Tropical Fish Forum

Think Fish Tropical Fish Forum => Introductions and hello's => Topic started by: Andy64 on July 19, 2018, 10:52:21 PM

Title: New member , new Aquarium
Post by: Andy64 on July 19, 2018, 10:52:21 PM
Hello, thank you for adding me. I have just bought myself a Fluval roma 200, haven't set it up yet as thought i may as well decorate the room first as it`s going to be a bit of a job to move it when it`s up and running. It`s not my first aquarium, but I haven`t had one for a few years now , so will be asking plenty of questions in the near future and will need loads of advice. This is the biggest aquarium i have had, and I just want a nice community aquarium with plenty of colour and activity. Looking forward to learning loads off the members on here and looking forward to getting my tank up and running.
Cheers Andy.
Title: Re: New member , new Aquarium
Post by: fcmf on July 20, 2018, 04:52:17 AM
Welcome :wave: and congrats on the purchase of your aquarium :cheers:

Good plan to do the room-decorating first (especially if any paint is involved, the fumes of which can have an adverse effect on fish), so you're doing things in the right order. A couple of additional "to-dos" in the interim might be to:
* have a read of this article https://forums.thinkfish.co.uk/fishtank-filtration-and-cycling/fishless-cycling-how-to-do-it/
* look at your water/utility website to get an idea of the hardness level of your water (in CaCO3 or German degrees hardness) which should help inform which types of fish's water requirements match those of your water.

Looking forward to being able to help you more / sharing fish-related information in the future.
 :fishy1:
Title: Re: New member , new Aquarium
Post by: Sue on July 20, 2018, 09:20:07 AM
That's a nice sized tank  :)

Once you've found the hardness of your tap water, then all you have to is decide what to get. Personally I think this is the hardest part - there are just so many fish out there to choose from  ;D


There is an alternative to fishless cycling, and that is to plant the tank quite heavily before getting fish. Once you are sure the plants are growing well, add fish a few at a time.
Title: Re: New member , new Aquarium
Post by: Andy64 on July 20, 2018, 10:42:12 PM
Thank you for the welcome and the advice, I do intend to do a fishless cycle and will be adding ammonia to the tank to help get things going. I`m thinking of maybe adding a bristlenose pleco , after a couple of weeks or so as my first fish , is this a sensible choice ?? getting a bit of conflicting advice when looking on the net in general ?? Just to make things clear , I wont add the fish until things with the water are looking OK.
Title: Re: New member , new Aquarium
Post by: TopCookie on July 20, 2018, 11:03:57 PM
Greetings Andy and welcome to the forum...  :D
Title: Re: New member , new Aquarium
Post by: daveyng on July 20, 2018, 11:28:16 PM
Greetings Andy and welcome to the forum.
Title: Re: New member , new Aquarium
Post by: Fishbeard on July 21, 2018, 12:54:11 AM
The others will be able to give a better steer, but you're starting well with a fishless cycle. In a weird way, it actually allows you to fully stock your tank faster than fish-in cycling, so it's definitely a good choice.

To help us suggest fish, we'd need to know your hardness as Sue said. If you can let us know your hardness and water parameters, we can help with fish choices!

That said, I'd steer clear of the Bristlenose Plec for now. I think they're great fish and they do a good job, but until your tank's been running for a while, you'll lack the necessary biofilm and algae growth to sustain a BN properly. They're great community fish and, so long as they're happy with your water, I think you'd be right to have one, but not as your first fish, it's something to come to later down the line.
Title: Re: New member , new Aquarium
Post by: Rustle on July 21, 2018, 07:15:07 AM
Welcome Andy just a word of caution for future. plecs do poop a lot. I prefer otto's myself they are great fun to watch aswell but as said above you need a mature tank of at least 6 to 7 months old.
Title: Re: New member , new Aquarium
Post by: Sue on July 21, 2018, 09:59:41 AM
I`m thinking of maybe adding a bristlenose pleco , after a couple of weeks or so as my first fish

I'm afraid it will take longer than a couple of weeks for a fishless cycle. When I changed the filter in my betta's tank from an internal to a sponge filter I cycled the new filter in my quarantine tank first and it took 7 weeks.

Have you found the ' how to' method ? https://forums.thinkfish.co.uk/fishtank-filtration-and-cycling/fishless-cycling-how-to-do-it/


And yes, with fishless cycling you will have grown more bacteria than a sensibly stocked tank will need so in theory you can get all your planned fish within a few days. There are some fish species that do better in a mature tank so those are best left for a few months. A mature tank is one that has grown a whole host of other micro-organisms in addition to the filter bacteria, and a tank is reckoned to be mature 6 months after it finishes cycling.
Title: Re: New member , new Aquarium
Post by: Littlefish on July 21, 2018, 12:07:13 PM
Hi Andy and welcome to the forum  :wave:

Good tank. I have a few Roma 200s and 125s, and I find the sectional lids make it very easy to access the tank for maintenance.

The time it will take to perform a fishless cycle on your tank will give you plenty of time to visit a few fish shops, and decide what fish/decor/plants you want.

Exciting times.   ;D
Title: Re: New member , new Aquarium
Post by: Andy64 on July 22, 2018, 04:12:50 PM
Thank you for the advice, like I initially said I won't be adding any fish until
the conditions are right for them. It's really good to know that certain fish
prefer a more mature tank :-). My water hardness is 50 CaC03 mg/l or degrees
German 2.83. Am I right in thinking that these water conditions will give me plenty of choice for a community tank ?
Title: Re: New member , new Aquarium
Post by: Sue on July 22, 2018, 04:23:18 PM
Yes they do  :)
Most fish from south America and Asia prefer soft water, as do some river fish from Africa. The areas to avoid are central America - which includes most livebearers - and the Rift Lakes in Africa.

The best site for researching fish is http://www.seriouslyfish.com/knowledge-base/ That will tell you the tank size and water parameters any particular species needs. Some profiles give the hardness as dH (your german degree value) and others as ppm, which is the same as mg/l CaCO3.

You have plenty time to play with the Community Creator, and to run your shortlist on here.
Title: Re: New member , new Aquarium
Post by: norie_uk on July 22, 2018, 06:55:47 PM
Hi Andy can confirm bristlenose plecs crap is longer than the fish itself lol  :rotfl:

If you can find someone with used media will help the cycle process !