Starting an aquarium (1 Viewer)

[igbomb]

My son is turning 10 years old this spring and one of the things we want to get him for his birthday is an aquarium.

Any great resources or recommendations on how to get started? I want to keep it moderately basic.

Starting from complete ignorance here. Never had a fish myself. Not even sure if I should go freshwater or saltwater.

 

[Cliff Clavin]

My son is turning 10 years old this spring and one of the things we want to get him for his birthday is an aquarium.

Any great resources or recommendations on how to get started? I want to keep it moderately basic.

Starting from complete ignorance here. Never had a fish myself. Not even sure if I should go freshwater or saltwater.

Go fresh. Much easier and cheaper.

Most stores will sell you a complete kit of everything you need ie. tank, heater, filter, light, etc.

I'd start with basic fish like Guppies, Neons, Tertas or Swordtails.

There is a giant aquarium thread here somewhere but who knows if it survived the purge.

 

[WookieBooger]

Good Luck, The biggest thing at first will be PATIENCE. The tank will have to go through a Nitrogen cycle. The best way to do it, IMHO, is to take your time and let it happen.

http://fins.actwin.com/mirror/begin-cycling.html

 

[TenTimes]

I went to craigslist, got the tank I was looking at for half the price from a father who'd bought it half a year earlier for the kid.

 

[Andy Dufresne]

Smaller tanks are actually more difficult to maintain than larger ones. You don't need to go huge, but I wouldn't get a 10 gallon either. Maybe a 20 gallon long or a 29 gallon.

Definitely NOT saltwater to start with.

Oh, and don't put two male bettas in a tank. You'll soon have one or none.

 

[WookieBooger]

Smaller tanks are actually more difficult to maintain than larger ones. You don't need to go huge, but I wouldn't get a 10 gallon either. Maybe a 20 gallon long or a 29 gallon.

Definitely NOT saltwater to start with.

Oh, and don't put two male bettas in a tank. You'll soon have one or none.

Great advice. the more water , the more buffering against sudden changes in water chemistry

 

[igbomb]

My son is turning 10 years old this spring and one of the things we want to get him for his birthday is an aquarium.

Any great resources or recommendations on how to get started? I want to keep it moderately basic.

Starting from complete ignorance here. Never had a fish myself. Not even sure if I should go freshwater or saltwater.

Go fresh. Much easier and cheaper.

Most stores will sell you a complete kit of everything you need ie. tank, heater, filter, light, etc.

I'd start with basic fish like Guppies, Neons, Tertas or Swordtails.

There is a giant aquarium thread here somewhere but who knows if it survived the purge.

Yeah, likely purged. I searched for aquarium and nothing popped.

Thanks. Fresh seems to be the common theme.

 

[Andy Dufresne]

Smaller tanks are actually more difficult to maintain than larger ones. You don't need to go huge, but I wouldn't get a 10 gallon either. Maybe a 20 gallon long or a 29 gallon.

Definitely NOT saltwater to start with.

Oh, and don't put two male bettas in a tank. You'll soon have one or none.

Great advice. the more water , the more buffering against sudden changes in water chemistry

Depending on space, I think the best size for anywhere from novice to non-expert is somewhere in the 55/60 gallon range.

I used to work in a pet store with a buddy of mine that was really into aquariums. When we roomed together in college he had a 200 gallon saltwater setup and it was spectacular. But he was always working on it and replacing fish - which got really expensive for him.

 

[igbomb]

Smaller tanks are actually more difficult to maintain than larger ones. You don't need to go huge, but I wouldn't get a 10 gallon either. Maybe a 20 gallon long or a 29 gallon.

Definitely NOT saltwater to start with.

Oh, and don't put two male bettas in a tank. You'll soon have one or none.

Great advice. the more water , the more buffering against sudden changes in water chemistry

I'm going to need to go look to see how big these are. I get the volume benefit but man I don't know that I want a monster tank sitting on his dresser.

 

[ChiefD]

When you are feeding your fish, be real careful how much food you put in because it can really affect the clarity and cleanliness of your tank.

The guy at the pet store gave us some great ideas:

If you are using that normal flake type food, crunch it up in your fingers so really small pieces are hitting the top of the water. Some fish will come to the top of the water to eat. Some will wait until that food drifts down to where they are in the water before they eat. The guy told us to only put enough food in the water so the bulk of it gets eaten before it sinks to the bottom.

Has worked out great, since kids tend to want to just dump a bunch of food it there.

