattys?the dam tetras ate and stripped own a few plants we had too,,we are finding it very hard to find a supplier of decent plants ,,they are all stalk like types they have for sale here ,,and poor examples too 

The main plant in my tank is called Java ferns, you just attach them to a bit of bog wood with an elastic band and they root to it, I have to rip out clumps of it regularly it's so prolific in there, most plants sold in pet shops will die especially ones with red leaves 

[ginger beard 4,652]

3 minutes ago, jigsaw said:

is that a foam liner for the rocks to rest on GB?

No.just some course type of sand/grit.

[Greyman 25,164]

5 minutes ago, jigsaw said:

is that a foam liner for the rocks to rest on GB?

I think you stick a little blob of silicone on the rocks to stick them together and stop them falling over before you add the water