# First tank...need some guidance



## grizbiz (Dec 29, 2010)

Hello, I've been casually browsing through some of the threads here and decided to just get one started that would be specific to my situation.
So I picked up a 40 gallon breeder during the petco sale, marineland penguin 200b filter and an Aqueon 150W heater and the Aqueoun glass cover for the aquarium also a thermometer for inside the aquarium. I'm not sure what I all need yet and if I need everything I got. I know that the water temp has to do with the fish themselves, but what level is that? It's probably about 60 degrees where the tank is, do I need the heater? As far as light is concerned, the glass cover is just that and doesn't hold a light, do I want a light?

The goal is to have primarily fish in the tank, I haven't really thought about plants much but it would be minimal if I did. Do I just use the aquarium gravel to fill in the bottom 1-2" of the tank and fill it with water, test the water and put fish in a couple at a time? I apologize if I sound naive, but like I said, I'm new. What kinds of fish are easy for a beginner? 

Thanks for the help!


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## Gizmo (Dec 6, 2010)

First off, welcome to the hobby griz 

Secondly, you need a few more things in order to have a happy healthy fish tank. They are as listed:

1. Siphon hose with gravel vacuum (for partial water changes, or PWC's for short).
2. A Homer Bucket or similar clean large-volume bucket (for partial water changes, and must be a dedicated bucket - no chemicals can be added to this bucket, so mop buckets are out).
3. A light with a day/night timer (the timer is optional, but helpful, and is $5 at most grocery stores).
4. Tap water conditioner/tap water dechlorinator for partial water changes.
5. (Optional) water testing kit, which should contain at the minimum testing for pH, ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate. We recommend the API Master Freshwater Test Kit, $35 at PetsMart.

All told, you might be looking at $50 more in aquarium supplies.

Thirdly, in a nutshell, decomposing food/fish waste generates ammonia which is toxic to your fish. Bacteria will colonize the tank that turn ammonia into nitrite, which is also harmful to fish, then to nitrate. Nitrate accumulates in your tank and is harmful to fish only in very high quantities (ammonia harm is at concentrations of 1 part per million, or ppm, same with nitrite, but nitrate can get up to 80 ppm without adverse effects). If you add fish right away, they will generate ammonia over the first few days and it will kill them without bacteria in place to process the ammonia. Therefore, we suggest doing what is called a fishless cycle. To facilitate this process, you will need to do the following:

1. Acquire a non-living source of ammonia (such as raw seafood, or straight ammonia and measuring spoons) to "feed" the cycle on a daily basis (don't dump a bunch of ammonia in and then leave it, dose ammonia daily or add seafood which will decompose over time).
2. Add things to your tank like dirty filter media from your local fish store (LFS), used structures and/or fake plants from your LFS as well, or a bacteria supplement called Tetra SafeStart or some similar "tank starter", to add bacteria to your tank to process the ammonia. If you use all three above additions, all the better. Just make sure you follow step 1 or the bacteria will starve and die.
3. Let the tank run just like you would have fish in there, but don't add them, just add the source of ammonia. This will allow your tank to establish the nitrogen cycle so ammonia is processed to nitrite then nitrate. If done properly with all the steps listed above, you should have a fully cycled tank ready to add fish in a week or two. Only water testing will tell - after a certain amount of time, you should be reading 0 ppm ammonia, 0 ppm nitrite, and a healthy concentration of nitrate.
4. When you add fish, watch them very closely for a week or two, and only add a few at a time. Fish from the LFS come rife with diseases such as ich, parasites, etc. They will also be very stressed and scared, and might take some time to get used to your lighting and feeding schedules. Only close observation will give away warning signs of disease or other ailments (and by close observation I mean about 10-20 minutes of watching per day, which can be fun).

For a partial water change, you should do one once weekly to keep your nitrate concentrations from building. Here's the procedure:

1. Siphon out 25% of your tank water into the buckets, and vacuum the gravel with the big end of the gravel vac/siphon. This sucks up excess waste and keeps your tank nice and clean.
2. If you're going to change the filter media (which you should do every 1-2 weeks, at least for the carbon), rinse the new cartridges in the tank water in the buckets before dumping it out, then put them in the filter.
3. Fill the buckets with tap water. You can use your hand to approximate the temperature (and this method usually is accurate to a degree or two). Add the tap water dechlorinator/conditioner to the filling buckets to eliminate chlorine and chloramine, which are also toxic to fish.
4. Siphon the water back into the tank. Don't dump it in or you will shock your fish with pH shifts (if any), and/or temperature differences.

Maintenance things to buy:

1. Filter media cartridges (or fashion your own from raw filter floss, filter media bags, raw carbon, and raw bio media).
2. Fish food - don't buy a giant can, or it will sit there and get stale for years (like mine did, till I threw it out). Buy little cans and go through them so your food ends up being more fresh.

That's it! Hope you made it all the way to the end and don't want to run away screaming. The above mentioned methods will ensure a healthy happy tank, and no fish fatalities. If your fish do end up having a disease from the LFS, let us know and we'll help you treat it!

Good luck!


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## rtbob (Jul 18, 2010)

Excellent info provided by gtm2007. 

To answer your question about temp. 60 is way to cold for tropical fish. I keep my tanks between 75-78 degrees.


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## grizbiz (Dec 29, 2010)

Thanks for the input. Its a lot of info. Thanks again. 
For a light, I don't have a hood, just the glass top. Do I need a hood with a light?


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## Gizmo (Dec 6, 2010)

To add more to answer your questions, yes a light is necessary. The light helps fish develop their color (they lose it in continual darkness). It also helps simulate a daylight cycle for your fish's natural rhythm.

Some hardy and fun fish to start off with are Tiger Barbs and any type of Danio. They are semi-aggressive schooling fish, so make sure each breed has at least 6 members, and keep in mind that you'll have these guys for awhile - and some get big (the TB's get up to 2", last I checked). We all use the tried-and-true addage of 1" of fish per 1 gallon of tank water (this excludes tank space taken up by structures, plants, and gravel). DON'T GET A COMMON PLECO. They can grow up to 24"!

Other fun fish are platies and mollies. They are extremely hardy (some people use them as an ammonia source when establishing a cycle and intentionally poison them, which is inhumane in my opinion), and they are pretty. Be warned though: they breed like rabbits. If you're adding them, only add the same sex or you're going to have lots of babies. Also, be wary of adding females, as they might come into your tank already pregnant.

Guppies and tetras are very pretty but somewhat delicate fish, in my opinion. They are very sensitive to tank water conditions and are most often the source of disease in my tanks.

Angelfish are big and some can be expensive, but my favorite combo is a school of zebra danios and an angelfish. The angels are very territorial and mean, but the zebras are quick and agile. Plenty of fun high-speed tank chases to enjoy there, but that's just a personal favorite. There are a million ways to combine different types of fish.


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## Gizmo (Dec 6, 2010)

grizbiz said:


> Thanks for the input. Its a lot of info. Thanks again.
> For a light, I don't have a hood, just the glass top. Do I need a hood with a light?


No. Any light will do. Even an incandescent, but most of us use shop lights we get at Home Depot. Cheap, powerful, and do the trick nicely.


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