# Stocking my new fish tank



## luvmy4brats (Nov 9, 2008)

Ok, I've wanted a fish tank for YEARS and I finally decided to go for it. I recently purchased a 29 gallon tank and it's all set up waiting for some residents. I'm starting with Danios to cycle it. I'm trying to decide what fish I really want to stock it with. I know it will be a bit before it's cycled and safe for more, but help me decide what else I should add to it. I know for certain that I want some Cory catfish (4-6 of them) because they crack me up and a few Bumblebee Platys (maybe 3). Add in the Danios that I expect to survive (I'm planning on at least 6 of them).. Other than that, I have no clue. I want a lively and colorful tank, but not too much aggression. I'm of the mind, the more the merrier (well, as many as I can get that won't completely overstock my tank...)


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

How cool, Heather!  I've always wanted a fish tank, too, but I'm too lazy....

Betsy


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## luvmy4brats (Nov 9, 2008)

Betsy the Quilter said:


> How cool, Heather! I've always wanted a fish tank, too, but I'm too lazy....
> 
> Betsy


That's where the BRATs come in handy. And it helps that BRAT#1 works for PetSmart. Plus with all of the pets we already have, I'm guessing a few fish won't add too much to what we're already dealing with (4 cats, 3 dogs, 2 guinea pigs, 2 mice, 2 hamsters, 1 leopard gecko)


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## The Hooded Claw (Oct 12, 2009)

I was into fish big time years ago, but I travel too much nowadays to do it.the most beautiful freshwater tank I ever saw was a 55 gallon tank with black gravel, a lot of plants with tall narrow leaves in it, and several dozen cardinal Tetras. The plant cover made them confident, and they would school around en masse in a clear area.

when you say Danios , I'm not sure what type of fish you mean. I have personal experience both with zebra danios, aka zebrafish, and with pearl danios being aggressive towards other species. Several different occasions of it with zebrafish. 

I always thought dwarf gouramis were beautiful. They were peaceful in my experience and didn't grow too big. 

As you point out,  be sure to follow the rules about tank capacity!


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## SunshineOnMe (Jan 11, 2014)

I'm jealous! I've always wanted a fish tank (but I'm too lazy to clean it.)


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## spotsmom (Jan 20, 2011)

You must have missed the Great Fish Tank Experience a year or two ago on KBoards.  Started by TL Haddix and there was a wealth of info on that thread, as she started out from scratch.

Danios are great fish to cycle a tank.  However, I'm hoping the fish store told you about the "instant cycling" stuff that's now sold that pretty much takes care of the entire cycle problems.  It's certainly not instant and foolproof, but boy does it make things a lot easier than the way it used to be.  Be sure to test your water!

Be sure NOT to overstock your tank!  This stuff about 1 inch of fish per gallon isn't true- depends on the type of fish.  And add them in slowly!  There are some excellent websites and chat groups with extremely knowledgeable fish people in them.  You have to do your homework on what kinds of fish "go" together in a tank.  And what kinds do well in the kind of water that you have. I have had mostly barbs- I like fish that like to be "busy"!

I love cory cats!  They lie on the bottom and wink at you!  

The very best book I have that told me everything I needed to know is called "The Simple Guide to Freshwater Aquariums" by David Boruchowitz (one of the editors of a leading tropical fish magazine).

Good luck and have fun!!


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## luvmy4brats (Nov 9, 2008)

spotsmom said:


> You must have missed the Great Fish Tank Experience a year or two ago on KBoards. Started by TL Haddix and there was a wealth of info on that thread, as she started out from scratch.
> 
> Danios are great fish to cycle a tank. However, I'm hoping the fish store told you about the "instant cycling" stuff that's now sold that pretty much takes care of the entire cycle problems. It's certainly not instant and foolproof, but boy does it make things a lot easier than the way it used to be. Be sure to test your water!
> 
> ...


Oh I followed that thread (and the subsequent one) I even read back through it the other day... Believe it or not, it was almost 3 YEARS AGO!! I remember being wicked jealous and really wanting a tank back then.

