# What can I keep in my tanks?



## ashrussell4190 (May 24, 2010)

Hi guys 
I am looking for advice as to what I can keep in my tanks...

I have a 23 litre/5 gal tank and a 64 litre/14gal

Thinking of looking for a home for the fish I have in these tanks as they are too big for the tank....


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## Doodle (Aug 7, 2008)

gutted, i take it that it was a no about the pond??


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## Doodle (Aug 7, 2008)

also, in a 5g tank you could get a betta?? they are v pretty fish.. :2thumb:

for the 64L tank i would get shrimp... but im already doing that with my 55L tank! :lol2:

you could get a load of tetras and guppies? nice and colourful? the other guys on here will be able to advise you better i figure ;-)


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## ashrussell4190 (May 24, 2010)

It's a no to a pond. Its understandable as I am 20 now and away to go into my 4th year at uni so will probably be moving out within the next couple years... just not practical plus my parents won't look after it when I've left.

I have a single fan tail in my 23 litre... would moving him into my 64 litre do him for the rest of his days?

kind regards

Ashley


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## Doodle (Aug 7, 2008)

ashrussell4190 said:


> It's a no to a pond. Its understandable as I am 20 now and away to go into my 4th year at uni so will probably be moving out within the next couple years... just not practical plus my parents won't look after it when I've left.
> 
> I have a single fan tail in my 23 litre... would moving him into my 64 litre do him for the rest of his days?
> 
> ...


Yeah, fair enough about the pond! as for the tank req. for the fantail, i would post that on your other thread as i honestly dont know, and the peeps who do are more likely to check the other thread before this one : victory:

At a guess though, i would say its deffinatly the best of the 2 tanks for him, but i dont know if its big enough...


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## henford30 (Jul 20, 2010)

wow... i too love fishes... and am planning to get a tank for my home... wat kind of fishes would be ok to maintain for beginners


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## Assaye (Sep 23, 2009)

ashrussell4190 said:


> It's a no to a pond. Its understandable as I am 20 now and away to go into my 4th year at uni so will probably be moving out within the next couple years... just not practical plus my parents won't look after it when I've left.
> 
> I have a single fan tail in my 23 litre... would moving him into my 64 litre do him for the rest of his days?
> 
> ...


It's not big enough, no. 

You need at least 90 litres for a _small _fantail. A fantail can reach 6-10 inches. If it grew to 8-10 inches, you'd need to be getting a 150 litre tank for it. Each additional fancy goldfish would need an extra 40-60 litres and you do need to keep goldfish in small groups - pairs or trios - as they are social fish and will suffer if kept in isolation. 

I know it's really hard to let go of pets but if this was a large dog and all you could provide was a small house with no garden and no walks, you'd see that it really wasn't fair. Or say an iguana in a 2-3 foot viv. This is the same. Do some local research, find someone with a pond to take the bigger fish (there will be someone) and get yourself a 30-40 gallon tank for the fantail (and a friend for it) or find someone who can provide that. 

I know it's tough =(


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## goldie1212 (Mar 5, 2010)

Assaye said:


> It's not big enough, no.
> 
> You need at least 90 litres for a _small _fantail. A fantail can reach 6-10 inches. If it grew to 8-10 inches, you'd need to be getting a 150 litre tank for it. Each additional fancy goldfish would need an extra 40-60 litres and you do need to keep goldfish in small groups - pairs or trios - as they are social fish and will suffer if kept in isolation.
> 
> ...


+1 on this. do whats best for the fish. if i lived closer it could come and live in my 440L tank with my other fancies. hopefully you will find a good new home for it asap.


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## ashrussell4190 (May 24, 2010)

Hi all a wee update

My wee fan tail went into the pond as well. He looked tiny but amazing in the pond he was swimming around quite the thing with all the other fish.
I feel glad that the pond keeper was able to take him. She is away to build a bigger pond in her garden and eventually connect the two ponds together over time.

All is now well and I couldn't be happier for my wee guys


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## Assaye (Sep 23, 2009)

ashrussell4190 said:


> Hi all a wee update
> 
> My wee fan tail went into the pond as well. He looked tiny but amazing in the pond he was swimming around quite the thing with all the other fish.
> I feel glad that the pond keeper was able to take him. She is away to build a bigger pond in her garden and eventually connect the two ponds together over time.
> ...


