First freshwater tank. Ideas, thoughts?

[in the pines]

krytan, I will buy fishfood as that will probably be easier to procure than pure ammonia. Thanks for the tip.

xythadar and Lupin, Thank you for the lists of shark like fish and for the info on angel fish. My son and I will discuss which he wants more. He is almost five, and it's my tank, but it's fun involving him. Yesterday he helped with the ammonia, nitrite and pH tests.

 

[Rbishop]

Using ammonia, it will be easier to control the cycle vice the use of fish food.

Your LFS manager probably meant a fishless cycle when referring to the old school method, at least I hope so. You don't need the bio-spira.

 

[in the pines]

Using ammonia, it will be easier to control the cycle vice the use of fish food.

Your LFS manager probably meant a fishless cycle when referring to the old school method, at least I hope so. You don't need the bio-spira.

Yes he did. And he said I was crazy not to use the bio spira, which made me question his ethics. I didn't argue with him because he has "34 years of experience," and I have zero, but I want to try it this way. It saves money as well as no harm to fish. It's my first tank and I am bound to make mistakes.

I guess I'll find some pure ammonia online to buy.

 

[noodles62]

I just swapped out my 30 long tank. That size is really nice. A school of corys would be great and they are cute/fun to watch. Your son would enjoy them.

 

[msjinkzd]

I have to agree, although you son says he likes sharks, the cories are active and present in the tank. My 5 yr old daughter just adores them. A close second for her are my mystery snails. She thinks its neat that she can tell them apart and that they are easy to spot in the tank.

So are you going with angel or gourami? You have alot of options for this tank and you will both enjoy it so much! Let us know what you are thinking of stocking and we can help you out more. Good for you for researching before purchase! You are already ahead of the game

 

[in the pines]

I have to agree, although you son says he likes sharks, the cories are active and present in the tank. My 5 yr old daughter just adores them. A close second for her are my mystery snails. She thinks its neat that she can tell them apart and that they are easy to spot in the tank.

So are you going with angel or gourami? You have alot of options for this tank and you will both enjoy it so much! Let us know what you are thinking of stocking and we can help you out more. Good for you for researching before purchase! You are already ahead of the game

Hi! I've searched your posts before trying to learn stuff. I'm glad you posted in my thread. I do want one pomacea bridgesii, probably ivory in color. That snail was the whole reason I started looking into getting a tank, actually. I found one randomly on the internet one day and got super excited about them. The gourami love came later. When my tank is ready, I want to buy a snail from you.

I think I might actually go with an angel bc I keep hearing about dwarf gourami aggression. When I read from official sources they say it's a peaceful fish, but in threads people talk about how their dwarf gourami is giving other fish trouble. I want a peaceful tank. If the aggression is not true, I want a male dwarf powder blue gourami because they are so beautiful. *swoon*

The leopard cories are really pretty, so thanks for the nudge towards them. If they are good cleaners, that might help with the snail pollution.

I was also thinking of...
kuhli loach
silver dollars
fan tail guppies
neon tetras

Concerned about the tetras bc of their size and the fan tails because the tails look enticing to passers-by, but I am really attracted to them. I would like to be able to work in some if at all possible.

 

[kingearwig]

It has been my experience that angels have a tendency to be more aggressive than gouramis like the powder blue. If they get angry at something they usually just flail at it with their feelers.

 

[Rbishop]

A sole angel should not be a problem.

 

[msjinkzd]

angels have been known to nip at snails antenna though. Have you looked at honey gourami at all? They can be kept in pairs (m/f) or trios (m/f/f) and are much healthier and docile than other gourami. They do will with a really wide range of community fish and are pretty small. The cories are great, fun and active little guys. you should be able to keep guppies and neons with honey gourami. I have neons, cardinals, and cherry barbs with mine.

If you are really interested in the snails, you could always start a small snail tank as well. You could easily keep a couple in a 5-10g tank. hehe, i am always encouraging the invert tanks. They can also do well with a wide wide range of fish as long as they are considered community fish. Cichlids are usually out as far as tank mates and loaches as well. Hope this helps!

 

[in the pines]

Thank you to everyone for your help and suggestions. I love this place.

one or two ivory apple snails
three+ leopard cories
school of neon tetras
school of guppies
pair of honey gouramis

too much? modifications?