Complete beginner in here!

Hello all! Been browsing the site for some time now and finally decided that enough was enough. I have myself, or soon to be, an Aquarium! Well, I will have if I can get the help I need.

I have nothing as of yet, except I have just got hold of a Juwel 63 Litre Aquarium, hood lighting and a filter with built in heater. Is this good? I paid £50 for this, including the display cabinet it sits on and 3 boxes of tap safe.

I have been admiring, and wanting, a live planted aquarium and would love to do that to this 63 litre. What is the best way to go around doing this? Will I need to put something underneath the substrate to allow the plants to grow? And if so, does this not make the water murky?

I want to use this as my substrate is that a good substrate?

I also wish to put in a nice variety of fish, I would love some bright coloured Shrimp, perhaps Cherry Shrimp, and some Lemon Tetras. Would these go well? What else would be good for my tank?

Is there any other information I should be aware of? I know I have to let the tank cycle first, which gives me time to oogle all the fish I could potentially have. But I want to get the planting of my aquarium right and not mess this up!

Thanks for any help in advance,

Dan.

 

HI there welcome to FishLore !
You're on the right track, you have no idea! Most of us have started with fish in the tank, without cycling the tank, and we've learned from it. Anyway, to start of, you might make another thread or make more research about the stock, but with a 63litre, about 16US gallons, you're kinda limited, anyways lemon tetras can work, I've never owned any so maybe someone who had will chime in.
Now it really depends when it comes to a planted tank. You have A LOT to learn about plants, and I don't know if you are willing to keep beginner plants, or more sophisticated ones, however we really need to know your type of light, the wattage, K rate, etc. There are A LOT of threads about plants in this forum,
Plants are divided in 3 categories, low, medium and high light plants (based on their light requirement). As these requirements grow, more is needed to keep the tank and the plants healthy, such as fertilizers, injected CO2, etc. That's why beginner plants are suggested. Plants such as Java Moss, Java Fern, Anubias, duckweed and more, will thrive under most lights and don't need fertilizers, however they will benefit from it.
You really have a big journey ahead and have a lot to learn about, have fun with your new tank, and feel free to experiment with the plants.
Ask a question and we'll be here to help!
Cheers!

 

Thanks for your response. I am unsure on the wattage of the light, but I am aware that I have one light in the hood of the tank. I initially plan to keep easier plants until I get a bit more experience behind me, the same goes for the type of fish I will keep.

I have seen some really nice looking tanks about, and so really want to take it slow, take my time and make sure that I don't mess up as I go along. Having seen threads on here I am sure that I can be slowly nudged in the right direction.

Thanks again for the help.

Dan.

 

(https://trinorthlighting.com)

You can either look the wattage of your light on the box that it was packed in, or in case you tossed it you can see the wattage next to the metal part were it screws into the socket (sorry forgot the name ), it should look something like the picture attached above.
That's true, we all see those "dream" tanks from time to time over the internet. It's a good thing you want to take it slow, most people usually rush into this.
Since you're going for easy stuff, then you won't be limited on the substrate, since the beginner plants are mostly tied to driftwood only, no need for you to plant them.
You're welcome.

 

Thanks for your post again. I believe that it is an 18 Watt light, is this good or bad, in comparison to the tank size? I have some funds put aside towards the construction of this aquarium so I can upgrade the light if required and have looked into a Co2 system.

Thanks again.

Dan.

 

You're welcome again.
The light is good for beginners, it will grow most of the plants I listed above, you can google for more, but just be sure to stay on the "low light" side. You won't have any problems and CO2 isn't needed in the long run with this kind of light.
Good luck to you!

 

HI Dan, welcome to Fishlore

To get you started with plants, the following two links might help you:
https://www.fishlore.com/aquariumfishforum/threads/common-aquarium-plants.74395/
https://www.fishlore.com/aquariumfishforum/threads/general-guide-to-low-light-planted-tanks.11697/

And there's a lot you can do with 63 litres

I hope you enjoy the site.

 

Thanks for the links. Looking forward to getting started on this been over some ideas for my 63 litres, and am amazed at some of the options.

 

HI Dan! Welcome to Fishlore!

Be sure to first fishless cycle your new aquarium. It ensures the health of your fish.

You could try a honey gourami with a school of 6-8 chilI rasbora.

What type of lighting will you have? Low, medium, high.

Good luck!

 

Hi, thanks for replying. Will make sure I fishless cycle the aquarium, have spent the last week or so reading up so as to not make any mistakes. I have not seen a Honey Gourami so that sounds very interesting. I have seen some ChilI Rasbora though, they looked fantastic, very eye catching and lively. Would they look good if I used a black substrate? I am yet to decide, but might go for a fine black gravel with low lighting plants such as moss.