 

[Andy Dufresne]

Smaller tanks are actually more difficult to maintain than larger ones. You don't need to go huge, but I wouldn't get a 10 gallon either. Maybe a 20 gallon long or a 29 gallon.

Definitely NOT saltwater to start with.

Oh, and don't put two male bettas in a tank. You'll soon have one or none.

Great advice. the more water , the more buffering against sudden changes in water chemistry

I'm going to need to go look to see how big these are. I get the volume benefit but man I don't know that I want a monster tank sitting on his dresser.

If it's something for his dresser, then you won't be putting much more than a 20 gallon and are more likely looking at a 10, which isn't as big of a deal as I'm making it sound - it will just lead to less fish in it.

 

[ChiefD]

Smaller tanks are actually more difficult to maintain than larger ones. You don't need to go huge, but I wouldn't get a 10 gallon either. Maybe a 20 gallon long or a 29 gallon.

Definitely NOT saltwater to start with.

Oh, and don't put two male bettas in a tank. You'll soon have one or none.

Great advice. the more water , the more buffering against sudden changes in water chemistry

I'm going to need to go look to see how big these are. I get the volume benefit but man I don't know that I want a monster tank sitting on his dresser.

We did a 20 gallon for my son. Perfect size for his dresser.

Also, make sure you are getting like-minded fish. Semi-aggressives stay with semi-aggressives. Passives stay with passives.

 

[WookieBooger]

Smaller tanks are actually more difficult to maintain than larger ones. You don't need to go huge, but I wouldn't get a 10 gallon either. Maybe a 20 gallon long or a 29 gallon.

Definitely NOT saltwater to start with.

Oh, and don't put two male bettas in a tank. You'll soon have one or none.

Great advice. the more water , the more buffering against sudden changes in water chemistry

I'm going to need to go look to see how big these are. I get the volume benefit but man I don't know that I want a monster tank sitting on his dresser.

I read that the best beginner tanks are 20 gallon tanks. Like this one: http://www.petsmart.com/fish/aquariums/grreat-choice-20-gallon-glass-aquarium-zid36-16837/cat-36-catid-300065

 

[MC Gas Money]

Dont tap on the glass

 

[Jackstraw]

Keep it away from direct sunlight. You will get algae growth.

20 gallon tall isn't a bad tank to start with. General rule of thumb is an inch of fish per gallon of water but you want fewer than that to acclimate the tank.

Err on the side of too few fish not too many. Decide if you want a bunch of community fish, tetra's, mollies etc. Or if you want some bigger showcase fish like a nice pair of angels. Some fish do not play well with others so ask your sales person.

I love the aquatic plants almost more than the fish themselves. Think multi level. Some plants to go on the bottom and some taller plants like vals that give you some structure towards the top of the tank. A nice piece of petrified wood that gies some height to the tank structure is nice as well.

 

[Andy Dufresne]

I love the aquatic plants almost more than the fish themselves. Think multi level. Some plants to go on the bottom and some taller plants like vals that give you some structure towards the top of the tank. A nice piece of petrified wood that gies some height to the tank structure is nice as well.

But for a starter tank, it's probably better to not begin by putting live plants in there.

I think...right?

 

[igbomb]

I'm going to regret this.

 

[Cliff Clavin]

I love the aquatic plants almost more than the fish themselves. Think multi level. Some plants to go on the bottom and some taller plants like vals that give you some structure towards the top of the tank. A nice piece of petrified wood that gies some height to the tank structure is nice as well.

But for a starter tank, it's probably better to not begin by putting live plants in there.

I think...right?

Definitely not. You need 2 tanks if you're doing live plants IMO.

 

[NutterButter]

Kids pick up a couple of goldfish this summer. We got a 10 gallon starter kit. 7 months later, the fish are a lot bigger and the kids no longer care about them. 10 gallons is the perfect size for me to take care of. I feed them twice a day. I wash the filter off every couple of weeks. I replace it every few months as well as cleaning the bottom using one of those sucking contraptions. I bought one of those heating elements, but never used it since goldfish handle a nice temperature range. Piece of cake.

 

[odin33]

Ig,

Shoot me a PM and I'll answer any questions you may have. I've got a few tanks (read:small aquarium shop) in my basement.

Hit craigslist or wait until Petsmart/petco has their $1 a gallon sale. Also check to see if there's a local club/group of enthusiasts. They are often great at helping a newbie out, and likely will have great deals on just about everything. Local club will also know the water conditions (some fish are really picky).

If it's going on a dresser, try to get what's called a 20 long. Helps disperse the weight a bit more, and it's a really cool looking tank that allows for virtually every kind of smaller fish.