As for the pet store employees, well, I'm in luck there, BRAT#1 is a Pet Care associate at PetSmart... SHE didn't tell me about the "instant cycle" stuff, but I saw it there and did grab some. I got the Tetra brand that supposedly is one of the best. Two days ago my ammonia was up to 3 on my test strip and after a 30% water change it's down to .25. My nitrites are 0 and my nitrates were about 20. .. I just can't rely on her to help me pick any fish... She just likes the guppies. I mentioned barbs and she swears they won't get along with the danios or the Cory cats.

I do have the book you mentioned and I've even managed to read a good portion of it. Unfortunately, the Kindle version seems to be missing some info or is formatted wonky.

My water is rather hard and my ph is pretty much average. I have it written down, but at the moment, I don't want to disturb the cat to go hunt it down.

There's a fabulous fish store about 90 minutes away that I hope to go visit next week. I'm trying to hold off going until my tank has stabilized a bit more because of the distance. It's near where hubby works, so it's not like I don't make my way that direction once or twice a month anyway. That will help keep me from stocking my tank too quickly


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## luvmy4brats (Nov 9, 2008)

The Hooded Claw said:


> I was into fish big time years ago, but I travel too much nowadays to do it.the most beautiful freshwater tank I ever saw was a 55 gallon tank with black gravel, a lot of plants with tall narrow leaves in it, and several dozen cardinal Tetras. The plant cover made them confident, and they would school around en masse in a clear area.
> 
> when you say Danios , I'm not sure what type of fish you mean. I have personal experience both with zebra danios, aka zebrafish, and with pearl danios being aggressive towards other species. Several different occasions of it with zebrafish.
> 
> ...


I have 4 long fin Leopard Danios. They aren't aggressive, but they never stop moving. I've read several times they're very hardy, get along with just about any other fish, and are good for cycling. The dwarf gouramis are on my list of possibilities, particularly honey dwarf or blue dwarf.

My tank has dark blue gravel and lots of (fake) plants.. I do need to get a couple more extra tall ones for the back. Hubby thinks there are too many in there already, but I think it's just about right. I'm not ready to attempt real plants though.. Maybe down the road. I'm the type that can kill a fake ficus tree.


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## The Hooded Claw (Oct 12, 2009)

Luvmy5brats said:


> I'm not ready to attempt real plants though.. Maybe down the road. I'm the type that can kill a fake ficus tree.


 Yeah, I could kill plants just looking at pictures of them in the book myself.


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## MrPLD (Sep 23, 2010)

Congratulations on the fish tank - a great experience 

What's the water like out of your tap, as that can have a fairly strong deciding influence on what fish you should stock.  Hoping you're lucky and have near-neutral soft water, then you can get away with almost anything ( because it's easy to harden water up  ).

These days I have ponds outside, just added two more last week, but I have to say, they're incredibly expensive after you sort out all the land-scaping associated with them.


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## Sandpiper (Oct 28, 2008)

Need a vet?  Local vet here has a particular interest in fish?!


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## Alessandra Kelley (Feb 22, 2011)

I was wondering what the virtues of real plants are.  Are they healthier for the fish?


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## spotsmom (Jan 20, 2011)

My barbs have been fine with cories. Cories even successfully had 10 babies mature with the barbs around. And I have also had danios with barbs. 

By all means go to that true fish store. You will meet staff who can truly advise you well. My only warning is to think hard before buying any fish that are not also sold locally. Many species of fish need to be kept in schools, and if you get a couple in a school die off and you can't replace them locally, you may feel sorry for the remaining "class". 

Real plants are better, but I could kill cactus. I've had plastic plants for years and the fish don't seem to care.


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## SunshineOnMe (Jan 11, 2014)

This is completely fascinating. I am still lurking here, hoping to get talked into it. (Not really, I know it's a huge responsibility, but I want one!)


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## Susan Lohrer (Jun 11, 2013)

If you use live fish to cycle your tank, that may be rather hard (or deadly) for the fish. Keep a close eye on the ammonia and nitrites, and be prepared to do a lot of huge water changes. Even low levels of ammonia can cause permanent gill and kidney damage.

