Newbie needs help with set-up

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Uconn25

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Jan 31, 2003
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Hello everyone, I am brand new here and I feel very lucky to have found this great site, I am a college student who wants to get his first fish tank filled with cichlids. My girlfriend said she will buy me a 46 gallon bow front fish aquarium from Petsmart for my birthday.

My question to everyone is....can you just pick out some variations of cichlids and the amount of them I can fit in my tank ?
( I think I will be purchasing my fish from petsmart)

Also, I won't be able to upgrade to any larger size tank in the future so I dont want any cichlids that grow 12 inches long and die because lack of space, something that doesn't exceed 6 inches is what I am looking for.

Thanks once again and I appreciate your time.
 
Since you are a college student I will assume you don't have alot of time to do water changes so that woul leave out my favorite, Discus. What is your water like there? Is it hard and alkaline or softer and neutral to acidic? That will help cut down on time spent and the health of the fish.
 
This is my last semester before I graduate so I definitely will have time to change the water and everything, I actually just purchased a book at amazon that I should be receiving soon "The beginners guide to aquariums" but I am hoping on this boards expertize on what kind of fish I should include in my tank...I won't be getting this fish tank for about 4 weeks, so during this time I will be reading up on just about everything. In regards to the water hardness/softness, how would I go about finding out what type of water my home has?
 
I've duplicated this post in the Newbie forum so that you can get maximum advice. In Cichlids you should hear about what fish will work in your tank, and in Newbie about cycling issues, etc. I have my own opinions, of course, but will wait for a few others to get in with theirs before posting. Great topic!
 
Be sure that you understand how to cycle a new tank before you dump a bunch of fish into a brand new setup....that is a 100% guaranteed disaster and will frustrate you on the hobby.
While the tank is cycling (30 days), buy a cichlid book from petsmart and study that...then you'll be able to make a solid decision as to what fish to keep! Obviously, there are a lot of good choices.
 
You can buy a testing kit from Walmart or from the pet store. Go ahead and get one for all the stuff you will need to begin with if you can, that way you'll be able to answer questions regarding your water quality later on if you have a problem.

Commonly, you'll need a test for ph, ammonia, nitrites, nitrates, and hardness (kh and gh). From there it's simple, get a glass of tap water, let it sit for a few minutes, and test it. Then come back and give us the results.
 
NJ Devils, I received my bachelor's two years ago, and right now I'm working on finishing up my master's in finance. If your sister is majoring in business then I might know her.
 
Originally posted by Uconn25
... My girlfriend said she will buy me a 46 gallon bow front fish aquarium from Petsmart for my birthday.

My question to everyone is....can you just pick out ...?
Click to expand...
Sorry, I can't help you pick the fish, but I will say you will have a good sized tank! Bowfronts look unique... Hope it will be a "center piece" at your home. :)
 
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