I really feel I have to tell my story.
I had a wad of money burning a hole in my pocket and I wanted to get an aquarium for my sons benefit. He's 2 1/2.
I went to Walmart and picked up a 46 Gal. bow front with the stand and hood for $200. Another $200 got me all I needed to get it set up with a filter, plastic plants and a heater. I let it run for a week before I went to an LFS to look at some fish. The water was cloudy so I asked the guy for a product to clear things up which he of course had. He also told me I could put fish in my tank just 24 hours after I set things up. That weekend I bought my first fish for the tank. 2 Dalmation Mollies, 6 Cherry Barbs, 6 Tiger barbs and an Albino Cory.
Of course the cory died and I thought it was because the guy in the store injured it when he netted it. All the other fish were fine though.
The next week I bought 2 Siamese algea eaters and a dozen Neons and a new Cory. I had to set up an emergency isolation tank for the Tiger barbs because they were nipping the neons. The Cory lasted a week and the Neons dropped off one by one till only two were left. 5 Cherry barbs and 5 Tiger barbs died.
I finally found a guy in a different LFS who set me right and talked with me for over 1/2 hour about all that was doing wrong and what needed to happen for things to go right. He's a hero to me.
The bottom line here is you can get what you think is good advice from people you think you can trust but by all means get advice from many sources and read, read, read. Take the time needed to get things set up right and tell everyone about forums like this one if they have an intrest in going into this hobby.
I wouldn't have lost so many fish if I had taken the time to find good advice.
I feel badly about the fish that perished. All of them were fine one day and dead the next. I will not be getting any more fish for another month or 2 but when I do I'll be consulting you guys to see what you think about my choices.
Q
I had a wad of money burning a hole in my pocket and I wanted to get an aquarium for my sons benefit. He's 2 1/2.
I went to Walmart and picked up a 46 Gal. bow front with the stand and hood for $200. Another $200 got me all I needed to get it set up with a filter, plastic plants and a heater. I let it run for a week before I went to an LFS to look at some fish. The water was cloudy so I asked the guy for a product to clear things up which he of course had. He also told me I could put fish in my tank just 24 hours after I set things up. That weekend I bought my first fish for the tank. 2 Dalmation Mollies, 6 Cherry Barbs, 6 Tiger barbs and an Albino Cory.
Of course the cory died and I thought it was because the guy in the store injured it when he netted it. All the other fish were fine though.
The next week I bought 2 Siamese algea eaters and a dozen Neons and a new Cory. I had to set up an emergency isolation tank for the Tiger barbs because they were nipping the neons. The Cory lasted a week and the Neons dropped off one by one till only two were left. 5 Cherry barbs and 5 Tiger barbs died.
I finally found a guy in a different LFS who set me right and talked with me for over 1/2 hour about all that was doing wrong and what needed to happen for things to go right. He's a hero to me.
The bottom line here is you can get what you think is good advice from people you think you can trust but by all means get advice from many sources and read, read, read. Take the time needed to get things set up right and tell everyone about forums like this one if they have an intrest in going into this hobby.
I wouldn't have lost so many fish if I had taken the time to find good advice.
I feel badly about the fish that perished. All of them were fine one day and dead the next. I will not be getting any more fish for another month or 2 but when I do I'll be consulting you guys to see what you think about my choices.
Q