If you can get some used filter media to establish your bacterial population fast, that will be best for the fish.

Good luck.


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## spotsmom (Jan 20, 2011)

SunshineOnMe said:


> This is completely fascinating. I am still lurking here, hoping to get talked into it. (Not really, I know it's a huge responsibility, but I want one!)


It is a huge undertaking. Maintenance is so important, time-consuming, and gets old after awhile.


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## luvmy4brats (Nov 9, 2008)

spotsmom said:


> My only warning is to think hard before buying any fish that are not also sold locally. Many species of fish need to be kept in schools, and if you get a couple in a school die off and you can't replace them locally, you may feel sorry for the remaining "class".


No worries about that. To me, anything within a 90 minute drive is "local" I live in the boonies and drive 30 minutes just to get to the grocery store. And the huge fish store is right on hubby's route home from work, so if I can't make it out there, he can stop on the way home.


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## balaspa (Dec 27, 2009)

I had a fishtank growing up and it was awesome. We had only fresh water fish but it was so cool.


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## luvmy4brats (Nov 9, 2008)

Susan Lohrer said:


> If you use live fish to cycle your tank, that may be rather hard (or deadly) for the fish. Keep a close eye on the ammonia and nitrites, and be prepared to do a lot of huge water changes. Even low levels of ammonia can cause permanent gill and kidney damage.
> 
> If you can get some used filter media to establish your bacterial population fast, that will be best for the fish.
> 
> Good luck.


I'm checking my water every 12 hours or so (I bought a bottle of test strips and cut them in half... 2 for the price of one). I don't mind changing the water when I need to, I know it's a temporary thing (well. Daily water changes are temporary.. I know I have to change it weekly)


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## luvmy4brats (Nov 9, 2008)

MrPLD said:


> Congratulations on the fish tank - a great experience
> 
> What's the water like out of your tap, as that can have a fairly strong deciding influence on what fish you should stock. Hoping you're lucky and have near-neutral soft water, then you can get away with almost anything ( because it's easy to harden water up  ).
> 
> These days I have ponds outside, just added two more last week, but I have to say, they're incredibly expensive after you sort out all the land-scaping associated with them.


A much as I'd like a pond, I think those are way more work, so I'll probably pass.

My water is pretty hard (150) so I already know Angel fish are out if the question (that's ok, they weren't on my list) my PH is about 7.6ish.


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## CatherineM (Jan 9, 2013)

Oh, a 29 gallon is the perfect size!  You will be just fine!  You brought flashbacks back for me! haha

I used to use this stuff called Bullseye to help the water stabilize for cleanings, AFTER it's established.  I don't even know if they still make it, but it worked for me with city water in South Florida.  A few drops in a gallon of water and it was good to go.  I had angel fish, and no problem at all.  I agree with whoever said about the dwarf gouramis and the cardinal tetras.  Just remember that a cardinal tetra and a neon are not the same thing.  The cardinals are MUCH brighter.

The cleaning part isn't so bad at all, really.  I used to love doing it.  (once I psyched myself up)  

You'll develop your own ways of doing things, and there will be trial and error, so don't get too attached to your fishies at first, haha.

I had plecos, too.  They can get huge!  They're really good for your tank once it's up and going for a while.  They keep it nice and clean.  I never had real plants because I was always afraid of contaminating the tank with some weird parasite.  They make some nice plastic ones and after a while, they get slimy and sort of more real-looking.  


I knew people that had awesome saltwater tanks down in Florida, but I never got brave enough for that.  

You could always ask me a question if you ran into a problem.  I had a 29 gallon for years and would be more than happy to help you.


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## CatherineM (Jan 9, 2013)

Oh, and I forgot.  Stay with cheap fish while it's establishing because chances are they will die.  You just want them to eat and poop.