Dan.

 

Having looked around I have settled for a fine black sand substrate, it looks very nice. I have picked up a mixture of sizes of white pebbles to contrast, and have plans to get hold of low light plants for the tank too. Then once planted the fishless cycle will begin. I am aware I have to test for ammonia, then nitrites then nitrates. Does that mean buying 3 separate test kits or is there an all in one test kit?

As for its inhabitants, once it has cycled, I might look further into a Honey Gourami and some Red Cherry Shrimp. And see where it goes from there.

Thanks,

Dan.

 

Great choice .
Everyone around here suggests the API Freshwater Test Kit, it's very popular and it's said to do it's job pretty well. You should look into that.
About the stock, great so far, you have still to add though .

 

I'll second the API Freshwater kit, it has all three tests plus pH.

Walmart also have a homebrand/private label version of the same kit. It is made by API and repackaged for Walmart and is cheaper than the API.

 

Okay thanks a lot. Have picked one up off of ebay brand new for £13.00, I believe that is a good deal as Petsathome seem to have them for twice that :l

Thanks again.

 

Test kits are one of the single most important things next to filtration IMO. Glad to have you here and happy to always answer questions.

Planted tanks are a lot of fun and look REALLY awesome plus they also help keep your nitrates down in the tank. What I would say for a planted tank is to get a high output or led light to start with, do some research on them and get what you can afford but you'll find that much like buying a bigger than needed filter you'll be glad you did it once.

 

Okay thanks a lot. Have picked one up off of ebay brand new for £13.00, I believe that is a good deal as Petsathome seem to have them for twice that :l

Thanks again.

£13??? who did you mug? I've never been able to find them under £20, and I thought even that was good as the rrp is £31!

WtG on the slow steady approach... much less hassle than rush and ooops!

 

£13??? who did you mug? I've never been able to find them under £20, and I thought even that was good as the rrp is £31!

WtG on the slow steady approach... much less hassle than rush and ooops!

I got very lucky, I just had a spare minute or two and thought I would check how much they go for on Ebay, just incase. Someone had listed one at £12.99 plus £1.99 shipping, I don't think I have ever clicked Buy Now faster?! Still in its packaging, you could see it, so I had no worries, good reputation etc. Lets hope the Postie delivers now

What would you say a good light source is? The tank has a built in hood light, it is a 15 Watt on a 63 litre tank, tank is just over 60cm in length, so could you buy higher watt replacement lights?

Regards,

Dan.

 

Welcome Dan

 

HI all, so my younger son has convinced me to get some fish. We started off with a Betta in one of those 0.5 gallon tanks. That only last a few days as it was obviously too small. Nest purchase was the Aqueon MinI Bow 2.5. The betta has been happy in the tank but pretty immobile. He likes to hide a lot. We have since purchased a couple of White Cloud Minnows and recently 2 African Dwarf Frogs. I know this tank is now way too small. What size would you suggest is acceptable for these fish. They all get along well btw.

I was thinking between 10 and 20 gallon but don't want to go too large.

Thanks

 

Welcome to FishLore!

I want to start by saying I know nothing about frogs, other than they generally should be in a tank of their own due to having bad eyesight which makes it difficult to compere for food. I really have no knowledge of their temp requirements.

Now onto the Betta and White Clouds. White Clouds require cool water temperatures, wjhere Betta's require a water temp of 78-81 degrees. Also Betta's many times will not tolerate other fish in a tank with them and will kill off the other fish. The Betta may seem to get along fine and then suddenly one day...carnage.

Ideally a Betta should be in at least a 5 gallon heated, filtered cycle tank. (if you are unaware of the nitrogen cycle click the words to be taken to article). I think the WCMM may be a schooling fish (which would require you to have at least 5), and I'm not sure, but they may require a 10 gallon minimum (but they may require a larger tank)

I also think you may be able to keep 2 frogs in a 10 gallon tank, but I'm not 100% on that.

Sorry I couldn't be more helpful. If only you asked about Rainbow Fish, I could have impressed you!.

 

Good Morning and welcome to FL!

The betta, in my opinion, needs a 5 gallon cycled tank, with heater (79-80) and filter.

As they usually have flowing fins, they like low output (low current) filters and decorations that don't have sharp edges (silk plants, rocks with rough sides, etc.).