As for how many the general rule is a gallon per inch of fish. So for a 10G tank 10 little guppies (which will become 1,000 pretty quick) would be the max.

Just know it's not buy the tank, fill it up and drop the fish in. The tank needs to cycle.

 

[WookieBooger]

I'm going to regret this.

probably so!

 

[Andy Dufresne]

I'm going to regret this.

Nah. We're over thinking this. It's a 10 year old boy we're doing this for.

Get a 10 gallon tank. Some plastic plants and a ceramic castle. Throw in some mollies and guppies and a cool looking betta and see where it goes from there.

 

[jhib]

I love the aquatic plants almost more than the fish themselves. Think multi level. Some plants to go on the bottom and some taller plants like vals that give you some structure towards the top of the tank. A nice piece of petrified wood that gies some height to the tank structure is nice as well.

But for a starter tank, it's probably better to not begin by putting live plants in there.

I think...right?

Yeah, live plants are next level stuff. You then have to worry about having the right lighting and carbon/fertilizer levels if want it to look at all decent.

Don't overdo it for your first tank, especially for a 10 year old.

 

[igbomb]

Ig,

Shoot me a PM and I'll answer any questions you may have. I've got a few tanks (read:small aquarium shop) in my basement.

Hit craigslist or wait until Petsmart/petco has their $1 a gallon sale. Also check to see if there's a local club/group of enthusiasts. They are often great at helping a newbie out, and likely will have great deals on just about everything. Local club will also know the water conditions (some fish are really picky).

If it's going on a dresser, try to get what's called a 20 long. Helps disperse the weight a bit more, and it's a really cool looking tank that allows for virtually every kind of smaller fish.

As for how many the general rule is a gallon per inch of fish. So for a 10G tank 10 little guppies (which will become 1,000 pretty quick) would be the max.

Just know it's not buy the tank, fill it up and drop the fish in. The tank needs to cycle.

Thanks. Will do.

And for the keep it simple crowd, I'm on board with that. I should mention that my 10 year old is rather immature. OK, really immature. He's more like a 6 or 7 year old in that respect, so a 10 gallon tank with a few little ones is probably my first step.

 

[Todem]

African Cichild tanks are really a lot of fun IMO.

I am about to get a 20 gallon for my 10 year old this year. I am going to make it an African Cichlid tank with an algae eater and a cat fish.

 

[jwb]

Ig,

Shoot me a PM and I'll answer any questions you may have. I've got a few tanks (read:small aquarium shop) in my basement.

Hit craigslist or wait until Petsmart/petco has their $1 a gallon sale. Also check to see if there's a local club/group of enthusiasts. They are often great at helping a newbie out, and likely will have great deals on just about everything. Local club will also know the water conditions (some fish are really picky).

If it's going on a dresser, try to get what's called a 20 long. Helps disperse the weight a bit more, and it's a really cool looking tank that allows for virtually every kind of smaller fish.

As for how many the general rule is a gallon per inch of fish. So for a 10G tank 10 little guppies (which will become 1,000 pretty quick) would be the max.

Just know it's not buy the tank, fill it up and drop the fish in. The tank needs to cycle.

Thanks. Will do.

And for the keep it simple crowd, I'm on board with that. I should mention that my 10 year old is rather immature. OK, really immature. He's more like a 6 or 7 year old in that respect, so a 10 gallon tank with a few little ones is probably my first step.

Also, make sure you check on how large the fish will grow (most pet stores will have this info right there with the name of the fish and the price).

 

[ChiefD]

You will kill a fish or two throughout this whole experience. Make sure you have your funeral process buttoned up before this happens, or else you'll be fumbling around and look inadequate to your children when you volunteer to just "flush 'em down the toilet."

 

[VA703]

low light fresh water planted tank

setup tank, add plants(Jungle vals & anubias or java ferns) to help cycle

change water couple times a week for a month

get a water testing kit ,, once tank cycles add fish slowly

get some shrimp and snails to help clean the tank

 

[Ned]

African Cichild tanks are really a lot of fun IMO.

I am about to get a 20 gallon for my 10 year old this year. I am going to make it an African Cichlid tank with an algae eater and a cat fish.

I wouldn't put africans in a 20gal tank; bare minimum, 55gal. The majority of them are too aggressive and need their space and lots of rock work for hiding places. They're definitely not a first timer fish, IMO.

They'll likely kill the cat fish and pleco in short time, too.