Just ask her to keep an eye on him that he isn't bullied. He'll need to come out of the pond in the autumn/winter but there is plenty of time for you two to sort a tank for that : victory:

Sounds like you got your other goldfish into the pond as well, that is excellent news.


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## goldie1212 (Mar 5, 2010)

i personally wouldnt have put a fantail into a pond but for the warmer months as long as it gets enough food and isnt harrassed by the commons it should be fine. good news on the others going into a pond though :2thumb:


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## ashrussell4190 (May 24, 2010)

The pond owner has more fan tails in the pond as well  don't worry he isn't the only one out there 

I got new fish for my tank. The lady who my fish went to owns 3 tropical tanks and her fish had given birth to babies. 

I went up later at night approx 7 o clock (left my tank time to settle and heat up) and she gave me 8 guppies and 2 sword tails as she never wanted to leave me with an empty tank lol.

Unsure of sexes yet as they are quite young but they are pretty little things


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## Doodle (Aug 7, 2008)

PICS PICS PICS!!!lol :mf_dribble::mf_dribble::mf_dribble:


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## ashrussell4190 (May 24, 2010)

Hi heres pics 





































betta tank










Bottom pic is *un-finished* male betta tank (getting it all to himself!) I am going to get more plants for the back and a piece of bogwood (currently soaking) for the centre space. 

Going to add bogwood to the main tank once it has done soaking probably in a few weeks removing the rocks/stones I think. 
Panda corys (probably get 3 or 4) are on my list for the main tank too because they are so cute! I won't get them until the bogwood is in though as they need it to hide away from the rest of the tank. 

Thinking about getting some cardinal tetras and perhaps a pair of dwarf gourami (these fish have been suggested to me by practical fishkeeping forum)


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## Doodle (Aug 7, 2008)

ashrussell4190 said:


> Hi heres pics
> 
> image
> 
> ...


 
Those tanks look sick mate! :mf_dribble:

i will be getting pics of my tank up after next weekend when im buying the rest of the plants !! am still looking for the shrimp i want tho.. its proving very difficult!lol


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## ashrussell4190 (May 24, 2010)

Main tank will look better after I get more fish into it lol

small tank...will look betta when the betta is in lol couldn't resist! 

But yes both will look better once they are complete


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## Assaye (Sep 23, 2009)

Keep a close eye on your ammonia and nitrite :thumb:

Looks great. The betta tank will be excellent when you have some more plants in there. 

Be careful with dwarf gourami as they often carry bacteria diseases and tend to be really badly bred. If you can, get them from a local breeder or a friend with fish instead of from a shop. I would personally avoid them and go for some honey gourami instead. 

If you can replace the put and artificial rocks in the betta tank with a smooth cave and some bog wood, do so. Bettas can very easily rip their fins on decorations, even things like plastic plants. Always get silk or live plants for bettas. You could pop those two decorations in the main tank. 

Looking good though!


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## ashrussell4190 (May 24, 2010)

The artificial rock on the left is actually really smooth I have had it for years coming to think of it 

The pot thing is kinda raggy so might take that out.

The dwarf sword plant is a silk one was gonna get more of them as I'm a bit funny when it comes to live plants (never had them before) 

What fish would you recommend replacing gouramis all together? 

I like them but my friends don't keep fish (they say they are boring lol!) I don't think there are any local breeders... just the house of pisces but I'm certain their fish are all imports.

Ashley


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## Assaye (Sep 23, 2009)

ashrussell4190 said:


> The artificial rock on the left is actually really smooth I have had it for years coming to think of it
> 
> The pot thing is kinda raggy so might take that out.
> 
> ...


It's just the dwarfs that are really bad. 

You could try a trio of betta imbellis - 1M, 2F. They're a relative of betta splendens but not as aggressive. They're known as the "peaceful betta". Males are very pretty with blue and red fins. 

What about some more swordtails? Swordtails should be kept in single sex groups or with a ration of 3 females per male. If you have a male and female swordtail at the moment then get a couple more females.


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## ashrussell4190 (May 24, 2010)

I don't know what sex my sword tails are... when (age wise) can you usually sex them? No sword has developed yet and I dunno how old my fish are... sorry for being unhelpful!

