Things You Did As A Beginner That You Regret? - Page 2

[Fahn]

I'm thinking of the regular white crayfish! You have the dwarf white? Never seen one before

Mine are dwarf orange, but I'd also like a pair of dwarf blue. Might add 2-3 more females to my current tank (10 gallons) to see if I can get some berried females.

 

[Fishaholic58]

Sarah73 not dwarf crays!

Dwarf crayfish stay around an inch and a half fully grown. They are, unlike larger crays, planted tank safe, and mine live with my cherry and blue shrimp (I know, I'm mixing neo colors, but I'm not trying to breed for profit so I don't care).

They are relatively peaceful, though they do chase off shrimp that are in their way. I feed mine HikarI Crab Cuisine, HikarI Algae Wafers, Fluval Bug Bites for Small Fish, NLS Small Fish Formula, frozen bloodworms, frozen brine, frozen mysis, and fresh veggies and fruits, to ensure they get a varied diet.

They prefer cooler water with plenty of places to hide. They are really good at climbing as well and love to hang out in floating plant roots.

Wow that’s awesome! 1 and a half inches is perfect. Found a very nice looking vanilla lobster but he was shy and they grow huge. Saw some tangerine lobster signs but none were in the tanks. I’ll consider some. Do they like to be in pairs, and will they nip at my guppies or minnows?

 

[Sarah73]

Mine are dwarf orange, but I'd also like a pair of dwarf blue. Might add 2-3 more females to my current tank (10 gallons) to see if I can get some berried females.

Oh Yes!

 

[Fahn]

Wow that’s awesome! 1 and a half inches is perfect. Found a very nice looking vanilla lobster but he was shy and they grow huge. Saw some tangerine lobster signs but none were in the tanks. I’ll consider some. Do they like to be in pairs, and will they nip at my guppies or minnows?

I've heard they may nip at long-finned fish, so keep that in mind.

 

[Fishaholic58]

I've heard they may nip at long-finned fish, so keep that in mind.

I do have orandas.... hmmm maybe not. I’ll just pick up some more rosy minnows. They are very neat crawdads though!

 

[Sarah73]

They will really nip and try to kill any fish if not fed well enough.

 

[Fahn]

I do have orandas.... hmmm maybe not. I’ll just pick up some more rosy minnows. They are very neat crawdads though!

I just realized you asked if I had tangerine crays, my mistake, they are not. I just said yes not thinking because they're orange.

They are Mexican dwarf crayfish.

 

[Sarah73]

I just realized you asked if I had tangerine crays, my mistake, they are not. I just said yes not thinking because they're orange.

They are Mexican dwarf crayfish.

Yeah I figured since they were in a 10 gallon. Have you tried feeding them earth worms? Mine used to LOVE the hunt.

 

[ash1999]

I had a glofish tank as a child and had numerous fish get sucked up into the filter intake and die, only to be noticed the next morning when one was missing from the daily head count.

 

[Fishaholic58]

I just realized you asked if I had tangerine crays, my mistake, they are not. I just said yes not thinking because they're orange.

They are Mexican dwarf crayfish.

Did you have to order them?

 

[Fahn]

Did you have to order them?

The store I work at gets them regularly, I'm in the process of trying to breed them alongside cherries in a 30 gallon at work. Lots of cherry babies but no crayfish babies yet.

 

[goldface]

Dwarf Mexican Crays are great. I’m surprised they’re not more popular. Here’s mine climbing through the jungle.

Ok, so as far as beginner regrets, when I was a little boy, I kept a baby flounder in a critter keeper. I also kept a Bala Shark (I think) in one as well. I thought it was cool at the time. And they actually ate quite voraciously too, but you wouldn’t think that in such a tiny cage.

Here is another one. I kept a Fantail and a Red Bellied Piranha together. Surprisingly the goldfish lived for 7-8 yrs before the piranha decided to finally eat it. I’d say that would be my greatest regret in fish-keeping. I still wonder how long that fish could have lived if it didn’t meet such an untimely and gruesome demise.

 

[Vijay]

1. Keeping a goldfish
2. Angels in a 2 feet long and 1 feet deep tank
3. Buying a pair of guppies and thinking I was too cool to breed them
4. Not running an auto top off/not regularly top off and creating salt marks on the glass
5. Not knowing anything about TDS, pH, temp, etc
6. Not growing plants in aquarium
7. Not treating aquarium plants for snails
8. Knowing nothing about cycling the tank
9. Allowing my dad to purchase fishes (those two tiger barbs will be given away if it is not returned was the latest warning)
10. Getting into the hobby and still being addicted to it!