 

[Todem]

African Cichild tanks are really a lot of fun IMO.

I am about to get a 20 gallon for my 10 year old this year. I am going to make it an African Cichlid tank with an algae eater and a cat fish.

I wouldn't put africans in a 20gal tank; bare minimum, 55gal. The majority of them are too aggressive and need their space and lots of rock work for hiding places. They're definitely not a first timer fish, IMO.

They'll likely kill the cat fish and pleco in short time, too.

Yeah did some reading.....need a big tank for them. 55 gallon is the way to go for that type of tank. 100% spot on.

 

[igbomb]

My son is turning 10 years old this spring and one of the things we want to get him for his birthday is an aquarium.

Any great resources or recommendations on how to get started? I want to keep it moderately basic.

Starting from complete ignorance here. Never had a fish myself. Not even sure if I should go freshwater or saltwater.

Go fresh. Much easier and cheaper.

Most stores will sell you a complete kit of everything you need ie. tank, heater, filter, light, etc.

I'd start with basic fish like Guppies, Neons, Tertas or Swordtails.

There is a giant aquarium thread here somewhere but who knows if it survived the purge.

Yeah, likely purged. I searched for aquarium and nothing popped.

Thanks. Fresh seems to be the common theme.

Search is completely broken.

Try here: http://forums.footballguys.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=313846

Wow, 17 pages. What a bunch of dorks.

 

[Guest]

Skip the 10 gallon and go 20. That's just my opinion.

ETA: 20 Shouldn't be too big for a dresser.

 

[AcerFC]

dot

 

[Ned]

African Cichild tanks are really a lot of fun IMO.

I am about to get a 20 gallon for my 10 year old this year. I am going to make it an African Cichlid tank with an algae eater and a cat fish.

I wouldn't put africans in a 20gal tank; bare minimum, 55gal. The majority of them are too aggressive and need their space and lots of rock work for hiding places. They're definitely not a first timer fish, IMO.

They'll likely kill the cat fish and pleco in short time, too.

Yeah did some reading.....need a big tank for them. 55 gallon is the way to go for that type of tank. 100% spot on.

They're awesome fish, if done right. There are so many different breeds, you have to be careful on which ones to get. Some are more mellow than others. Some are hyper aggressive. Getting them sexed goes a long way, too. Males will harass all the females until they breed with them or kill them; whichever comes first. If you end up with 2 males and say 3 females, it turns into WW3. An all male tank is the best, but can be tough to get right (sexing is difficult).

 

[The Hank]

low light fresh water planted tank

setup tank, add plants(Jungle vals & anubias or java ferns) to help cycle

change water couple times a week for a month

get a water testing kit ,, once tank cycles add fish slowly

get some shrimp and snails to help clean the tank

Ghost shrimp are sweet, I would avoid snails unless you want dozens of snails.

Get a few bottom dwelling fish or some algae eaters.

 

[belljr]

Smaller tanks are actually more difficult to maintain than larger ones. You don't need to go huge, but I wouldn't get a 10 gallon either. Maybe a 20 gallon long or a 29 gallon.

Definitely NOT saltwater to start with.

Oh, and don't put two male bettas in a tank. You'll soon have one or none.

Great advice. the more water , the more buffering against sudden changes in water chemistry

I'm going to need to go look to see how big these are. I get the volume benefit but man I don't know that I want a monster tank sitting on his dresser.

If it's something for his dresser, then you won't be putting much more than a 20 gallon and are more likely looking at a 10, which isn't as big of a deal as I'm making it sound - it will just lead to less fish in it.

Like 1 fancy gold.

Cleaning the tank weekly sucks

 

[Long Ball Larry]

When you are feeding your fish, be real careful how much food you put in because it can really affect the clarity and cleanliness of your tank.

The guy at the pet store gave us some great ideas:

If you are using that normal flake type food, crunch it up in your fingers so really small pieces are hitting the top of the water. Some fish will come to the top of the water to eat. Some will wait until that food drifts down to where they are in the water before they eat. The guy told us to only put enough food in the water so the bulk of it gets eaten before it sinks to the bottom.

Has worked out great, since kids tend to want to just dump a bunch of food it there.

Good advice. My daughter has a 20-gallon tank and we must have gotten some bad advice initially about feeding and were overfeeding them. This resulted in too much waste, screwing up the nitrites and nitrates. We've been working with it for months and still don't have it in a good place.

 

[odin33]

Cleaning the tank can suck, but the right tools can make it a lot easier, and therefore more likely to be done on a regular basis.