Don't, I repeat, don't feed them too much.  That's the worse thing you can do.  Fish are pigs and they always look hungry.  Don't let them fool you


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## luvmy4brats (Nov 9, 2008)

CatherineM said:


> Oh, and I forgot. Stay with cheap fish while it's establishing because chances are they will die. You just want them to eat and poop.
> 
> Don't, I repeat, don't feed them too much. That's the worse thing you can do. Fish are pigs and they always look hungry. Don't let them fool you


I've already gotten the do not over feed lecture from my daughter she knows I have a tendency to slip the other animals (cats, dogs, hamsters) treats.


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## luvmy4brats (Nov 9, 2008)

CatherineM said:


> Oh, a 29 gallon is the perfect size! You will be just fine! You brought flashbacks back for me! haha
> 
> I used to use this stuff called Bullseye to help the water stabilize for cleanings, AFTER it's established. I don't even know if they still make it, but it worked for me with city water in South Florida. A few drops in a gallon of water and it was good to go. I had angel fish, and no problem at all. I agree with whoever said about the dwarf gouramis and the cardinal tetras. Just remember that a cardinal tetra and a neon are not the same thing. The cardinals are MUCH brighter.
> 
> ...


 I do have some stuff to put in my tank to help keep it balanced. I'm on a well and our water can be funky.

Lemon or diamond tetras are on my list. I need to look at the cardinal ones too. I'm not a big fan of the neon ones (although I do now have two in my tank that my daughter didn't want. If something happens to them, I doubt I'll replace them).

I think I'll pass on plecos because of their size.. Plus, I just love the little Cory Cats. I have two in my tank (will eventually have 6) and they have such personality. They don't seem to know they're bottom dwellers and they try to school with my Danios. I just added a bubbler waterfall to my tank today and they've spent a good deal of time playing in the bubbles. They're like puppies following the Danios around.


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## luvmy4brats (Nov 9, 2008)

spotsmom said:


> My barbs have been fine with cories. Cories even successfully had 10 babies mature with the barbs around. And I have also had danios with barbs.


What kind of barbs did you have with your Danios and Corys? I've read that certain types are more aggressive, but some types aren't as aggressive.


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## MrPLD (Sep 23, 2010)

Luvmy5brats said:


> A much as I'd like a pond, I think those are way more work, so I'll probably pass.


Depends on what state you want them to be in  I find after about 2~3 months they usually settle down in to a nice easy to maintain state... usually ( some, like with tanks, just seem to go wrong wrong wrong no matter what you do ).

Given the hardness of your water I guess that pushes you more to African Cichlids, live bearers and carps, well, what ever you end up with I'm sure you'll certainly get a lot of enjoyment from it. As others have said, 29Gal is a nice size, hope it all goes well for you


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## Lisa Scott (Apr 4, 2011)

I always loved having loaches in my tanks, especially khuli loaches. And correct me if I'm wrong, but if you have community (peaceful) fish that don't have flowing fins, I think you can keep one betta in there. I love bettas. I had a tank of blue gouramis once.  Beautiful.  And neon tetras (or USA fish, as my son used to call them because they're red white and blue) are awesome, too. I also tried the occasional dwarf frog or ghost shrimp.  Have fun!


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## spotsmom (Jan 20, 2011)

I have had tiger barbs, gold barbs, cherry barbs, panda barbs (had to get them in Portland), aurelius barbs (they get too big for a 29), and black ruby barbs (my favorites).  They all did fine with my cories.  Do not have fish with long tails in there with them or it won't be pretty!! I even had kribensis.  DO NOT GET A PLECO!  I had a pleco for 7 years (his name was Karl Katfish), but I had to give him to a fish store because he got too big for my 55 gal.  I felt like I was losing a child to college.  He was way cool.  I have also had red tailed sharks with cories with no problem.

I also ended up having to give away a beautiful clown loach I had for about 7 years as well.  I kept getting chastised by the fish chat groups because clowns are supposed to be kept in schools...  But he was too big for my tank as well.

I could not have tetras because my well water is about 8.1 ph and I didn't want to mess with the ph (following that book author).

A good alternative to a pleco are a few otocinclus.  Don't get them until your tank is well established, as they get stressed easily.