LFS doesn't stock peaceful bettas


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## Assaye (Sep 23, 2009)

ashrussell4190 said:


> I don't know what sex my sword tails are... when (age wise) can you usually sex them? No sword has developed yet and I dunno how old my fish are... sorry for being unhelpful!
> 
> LFS doesn't stock peaceful bettas


This is a female:










Her anal fin (the on the bottom at the back) is just a regular fin. 

This is a male:










See the 'fin' circled? This is effectively the fish's penis. It doesn't look much like a fin, lol. 

The males develop swords as they mature.


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## ashrussell4190 (May 24, 2010)

I think I may have two girls :S


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## ashrussell4190 (May 24, 2010)

yep definately looking at my two they look the same as the one at the top. 

I have heard that swordies have a good knack at hiding their visual sexual appearance until later on since they don't want more mature males battering them... don't know if its true but since my two came from a large community tank this may be the case... but to me they both look female


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## ashrussell4190 (May 24, 2010)

Fishkeeping - Caresheets - Cockatoo Dwarf Cichlid (Crested Dwarf Cichlid) - Apistogramma Cacatuoides

I like this wee fella 

Any opinions on them ?

Ashley


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## Assaye (Sep 23, 2009)

ashrussell4190 said:


> Fishkeeping - Caresheets - Cockatoo Dwarf Cichlid (Crested Dwarf Cichlid) - Apistogramma Cacatuoides
> 
> I like this wee fella
> 
> ...


Great little cichlid. They do best in soft water (the opposite of what swordtails, platies and guppies like). 

Can be a little boisterous but generally considered good community fish. 

If you don't get any other cichlids you could have a male apisto in your tank, assuming your water isn't really hard.


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## ashrussell4190 (May 24, 2010)

My tank water is just conditioned tap water... so I don't think it will be that hard (scottish water is softer than English as far as I am aware)
My guppies and swordies seem to be really happy in the water though so no worries about them  I think I will get just the one dwarf cichlid for my tank. It's gonna look good!

Just an update as to what I have:

8 guppies - most appear to be female, there is one visible male getting all his colours

2 sword tails - certain they are female


Considering:

a small shoal of panda corys (roughly 6 of them)

a small shoal of cardinal tetras - again roughly 6

Cockatoo cichlid

Couple more male guppies - a big maybe...


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## Assaye (Sep 23, 2009)

ashrussell4190 said:


> My tank water is just conditioned tap water... so I don't think it will be that hard (scottish water is softer than English as far as I am aware)
> My guppies and swordies seem to be really happy in the water though so no worries about them  I think I will get just the one dwarf cichlid for my tank. It's gonna look good!
> 
> Just an update as to what I have:
> ...


Sounds brilliant! Don't get more guppies, though. Having loads of females to one male is great as it means a) the females don't get too stressed and b) you don't get too many babies. 

Guppies breed like rabbits, lol!

Remember to add fish in small groups (2-3) over several weeks and test, test, test you water!


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## ashrussell4190 (May 24, 2010)

:2thumb: yeah.... definately no more guppies lol!!

I definately have the one male as he was chasing everyone around the tank flashing his fins hehe wee poser!

Definately looking forward to getting more fishies... 

Will settle for this gorgeous bunch
Guppies x8 - already settled
Swordies x2 - already settled

Corys x6
Cardinal tetra x6
Dwarf cockatoo cichlid x1

And thats it... hoping to introduce some corys/tetras tomorrow if all goes to plan. Will need to get a water testing kit as I don't have one.

Oh and I spent £17 on bogwood last week and £35 today on plant/decorations... pricey but omg the tanks look amazing :flrt: will get pics up of my tanks tomorrow/wednesday.


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## Assaye (Sep 23, 2009)

ashrussell4190 said:


> :2thumb: yeah.... definately no more guppies lol!!
> 
> I definately have the one male as he was chasing everyone around the tank flashing his fins hehe wee poser!
> 
> ...


Consider adding a second filter with that lot. Sounds pretty good, though. Leave the cardinals until last, just to make sure the tank can cope with them. It'll be a pretty heavily stocked tank but I think it will be doable. I think.