1. Go buy yourself a python (there's other brands too) gravel filter with enough hose to get to a sink. Make sure it has the sink adapter (also known as a water bed filler- in case you ever have to replace it). Stationary tub is ideal, but not likely a solution for a bedroom, so bathroom sink will have to do. It'll take a 15-30 minute potentially messy job to a 5-15 easy one. Loosen the sink adapter and run the water to drain tank. Tighten adapter, and take off gravel vac to fill. Game changer right there. Just make sure you add the dechlor and have the incoming tank water roughly the temperature of the tank water. You can nuke/ freeze a tank and everything in it REALLY fast.

2. The Fanatic here taught me this one- If you go the bucket route go buy a 3 or 5G gasoline jug. Use that to fill and transport the water. Eliminates the sloshing factor all together. My hardwood floors at the old house took a beating until I got this tip.

When I first started out I went uber cheap and did the ol' gravel vac that you had to self prime and used a 5G bucket. Had I forked out the cash for the python then I'd have saved myself probably 3 times as much in fish (I neglected the tank). Not to mention actually loosing the fish.

Not sure if any of these are close to you but the local club route will help the learning curve, and it's usually a great way to get good healthy fish cheap(er). Even hitting up their message board and stating what you'd like to do will get you everything (and likely a lot more) that you need.

http://freshaquarium.about.com/od/aqauriumclubs/p/Michigan-Aquarium-Clubs.htm

 

[odin33]

When you are feeding your fish, be real careful how much food you put in because it can really affect the clarity and cleanliness of your tank.

The guy at the pet store gave us some great ideas:

If you are using that normal flake type food, crunch it up in your fingers so really small pieces are hitting the top of the water. Some fish will come to the top of the water to eat. Some will wait until that food drifts down to where they are in the water before they eat. The guy told us to only put enough food in the water so the bulk of it gets eaten before it sinks to the bottom.

Has worked out great, since kids tend to want to just dump a bunch of food it there.

Good advice. My daughter has a 20-gallon tank and we must have gotten some bad advice initially about feeding and were overfeeding them. This resulted in too much waste, screwing up the nitrites and nitrates. We've been working with it for months and still don't have it in a good place.

Are you feeding daily? If so cut back to every other day, and increase your water changes (both % and frequency) assuming you don't have any delicate fish. I generally overfeed because I'm in a hurry a lot of the time, so I compensate by skipping a day (sometimes two). Adding an airstone or something to promote movement can help as well.

 

[Dinsy Ejotuz]

I'm going to regret this.

Yeah. Be prepared for more trips to the store than you'd planned by a factor of 10x.

We got my son a 2.5 gallon training tank for his b-day a few months ago. Lessons learned...

No matter what he says, stick with really simple, really peaceful fish. We ended up with two guppies and a cory cat and that's been stable, but had some problems before that.

Get active fish that swim at different layers of the tank.

Get the simplest version of everything you buy.

Squatter, broader tanks are better at the same overall volume. Surface area/oxygen drives how many fish you can put in it.

Always have some replacement water prepped to put in.

Keep it out of the sunlight.

 

[glumpy]

Smaller tanks are actually more difficult to maintain than larger ones. You don't need to go huge, but I wouldn't get a 10 gallon either. Maybe a 20 gallon long or a 29 gallon.

Definitely NOT saltwater to start with.

Oh, and don't put two male bettas in a tank. You'll soon have one or none.

Great advice. the more water , the more buffering against sudden changes in water chemistry

Depending on space, I think the best size for anywhere from novice to non-expert is somewhere in the 55/60 gallon range.

I used to work in a pet store with a buddy of mine that was really into aquariums. When we roomed together in college he had a 200 gallon saltwater setup and it was spectacular. But he was always working on it and replacing fish - which got really expensive for him.

Jeeezus I did aquariums for years growing up and don't remember ever getting above 20!

I see what you're saying about the water but another way is to go with fish which have a higher tolerance. Guppies and black mollies come to mind of course, and I remember having a lot of success with tetras. My daughter right now is going with bettas and having luck with them but I had always thought those were not so forgiving.

Don't add snails to the tank you'll never get rid of them. Agreed on salt water tanks. My brother kept a successful one for years but also had the opportunity to catch his own critters, living at the beach.

 

[Andy Dufresne]

Smaller tanks are actually more difficult to maintain than larger ones. You don't need to go huge, but I wouldn't get a 10 gallon either. Maybe a 20 gallon long or a 29 gallon.

Definitely NOT saltwater to start with.