The white clouds need a 20 long aquarium with filter, as they are very fast and active swimmers. They are schooling fish and like to be kept with a minimum group of 5-6. Also they are subtropicals (below 75, but I have seen others keep them with tropicals).

Bettas probably would not appreciate the activity of the White Clouds.

I have never kept African dwarf frogs, so I can't advise on that.

 

Welcome to FishLore!

I want to start by saying I know nothing about frogs, other than they generally should be in a tank of their own due to having bad eyesight which makes it difficult to compere for food. I really have no knowledge of their temp requirements.

Now onto the Betta and White Clouds. White Clouds require cool water temperatures, wjhere Betta's require a water temp of 78-81 degrees. Also Betta's many times will not tolerate other fish in a tank with them and will kill off the other fish. The Betta may seem to get along fine and then suddenly one day...carnage.

Ideally a Betta should be in at least a 5 gallon heated, filtered cycle tank. (if you are unaware of the nitrogen cycle click the words to be taken to article). I think the WCMM may be a schooling fish (which would require you to have at least 5), and I'm not sure, but they may require a 10 gallon minimum (but they may require a larger tank)

I also think you may be able to keep 2 frogs in a 10 gallon tank, but I'm not 100% on that.

Sorry I couldn't be more helpful. If only you asked about Rainbow Fish, I could have impressed you!.

lol hey I appreciate the feedback! When I just had the Betta, it was my local pet store that recommended the Minnows so I am a bit surprised to hear about the cool water requirements. I have had all of these guys in the 2.5 gallon for over a month and they seem to be getting along as far as I can see. One of the minnows does have it's mouth permanently open with a swollen bottom lip, so I'm not sure what's going on there.

 

The swollen mouth could be columnaris. You can google "columnaris" for a picture ID.

As far as tank size, larger aquariums are actually easier to care for- the temp stays more constant and any toxins will take longer to build up in a larger tank.

You also have a better choice in stocking

 

lol hey I appreciate the feedback! When I just had the Betta, it was my local pet store that recommended the Minnows so I am a bit surprised to hear about the cool water requirements. I have had all of these guys in the 2.5 gallon for over a month and they seem to be getting along as far as I can see. One of the minnows does have it's mouth permanently open with a swollen bottom lip, so I'm not sure what's going on there.

Welcome to Fishlore. If you will spend some time reading earlier posts you will discover hundreds of LFS giving bad information. Not your fault, most take the stores advice when they first start out but once you gain some knowledge from this site you won't need to depend on them.

Remember their first goal is to sell.

 

As PPs have said, your community of critters has different care requirements. White clouds are zippy little cold water fish. They like a lot of horizontal space. The betta prefers a warmer, calmer environment, and will gladly use as much swim space as you can provide him. I've kept African dwarf frogs in a variety of aquariums. They're pretty tolerant, but don't put them in a tall tank because it uses up a lot of their energy swimming to the top to get food.

 

Ideally a Betta should be in at least a 5 gallon heated, filtered cycle tank. (if you are unaware of the nitrogen cycle click the words to be taken to article). I think the WCMM may be a schooling fish (which would require you to have at least 5), and I'm not sure, but they may require a 10 gallon minimum (but they may require a larger tank)

Bettas can happily live in a 2.5 gallon by themselves. You could keep that for the betta, get at least a 5 gal for the frogs, and get a 20 gal long for the minnows. Alternatively, you can rehome the frogs and the minnows and stick with your betta in the 2.5

 

I do agree that a betta can live in a 2.5 gallon tank, but a 5 gallon is much preferred. Especially for a Plakat or Crowntail, since they are much more mobile due to having much less finnage.

 

Which Tank Would You Choose?

Hey all, I am looking to upgrade my son's aquarium from a 2.5 Gallon. It currently houses 1 male Betta, 2 Minnows and 2 African Dwarf Frogs and maybe more to come. Below are the option from my local Petsmart in Canada. I am still torn between a 10 or 20 Gallon. The 10 looks like it would be okay but I like the larger size of the 20....my wife not so much lol. I am trying to keep the budget below $100.

Which of these would you suggest as the best deal:









Thanks for your help!

 

The betta and the frogs each belong in their own tanks. Bettas can be aggressive with tankmates, especially in tanks smaller than 20g. African dwarf frogs have poor vision and they will be outcompeted easily for food and can starve off as a result. I would keep the betta in the 2.5 gallon you have now, get a 5 gallon for the frogs, and maybe get a 10 gallon for the minnows

 

I would recommend the 20 gallon. At petsmart they run monthly "dollar per gallon" sales which would allow you to get a $20 tank. It is often cheaper to buy the supplies separate in the long run, as opposed to in a kit- as they often skimp on the supplies inside. I would recommend a filter recommended for 30 or more gallons as it will keep the tank water much clearer ( I always recommend aquaclear, but that's just my opinion) . You may want to put a sponge on the filter intake tube just as a safety measure for the dwarf frogs. And lastly make sure the surface your placing the tank on is sturdy.

