My friend wants a fish...

[Lexi_D]

...And she wants a relatively small tank because it has to fit in her room. What is a good beginner tank size and fish? I've already given her the "fish bowl" talk, lol. I don't know how big of a tank she can fit, probably 10 gallons or less. She still needs to do plenty of research (so I'll probably direct her here), but I want to give her some ideas first. Thanks!

[FasterShrimpo]

Dwarf puffer? Invert tank? Snail or shrimp? Ember tetras? Killifish?

Really 20gallon can be easier since the problems are distributed less. A 5 gallon and 10 are a bit harder, but with the right information she can avoid any big problems. Also is she considering plants?

[Reframer]

Well if she wants a fish then a 5 gallon with a Betta and a mystery snail would be fine.

[Ianne]

nano tank! lol
i think a 10gal is the usual start

[Blown 346]

Normally when people ask what size tank to start with, its as big as you can fit and within budget. Like already said, small tanks are harder to care for as water parameters quickly change and can be lethal to fish in a matter of hours. Where a larger tank it will tank alot more of a fluctuation to even show a change since there is more water volume.

[mak3mydae]

Im probably going to get flamed for saying this, but i think a 5 or even a 2 gallon tank would be fine. As long as the tank is fully cycled and she doesnt have 3957975493 goldfish in it, im sure it'll be fine. Nano fw's arnt that hard. As long has your friend is willing to learn and has an IQ over 10 im sure its not going to be that hard. i would suggest getting her some small dinky fishlike a glowlight or something :) It'll also be cheaper

[BettaFishMommy]

i don't think i would suggest any uber duber cheap fish. your friend may start thinking 'oh, they're cheap. if they die, i'll just get more'. now i know i'm making some assumptions here, but you want to ensure that she starts on the right path.

why not go fish window shopping with her at a larger store that has a big selection and get a feel for what she likes as far as colour, fins, etc. then work with her to find a fish or two that would work for the maximum size tank she has room for?

[flower81]

why not go fish window shopping with her at a larger store that has a big selection and get a feel for what she likes as far as colour, fins, etc. then work with her to find a fish or two that would work for the maximum size tank she has room for?

I agree.

[Arturo]

I would go 29 gal. I think that's a good size to start with and it will fit in a room. For the fish I would go with molleys and plattys.

[lookit]

I have a 3-gallon betta tank (planted), a 12-gallon oto tank (also planted) and a 29-gallon community tank (semi-planted, meaning lots of fake plants and a few floating live plants). I do a weekly water change on the betta tank and twice weekly water changes on the medium and large tank. All tanks are fully cycled and run 0 ammonia, and 0 nitrites. As for nitrates, the small tank runs 0 (or almost 0), the medium runs between 5 and 10 on nitrates, and the large runs somewhere around 10 on nitrates or slightly higher. I'm used to all my tanks, but I have to say that the 3-gallon tank is the hardest to clean because it's so small. The large tank isn't hard except for lifting the 5-gallon water jug to pour in the clean water -- actually, I could pour water into my 2 1/2 gallon bucket first, but I try to do things in as few steps as possible. The medium (12-gallon) tank is the easiest overall. But I do change the water twice a week. It's an Eclipse 12-gallon, and I think your friend would find it a good place to start. All-in-one set up except for having to buy a heater and thermometer. The light's not the best, but it's fine for low-light plants, or at least it's been so for me.

[Beaux]

imo a 29g tank takes up almost the same amount of space as a 20 or a 10 but is alot easier to keep up. id also recomend aa "python no spill drain n fill" for gravel vac n waterchanges. it hooks to the faucet...any faucet so all the waste water n poop go right down the drain. it alsoo funnels water from the tap into the tank. always make sure of the temprature an never forget ur prime dechlorinator an ya should have no problems :-)
Beaux

[DeeDeeK]

I think that if only a 5 or 10 gal. will fit, then thats the range of sizes to concentrate on, regardless of how much easier a larger tank would be to maintain. I mean, if it's too big then it's too big.

My first tank was an Odyssea Cube 5. It held 4.75gallons. I was guided through the setup and cycle and once I started actually following the advice I was given, everything was fine. I kept white clouds and axelrod's rasboras and planted indian fern and dwarf baby's tears in the sand substrate. No problem, kept it for a year and then gave it to another enthusiast.

How 'bout a small tank with a few white cloud mountain minnows and a couple of fancy guppies? They're pretty and fairly tough.

[Lexi_D]

Thanks for all the help everyone!
I like the idea of either a betta and mystery snail or white clouds/dwarf rasboras... not really sure which.. not sure if she's considering plants or not. I'm going to talk about it next time I see her and find out. :)

[DeeDeeK]

White clouds don't need a heater, by the way. They're happy in warm or cold water.

[Lexi_D]

I think I'll probably go with the white clouds then so she doesnt need a heater... how many could she fit in a 5g?

[daphilster08]

I'd go for a $10 ten gallon tank and put about 10-12 white clouds in. A ten gallon is easier than a tiny 5 IMO..

[DeeDeeK]

Well, I'd keep one white cloud per gallon. They do grow to 1.5 inches, so that exceeds the standard "one inch of fish per gallon" rule but don't worry. White clouds are a thin fish and have much less biomass per inch than, say, your average platy for example. The fish will be fine, and happy to have a nice little school as they are social little guys. If you feel you must go with a lower stocking level, go with a 10 gal. tank so you can provide them with a large enough school to really thrive - their colors and behavior are better that way.

Personally, I keep more than strictly average stocking levels with no problems, just the fish are small as or smaller than white clouds so their demands on water quality are very low.

You might enjoy "meteor minnows," which are a long finned, more colorful breed of mountain minnow.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Cloud_Mountain_minnow
http://www.gsas.org/Articles/1997/white-clouds.html
http://en.allexperts.com/q/Fish-1472/Stocking-small-tanks.htm

[OldMan47]

My own favorites for a small tank like a 10 gallon, or even a 20H, would be Heterandria formosa. They grow to less than an inch long so you can have a whole breeding colony in a 10 gallon along with some pygmy cories, which is exactly what I have. Although they are quite small livebearers, they are good looking fish that would just get lost in a large tank. If you are not familiar with them, this is a picture of a typical female (obviously blown up a lot).
http://i290.photobucket.com/albums/ll251/Oldman1947/Heterandria/femaleCloseup.jpg

To get an idea of size, here is a female next to an adult pygmy cory.
http://i290.photobucket.com/albums/ll251/Oldman1947/Heterandria/PygmaeusHeterandria.jpg

and finally an adult male blown up about as much as the first female picture.
http://i290.photobucket.com/albums/ll251/Oldman1947/Heterandria/MaleCloseup.jpg

[Reframer]

Oh, I was going to say that Msj is breeding meteor minnows I believe and also you could look at Celestial pearl danios.

[DeeDeeK]

If you are not familiar with them, this is a picture of a typical female (obviously blown up a lot).

and finally an adult male blown up about as much as the first female picture.


Oh my freakin' gawd! You're blowing up your fish! That's so cruel!:22_yikes:

[MentalUproar]

A 15 gallon eclipse is expensive, but is very easy to take care of and she can put it almost anywhere. Just dont get any snails in it because they can crawl into certain areas and their shells will cause vibrations from the powerhead to be VERY LOUD.