Diving in head first: newbie with a 125 gallon

[JimT]

Hello all!
Just yesterday I obtained a 125 with all the fixins. Emperor (400?) filter, Magnum 350 filter, I think a Magnum 250 filter (don't have it yet, it's on the way), undergravel filters, 2 powerheads, 1 up tube (2nd one missing), glass tops and lights, gravel, fake plants, test kit, some more stuff.
I'm short on time, so here are my big questions:
What type of fish should I start with? I want to "fishy" cycle. Could I use a gourami or two?
With a 125, how often will I have to change water during cycling and how much? Just a guess is fine. I'm asking because I'd like to start it, but then I have to go on travel for a week. The wife will be home, but I'd prefer to take care of the water changes myself.
What type of fish can I get long term? I'd like non-aggressive fish, but I'd like some to get to a larger size, maybe 6", because the tank is so big.
My wife thinks we should get goldfish. They get big and they're pretty. But, I've read on the Aquaria FAQ that they are not very healthy due to their long history of breeding. Opinions? Is it true that if I get goldfish, I can only have goldfish or fish that like cool (65 is what I've read) temps like goldfish do?
I have a friend with an established tank. Could I have him get a ziploc bag of gravel, bring it in to work, then take it home and put it in the tank? I'm asking if the bacteria will live that long in a ziploc (10 hours say). If I do this, this will jumpstart my tank cycle, right?
Any advice is welcome! Gotta go.
Jim

[Harlock]

Most folks here, myself included will tell you fishy cycling is not the way to go. In such a big tank as a 125, two gouramis are barely going to give you the bacteria you need. If you want to jump start, I suggest Bio-Spira. But, with leaving town in a week being a factor, and not trusting the wife to do water changes, I think you'll have a problem with that, too. She'd need to test the tank and make water changes if mmonia or nitrites were high. Bio-Spira can be good stuff, but it can also leave you fishy cycling for a week or two with a full bioload, which means daily 50% water changes (that's some work on a 125). Your safest bet is to wait until you can be in town for 3-4 weeks straight and do the Bio-Spira or to do a fishless cycle. If you cycle using two gouramis you would be adding 1-2 fish every two weks for a long time.

As for recommendations of fish, what are you looking for? I suggest some research to find out what kind of fish you like and then go from there.

[OrionGirl]

Goldfish will only mix well with other cooler water fish--tropicals will die in the colder water, and goldies are prone to serious issues in warmer water. As to health--depends on the source. Fish sold as feeders will not be healthy. But, fish that are sold to be ornamental (not the fancies, but comets) will be very healthy.

Fishy cycling without constant supervision and water changes is a recipe for disaster. Even with seeding, you'd likely lose fish--or lose patience and add too many fish at a time. A 125 will be very forgiving, but still needs time to develop the bacteria to process wastes.

[cal26w]

you can search websites for the aggressive level of fish for your 125 gold fish are nice but in a 125 i would think its not good for show u can find other fish that arent aggressive and that look nicer then gold fish try these
http://www.solodvds.com/
http://www.fishprofiles.com/
http://www.fishindex.com/

[JimT]

I read through the tropical fish information here and it seems like anything that's pretty AND large is aggressive. I was thinking tiger barbs would be good first fish, but it seems that they are chronic nippers. I saw rainbow and redtailed sharks at WalMart last night, they get large and attractive, but some of them were going round and round in the tank. They're described as being nippy also. I like the look of Oscars, but they don't cohabitate with other fish well. Gouramis are tempting, but they don't get very big and they're long feelers are targets for nippy fish. They are also territorial, which can lead to fights. I'm pretty sure if I go tropical I will eventually have a small group of albino corys. Probably a small group of clown loaches also.
Then, there are goldfish. I've read a bunch over on GoldfishParadise today and concluded that they might be right for me. They grow large, fancies usually get along with fancies and sometimes with commons. They are brightly colored. Unfortunately, many of the goldfish varieties have the brain looking thing (wen?) on their heads, which I don't like. That leaves me with commons, fantails, moors, or maybe one or two other varieties.

So, it seems that I can either go with lots of (not terribly colorful) schooling fish (silver dollars, maybe tetras, bala sharks, platys...) or I can go with 6-8 large, colorful, mostly the same breed, goldfish.

Would you guys say that this is a proper assessment?
Thanks,
Jim

[OrionGirl]

The cories and clowns won't mix well with goldfish.

But, otherwise, yes--most large fish are predators or territorial--that's why they get big. Most of my fish are appealing for reasons other than just being decorative.

[bamboox]

i would said either choice is waste of your big tank. i would used it to keep african cichlids. some yellow leomons, some electric blues, some fontosa(6 strips), u might able to keep ur clown loaches as well, since they are quite tough. african cichlids are territorial, if you provide a lot of hidding places, and with your big tank, i don't see a problem, beside it's very interesting to see them to fight off other fish to defense their territories. u can take a look at my tank see if u like these kind of fish. the post under "bamboox":

http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?p=334781#post334781

[bamboox]

i wish i started off with a big tank like urs... well then again, i might wanted a bigger tank still by now... hehe...

since ur are leaving town soon, go ahead and put water in it first, keep everything running, AFTER couple days, i suggest you put 4 clown loaches in it to start the process, since they are quite tough and you will keep them afterward anyway that's if u decide go with africa cichlids.

[bamboox]

bringing a bag of gravel from ur friend is not going to help, since they will die in short time, because the environment for them in ur tank is not established. it's also true for those baterial drops. so you have to take the time to establish ur own environment. during this process, u might not want to change water as frequence, maybe 5 gallon in 4, or 5 days. meanwhile because the absence of those beneficial bateria, u might want to add some ammonia remover to the tank to help out ur fish.

[bamboox]

one more thing, if u want to keep africa cichlids, don't buy them from pet shops nor walmarts, take ur time to look for local private breeders, buy from them, it will be much cheaper, and u will have a lot more choices.

[pbecot01]

Heck, with a 125 and some plants you could put a gourami or two in there and have a silent cycle rather easily... that's a lot of water for just a couple of fish to foul up.

However, if you are doing a real fishy cycle ... a week without water changes is too much. Some days you may have to do 2 or 3 to get the levels down to non-toxic...

it's probably a better idea to start a fishless cycle and put your first fish in after you come home.

[bamboox]

i confess, what i am about to do is very evil....

here are some of the african cichlid tanks, i am going to pull u into this addictive hole now!

http://chinesecsers.clanservers.com/img/fun/fish/t1.jpg
http://chinesecsers.clanservers.com/img/fun/fish/t3.jpg
http://chinesecsers.clanservers.com/img/fun/fish/t6.jpg
http://chinesecsers.clanservers.com/img/fun/fish/t8.jpg
http://chinesecsers.clanservers.com/img/fun/fish/t11.jpg
http://chinesecsers.clanservers.com/img/fun/fish/fonts.jpg

[JimT]

Bamboox, those are beautiful fish, I'll have to show them to the wife and see what she thinks!

I have a problem folks! At least, I think it's a problem. The tank is full and today I set up the filters and it finally got up to about 70 degrees. While I was messing with the filters, I noticed a small snail. Smaller than a BB. I grabbed him and mashed him. I got the flashlight and it turns out there are quite a few snails running around in there! Is this a problem? I've heard that they'll take over. How can I get rid of them?

Thanks!
Jim

[johnnyxxl]

snails will only be there if there is food actually many fish will think you are giving them a treat when they get to eat snails like the clown loaches. I actually wish I had that problem lol. I can't keep snails in my tanks the fish keep eating them I may order those ones with the corkscrew looking shells before I get the kooli loaches for my tank hehe.