Hitchers who helped re: Fish.

Fab bargain!!!

What sort of fish do you have in mind? lots of small ones or big ones, or a mix? There is a lot more you can do with 35 gallons

Just having a random think. I would go for some bottom dwellers, corys would be good for this as they dont get too big, there are lots of different types so plenty of choice there They do need top be kept in groups of about 6 though as they are a schooling fish. Then some middle dwellers. Cherry barbs are pretty and pretty hardy the males are quite a nice cherry colour, the females are a bit duller, they need to be kept in a certain ratio or males to females, 1 male to 2 females should be ok and a school of 6 again. I would then go for something that is more of a centre peice a slightly larger fish.

The fishless cycling is the same as cold water. The tank temperature for tropical is usually about 24-26 centigrade. You will need to add fish slowly so that you dont overload the filter. For example from the fish I mentioned above I would start with 6 cherry barbs (2 males 4 females) and let them settle in for a few weeks (while checking the water parameters) and then slowly add more fish.

There are lots of choices with fish, it might be easier if you take K to a shop and get some names of the ones she likes and then research from there (or come ask here)

I'm a big fan of tetras. I have some black widow tetras and the ubiquitous neons, and have recently bought some beautiful little ember tetras. What i like about them is the way they shoal - you get gorgeous masses of colour and movement. They're also easy to keep, reasonably cheap to buy and (mostly) friendly, non-aggressive little fish. Congo tetras are beautiful too, but quite a bit bigger.

Tetras are good, they are always so happy in a new tank though, but worth thinking about. My H really likes tetras

Thank you for the replies, I had to take kayleigh to the dentist for some major work, but I'm back for a while now.

It was a fab bargain, saw the ad on Saturday night, and emailed. I'm in Tamworth, she was in warwick, and with the fab SatNav, I got there no trouble. My car looked like a tardis! She included a scraper, some white spot treatment and vairous other random bits too, so we have a fab starter kit for her.

Zoe, I did think about bottom dwellers, and lots of schooling fish but I think we would mix the sizes, ruling out any that would eat little ones.

I like the sound of tetras and white cloud mountain minnows if they are tropical. I wil research all those mentioned, and make a decision with K. I hadn't heard of Congo tetras, so will look those up.

Someone I spoke to yesterday mentioned one that falls asleep on its side? They look a bit like nemo? The name has escaped me now. maybe clown fish??

What about snails, shrimps? K is mad on these.. is it possible. Oh and she would like catfish? The barbed type I think they are called - have barbs near the mouth

danios?

siamese fighter fish? K is fascinated by these. I know we could only have one,

I've been researching lighting on Fish forums, and a lot of members have successfully used cold cathode lighting, including the UV type, which creates a beautiful effect at night (similar to moonlight). A friend is helping me research lighting with the help of his electics background, and the help of the fish forums.

Right, during set up, what type of kit do I need... Ammonia is one, then I need to have the testing kits to check for nitrates, nitrites etc? Which kit would be best.
Would a digital exterior mounted thermometer be better?

Plants, rocks and substrate.. what type of substrate would be suitable? K likes the look of the black gravel type substrate, combined with white pebbles. Can I use the large cobbles you can get from garden centres? If so, I already have black and white cobbles she can have.

Am I missing anything else from the start up?

Corys are cat fish, I wouldnt get a pleco (the sucking ones) as they get massive (over a foot).

Danios would be fine and tetras

shrimps would probably get eaten but might be ok

apple snails are fine, but not too many as they produce a lot of waste.

siamese fighter (betta) would very much depend on whatelse is in the tank, they can be VERY agressive and are best kept alone in a smaller tank.

The only one I can think that falls on its side is a clown loach, I again wouldnt get these as they get massive

minnows are better in cold water

Test kit wise a good one is API freshwater master liquid test kit (down the page a bit on here https://www.aquacadabra.com/catalogue/a-p-i-liquid-test-kits.asp)

I just use a stick on thermometer

Black gravel looks fab, the colour can fade though, with all gravel you need to throughly wash it first (with plain water) its best to get proper aquarium stuff. Pebbles you can buy too.

You will also need a water treatment to remove the chlorine and chloramines Tetra aquasafe is good (down the page on here https://www.aquacadabra.com/catalogue/tetra.asp)

You will need to do water changes as well so a bucket and a syphon are a good idea https://www.aquacadabra.com/catalogue/gravel-cleaners.asp

Its good to have some caves for fish to hide in, I make these from pottery flower pots (much much cheaper than ornaments)

er I dunno what else to say...

The fish you mentioned that "sleeps" on it's side is a Clown Loach. They should ideally be kept in groups (5 plus) and grow to be very big - around 10 - 12 " (25 - 30 cm). They really need a tank in the 6 foot region. There is a debate on the whole sleeping on there side thing atm, some people say it is common behaviour, some say it is an early indication of a bacterial infection.

The catfish could be one of many. Corydoras are most common, they prefer more of a sandy substrate. Plectomus's are quite cool, but some grow to be very big.

API LIQUID test kit is the way to go. Make sure it has ammonia, nitrIte and nitrAte as a minimum. PH, GH and KH would be useful too. You'll also need some water conditioner to remover choline and chloramine from the tap water,

As for pebbles and rocks from garden centers, just be careful. some rocks can "leach" calcium into the water - not good. I'd stick to what is avaliable in LFS's. Pets @ Home is good for ornements and rocks and bogwood. I try not to get fish from there though.

On the subject of fish, try not to get fish from a tank that has dead fish in it. And try and look at all the fish in the tank even if you aren't interested in all of them. If you doubt the healthyness of any of the fish I'd steer clear. Better safe than introducing something nasty into the tank.

HTH.

Sorry Zoe, but that isn't correct. The fishless cycle builds up the colonies of bacteria before introducing fish. If the filter isn't cycled then the fish are exposed to lethal levels of ammonia.

The simple truth is that if you add fish before the bacteria have colonised then you substantially increase the odds of killing your fish. There is nothing you can buy in the UK that speeds this process up.

Elvira, if you havent already, please read this : http://www.tropicalfish.site5.com/tfc/showthread.php?t=60022

Youve completely misunderstood me. On her last thread I gave her the links for fishless cycling. I have never said you should add fish before the cycle is done. The bit you have quoted is after the cycling, you slowly add the fish to stop over loading the filter

Thanks Zoe & CG. I'll have a look at that link CG.

Right, I am making lists upon lists and we will research everything. I'll also pop over to a centre near home on Thursday that specialises in fish that I've been told about.

I'll gove the tank etc a really good clean today, and make a list of all the kit I need and price it up, and start ordering spares and replacements for the equipment tonight.

Thanks guys, as usual, you are stars!

I aplologise if I have misunderstood you. However, if the cycle completes as per the fishless cycle then the tank should be fully stocked. If it isn't then the bacteria will die off to the levels it needs for the fish in the tank.

I apologise again for the misunderstanding.

No need to apologise, just wanted to make sure what I said was clearer ? I still wouldnt advise adding all the fish at once though