View Full Version : fish suggestions for 55 for colege student and fish newbie
SnakeIce
10-13-2003, 5:14 PM
I will be helping her of course, since the tank is mine and on loan to her for a while. she wants something colorful and admires my angelfish and betta for their personality...
would like to keep the stocking level on the lighter side of things since she wants to learn to keep them herself
colorful, friendly, not to aggressive...
How would you populate the tank?
I think some gouramis would make a good fit... relatively colorful, swim at all levels, interact w/one another and their environment... and they're tolerant of a wide range of water conditions, which makes them well-suited for a beginner.
Cheers,
-fpsiv
fishy714
10-13-2003, 5:41 PM
I would go with some cichlids. I know I know people are going to say they are aggressive. But they have a lot of personality also it just depends on what kind. If you stock your tank right their shouldn't be a lot of aggression. They come in different shapes and sizes and very colorful.
yashinfan
10-13-2003, 5:56 PM
I vote against cichlids, especially if she is a newbie at fish keeping since they sometimes have TOO MUCH personality. So some nice fish that you could keep in small schools are danios, swordtails, dwarf gouramies, cory cats, and loaches. They are pretty good / easy fish to keep and don't require too much money being spent on buying them either.
superjohnny
10-13-2003, 6:24 PM
I agree that the less aggressive, community fish are better for people just starting out. Tetras, gouramis, mollies, guppies, or loaches would all be nice in a 55 IMO. Angels are a bit more aggressive, but so slow it doesn't matter much. I like their personality personally.
ianjoe
10-13-2003, 6:57 PM
I'd also go with the angelfish, their easy to take care of and have personality. If I didn't get angels I'd get a huge school of rummy nose tetras, they look awesome swimming together in bigger tank.
SnakeIce
10-14-2003, 12:02 AM
what gourami had you in mind? the common blue gourami can be quite aggressive as I have observed at times
somefinnfishy
10-14-2003, 10:02 AM
a single large cichlid or a pair would be eazyer to care for and eazyer to move than a school of anything.
Goldfish are easy even eazyer to move.
fpsiv
10-14-2003, 10:19 AM
SnakeIce,
Actually, the genus Trichogaster is exactly what I had in mind. This includes the three-spot gourami, pearl/lace gourami, moonbeam gourami... and some color morphs of the three-spot like opaline and golden. No doubt, they can be aggressive, but my own experience is that if they are kept in a large enough tank and the effort is made to 'overload' on females (say 3:1 F:M), aggression becomes less of an issue. I think the big benefit is that they make great beginner fish… though I may be biased since I stared out with a collection of three-spot gouramis myself…
:D
Cheers,
-fpsiv
thekrib
10-14-2003, 5:59 PM
i say go for some type of cichlid, they arent any harder to keep if you stay basic, and they can range from community fish to psycho killers depending on what type you get.
what is your water ph?
SnakeIce
10-15-2003, 12:08 AM
from now till the begginning of May the ph will be about 7.2-3, but during the dry season here our water supply changes to the aquifer and that has a ph of about 8.5 to as high as 9.5 depending on how much rain/snow the area gets the previos winter. We can still get water that goes up to only about 8.0 during that time but have to go get it as it doesn't come to our tap(different water district)
lovely isn't it, makes sence as far as the total water supply here but makes fish keeping a major pita
thekrib
10-15-2003, 2:20 AM
well then i'd say tanganyikans are your only choice. not many fish can take a ph of 9.5
malawi might be ok too.
steve_bkk
10-19-2003, 7:18 PM
Some nice fancy Goldfish maybe. They might be easier on a students budget. A bit more maintenance though. You'll have to do partial water changes regularly. You can get them online if not available in Walla Walla.
SnakeIce
10-19-2003, 10:06 PM
but as I was saying in my post the tap at the house may go up to 9.0+ but I am already carrying water that stays 7.2-8 during the time that the water is so caustic to my plants and softwater type species... so the max that I am using in the tank is 7.8-8.0 if that high... and I will provide/can provide easily 14 gallons in one trip of water that tested at 7.2 the whole summers that the tap water is so high
about 7 months of the year my tap water is 7.2-3, which is perfect for my attempts at growing plants.... and because I live with a water service that can't provide that water year round(contracts:rolleyes: ) and there is a water district that has that water year round means that I haul water and dream of moving over to where that can be had from my tap year round
thekrib
10-19-2003, 10:21 PM
tanganyikans really seem to be the best choice, go fo the hardiest species, and with tangs you have to be very lightly stocked anyway, so they really are the best choice.
you could do some shell dwellers, and some rocks, with some julis/ neolamprologines.
BTW goldfish suck!! IMPO
ChilDawg
10-20-2003, 9:28 AM
Gee, I'm glad that you added IMPO. Otherwise that would have been asinine and inflammatory. :rolleyes:
I really happen to like Goldies, but, for the hard water, nothing beats a colony of shellies. Look up the thread Shellie Links? in Cichlids and you can get all the info you could possibly want.
thekrib
10-20-2003, 5:51 PM
i know all you will ned to get shellies, but in a tank that large, you could easily get shellies and a few other fish, and still have it very lightly stalked.
i've only seen one goldfish that i liked, it was all black with red.
SnakeIce
10-20-2003, 7:51 PM
I am willing to give the africans a chance, however I know very little about them other than they like the harder water and few plants like that...
I dont really have any idea of how to set up the tank for shellies or african rift valley lake dwellers...
I had thought of getting a pair of pelvichromis pulcher but honestly the most aggressive thing I have had is my angel and he is the most mellow one I have seen, so I don't know what would go with kribs in the 55
the other thing is that there are lots of people in that apartment on the weekend and some other times. a fish or two that tends to hide/is shy is ok but sorta want an in your face fish as well for the tank
edit: looked up that shellie post, you might want to check some of the links as they don't go any where any more, but thanks for the info
Captain Hook
10-20-2003, 8:21 PM
You could buy a product that will bring your PH to where you want it when it is high. With one of these you could easily do a community tank.
thekrib
10-21-2003, 12:10 AM
kribs are not rift lake cichlids, and like a lower ph, and softer water.
if you want an in ur face fish then occelatus are your best choice, occelatus are shell dwellers, if you want a colony you will have to buy it as a colony or go to the trouble of telling genders, (which is nearly impossible), you will want 1 male to 3 or 4 females. and at least 2-3 shells for each fish, their behavior and personality will amaze you, i promise.
if you have had all peaceful fish then you wont be used to the aggression, there WILL be displaying, and chasing, and occasional lip-lock fighting. this is absolutely nothing to worry about, especially with occies.
this tank can definitely have plants, they dont mind at all, and will enjoy the hiding places, and shade. you will want the shells about 2 inches from eachother, and if you get some rock dwellers you will want numerous rocks stacked together to make multiple caves, each fish will clame a rock area and chase intruders away.
any questions?