starting fresh..

[AQUASLY]

Hey guys I just recently started getting into the pet fish hobby...

I went out and bought a 5.5-gallon tank, few lava rocks, and gravel substrate. For the hardware, i got a LED entended light, the Aqueon 10 internal filter, thermometer and Aqueon 50w heater.

Question- What fish should I start out with? Maybe a breeding pair?

 

[Fat Homer]

Honestly, you wont be able to keep all that much in a 5.5G that you will be able to breed as far as i know, mainly coz you will need to eventually separate the fry...

If breeding is what you really want to do, you could maybe consider doing a colony of Cherry Red Shrimp (Neocaridina Heteropoda) ... these tend to be a lot more forgiving species compared to some of their more delicate cousins...

 

[Ogertron3000]

Honestly if you want to get into the hobby , especially breeding you would be better off getting a larger tank. Possibly you could try Siamese fighters/betas but as stated above you will need to seperate the fry and also need somewhere to move the female if the male beats her up.
Good luck though, it's a great hobby and you will find plenty of advise and inspiration on this forum.

 

[Drstrangelove]

You can probably get by with a couple of fish that top at at 3.5", although ones that are 3" or less will be more comfortable and much better for success. Even 4.5- 5" however would cause nitrates to be excessive, and many species can't breed successfully in water that has nitrates. Even 5 ppm will often kill eggs and fry. Smaller gives you a lot more tolerance to keep nitrates below 3-5 ppm.

A 10-20 gallon would would give you more options, but 5.5 gallons can work given the right species. Many live bearers would work but you might find others that work as well. Look around or ask I think and maybe you can give it a go.

 

[tlindsey]

Hey guys I just recently started getting into the pet fish hobby...

I went out and bought a 5.5-gallon tank, few lava rocks, and gravel substrate. For the hardware, i got a LED entended light, the Aqueon 10 internal filter, thermometer and Aqueon 50w heater.

Question- What fish should I start out with? Maybe a breeding pair?

Welcome aboard

 

[The camaro show]

i suggest you get no smaller then a 30g because its a lot easier keeping a big tank a lot less can go wrong fast the more water volume the more stable

 

[MrsE88]

If you just want a fish for enjoyment and breeding isn't must, I'd suggest a male betta and snails.
When my 10gal was a planted tank with snails and my male betta it was so enjoyable. He followed my finger around, would nibble on it, and was always very active. For being a small fish he had a huge personality. And snails are very neat to watch. Trapdoor snails give live birth and that is pretty amazing to see.

Or you could go with a few more but smaller fish. Zebra danios are fun to watch swim around. I have one I got free from Walmart. Little Zorro. Haha, he is very amusing as well.

 

[AQUASLY]

Thanks so much for the help and replies guys

 

[FishBeast]

Welcome! It's a great hobby! As you are just starting, having a bigger tank (as big as you can fit in your intended space) will make it a bit less likely for major disasters to happen as the increased volume will be more tolerant of issues. Petco is having a dollar a gallon sale right now on up to 29 gallon tanks. It's a great hobby and there are many here who will give you the right advice to minimize frustration and stress on both you and your fish! Enjoy!

 

[Gourami Swami]

If you want to breed fish, get guppies. Easy to breed and will be fine in a 5.5 gallon tank.
Make sure you read up on the nitrogen cycle. Basically you have to establish colonies of beneficial bacteria in the tank's filter to turn ammonia from the fish waste into less harmful nitrate, which you then remove each week by doing a water change. Lots of good articles out there on this process. It can also be bypassed by using a product called Dr. Tims. (but beware- there are lots of other products that claim to do the same thing, Dr. Tim's is the only one I know of that instantly cycles the tank for you)