I have read that bettas really are not for a community tank.  They live in very small, confined areas in the wild so that's what they're used to. That said, I had a friend who had a male betta in her community tank and he did ok (although he loved to eat her guppy babies!).

And, to make tank cleaning easier, look into getting a Python (or a similar product).  They hook up to your faucet and easily take water out and put water in your tank.  I think it would be ok in a 29, but maybe your tank isn't big enough (powerful suckers!).

There are quite a few "fish people" on Kboards, so ask away!


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## SunshineOnMe (Jan 11, 2014)

spotsmom said:


> It is a huge undertaking. Maintenance is so important, time-consuming, and gets old after awhile.


Yes, I think I have to live vicariously through all of you. It sounds hard! But I love the idea


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## luvmy4brats (Nov 9, 2008)

spotsmom said:


> I have had tiger barbs, gold barbs, cherry barbs, panda barbs (had to get them in Portland), aurelius barbs (they get too big for a 29), and black ruby barbs (my favorites). They all did fine with my cories. Do not have fish with long tails in there with them or it won't be pretty!! I


Hhhmmm. My Danios are long finned... That might be tempting fate.


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## VictoriaP (Mar 1, 2009)

Bettas and big community tanks are asking for trouble. Most vicious fish I've ever seen was a female betta in a tank full of neons that was in a local fish store. It was astonishing just what a hunter she was. I don't know who was crazy enough to put her in there, but the manager was NOT amused when I notified him that he had a highly carnivorous little minx that had surrounded herself with neon corpses in a very brief timespan.

Bettas *do* seem to do fine in 5 gallon tanks with a few cories and perhaps an algae eater (Chinese, I think?, or a small young pleco; my ex had both at different times, but I can't remember water conditions off the top of my head, so definitely confirm before buying). I kept my last three bettas in tanks like that, some years back, and each did very well.

Heather, plecos don't always get big--at least, none of mine have, even when I've kept them for a few years. They come in some amazing patterns now too. And the last one I had was very bright. I'd drop a tablet of food into the tank and as soon as he scented it, he'd wake up, herd the group of cories out to hunt for it while he lounged around. Once one found the tablet and the rest descended, he'd come sailing in & nudge them out of the way so he could latch onto it while they picked up the crumbs. Really, they were just so good together at keeping a tank clean.


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## luvmy4brats (Nov 9, 2008)

VictoriaP said:


> Heather, plecos don't always get big--at least, none of mine have, even when I've kept them for a few years. They come in some amazing patterns now too. And the last one I had was very bright. I'd drop a tablet of food into the tank and as soon as he scented it, he'd wake up, herd the group of cories out to hunt for it while he lounged around. Once one found the tablet and the rest descended, he'd come sailing in & nudge them out of the way so he could latch onto it while they picked up the crumbs. Really, they were just so good together at keeping a tank clean.


I'll keep that in mind. That sounds funny.

BRAT#3 has a Betta. He's all by his lonesome and we plan on keeping it like that. He tries to fight his own reflection on the side of the tank.


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## MrPLD (Sep 23, 2010)

Luvmy5brats said:


> BRAT#3 has a Betta. He's all by his lonesome and we plan on keeping it like that. He tries to fight his own reflection on the side of the tank.


We keep siamese fighters in our ponds, admittingly only one male per pond, but I have to say they are incredibly happy to be living in the larger space. At first they are a bit territorial and aggressive to other fish but over a few weeks they calm down and things aren't so bad any more. A good supply of plants help a lot too.


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## spotsmom (Jan 20, 2011)

VictoriaP said:


> Heather, plecos don't always get big,


Entirely correct. The fish store (even a PetCo or equiv) will know how big they get. I had an upside down catfish once that was very entertaining. It's the "plecostomas hippo" something that gets HUGE.


