bought first tank... 125 gal and 12 red bellied piranhas...

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T

T3hFu><0R

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Jul 28, 2010
107
0
0
twin cities, MN
In college I had 2 room-mates who kept fish. one built a 168 gallon tank for a long-nose gar. I loved that fish. The other had a pair of red bellies. awesome fish to keep. they both kept cichlids in their tanks along with one jack dempsey and an extra large plecostomus in each tank.

Now that I'm getting married in 6 weeks we're getting our first pets. A dozen Red bellied piranhas. I live in the twin cities area of MN, and grew up 100 yards from A World of Fish. I've been going there and talking to Eric for a week now and he's been awesome in helping me decide what to get and how to set it all up. After spending 3 hours trolling the forums here I'm writing my first post.

I plan on having a second small tank for feeder fish once they reach a strong size.

Is this a good first tank, or a great one?
 
T3hFu><0R;4325462; said:
In college I had 2 room-mates who kept fish. one built a 168 gallon tank for a long-nose gar. I loved that fish. The other had a pair of red bellies. awesome fish to keep. they both kept cichlids in their tanks along with one jack dempsey and an extra large plecostomus in each tank.

Now that I'm getting married in 6 weeks we're getting our first pets. A dozen Red bellied piranhas. I live in the twin cities area of MN, and grew up 100 yards from A World of Fish. I've been going there and talking to Eric for a week now and he's been awesome in helping me decide what to get and how to set it all up. After spending 3 hours trolling the forums here I'm writing my first post.

I plan on having a second small tank for feeder fish once they reach a strong size.

Is this a good first tank, or a great one?
Click to expand...
That is a great tank man I'm looking for one to keep some RBP's Myself as I have none in the house now.

Welcome to MFK!

Red Bellies are very hardy and as long as you have a decent Idea of what you are doing and common sense everything should go along fine. As for the second tank I would recommend a 30-40 gallon and breeding Convict Cichlids for feeder fish. They breed readily and once they breed a few times You may even have some left over after all your P's are nice and full. The General rule of thumb is about 20 gallons per Red Belly so Id say buy something like 8-10 to account for losses(if there are any but depending on how small you get the P's there will be more. They are very cannibalistic and hungry at young ages but provided you kept them fed there shouldn't be too many.) If you have one or two extra that should be fine but if you think they are cramped you can always thin out your shoal.

If you have any questions post them up in the appropriate section and I'm sure MFK Will be happy to help!
 
I am getting them as young as they come. I believe 3 months? they are not much longer than 1.25" I don't think they'll be getting any live food for at least 6 months. I do like the idea of breeding my own feeders. Thanks for the welcome and helpful tips.
 
welcome to mfk... exciting your getting new pets... so much fun ahead..congrads on your wedding too... enjoy mfk.. big-smiley-003.gif

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If you have any questions about P's, the man I would talk to is "Ballinoutofcontrol" he really knows his stuff when it comes to P's. Also, everything sounds awesome for your setup, post some pics ASAP! WELCOME!
 
Welcome to MFK. As stated above, Ps are pretty hardy and tolerate a wide range of water parameters. The main thing in my experience with RBPs is that in day to day life but ESPECIALLY when doing water changes AVOID DRASTIC TEMPERATURE FLUCTUATIONS! That is almost a "golden rule" of keeping Ps (in my opinion anyway). The tank sounds awesome. They are beautiful fish and always more enjoyable in a group. It may be wise to try to get them eating prawns, beefheart, and the like too so that you don't have to keep a feeder tank. It would be easier, cheaper, and safer for your Ps. Ps are pretty disease resistant, but they are not bulletproof. Good luck. Pics when you get everything setup. Congratulations on getting married.
 
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