 

[IHaveADogToo]

Not quarantining fish from PetSmart, just plopping them into my established tank.

 

[abc123userabc123]

Got some gold fish and some random black fish as sovenir from children's party. I poured them all into our koI pond. KoI eventually died and in the end when we demolished the pond they were full of big black/grey fish. I think they were tilapia

 

[Betta Gremlin]

Had a betta in a 0.5 tank...
Mom's tank broke and I added a second. They were both females and surprisingly didn't fight (probably because they didn't want to waste the energy)
Soon got Vanilla (the surviving girl) into a 5 gallon.

Now this one is pretty bad.
Had three common goldfish in a bowl. Decided, hey, this seems a bit too small, let's get a 10 gallon.
We added 6 neon tetras, 3 male guppies, a single cory cat, and a chinese algae eater as well.
Huge, huge mistake.

 

[Fanatic]

I had five neon tetras, and three ghost shrimp in a one gallon tank, which was my biggest mistake ops:
I also forgot to change my betta’s water a while back and it got very dirty. I am still a bit forgetful about when water changes are due.

 

[Dch48]

Got some gold fish and some random black fish as sovenir from children's party. I poured them all into our koI pond. KoI eventually died and in the end when we demolished the pond they were full of big black/grey fish. I think they were tilapia

I bet they were some kind of Carp.

 

[Somthing creative]

I’m still a beginner. I used labeled aquatic plastic plants from pet smart and they are doing great. I also got my fish from there. I tried to get some fish from petco thinking it would be the same but sadly they died within a week or two. I’ve had a few mollies that have died before we had a bubble rock. And then a small number of guppies. We replace them and the max number I’ve had in my tank at a time is 7. It is a ten gallon and I like to go with the 1in-1gallon rule. I have two of the original guppies and three new ones (newish I’ve had them a month) I also got a snail. I have a filter, heater, bubble rock, and, since the water seems to evaporate so much, I add some more conditioned water that has sat over night like every week but not water changes per say. I have little sculptures For them to hide under. Is there any mistake I am doing that killed my old fish?? I don’t Corentine Cause I didn’t know you had to. Oh and I would like to point out I am pretty young. I’m guessing most people on here are at least collage age at least. This is not my case so is there any tips I can get to help me?

 

[Fishaholic58]

I’m still a beginner. I used labeled aquatic plastic plants from pet smart and they are doing great. I also got my fish from there. I tried to get some fish from petco thinking it would be the same but sadly they died within a week or two. I’ve had a few mollies that have died before we had a bubble rock. And then a small number of guppies. We replace them and the max number I’ve had in my tank at a time is 7. It is a ten gallon and I like to go with the 1in-1gallon rule. I have two of the original guppies and three new ones (newish I’ve had them a month) I also got a snail. I have a filter, heater, bubble rock, and, since the water seems to evaporate so much, I add some more conditioned water that has sat over night like every week but not water changes per say. I have little sculptures For them to hide under. Is there any mistake I am doing that killed my old fish?? I don’t Corentine Cause I didn’t know you had to. Oh and I would like to point out I am pretty young. I’m guessing most people on here are at least collage age at least. This is not my case so is there any tips I can get to help me?

It may be the water quality. Bring your water to the pet store to check it. Also, before you put them in, did you float the bags on the waters surface?

 

[Isabelle]

I shoved 5 white skirt tetras and a 2 in. albino pleco in a 7 gallon fish tank, but the fish lasted more than a year

 

[Afriel]

I just learned a new stupid lesson. I have a 90gal with 5 weather loaches and 2 goldfish. Well, I would put algae wafers in for the loaches to pick at and for the snails. My calico fantail is a nicely sized monster and is very gluttonous. It didn't even occur to me that her mouth was big enough to eat a whole wafer, now I know. I also re-learned that those wafers expand...Found her bloated and bopping around the tank, poor dear. Started salt baths and peas. Then she got an angry looking red spot on her, looked septic. Added methyl baths to the routine. Eventually septicemia went away and I stopped methyl baths. Finally, she seems to have decreased her bloat, but now she hangs out on the bottom of the tank. However, when she tries, she can swim upright for a few seconds and go up, but then she flips and sinks. Hoping that the reduced bloat is a good sign that she'll recover from her bladder disease. I've had her about 3 years now, would hate to see her go...

 

[DestinyStars]

Ugh when I had my first tank my 6 year old little girl mind never thought about what should go into a tank and what shouldn't. So I decorated my tank with toys. My poor Oscars, betta, and gouramis, and tad poles (not compatible at all) were swimming with barbies, pony's, and pretty much any fish toy I had.