Oh, and don't put two male bettas in a tank. You'll soon have one or none.

Great advice. the more water , the more buffering against sudden changes in water chemistry

Depending on space, I think the best size for anywhere from novice to non-expert is somewhere in the 55/60 gallon range.

I used to work in a pet store with a buddy of mine that was really into aquariums. When we roomed together in college he had a 200 gallon saltwater setup and it was spectacular. But he was always working on it and replacing fish - which got really expensive for him.

Jeeezus I did aquariums for years growing up and don't remember ever getting above 20!

I see what you're saying about the water but another way is to go with fish which have a higher tolerance. Guppies and black mollies come to mind of course, and I remember having a lot of success with tetras. My daughter right now is going with bettas and having luck with them but I had always thought those were not so forgiving.

Don't add snails to the tank you'll never get rid of them. Agreed on salt water tanks. My brother kept a successful one for years but also had the opportunity to catch his own critters, living at the beach.

I just meant they're the ones with the least hassle.

 

[Pantherz]

African Cichild tanks are really a lot of fun IMO.

I am about to get a 20 gallon for my 10 year old this year. I am going to make it an African Cichlid tank with an algae eater and a cat fish.

I'm pretty sure your algae eater will need to be armored so they dont kill it. I always had a Plecostamus.

 

[MC Gas Money]

If the fish are full why dont they stop eating?

If there is an abundance of food in the wild do fish just commonly eat themselves to death?

 

[Bucky86]

Get him a few piranhas.

 

[Lutherman2112]

If the fish are full why dont they stop eating?

If there is an abundance of food in the wild do fish just commonly eat themselves to death?

It's not the over feeding of the fish, it's the extra waste in a limited amount of fresh water. Fish eats more food, more waste produced; ammonia. Fish doesn't eat all the food, food rots on bottom; more ammonia.

This leads to less O2 in the water, lower Ph, algae blooms, and mold...which leads to clogged filters, etc

 

[MC Gas Money]

If the fish are full why dont they stop eating?

If there is an abundance of food in the wild do fish just commonly eat themselves to death?

It's not the over feeding of the fish, it's the extra waste in a limited amount of fresh water. Fish eats more food, more waste produced; ammonia. Fish doesn't eat all the food, food rots on bottom; more ammonia.

This leads to less O2 in the water, lower Ph, algae blooms, and mold...which leads to clogged filters, etc

Oh

If it was like I thought I was planning to petition that their name be changed from "tropical" to "american" fish

 

[Lutherman2112]

If the fish are full why dont they stop eating?

If there is an abundance of food in the wild do fish just commonly eat themselves to death?

It's not the over feeding of the fish, it's the extra waste in a limited amount of fresh water. Fish eats more food, more waste produced; ammonia. Fish doesn't eat all the food, food rots on bottom; more ammonia.

This leads to less O2 in the water, lower Ph, algae blooms, and mold...which leads to clogged filters, etc

Oh

If it was like I thought I was planning to petition that their name be changed from "tropical" to "american" fish

And don't skimp on the gravy!

 

[MC Gas Money]

If the fish are full why dont they stop eating?

If there is an abundance of food in the wild do fish just commonly eat themselves to death?

It's not the over feeding of the fish, it's the extra waste in a limited amount of fresh water. Fish eats more food, more waste produced; ammonia. Fish doesn't eat all the food, food rots on bottom; more ammonia.

This leads to less O2 in the water, lower Ph, algae blooms, and mold...which leads to clogged filters, etc

OhIf it was like I thought I was planning to petition that their name be changed from "tropical" to "american" fish

And don't skimp on the gravy!

Anything less would be uncivilized

 

[TLEF316]

The python is a very good suggestion. No idea why I used buckets for so long (especially on a 75 gallon tank. oof).

I only feed my tank 5 days a week. (although I probably overfeed a bit each time I do it) With the amount of live plants I have in there, there's plenty for the fish to much on on off-days.

My biggest suggestion...find a filter system that is easy to clean. I have 2 large canister filters on my tank and I HATE cleaning them out. Its really something I should do every 3 months or so, but it ends up only happening like every 9 months. Its like an hour long job that can turn SUPER messy if I make even the tiniest mistake (forget to close a valve, drop a hose, forget to put an O-ring back in, etc). They keep my tank really clean (considering the bio load and my previously mentioned overfeeding) but there are times I wish I had something easier to maintain.

Its gotten the point where I can probably get away with water changes once a month. However, I like having really clean glass (tank is right in the living room) and the Python makes a weekly water change pretty much painless.