Best of luck. Let me know if you have any other questions Would love to see the end product!

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I would recommend the 20 gallon. At petsmart they run monthly "dollar per gallon" sales which would allow you to get a $20 tank. It is often cheaper to buy the supplies separate in the long run, as opposed to in a kit- as they often skimp on the supplies inside. I would recommend a filter recommended for 30 or more gallons as it will keep the tank water much clearer ( I always recommend aquaclear, but that's just my opinion) . You may want to put a sponge on the filter intake tube just as a safety measure for the dwarf frogs. And lastly make sure the surface your placing the tank on is sturdy.

Best of luck. Let me know if you have any other questions Would love to see the end product!

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Thanks for the replies! I'm happy to say that all of the species are living in harmony. The Betta is a gentle thing and the frogs just play along the bottom. I thought about purchasing piece by piece but thought this would be much more expensive. The hood and lights alone seem to be super pricey!

15 Gallon Tank - $30
Filter: $30?
Heater: $40?
Hood: $25?
Light: $50?

Unfortunately the Petsmart locations here in Ontario don't haver the dollar per gallon events,

 

Are there any other petstores nearby? I think Petco may run the sale as well... But if you choose the kit be sure to research all the pieces separately and check their reviews. Most importantly the lights, filter and heater. When I first started I purchased a 10 gallon kit I had to upgrade just about everything just a few months after :-/

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Welcome to Fish Lore!!! So nice to meet you!
Since bettas and white cloud mountain minnows have very different temp requirements, I'd rehome the minnows and get the 10 gallon for the betta and the frogs. Or, you could TRY getting the 20 gallon and get some more tank mates of some sort, something peaceful and not flashy.

If you choose to go with the Top Fin 20g, I must warn you that that's the one I got, and the filter, hood, and heater all suck. I've had to replace the heater due to a recall, the lid falls into the water every time I lift it, and the filter isn't strong enough so I have to get a new one, probably next month.

If you go with a 10g, I'd probably try the Marineland one, even though I've never used that brand, it's gotta be better than Top Fin.

Just my thoughts.

 

imo just get the aqueon 13 gallon widescreen, top fin is totally and unless you have plants that need high lighting aqueon bulbs suffice, I have a 10 gallon aqueon right across the room that's currently growing anubias and java fern

Aqueon > Topfin, Aqueon products are actually worth it in kit. My heater lasted 2 years before I accidentally broke it.

 

Hi!
I just want to also point out that sometimes you can do DIY pieces to save money as well. I just got some plexiglass from a craft store and used it to make a really cheap lid for my 10 gallon, and I have a clamp-on light that I already owned and am using it for the tank as well. So if you're on a tight budget, always remember you can get creative with some things to save money!

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Or there is always the craigslist option. Many times people are moving and trying to get rid of their tank - everything included for a great price! That's how I got my 55 gallon.

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I think you should just get rid of the minnows (they need different water temperatures than the betta) And you can keep the frogs with the betta, I heard they work just fine together.

But, to cater to the future health of the frogs, don't get the marineland 20 gallon, or the aqueon.

See African dwarf frogs need to get air, and they can't swim very well, and so most people recommend to have the designated tank be under 12 inches, but I think they will live with it being a LITTLE higher. I myself own the marineland tank, and it is a 20 high model, that makes it 18 inches tall, if I'm correct. So I recommend buying a tank that is under 16 inches tall, so the frogs can actually make it to the top, and so they don't drown. However if there are no other options, try out the 20 high and see if it works.

You could also buy a 5 gallon starter kit, put the frogs in the 5, get rid of the minnows, and put the betta in the 2.5 gallon tank you have.

 

Go for the biggest tank you can.
If you are in no hurry, you might want to wait until Petco has their $1.00 a gallon sale.

This way, even if you buy everything separate, you will save a lot

 

Agreed with Junne. The bigger the better.

As mentioned, your ADFs will get out competed for food pretty easily. Your Minnows and your Betta require very different temperatures, and none of the tanks you are suggesting are big enough for your Minnows. I suggest you take a good look at your stocking.

On a side note - Betta's are not "gentle" creatures. Everything may appear fine when you look at the tank, but give it time.

 

I have merged your threads. Please start only one thread per topic