 

[Cheesewoman]

My biggest mistake was not cycling my tank before putting my first Betta in it with 6 cories. He ended up dying after a couple of weeks from ammonia poisoning (I had been trying to cycle this tank for months and got impatient) I cried over it... What a shame it seems to be Bettas that seem to get the worst luck with beginners... I have a new one now and he is wonderful, doing really well in his - cycled - 5gal (although I too got live plants with a snail infestation, I wish he'd eat some of them jeez!!)

 

[JenniferB]

I told a guy who had a crush on me at school in 9th grade that I wanted fish for Christmas. He showed up at my house with a fishbowl.....with 10 goldfish in it. Freezing cold water. 10 goldfish. In a bowl. I legitimately tried to keep them. Even got them a heater, because I had no idea that some fish were cool water fish. This fiasco lasted a few weeks. I even named them. Water changes consisted of me dumping half the water out and refilling straight from the tap. No conditioner. Most died and I think I gave the last few away to some other poor sucker.

I always buy my plants from the petsmart or Petco plastic tubes, or from online tissue culture. I don't want snails. I don't care how beneficial they are, I don't care if they are the best thing since sliced bread......I highly dislike them. I have nightmares about them escaping the tank. I hate them. Might be because my first job was as an open water lifeguard at a lake. Every morning we had to get in the water around our dock and pick out all the snails on the ground so no one would step on them and get cut. It freaked me out and I have hated snails ever since. So.....no plants out of tanks for me as of yet. Though I REALLY really want a particular plant that I have never seen tissue culture.....and I am back and forth with myself about taking the risk.

 

[Ryushokan]

1) I put Guppies in a 10 gallon an hour after setting it up, if that. and a Plecostomus.
2) I thought, lets put dirt from the yard in as substrate, managed to soft and sterilize, it wasn't fun putting in an already full 20 gallon though! Tanks great now though.
3) Bought my brother a tank (He moved and ditched me with the fish)

I could go on forever.

 

[Discus-Tang]

I’m still a beginner. I used labeled aquatic plastic plants from pet smart and they are doing great. I also got my fish from there. I tried to get some fish from petco thinking it would be the same but sadly they died within a week or two. I’ve had a few mollies that have died before we had a bubble rock. And then a small number of guppies. We replace them and the max number I’ve had in my tank at a time is 7. It is a ten gallon and I like to go with the 1in-1gallon rule. I have two of the original guppies and three new ones (newish I’ve had them a month) I also got a snail. I have a filter, heater, bubble rock, and, since the water seems to evaporate so much, I add some more conditioned water that has sat over night like every week but not water changes per say. I have little sculptures For them to hide under. Is there any mistake I am doing that killed my old fish?? I don’t Corentine Cause I didn’t know you had to. Oh and I would like to point out I am pretty young. I’m guessing most people on here are at least collage age at least. This is not my case so is there any tips I can get to help me?

I would think it was water quality. Ammonia is probably through the roof without water chanes.You should get the API Master Test Kit at your lfs. While you're there, drop off the 1" per gallon rule It's useless.

Best of luck

 

[Aquariaddict]

Not being consistent with water changes! That's a big one. When I first started out, I'd clean my tanks as "they appeared dirty". Doesn't work that way. Somehow nothing died, and I didn't pay the price the hard way. Now looking back it's a total facepalm.

Also just not properly understanding the nitrogen cycle and that there's an aerobic AND an anaerobic side to things. Soluble nitrogen slowly builds and has to go somewhere. Most folks only understand up to the conversion of nitrates, but there's even more. I had not even the slightest clue about the cycle in general. Again, nothing died and I don't really know how. Especially with my spotty maintenance ettiquite.

 

[Stinna]

At 13 years old I kept a pair of adult gold gouramis in a 54 L starter kit tank and was confused as to why they kept beating each other up. I had the female for a solid couple of years though, which is a mystery to me nowadays. Thankfully, I know better now. Yikes.

 

[Andy S]

I’m still a beginner. I used labeled aquatic plastic plants from pet smart and they are doing great. I also got my fish from there. I tried to get some fish from petco thinking it would be the same but sadly they died within a week or two. I’ve had a few mollies that have died before we had a bubble rock. And then a small number of guppies. We replace them and the max number I’ve had in my tank at a time is 7. It is a ten gallon and I like to go with the 1in-1gallon rule. I have two of the original guppies and three new ones (newish I’ve had them a month) I also got a snail. I have a filter, heater, bubble rock, and, since the water seems to evaporate so much, I add some more conditioned water that has sat over night like every week but not water changes per say. I have little sculptures For them to hide under. Is there any mistake I am doing that killed my old fish?? I don’t Corentine Cause I didn’t know you had to. Oh and I would like to point out I am pretty young. I’m guessing most people on here are at least collage age at least. This is not my case so is there any tips I can get to help me?