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## ashrussell4190 (May 24, 2010)

Hi Assaye

After looking around the house of pisces website I thought it was going to be wonderful... and all I can say was... I wrong

Dead fish in tanks 
a dead pufferfish with no fins/half a head - I don't even know if it was dead... but for it's sake I'd hope so :/
cannibalistic/stressed out fish in a good few tanks
half a skeleton floating around in a tank

I was sickened.

Money is going elsewhere and fish stock plans will be changing if I can't source them.

On a happier note I managed to get a photo of how my main tank is looking now. To me it looks amazing lol but then again I'm easily pleased!

Sorry about window reflections... 

Here it is:


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## Lee2211 (Jan 28, 2010)

ashrussell4190 said:


> Hi Assaye
> 
> After looking around the house of pisces website I thought it was going to be wonderful... and all I can say was... I wrong
> 
> ...


:gasp: that. looks. incredible.

Are they live plants?

It looks great, well done :no1:


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## Assaye (Sep 23, 2009)

It's looking really good! Sorry about that lfs, hopefully you can find somewhere near you that is OK. 

You could always see if anyone on here sells fish and maybe join a fish keeping forum and see if anyone there is selling. Might cost you extra in postage.


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## ashrussell4190 (May 24, 2010)

@ Lee2211 

Thank you  They are fake plants, I'm not sure how to keep a tank with real plants lol! I'm sure there is more to it than sticking them in the gravel like plastic/silk ones (correct me if I am wrong!) 

But I feel the ones I have do the job very nicely : victory:


@ Assaye 

Thank you as well  Believe it or not I went to Dobbies for a look. Their fish section was really nice and a look turned out to be me spending more money lol! I got 3 Corys (not pandas but punctatus) from there. They are the cutest wee things I have ever seen!
They didn't have cockatoo cichlids so reverted back to gouramis as I liked the stock they had in just as much - healthy surroundings and healthy fish are more important!


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## Lee2211 (Jan 28, 2010)

ashrussell4190 said:


> @ Lee2211
> 
> Thank you  They are fake plants, I'm not sure how to keep a tank with real plants lol! I'm sure there is more to it than sticking them in the gravel like plastic/silk ones (correct me if I am wrong!)
> 
> ...


There is a lot more to it than that lol, as I'm finding out on my quest for a planted tank. But once you've got everything set-up and sorted, it's just a routine thing really. Plus it'll look absolutely amazing if you do it right, and I've always been one for a sense of accomplishment :2thumb:
The tank's looking good, bet you're well proud : victory:


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## ashrussell4190 (May 24, 2010)

I would love a Takashi Amano tank just for the sheer AWE factor. If you aren't sure on who Takashi Amano is... google google google!!
His tanks and work is amazing! :no1:

I am happy with what I have managed to accomplish in this short space of time


rehoming goldies to a home they needed and deserved as there was no way I was getting permission for a pond - no matter how much I asked! I still miss them following me about in the tank lol but sadly it had to be done.


Researching/asking around about which are compatible species for the fish I was given (guppies and swordies) and then finally getting around to making a proper community.
And finally making sure that the mistake I did in the first place will not happen again - wrong size tank for the fish I had and listening to pet shop staff!!!
: victory:


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## Lee2211 (Jan 28, 2010)

ashrussell4190 said:


> I would love a Takashi Amano tank just for the sheer AWE factor. If you aren't sure on who Takashi Amano is... google google google!!
> His tanks and work is amazing! :no1:
> 
> I am happy with what I have managed to accomplish in this short space of time
> ...


Good on ya, I did the same thing with goldies to :blush:
But now I'm working on an a nice community tank, but I've decided I want a bigger one as my 85L isn't really giving me the room for the fish I want.
But it's getting to be soo difficult to find a decent sized one for a good price :bash:


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## ashrussell4190 (May 24, 2010)

I would like to find someone who hasn't made the mistake of putting goldies into a small tank thinking they will be fine... 

And you are completely right, tanks really aren't cheap... so expensive for what they are... a sealed glass box lol!

What fish are you after?


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## ashrussell4190 (May 24, 2010)

Hi Guys 

Here is a wee update on my betta tank. It is now finished but without fish... waiting until I come back from my holiday so I can look after it.










I am wanting a crown tail that looks similar to this one. It is soo gorgeous!










Or a dark blue/purple one. I might be hard pressed to find one but hey worth a shot!


Ashley


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