newbie tropical setup

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benji_styler

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Sep 25, 2006
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Hi i have just bought a baby biorb 15 litre tank. i know its small and not favoured by many people. But i have a small room and wanted a small aquarium to fit in it. My girlfriend has a large aquarium with a variety of different tropical fish. i just want some small attractive fish to de stress me when im doing my uni work.

I would like some advice on suitable fish. i am keen on getting a betta or some small tetra. the tank is advised for 6 small fish. Any adviec on fish would be great!

i have put the tap water conditioner and biological filtration booster in, but as yet have not turned on the heater. what temperature should i set it to?

Also how long should the tank be left before introcuing the fist fish? i think i will add some small plants too before the fish any advice on plants?

Any help would be much appriciated but please be positive dissing my baby biorb wont help me out lol

cheers, ben.
 
Hi i have just bought a baby biorb 15 litre tank
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how many us gallons is that?

but as yet have not turned on the heater. what temperature should i set it to?
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78 degrees fahrenheit

Also how long should the tank be left before introcuing the fist fish?
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you need to cycle the tank
http://aquariumboard.com/forums/articles/26-cycling-tank-fw.html
this will take upwards of 6 weeks

i think i will add some small plants too before the fish any advice on plants?
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fish first, plants later

You need to educate your self before you even begin to consider buying fish. go to the article section and read, EVERYTHING!
http://aquariumboard.com/forums/articles/26-cycling-tank-fw.html
http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36783
 
Budrecki, that's about 4 gallons.

A betta, a trio of pygmy or licorice gouramis or a trio of ottocinculus species is about all you can properly keep in it fish wise. It really is a small tank with a lot of limitations and I would suggest eventually getting atleast ten gallon if your really serious about the hobby or you don't like the limitations of your aquarium.

With any freshwater tank, you need to do weekly water changes. I personally recommend and use 50% water changes, although more or less may be adequate/necessary, depending on your stocking
 
15 litres is roughly equal to 3.5 gals.

I agree with doing the fishless cycle. I'm doing a fish cycle, and going to school. Rather than doing homework sometimes, you end up testing water and doing water changes and looking at your fish looking for signs of stress. This method is the exact opposite that you want, becuase it is stresses you out(and the fish).
 
a trio of pygmy or licorice gouramis
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In a 3.5g tank? NO NO NO!


You options are very limited benji_styler. I would say killifish, or a snail, or cherry shrimp and plants.

In my opinion, 3.5 g id too small for a betta.
 
 
budrecki said:
It's not not about the size. It's a gourami! A species of fish know to be territorial. Your go to recommend to a newbie that 3 semi aggressive fish is ok for a 3.5g tank? I've included a few species profiles for you to read dorkfish.


http://www.aquariacentral.com/species/db.cgi?db=fresh&uid=default&ID=0020&view_records=1
http://www.petresources.net/fish/anaban/par_dei.html
http://www.fishtanksandponds.net/live-stock/fishprofiles/liquorice_gourami.htm
http://animal.discovery.com/guides/fish/freshwater/licoricegrmi.html
http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_Display.cfm?siteid=21&pCatId=1003
http://members.fortunecity.com/aquaticsource1/species/gourami_licorice.html
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Ok, you got me. I forgot about the territorial tendncys of these fish, something I really should have rememebered as I have already expierienced a few gourami's evil sides first hand.
 
thanks for your responses.

The tank size is 4 gallons. I know its small but i want to learn and only hav a few small fish. the box recommends: dwarf gourami, platty, guppy and shrimp. It is recommended for 6 small fish.

the tank can be seen here: http://www.biorb.com/product_details.php?p_id=35&vlang_id=89

i would like a couple of shrimp and a few tetra, guppies or any other sugestions? would a pigme puffer be suitable? as a newbie i think i should hav hardy fish.

i am currently reading around the subject and am not going to jump into it. im quite excited about all the resources on this forum and the steps to creating and maintaing a tropical aquarium.

thanks for your help.
 
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