Hi All,
Well, I've been browsing the forums for over a month now, and figured it's probably time I should get around to introducing myself and participating.
The wealth of information you guys have here is amazing.
A little about me: My name is Chris, and I live in Reno, NV (originally from Boise, ID). I've been into fish/fishing my whole life. My parents had me out camping the weekend after I was born, and as soon as I could hold a rod I was catching them.
We always had an aquarium in the house, but never more than 10 gallons. My mom was kindof boring with them, Guppies, Neons, etc. One great memory was catching a couple 2" crayfish for her to put in the tank, and a week later she noticed several fish missing. Couple weeks after that there were no fish left.
Anyway, I'm 32 now, and have not had my own aquarium since moving out of my parents' place 14 years ago. Got a couple boys of my own now too, and they're getting old enough that I don't have to worry about them dumping bubble solution or soda into the tank or anything, so I decided it's a good time to get back into it.
I've always wanted to do Saltwater, but there is a lot more involved with that so I'm starting out with Fresh until I get my feet wet (bad pun, yeah). Was searching around the net for aquarium guides and stuff and stumbled across this site. I was hooked. I've probably read all of the threads in the DIY forum twice. The concept of a plywood tank is really cool, and I will be there before too long I think.
Had to step the wife into it though, so I went down to Petco this week and picked up a 55 Gallon and a 20 Long. Will be using the 20 Long as a Sump/Refugium below the 55. Started building the stand for them today, and should have it finished tomorrow. Already have the 20 long sub-divided with some acrylic inserts, and put water in with the pump just cycling the water for now. No, as I told my wife, I couldn't wait 1 more day.
I originally wanted to do a native tank (Perch. Bluegill, etc.), but apparently it's illegal to actually go to a lake or river and take a live fish home with you in Nevada. And just about everywhere else for that matter. I don't see the problem, but whatever. That leaves me wondering what to stock. I know the Refugium (~12 gallons of the 20 Long) will have loads of Anacharis and I'm thinking a nice colony of Red Crystal Shrimp will go well in there. I'm using pool filter sand as the substrate (natural color, not white). I'll probably be building some DIY PVC caves and stuff for the 55.
That's pretty much where I am right now. Staring at my 20 long sitting on the kitchen table just pumping away, and wondering what fish I am going to get for the 55.
A few that I've considered are:
Crayfish: Always have loved those guys. They are a blast to watch. I figure I can fit 4 - 6 of them in the 55. Only problem is they limit the fish selection quite a bit from what I've read. The fish have to be big enough that the crays won't bother them, but the reverse is also true, the fish can't be big enough to eat the crays. I like some of the australian crays, Cherax Destructor and the Zebra one (Can't remember the name). They might be a little big for the 55 though. I want ones that will max out around 5 or 6 inches for this tank.
Convict Cichlids: Read that they're easy to keep, breed like rabbits, and aren't 'too' agressive as far as Cichlids go. Not sure how nice they would play with Crays though. Fairly cheap too.
I figure I can get around 15 fish that get 5-6" long though. Might be a little overstocked, but my filter and refugium should be up to the task. If anyone has any suggestions, I'm open.
Of course the 55 is just a stepping stone until I can convince the wive that I need a 300+ plywood tank.
I figure I'll have that in the next 6 - 12 months.
Anyway, it's great to be here and I'm looking forward to being a part of the community.
Well, I've been browsing the forums for over a month now, and figured it's probably time I should get around to introducing myself and participating.
The wealth of information you guys have here is amazing.A little about me: My name is Chris, and I live in Reno, NV (originally from Boise, ID). I've been into fish/fishing my whole life. My parents had me out camping the weekend after I was born, and as soon as I could hold a rod I was catching them.
We always had an aquarium in the house, but never more than 10 gallons. My mom was kindof boring with them, Guppies, Neons, etc. One great memory was catching a couple 2" crayfish for her to put in the tank, and a week later she noticed several fish missing. Couple weeks after that there were no fish left. Anyway, I'm 32 now, and have not had my own aquarium since moving out of my parents' place 14 years ago. Got a couple boys of my own now too, and they're getting old enough that I don't have to worry about them dumping bubble solution or soda into the tank or anything, so I decided it's a good time to get back into it.
I've always wanted to do Saltwater, but there is a lot more involved with that so I'm starting out with Fresh until I get my feet wet (bad pun, yeah). Was searching around the net for aquarium guides and stuff and stumbled across this site. I was hooked. I've probably read all of the threads in the DIY forum twice. The concept of a plywood tank is really cool, and I will be there before too long I think.
Had to step the wife into it though, so I went down to Petco this week and picked up a 55 Gallon and a 20 Long. Will be using the 20 Long as a Sump/Refugium below the 55. Started building the stand for them today, and should have it finished tomorrow. Already have the 20 long sub-divided with some acrylic inserts, and put water in with the pump just cycling the water for now. No, as I told my wife, I couldn't wait 1 more day.
I originally wanted to do a native tank (Perch. Bluegill, etc.), but apparently it's illegal to actually go to a lake or river and take a live fish home with you in Nevada. And just about everywhere else for that matter. I don't see the problem, but whatever. That leaves me wondering what to stock. I know the Refugium (~12 gallons of the 20 Long) will have loads of Anacharis and I'm thinking a nice colony of Red Crystal Shrimp will go well in there. I'm using pool filter sand as the substrate (natural color, not white). I'll probably be building some DIY PVC caves and stuff for the 55.
That's pretty much where I am right now. Staring at my 20 long sitting on the kitchen table just pumping away, and wondering what fish I am going to get for the 55.
A few that I've considered are:
Crayfish: Always have loved those guys. They are a blast to watch. I figure I can fit 4 - 6 of them in the 55. Only problem is they limit the fish selection quite a bit from what I've read. The fish have to be big enough that the crays won't bother them, but the reverse is also true, the fish can't be big enough to eat the crays. I like some of the australian crays, Cherax Destructor and the Zebra one (Can't remember the name). They might be a little big for the 55 though. I want ones that will max out around 5 or 6 inches for this tank.
Convict Cichlids: Read that they're easy to keep, breed like rabbits, and aren't 'too' agressive as far as Cichlids go. Not sure how nice they would play with Crays though. Fairly cheap too.
I figure I can get around 15 fish that get 5-6" long though. Might be a little overstocked, but my filter and refugium should be up to the task. If anyone has any suggestions, I'm open.
Of course the 55 is just a stepping stone until I can convince the wive that I need a 300+ plywood tank.
I figure I'll have that in the next 6 - 12 months. Anyway, it's great to be here and I'm looking forward to being a part of the community.
to MFK!