Check your water parameters. You say that you are suffering excessive evaporation and you are topping up with conditioned water but not doing water changes. Problem may be that when the water evaporates it is just the water you are losing, you are still retaining all of the chemicals both good and bad in the water that's left behind. The more evaporation you get the more concentrated those chemicals become. Ideally you should be topping off with RO water, something with no chemicals. That would just replace the water but not add any chemicals, you would just be diluting it back to where it should be. If you are not doing water changes the chemical content will gradually build up.

 

[BlackNotebookTanks]

Putting white cloud mountain minnows in a very warm tropical tank

 

[siameseAmethyst]

Same with me for number 3. Never getting plants from Petsmart again. Petco has a big tank with just plants in it. That’s what I’m going to get when these fake aquatic plants from those white containers die.

What do you mean by fake aquatic plants? I didn't know it mattered where or how one got aquatic plants. Tell me? Maybe that will explain why some plants won't grow in my 20 gallon

 

[WriterDayAndNight]

Kept a poor common goldfish in a ten gallon tank poor Goldie somehow lasted 8 years

 

[Fishaholic58]

What do you mean by fake aquatic plants? I didn't know it mattered where or how one got aquatic plants. Tell me? Maybe that will explain why some plants won't grow in my 20 gallon

When I got mine from the tubes it wasn’t fully submersible and the roots were rotting and slowly ruining my tank. I searched to see what I was doing wrong but it turns out that it wasn’t a true aquatic plant. It does tell you on the packaging if it is fully submersible or not, but in this case it did say fully submersible for the ribbon but it isn’t true. I’d buy the plants that are already in water in the tanks, just not the lucky bamboo.

 

[Somthing creative]

It may be the water quality. Bring your water to the pet store to check it. Also, before you put them in, did you float the bags on the waters surface?

Yes I accumulated them

 

[Somthing creative]

Check your water parameters. You say that you are suffering excessive evaporation and you are topping up with conditioned water but not doing water changes. Problem may be that when the water evaporates it is just the water you are losing, you are still retaining all of the chemicals both good and bad in the water that's left behind. The more evaporation you get the more concentrated those chemicals become. Ideally you should be topping off with RO water, something with no chemicals. That would just replace the water but not add any chemicals, you would just be diluting it back to where it should be. If you are not doing water changes the chemical content will gradually build up.

I have ran out of conditioner (it was a small container) so now I let the water sit a while before adding it and no more have died so far. I recently learned that mollies are pretty picky and sensitive fish so that might be why.

My mom also got me two more fish (two of my guppies I can’t remember if I mentioned them but it’s two males) I was worried because my other females had recently died so I had one female to tow males then the two new males came along. I was worried they would bother her to much and hurt or stress her. She is pregenant now but they actually seem ok. She seems happy and I don’t really notice them bothering her at all. When they do chase her they might go half way across the tank then just loose interest so that’s good.

Also I read that light is good for the babies spines??? But I don’t have a lid or light for them. Is that something I should invest in???

 

[Accents]

The stupidest thing I've ever done was get too many large, incompatible fish that I love but now have to find a way to properly provide for, including begging forfor entire new tank or rehoming several. ://

 

[Zoomo]

For me, the single biggest regret I have is buying my son the blue betta that started my descent into madness. He is not young, he and his GF promised me they would take care of it. We had no idea its needs, we bought a bowl, food, and water conditioner, store didn't tell me (it was Walmart). Anywho, 3 months later, after yelling at him constantly to clean his bowl out, did you feed your fish, etc., I stole him. He had not been fed in over 2 weeks and his bowl looked green and disgusting and smelled. This started my research, descent into my psychosis for fish, and many hundreds of dollars later, maybe even a thousand or two, I have 4 bettas, and a 40 gallon tank, tons of filters in my closet, like 6 bottles of food per type of fish, so many supplies, gravel, stuff for the tanks, I have no more room to store it, a Python, and it never ends, and now I am looking into getting a new rack so I can have pea puffers, and a tank for babies if my livebearers have babies, and one for the pest snails I do not want to kill.

I can't take it any more. This hobby is so expensive, time consuming, labor intensive (for a lady with a really bad back injury and find it very difficult to do the maintenance they require and need help from my son(s), BUT, I lift the lid to the tank, put my finger in there, and all my fish swim up to greet me.

They are so cute.