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## CatherineM (Jan 9, 2013)

Luvmy5brats said:


> I do have some stuff to put in my tank to help keep it balanced. I'm on a well and our water can be funky.
> 
> Lemon or diamond tetras are on my list. I need to look at the cardinal ones too. I'm not a big fan of the neon ones (although I do now have two in my tank that my daughter didn't want. If something happens to them, I doubt I'll replace them).
> 
> I think I'll pass on plecos because of their size.. Plus, I just love the little Cory Cats. I have two in my tank (will eventually have 6) and they have such personality. They don't seem to know they're bottom dwellers and they try to school with my Danios. I just added a bubbler waterfall to my tank today and they've spent a good deal of time playing in the bubbles. They're like puppies following the Danios around.


hahaha.... you'll do just fine.

I had a 29 gallon for three apartments. Once, it got moved on a flatbed truck with the water down to a third capacity and all the residents inside. Yikes! Everybody made it.

It's amazing how really strong they are once it gets "old". I had a plastic suction cup thingie to clean it with, manual. Once the vacuum started, you could go to town and suck out all the nasties. Then, it would be cloudy for a while, then crystal clear. You also will need to get scrubbies for the inside of the glass.

I had swordtails that had babies a couple times. If that ever happens, you need to try to get them isolated asap or they will get eaten. Best thing is to get prego mom into isolation right before she has them.

You sound like you have it pretty much covered. I have confidence in you


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## luvmy4brats (Nov 9, 2008)

My water has been staying good, so I decided today to add a few more fish. I got another Danio (blue Glofish) 4 more neon tetras (I decided the two I had were lonely and needed friends) and 3 platys (not the bumblebee ones I wanted, but two yellow twin bars and a panda). Unfortunately the male yellow platy didn't survive the trip home. BRAT#1 thinks it's because the salesperson used enough stress coat for a 5 gallon tank. She said to not be surprised if the other one doesn't make it. 

The blue Danio seems to think he's a neon tetra as he's been schooling with them since I put them in the tank.


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## SunshineOnMe (Jan 11, 2014)

Luvmy5brats said:


> My water has been staying good, so I decided today to add a few more fish. I got another Danio (blue Glofish) 4 more neon tetras (I decided the two I had were lonely and needed friends) and 3 platys (not the bumblebee ones I wanted, but two yellow twin bars and a panda). Unfortunately the male yellow platy didn't survive the trip home. BRAT#1 thinks it's because the salesperson used enough stress coat for a 5 gallon tank. She said to not be surprised if the other one doesn't make it.
> 
> The blue Danio seems to think he's a neon tetra as he's been schooling with them since I put them in the tank.


Do they refund the money if the fish dies on the way home? I seriously had a dream last night I had an aquarium, filled with cories!


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## luvmy4brats (Nov 9, 2008)

SunshineOnMe said:


> Do they refund the money if the fish dies on the way home? I seriously had a dream last night I had an aquarium, filled with cories!


Yes, they do. They have a 14 day guarantee actually...

A tank full of cories would be a treat. They are so funny to watch. My two albinos are my favorite.


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## SunshineOnMe (Jan 11, 2014)

Luvmy5brats said:


> Yes, they do. They have a 14 day guarantee actually...
> 
> A tank full of cories would be a treat. They are so funny to watch. My two albinos are my favorite.


Do you bring them back? Sad. I am loving this thread!! Like I said, living my aquarium dreams vicariously right now


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## luvmy4brats (Nov 9, 2008)

SunshineOnMe said:


> Do you bring them back? Sad. I am loving this thread!! Like I said, living my aquarium dreams vicariously right now


Yes, I take them back to the store. Actually, my daughter will take him back for me when she goes to work on Wednesday. It is sad.


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## luvmy4brats (Nov 9, 2008)

Sadly I woke up this morning and my female yellow platy had also passed away. <sigh> all the other fish I got yesterday seem to be fine. I suspect BRAT#1 is correct in that it was Stress afloat overdose on the part of the salesperson. In the future, I'm only going to allow her or her fiancé to bag my fish.

On another note, we have a major snowstorm headed our way. I'm worried about losing power so off to the pet store I go to buy a battery operated filter.


