New Tank Need Help!

bigvin55 · 04-12-2008, 09:39 PM

Ok.... Well this is my first fish tank, so im new to the hobby, but i have been reading alot of the threds, and everyone here has some great advice.

I have a 30 gallon, just a basic fish tank. How many fish can i fit in the tank?

Can anyone recomend what type of supplies that i could get?.. such as filter? Heater? Air Pump? etc... the essentials i would need to set up the tank... just want something nice, easy maintence, and quiet.. cause its gonna be in a bedroom.. so i want something keeping me up late at night...

thanks for any advice that you can give....

cichlidgirl · 04-12-2008, 10:38 PM

I got a 30 gallon tank, i use the aqua clear 30-60 that you can get at walmart. It is quiet, dependable, and has 350 gph filter capasity. It takes two premade cartridges that are easy to change out and it has a bio screen to help with biological filteration. I also recommend a submersable heater (also found at walmart) they are very nice. I like to buy my fishtank supplies at walmart because they are cheaper and the products are not fancy but function good.

The fish are totally up to you. How many you keep depends of the fish, its size and temperment. You will not be able to keep any large fish such as oscars and other cichlids (they require a bigger tank in general) . As you can tell by my username i am into cichlids so i dont know alot about other fish. But i do know there are many options you can do with some of these other types of fish. The cichlids I do know that you can keep are some african cichlids (just a couple) The african shell dwelling species all stay small (2 inches) and are fairly easy to care for compared to dwarf cichlids such as blue rams. As their name implies they like to live in shells. Very pretty tanks. You could also keep a pair of brichardi in the 30 gallon. They should be a pair (male and female) If you get unsexed ones realize you might have to get 3 or 4 and have a plan to sell or return the others when you get a male and female that pair bond (they wont like the other fish in there) They will breed if you have the right conditions in the tank, mine bred like crazy, i have baby fish to sell from them now, they are good parents too, you dont need to take the parents or fry out of the tank, they parents feed and care for them. Brichardi as adult will reach the 3-4 inch size plus fin extentions. Total size might reach 5 inches. They are very beautiful too. White with long flowing fins and very graceful. They liked both sand and gravel substrate and loved little rock houses i would make for them, they both selected a house and would hang out around their house, coming in and out, after they bred they kept the fry outside one of the houses. They did not mess or dig up my fake plants either. I was able to have a nice looking tank.

RJRofFL · 04-12-2008, 11:25 PM

Hi bigvin55.

Welcome to the wonderful world of "fishkeeping", although as you progress you'll often wonder just who's keeping whom.

For starters allow me to recommend reading some of the articles in this lovely forum. They are very informative and contain excellent advice. In particular, the one about "cycling". Unlike dogs, cats and hamsters, you cannot just buy a bone, dish, wheel and pillow and bring your pets home. You do need to prepare an environment for them.

I have a similar size tank (mine is 29gal) and would be delighted to share with you my experience, so far.

Bear in mind that most fish we see in the stores are juveniles and are going to grow to adults. With 29/30gal tanks we are somewhat limited to what adult (which is what they eventually will be) size fish we can comfortably accommodate.

Just as a suggestion:

A couple of schools of small schooling fish such as danios, neons, tetras. It's just simply neat to watch several groups of fish swim together.

A few bottom dwellers of corys, catfish are neat.

You can't beat plattys and swordtails for exciting color.

And to top off the variety you could add some centerpiece fish. I opted for Dwarf Guoramis. I recommend Dwarf as opposed to regular since the latter grow larger and will eventually outgrow your tank. I just have a personal preference for the Dwarf Guoramis since they are so graceful, and beautiful as they swim.

Also consider getting some plants (plastic or real) and rocks/caves. Giving your little finned friends places to hide if they feel threatened helps to relieve stress, which is a good thing.

I'm sure you will hear from many others with numerous combinations, equally adequate for you.

Best of luck off to a good start.

Enjoy.

Bob

cichlidgirl · 04-12-2008, 11:32 PM

RJRoffl, that was excellent advice. I knew one of you would step up and offer some advise on fish other than cichlids. I am just rather limeted on the kinds of fish i have kept LOL.

tropical1 · 04-13-2008, 11:57 AM

yeah al;otta people say that a 29 gallon is small, but thats what i have and love it. i have a pretty large assortment of fish but my water never gets outta wack, so i guess i am ok. just be careful what fish you pick, cause i have noticed that the more aggressive fish are hard to keep in a small tank cause of territory situtations. theres not much area for them to hide form the "meaner' fish.

Tommy Gun · 04-13-2008, 03:59 PM

Quote:

yeah al;otta people say that a 29 gallon is small

One of the reasons I felt "rushed" into buying my house is that my landlord, at the time, felt a 20 gallon tank was too much water to have laying around! When I did finally move, I kept my empty 55 gallon tank on the porch all day just so I could feel rebelious! On the other hand though, for a nifty $50 deposit, I could have had a water bed that probably hold 200+ gallons of water.

Anyways, I just wanted to welcome you to the forum bigvin55. There isn't really much to add to the list(s) that have already been given to you since there are always the usual suspects as far as equipment goes. Freshwater tanks generally don't have to be all that fancy as far as equipment goes so if you ever feel like you are being sold things that haven't been mentioned here, you might want to throw that idea past the great members of this forum as they will undoubtedly set you straight. In general, bigger is almost always better, starting with tank size and all the way through filters and heaters where as buying undersized to save money now almost always costs more in the long run. In the end, the equipment you buy can influence your future stocking and such but we can help you when you cross that bridge.