what should i do a newbie setups

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
Haha start saving up for a 125.

I would check on craigslist for one if you are broke. It's how I've been able to afford my stuff on a college student budget. I was able to buy my 90 for 200 bucks after saving for a few months. Normally it would be like 1500 or so for the stuff brand new at an lfs. Look for people who are moving. I have seen even bigger tanks for cheaper! Remember gross looking acrylic can be buffed too!

If you want to keep the goldfish for a long time I would move em to the 55 asap and then to at least 100 gallons before they get stunted (trust me that will happen in that 10 if it hasn't already). Good on you for not keeping them in a tiny unfiltered and unchanged bowl of doom though!

The 55 should be good for a few months while you save. When you get the big tank you can pick a few 25 cent buddies up for them since they like groups. Just use the 10 as a temporary quarantine since most feeder goldfish get all types of nasty diseases from handling at the store before you buy them. A few hardy plants like anubias species should be good as well. They may eat them though.

Also if you still have the pleco which I'm going to assume is a common they can get nearly 2.5 or even 3 feet long with a proper diet and water quality. So you should really only keep a grown one in something like a 300 or bigger. Maybe trade it in. Also he will poop almost more than the goldfish so your filters will be tested haha.

For the goldies the ac110 hang on back filter is expensive but a very good choice. You can also stick cheap pothos houseplants in there because they absorb nitrates like crazy, there's a whole sticky on that. Get a strong canister filter too. The more mechanical and biological filtration the better with poopers.

Definitely get a basic heater also if you plan on keeping the neons. The goldfish will be fine as long as the temp isn't in the high end of the tropical range over a long time and room temp remains stable in your house. You can move the neons to the other 55 and do a big school with other inexpensive tetras too with a heavily planted low tech/light aquascape as an idea. In my experience with my uncle's tetra tank, neons are delicate though and die easily. Cardinals are a better choice imo.

Hope that helps! Fishkeeping on a tight budget sucks haha. Just keep looking it up and asking questions here. You will be ok. Goldfish and most tetras are easy.
 
I know, but I SWEAR TO GOD Im done for a while. No room and "big" tanks and apartment floors worry me. 150 is my max Im willing to put over someones head.
no way after you tell them how much rain down on them they be like faq yea was pouring salty gold on us... they will thank you later...or i would be...
 
I would check on craigslist for one if you are broke. It's how I've been able to afford my stuff on a college student budget. I was able to buy my 90 for 200 bucks after saving for a few months. Normally it would be like 1500 or so for the stuff brand new at an lfs. Look for people who are moving. I have seen even bigger tanks for cheaper! Remember gross looking acrylic can be buffed too!

If you want to keep the goldfish for a long time I would move em to the 55 asap and then to at least 100 gallons before they get stunted (trust me that will happen in that 10 if it hasn't already). Good on you for not keeping them in a tiny unfiltered and unchanged bowl of doom though!

The 55 should be good for a few months while you save. When you get the big tank you can pick a few 25 cent buddies up for them since they like groups. Just use the 10 as a temporary quarantine since most feeder goldfish get all types of nasty diseases from handling at the store before you buy them. A few hardy plants like anubias species should be good as well. They may eat them though.

Also if you still have the pleco which I'm going to assume is a common they can get nearly 2.5 or even 3 feet long with a proper diet and water quality. So you should really only keep a grown one in something like a 300 or bigger. Maybe trade it in. Also he will poop almost more than the goldfish so your filters will be tested haha.

For the goldies the ac110 hang on back filter is expensive but a very good choice. You can also stick cheap pothos houseplants in there because they absorb nitrates like crazy, there's a whole sticky on that. Get a strong canister filter too. The more mechanical and biological filtration the better with poopers.

Definitely get a basic heater also if you plan on keeping the neons. The goldfish will be fine as long as the temp isn't in the high end of the tropical range over a long time and room temp remains stable in your house. You can move the neons to the other 55 and do a big school with other inexpensive tetras too with a heavily planted low tech/light aquascape as an idea. In my experience with my uncle's tetra tank, neons are delicate though and die easily. Cardinals are a better choice imo.

Hope that helps! Fishkeeping on a tight budget sucks haha. Just keep looking it up and asking questions here. You will be ok. Goldfish and most tetras are easy.

hrmm were to start... so were i live is in the middle of no were and craigslist dose not have anything remotely good pop up on it never... i would have to drive way outta they way for one let alone i drive a dodge neon im lucky to get a 10 gallon in the car and yea i found that 55 gallon tank and stand a city over from someone who was moving so yes that dose work even out here so that is a good idea on how to keep an eye out for cheap tanks...the lfs are crazy on prices on big used tanks that just sit there for years...
yea those gold fish been in that tank for over the summer so im sure the fish are stunted...at first i just had the gold fish and barb then people just kept coming at me with fish and i cant turn em down so i just took care of them the best i could... ill have the new 55 up soon i just haven't move some stuff around for the stand...
ive had plants in the tank but soon as the big koi came in he effed em all up but other than that the plants was doing good as well and as far as the pleco hes the one i love most i know they get really big i love the ones at the lfs but yea i planned on rebuilding my koi pond and he will probably end up in there after so long cause i dunno if id would ever get a tank that big be nice but digging a hole is cheaper and i could probably get him in the biggest body of water i can offer but he is a common and he will be sticking around for sure i plan to keep em all tho..
my filter i will prob mod a little with some sponge and bio media and do a lot of low tech/lighting plants like i tried before but this time i have room to do something so we will see what i end up with cause i like to grow plants before i got some fish and learned a little about pound and swamp plants...built a pond planted it looked great then i got the 10 gal... i would consider better filters and canisters once i can afford it
i think my 55 gallon came with a 200 watt heater so i guess ill use that until it craps out i normally dont expect anything that comes with a tank kit to last long just so i will be happy that it works for as long as they do..the tetras ive notice the same with my pops had a tank with a lot we caught off of the gulf coast they kept spawning and dying off but he all ways had some ...well thanks a lot ive tried my best to read and learn about the fish but there is all ways more to learn but i will keep trying my best and keep yall posted on whats going on soo keep and eye out for the taco kid and thanks for all the info it is a real big help to kind of guide me threw all this peace!
 
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