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## SunshineOnMe (Jan 11, 2014)

Awww  I'm sorry.  You really sound on-top of it though. I would've never thought about getting a battery powered filter! Hopefully you won't lose power.


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## spotsmom (Jan 20, 2011)

At the beginning of my fishkeeping days, I bought a battery powered airstone.  It's basically an air tube with airstone connected to a pump.  I have used it many, many times.  It's loud, but I feel better when it's on.  If the power is off awhile, I usually put a blanket over the tank to keep the heat in.

It is not unusual for fish to croak shortly after bringing them home, unless you're going to a very good fish store.  The poor little dears get stressed in shipping.  Are your chemicals ok?  Any chance that did them in?


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## luvmy4brats (Nov 9, 2008)

spotsmom said:


> At the beginning of my fishkeeping days, I bought a battery powered airstone. It's basically an air tube with airstone connected to a pump. I have used it many, many times. It's loud, but I feel better when it's on. If the power is off awhile, I usually put a blanket over the tank to keep the heat in.
> 
> It is not unusual for fish to croak shortly after bringing them home, unless you're going to a very good fish store. The poor little dears get stressed in shipping. Are your chemicals ok? Any chance that did them in?


My water is good (ammonia between 0-.5 and nitrites 0, nitrates between 0-20) and all my other fish are happy as can be. The 8 fish I got yesterday were in 4 different bags. The other 3 bags got the recommended amount of stress coat. This one bag that had these 2 yellow platys got enough for a 5 gallon tank (as opposed to about the 3 drops it should have gotten). The other 6 fish are all fine. (4 of them are 1/2" long baby neon tetras) There are 17 fish and an African dwarf frog in my tank and they all seem to be doing fine... I just caught my shy little Panda Platy playing with the Corys (she's been hiding under the bridge since I brought her home yesterday)

Thanks for the tip on the air stone. The store didn't have battery operated filters. I do have emergency mylar blankets that I'll use to wrap around the tank of we lose power.


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## luvmy4brats (Nov 9, 2008)

We lost the blue Glofish to an unfortunate waterfall accident. Somehow he managed to get himself inside of it (it's a bubbler) but after examining it, I have absolutely no clue how he got himself in there.

My ammonia levels are inching up a bit it's definitely closer to .5 than it was yesterday. I expect I'll be doing a water change tomorrow.

Here's a photo of my tank.. I did change out the bridge for a smaller one and now it has a small sunken ship in front of the waterfall. The treasure chest doesn't go with the rest of the decor, but Hubby likes it, so it'll stay (for now)


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## CatherineM (Jan 9, 2013)

The whole thing is is that you cannot shock them too much or they will die.  You need to watch temperature and Ph.  Float the bags from the store in the water in your tank to get it to adjust.  Wait at least an hour.  When you cut the bag open, just let it float and they will swim out on their own.  Or something like that.......

You can't just toss them in there!


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## MrPLD (Sep 23, 2010)

Good idea to hold off with getting anything more until you see the water snap clear. That said, could just be the background or the photo, but the water does seem to have a slightly cloudy tinge?


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## luvmy4brats (Nov 9, 2008)

CatherineM said:


> The whole thing is is that you cannot shock them too much or they will die. You need to watch temperature and Ph. Float the bags from the store in the water in your tank to get it to adjust. Wait at least an hour. When you cut the bag open, just let it float and they will swim out on their own. Or something like that.......
> 
> You can't just toss them in there!


I'm not sure where you've gotten the notion that I just toss them into the tank. I do float the bags. I even slowly add some of the water from my tank to their bag over the course of an hour or so. I also don't just dump the water from the store into the tank. Once they've been acclimated to my water, I pour them into a clean container and then net them into the tank. You should NEVER just open the bag after it's been floating to let them out because the water from the pet store could contaminate your tank. I might be new at this, but I have read several books & websites. Plus, my oldest daughter is a pet care associate at PetSmart and spends the majority of her time working with the fish. She's given me quite a bit of good advice.


