3-5th Classroom Tank

HI everyone,
I have been given free reign to build an aquarium in our Special Education room at school this year. WOOHOO! Yay Me!
I'm looking for suggestions as to what to stock it with. It should be a very placid, beautiful, soothing tank to look at, and absolutely non-sggressive. These are some kids facing some really difficult problems and I believe a really great fish tank can help a lot.
thx for any advice
Gena Krein

 

Tank size?

 

Yes, stock will depend wholly on what size tank you are getting, so we will need to know that. If it’s a larger tank perhaps you could do some rainbows as they’re very colourful and fun. A tank of pea puffers could be enjoyable as well because of their personalities.

 

I would recommend stocking it very lightly so that it copes better with no water changes for a week or two over holidays. I am currently stocking a 30 gallon cold water tank for a school. We're probably going to go with a paradise fish with some peppered cories or a school of zebra/leopard danios and a bristlenose pleco.

 

As I will be relying on catch as catch can, for most if my supplies, I didn't include tank size. I'm really just looking for happy pretty community fish ideas. Just blue sky it guys. I won't hold anyone responsible for any disasters.
Gena Krein

 

Well, the fish we can reccomend really will be very dependent upon what size of tank you can get. Do you have a minimum size you think you’ll get? Like no lower than a 10g? Since you aren’t certain on the tank size I’d suggest looking into nano fish as they can go in smaller tanks and larger ones. Like Celestial pearls could be kept in a 10 gallon and they are very pretty little fish. I’ll include the 10 gallon stock list as it may help you find some fish you like-
10g stock

 

ok thx guys that should keep me busy for awhile researching these great suggestions
Gena Krein

 

So it is a ten gallon?

 

no I have no idea what size it will be I was just really asking what sort of community fish people like that might fall under the specifications I stated. It's ok please just forget I asked.

 

Wow! Thank you for doing this.

I understand that this will be a budget tank build and if space isn't too tight, I'd recommend picking up a 20 gallon long, maybe at a $1 per gallon sale. This is a fairly common aquarium size, so who knows, perhaps you can find someone looking to get rid of one and see if they'd donate it to the excellent cause.

The reason I mention this size is that it's not so big that filtration will be all that difficult, but it's nice and long, so offers good swim space and will give you more stocking options than some other smallish tanks. A 20 gallon is still considered a nano tank by many, but with 30 inches side to side, territorial issues can be less of a problem.

I'm no stocking expert, especially for freshwater. Even so, I'm imagining a couple honey gouramis and a small group of nano fish... perhaps something like 8-10 of a small rasbora species. This should be lovely to look at, and a calm tank without a very heavy bioload.

Live plants would be nice, but that will bring up the cost with the lighting and ferts required. Still, fish must have some cover. There are some pretty decent silk options at most dollar stores, just make sure no wires or anything that can rust is exposed. If you're looking to buy new plastic aquarium plants and want to save some money, avoid Petco and check out Big Al's. They do have some stores, though not where I'm from, but they do have a massive online selection and are considerably cheaper than other suppliers.

You may even find some members here that can donate to your cause. I wish I had some extras I could send you myself. The Buy/Sell/Trade/Free forums, including ROAK, (random acts of kindness) is available to members with more than 50 posts.... so I'd suggest you keep chatting with us, Gena Krein . When you have access to those forums, post a wanted (for free!) thread there explaining this awesome thing you're doing. You never know.

 

5 Gal:
x1 Betta

10 Gal:
x5 Male Guppies

20 Gal high:
x12 ChilI Rasboras
x2 Honey Gouramis

20 long:
An axolotl???

29 Gal:
x10 Cardinal Tetras
x1 Clown Pleco
x2 GBRs

 

Thank you so much for all the great info and resources. I have quite a bit of hobby stuff in boxes so I'm not to worried about filtration and heaters. I'm happy to donate my own. I have a 20 long myself and it is probably my favorite tank.
Again thanks for all the suggestions.
Gena

 

Kids love and are drawn to glow fish. A tank of bright rainbow colors would be amazing.

 

Tank size?

a 30 and a 55

 

You could do a lot with a 55.

Increase school sizes, or get bigger fish.

Are you aware of the nitrogen cycle?

If I was doing this project I would add a double sponge filter to my existing 20 gallon tank right now so you could instantly cycle the new tank. The sponge filter needs to be in there a month before moving.

 

Thanks for the tip. I'm aware of the nitrogen cycle and am also reading....studying...asking questions....and not stocking any livestock until my tanks are stable (our municiple water is rather hard here,) so I'm going to keep testing and researching appropriate fish to put in based on the water perameters. The kids will have to wait and be taught the process....There is much more to keeping fish then just staring at them through the glass. I want to give them an appreciation for the beauty and artistry that is the aquarists hobby, or possibly even profession.
I guess I will pose this question again once I have better infor for you guys.
thanks for everything
Gena Krein

 

I love your idea.

I have a 29 in my office at work.

Many people come by just to look at the fish.

 

lol....isn't it cool when you can show off your fish to someone who is interested and enjoys your water garden...filled with wondrous and exotic creatures.
I wish I had an aquarium club near me. Oh well if wishes were fishes....we all could eat....oops I mean have a fishtan k.
Gena

I really want to make an IwagumI style tank for the 30 gallon....I think that might be really soothing.
Gena

 

What if you do a very large tank, like a 40G breeder or something, and put a few fancy goldfish to teach the kids about how big they get and what they need

 

I have an idea: self sustaining. you could add like ten Ottos, tons of pond/bladder/ramshorn snails, add rcs, and daphnia, wait a couple months and ten pea puffers. Then that’ll teach them about ecosystems. Don’t forget heavily planted with lots of hiding spots.