Oscar, saltwater, or planted?

[Ty13]

My mom told me that if I could come up with half the money I could get a new good sized tank for christmas. My grandmother told me she would buy me all the plants/fish for me so i don't need to worry about that. I'm just trying to decide what I should get for this new tank.

My first thought was a 75 gal tank for an oscar. I had had an oscar about a month ago but a couple people on this forum made me realize I was torturing it so I brought it back. I would love to get another whom I could give a good home to.

But then I began to think about having a saltwater tank. I don't have any experiance with saltwater aquaiurms but there's only one way to learn and I read a ton about everything saltwater and i'm sure the saltwater fanatics could help me out quite a bit.

Then I began to doubt myself as i'm just starting with freshwater aquariums so I started to think about maybe have a planted aquarium. I have one live plant in one of my aquariums but its more of a snack for my silver dollar and I kind of want to get more in depth with plants because they offer so much more then the fake plants I use now.

After that I started to wonder about a planted oscar tank but the oscar would no doubt eat the plants so I went back to the oscar idea and the cycle continues...

I need someone to choose for me:19: I over-think stuff like this. Anyone have any ideas on what I should do?

[PUNISHER VETTE]

I've never done saltwater and have no clue on how hard it is so i'll leave that out if it was me.

I know if i was a fish i'd rather have the most closely natural habitat you can get which would have live plants...

But then again i'm pretty biased.

[invadertoast]

I'm also leaving out saltwater because I have no experience at all - Personally I love the look of planted tanks and would love to have a huge planted community, but at the same time I feel bad for all the oscars that end up in too-small tanks and if I had a big enough tank I'd love to give one a good home (especially the huge ones at the pet store that are only 5 bucks because nobody will buy them.) In the end, if it comes down to money, a planted tank would cost more to set up than an oscar tank.

[cocoa_pleco]

saltwater ;)

[ILuvMyGoldBarb]

surprisingly I'd recommend the Oscar tank. You loved the Oscar and returned it, Now that you have the opportunity to give one a good home go for it. I'd recommend against SW so that you can get more FW experience under your belt first.

[sandy_n]

Oscar all the way :19:

[angelcakes]

oscar tank.........there great:19: :19: :19:

[xximanoobxx]

Yep, Oscar...
FTW!!!!!!

[MCHRKiller]

I would go for a planted oscar tank :P There are some plants that are tough enough to withstand Os such as java fern...java moss and anubias. Tie these to rocks/wood and you can experience a relatively natural habitat with an O :) And these plants do fine in standard tank lighting.

[dgoulston]

Saltwater tanks are a lot of work & money.

my tank has been running for 6+ months now and everything was looking/going perfectly, then all of a sudden the other day, WHITE SPOT. came out of no where.. i have the medication/UV and all on order, but will not get here to early next week now. and have allready lost my smallest clown and a royal grammer(who died without any signs of anything)....

if you do go Saltwater, i would recommend going all out with sump/UV etc... but is very expenisve! and can all go wrong in the blink of an eye, espically with a small tank!

[Lady Hobbs]

I am going to have to go with an Oscar for the same reason ILuvMyGoldBarb gave. This is the fish you liked and had to give up. And thank you for that. Thinking of our fish's needs FIRST before thinking of what WE want shows maturity and kindness and this will make you a good fishkeeper in the years to come.

Since this is the kind of fish you want, then you will likely always be thinking of an Oscar and always wish you'd have gotten one. Once your tank is set up and you have your proper filtration, you are pretty much done with the tank other than weekly cleaning. Keeping with your age and the money you will have to work with, Oscar is it! I would get one, not two, so you aren't dealing with spawns, fights, etc, and just get a couple other larger fish to keep him company.

[greatXpectations]

surprisingly I'd recommend the Oscar tank. You loved the Oscar and returned it, Now that you have the opportunity to give one a good home go for it. I'd recommend against SW so that you can get more FW experience under your belt first.

+1 on the oscar! Id put a few of the hardier plants in there too

Keep dreaming of that saltwater tank though! someday you'll have the opportunity to build a nice setup :)

[NickFish]

I would do a FW planted before doing a SW.

So I recommend either an oscar tank or a planted tank. SW isn't that hard, but a 75g saltwater is way out of the price range for someone your age I think. And your grandmother may not know what she's getting into. :c2:

[Halelorf]

I agree with what everyone has said. You liked the oscar so this is a great oportunity to have one in a great home. I would recommend against saltwater as you need more experience and you are very likely to turn the people financing your operation off when they get the costs. I'm thinking they think it's "just a fish" and don't really understand that equipment is expensive for a saltwater tank. Good luck with your new tank though!

[Ty13]

Thanks for your replies. I will more than likely go with an oscar now, maybe get a Jack dempsey to go in with him.

Lady Hobbs - I don't think I deserve any praise for bringing the oscar back because if you can find the other thread where they convinced me to bring it back, I fought and struggled to approve me keeping it.

If I did go for a planted O tank what kind of plants would suvive and would I need special lighting, Co2, fertalizers, etc.?

[smaug]

If you have someone footing the bill then SW is THE only way top go:27:

[Klug23]

I voted saltwater. But I would not dive right into it. I started my 55 gallon saltwater tank awhile ago and don't even think i will have water in it until pry christmas. I just bought a 29 gallon for my cichlid just to keep me entertained until then.

[johnl]

Oscar would be my choice. :19:

[gm72]

I'm going to vote against saltwater. If money is a potential issue, SW is a bad idea. The SW people here will agree that it is a money hog.

Oscar!!!!!

[travie]

I voted Oscar tank if you get the 75 gallon.

[gm72]

If I did go for a planted O tank what kind of plants would suvive and would I need special lighting, Co2, fertalizers, etc.?

The type of plants you keep depends in large part on the light(s) you have. Depending on how much light you have you may or may not need CO2. You will probably need fertilizers, but some folks get by without using them.

[Garrity828]

Oscar tank. They are so cool and have great personalities. Oscar all the way.

[ILikeEels]

Saltwater FTW!!!:c3: :c3:
since your grandma will pay for the fish and your mum will split it with you 50:50 your costs will be majorly slashed. The tank will still be smaller than if you went freshwater but the variety is huge. One of the things I like about saltwater over freshwater is that variety of body shapes of the fish and invertebrates. I say SW, but then I am a bit of a Saltwater fanatic.:hmm3grin2orange:
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