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## CatherineM (Jan 9, 2013)

Luvmy5brats said:


> I'm not sure where you've gotten the notion that I just toss them into the tank. I do float the bags. I even slowly add some of the water from my tank to their bag over the course of an hour or so. I also don't just dump the water from the store into the tank. Once they've been acclimated to my water, I pour them into a clean container and then net them into the tank. You should NEVER just open the bag after it's been floating to let them out because the water from the pet store could contaminate your tank. I might be new at this, but I have read several books & websites. Plus, my oldest daughter is a pet care associate at PetSmart and spends the majority of her time working with the fish. She's given me quite a bit of good advice.


Sorry if I offended you.


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## luvmy4brats (Nov 9, 2008)

CatherineM said:


> Sorry if I offended you.


Sorry if if came off that way. I'm a bit upset after finding the blue Danio in the waterfall. That makes 3 fish in 3 days that have died. After such a great start with the first two purchases of fish (9 total) I wasn't expecting so many of my new ones to die so quickly. Especially when I know that I did everything I was supposed to do.


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## SunshineOnMe (Jan 11, 2014)

Luvmy5brats said:


> I'm a bit upset after finding the blue Danio in the waterfall. That makes 3 fish in 3 days that have died. After such a great start with the first two purchases of fish (9 total) I wasn't expecting so many of my new ones to die so quickly. Especially when I know that I did everything I was supposed to do.


I'm so sorry! I hope it all stabilizes quickly and you can just enjoy it. The tank is BEAUTIFUL!!!


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## MrPLD (Sep 23, 2010)

Sometimes you can get these "phases" where everything just seems to die every time you blink.  It's very disheartening and not a lot you can do many times other than to wait it out and slowly step back in to it 

( had this happen in one of my ponds,  very aggressive bacterial infection wiped out most of the female guppies,  nothing I could do but keep fishing the dead out until no more died ... then slowly the remaining population rebuilt, till now it's an absolute frenzy of life again )


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## SunshineOnMe (Jan 11, 2014)

How's it going today?


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## luvmy4brats (Nov 9, 2008)

SunshineOnMe said:


> How's it going today?


Everybody is doing good today. This morning I thought someone had slipped my Danios some crack. They were zooming around the tank like loons. My shy little panda was even playing with them. I'm happy to see her coming out more. When I first got her, she wouldn't come out from under the bridge.

I'm supposed to go to House of Tropicals (the big fish store) tomorrow. I really want to get 2 more Platys.


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## luvmy4brats (Nov 9, 2008)

Just an update on my tank. 

Here is the current list of residents:
5 long fin leopard Danios (there were 6 but I lost one the day after purchase.)
1 red Glofish Danio
6 neon tetras (2 more to be added, they were too small to go into this tank, so they're safely in a small tank of their own.. Seriously, they were about 1/4" long)
1 African dwarf frog
2 albino Cory cats
2 peppered Cory cats
2 bronze Cory cats (yeah, I really love these guys)
3 panda platys (1 male, 2 females) the females are named Mamacita & Sassy
1 dwarf Gourami


I did have 6 long fin red minor tetras, but they were quite the bullies and were nipping the fins of my danios (and each other's). They lasted in my tank for one day before being moved into a smaller 10 gallon in my daughter's room... They were the reason the neons didn't go into my tank. 

At this point my tank is pretty much full, but I may add a couple of upside down catfish to the mix.


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## SunshineOnMe (Jan 11, 2014)

so fun! I had to go on google images to see what these fish were.


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## 908tracy (Dec 15, 2009)

Heather, 

Your tank is just beautiful and you've been both doing a great job of it and also been given some really good advice. Fish keeping has been a hobby of mine ever since I was a little girl. I have a 45 gallon tank of freshwater community fish, and a 20 gallon which at present holds 3 red eared sliders, a pleco, a swordtail, and 2 african cichlids.   Most will say that cannot be good, but it works and they've been successful tank mates for months.

I have kept several types of tanks over the years, from oscars to guppies, livebearers to egg layers. My water condition keeps me from enjoying Angels, but aside from that, I love it!

I'll keep reading your thread and smiling! Enjoy!


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