i started all wrong and now i have the itch!

[Krilorn]

So for my son's 2nd birthday we decided to pick up a lil 5gallon package with heater, power filter, and a lil packet of AquaSafe. we bought a small log and 2-3 fake plants. Set everything up put in the aqua safe and waited 2-3 days and went to PetCo. While there the different colors and patterns of barbs caught my eye so it was decided that was what we were going to go with. After talking with the "expert" there he said in that size tank we would be good with 4 small barbs, as they needed to school to avoid to much aggression. We picked up a Mossy barb, Tiger barb, Albino Tiger, and a Clown barb. Got them home and everything was ok for 2-3 days then we noticed the clown going after the fins of the others, but the albino in particular. Thought maybe it was just a pecking order thing until another couple days and we found our lil orange friend floating:confused: Said our goodbyes and pushed on with our 3 remaining lil ones. Another 2-3 days and we lost the mossy and tiger in the same day, but im convinced now that we lost the clown that it was more then aggression from the others. Took in my receipt to petco with 15 day guarentee and he tells me that my nitrates we high in the sample i took in. While i didnt give alot of time to Cylcling the guy at petco said i should have been fine with 3-4 days the tank had been up and running before we bought them. After reading up alot here i think im just gonna research here instead of the "experts" there. Buddy of mine had a 35 gallon sitting around so like i said i think i owe it to our first lil friends to have a successful community up and running. Gonna just stick with a betta or a few small tetras or mollys for the 5 gallon, But i want to get creative with the 35 gallon and do a real diverse Barb tank. Ive got the tank set up and running useing some media from the small tank we have had for a couple weeks now. Any suggestions on plants first, live vs fake. And second on what barbs mix well with other barbs, and if we can mix a few other colorful different fish in there with them, possibly even a small crab/snail/frog. Thx for any help in advance looking foward to proving myself to my lost friends:thm:

[Dopehand]

Welcome to AC!

Firstly, molly's and most tetras have no place in a Five gallon fish tank, so I'd go with one betta for that amount of space.

Secondly, Live plants are beautiful, but require a little bit more maintenance (well worth it in my opinion). As far as community barbs, I would not recommend tiger barbs for a community setup of that size. Cherry barbs do relatively well in community setups, as do danios, rasboras, and some types of tetras. It sounds like the folks at your Petco set you up for failure pretty intensely. If you haven't researched the nitrogen cycle already, I would check it out.

[OldMan47]

Welcome to the forum Krilorn.
A 5 gallon is a suitable size for a few cherry red shrimp or some Heterandria formosa or a single male Betta splendens. It is not suitable for mollies or most tetras. The trouble is that the Heterandria or the shrimp are not available at the local fish shop. You may have lost your fish to aggression but would have lost them in short order anyway to chemical poisoning. Please go to the sticky and read up on fishless cycling. Once you have accomplished a good cycle on either the 5 gallon or the 35 gallon will be plenty early enough to start stocking anything with fish. In the meanwhile, during your fishless cycle, go to the LFS and have a look around at what fish appeal to you. If you can bring back a list of the fish you like and post your water chemistry parameters like pH and hardness, we can start to help you put together a workable group of some of the fish you like for that 35 gallon.

[Squawkbert]

WOW! - that PC manager needs to be talked to about the advice he/she's eltting her employees dole out (but don't they {almost} all?).

[GEV83]

WOW! - that PC manager needs to be talked to about the advice he/she's eltting her employees dole out (but don't they {almost} all?).

You would think so Squakbert but most of the store managers dont know much bout fish either. They dont hire experts for management they hire people who know how to run a business and thats pretty much it. When it comes to the aquaria and avian hobby you got to do your own research IMO.

[OldMan47]

Asking the LFS person about how to care for fish is like asking the cashier at the home improvement center how to add on a room. They may say something that could make sense on the surface but I would not buy supplies from either one of them based on that advice. I would rather talk to someone who actually knows what is needed and how to put it all together.

[gmh]

The media from the 5 gallon may not have much of a bacterial colony established on it yet, and it's probably not enough to properly seed the large tank. And the bacteria will soon die off if there are not fish in the tank to produce ammonia for it to feed on.
I would start doing a fishless cycle immediately and hold off on adding fish untill your water parameters are good to go.

[Fuzyhamster]

You would think so Squakbert but most of the store managers dont know much bout fish either. They dont hire experts for management they hire people who know how to run a business and thats pretty much it. When it comes to the aquaria and avian hobby you got to do your own research IMO.

I worked in the pet department in PetSmart for 5 years and we aren't idiots. However I know it's a rarity. XD We'll go to other pet stores and ask questions just to see what people say. I think we had more trouble convincing customers, say, throwing 2 mollies in a 2-gallon undergravel tank was a bad idea than anything else. I have respect for people who go out and do some research and ask questions.