A little advice please...

[wii_irish_lad]

Hi all! My name is Jason, and I'm rather new here. I'll get straight to the point.

My father wants me to set up a nice aquarium in our living room. Now, I have both a 5 gallon and a 10 gallon tank in my room that aren't being used at all. Is it possible/recommended to use a tank that small (I was considering using the 10 gallong), or should I wait until I can afford a larger tank (if so, how large? 20, 29?)? If I can use a 10 gallon, what would you recommend putting in it?

Thanks in advance!

[f1oored]

It all depends on what you are looking for. If you are looking for something big and breath-taking then a 10 probably won't cut it. If you only have room for a smaller tank then a 10 can be very nice if done right. They make a 20 extra high which looks a lot bigger than it is (like 2 tens on top of each other).

What you should do is decide what fish you want and then go from there.

[Severus]

If i were you i would go for something a little larger. With the 10 gallon your options are going to be pretty limited. Maybe a school of neon tetras, platys and some corys. If you go with a 29 or even larger it will open up a lot more possibilities and will make a better looking tank for your living room (in my opinion). If you are interested in something unique you could make the 10 gallon a dwarf puffer tank. Good luck!

[wii_irish_lad]

Well, the thing is, I don't exactly make lots of money...I'm working part time. I would like something nice, but affordable. I don't want the same old cliche goldfish, gravel, fake plant. I want real plants, real rocks, real wood. I'll probably end up saving up for a larger tank. If I were to buy a tall tank, can you give me some good ideas? What kinds of fish, plants, etc...

[Glasstapper]

I'd say just go with the 10 (unless you're willing to spend the money on a 20 gallon tank, filter, stand, substrate, thermometer, etc.)

In the 10, I would just stick with a small peaceful community. Realistically, you could have a nice "full" looking tank with relatively easy maintenance. This would be an example of a fully stocked tank, so you would need to do weekly water changes (about 30%) and double your filtration.

-3 cory cats
-2 guppies
-2 swordtails

the guppies and swordtails are all livebearers, so be sure to get males so you aren't overrun with baby fish. The cory cats are bottom dwellers and the others are top-middle swimmers. You can mix and match colors and they are pretty hardy. If you don't want livebearers, you could also do this combination:

-6 neon tetras
-2 dwarf honey gouramis

The dwarfs would need to be added after your tank has cycled all the way as they can be a little sensitive to water quality.

Both combinations are very colorful, but you have to decide on what kind of tank you're looking for. These are just colorful peaceful options.

[wii_irish_lad]

Thanks Glasstapper, that was extremely helpful. Now, if you could recommend some plant species...

[cocoa_pleco]

so youre on a budget....

Go with a 33gallon, cheap canister or HOB ( hand on back) filter.

community fish- 6 cories, 8 danios, a pleco, a dwarf gourami, and 3 platies, and a molly.

Cichlids- 6 angels, OR 6 kribs, OR A bunch of dempsies Or aulonocaras

Saltwater- yellow tang, 4 clownfish, 3 cleaner shrimp, and a molly, and a starfish and anenomies.:1:

[cocoa_pleco]

plants, go with java fern, moss balls, or some aquarium grass, or common plants at your local store

[Incredulous_Ed]

Thanks Glasstapper, that was extremely helpful. Now, if you could recommend some plant species...
The easiest plants are aponogetons- aslo known as "wonder bulbs". They're sold as these seed looking thing at your LFS

[kufan]

If you decide to buy a 20 gallon, go with 20 long. I personally have 20 long and absolutely love it. I also have 29, but my 20 long is my favorite one of the two.

KU

[cocoa_pleco]

same. I love my 20 long. I put toads instead of fish in the tank.

[AuroraAustralis]

One of the most impressive tanks I have ever seen was a 25gal heavily backplanted with vallisneria only. The whole foreground was left open. The only fish in it were a very large school of cardinal tetras.
I remember seeing that tank over 10 years ago and I still want to do something like that one day. The same sort of thing could be done well with even a 10gal and neons and still make an immediate impact on anyone who sees the tank IMO
awwww now I want that tank again.. lol

[Sasquatch]

At the moment I have a 10 gallon and it can be a really nice tank that won't cost too much. The maintenance is also a lot easier, so it's a good introduction to someone (re)starting in the hobby.

ATM we have 5 platies in there and it looks really good. They swim all over the tank, through the plants, generally always in movement. They're a good starter fish and come in a huge variety of colors and fin shapes.

I'd suggest picking up the free e-book on this site, it has a lot of useful information.

[kimmers318]

You have gotten really good advice from everyone so far, kudos to you for researching BEFORE starting. A 10 gal can be done very nicely and relatively inexpensively, but if you will be limited on space save for the larger aquarium. Chances are once you get your 10 gal going you will find many more fish you would like to have and then you will start looking for somewhere to put tank #2. If your living room won't hold MTS (multiple tank syndrome.....a common ailment around here) wait until you can get the biggest tank your budget and space allow, it will give you many more options.
That being said...long tanks are generally better than tall tanks unless you are looking at deep bodied fish. Fish tend to swim side to side in a tank, not up and down, so length gives them swimming room.
There are alot of inexpensive setups and nice size tanks. I have a 29 gal eclipse show tank that I love even if it is more on the tall side rather than the long side. All components are internal, filter is in the hood, which makes it space wise and easy to deal with. Watch sales and check out places like ebay, craigslist, aquabid for great deals on used tanks. Ask around, alot of the time you will find that people you know have an old tank sitting in their garage they don't want and just didn't want to throw it away. When I started getting into fish, a friend of mine wanted me to take on her son's last 2 fish because everyone kept dying, when she brought them in she also offered me the tank. Next thing I know I had someone offering me 2 20 gal longs, next I was given another 10 gal. I don't need them currently, but they have come in handy as quick Q tanks. Put the word out to family and friends, maybe make a poster for people to put up at work, when the weather clears up, watch your garage sales, you will probably be pleasantly surprised at what you come across very cheaply.
As for heavily planted, wait for the plant guru's to help ya out, I have a brown thumb, but I know that lighting and fertilizers are a must, so they can give you all the info you need for that. Usually your standard lighting isn't great for most plants, some of the low light hardier ones might survive, but probably won't thrive.

[Glasstapper]

so youre on a budget....

Go with a 33gallon, cheap canister or HOB ( hand on back) filter.

community fish- 6 cories, 8 danios, a pleco, a dwarf gourami, and 3 platies, and a molly.

Cichlids- 6 angels, OR 6 kribs, OR A bunch of dempsies Or aulonocaras

Saltwater- yellow tang, 4 clownfish, 3 cleaner shrimp, and a molly, and a starfish and anenomies.:1:

hi, just wanted to double check on something you suggested there. in community fish, you suggest cories and a molly together, but keep in mind that mollies like salt and cories do not.

for the cichlids, the number of angels and kribs would be ok but 33 gallons is limited space and aggression may occur. "a bunch of dempsies"? No way even one jack dempsey would be happy in a 33 gallon long term. A full grown one is best in a 55 gallon minimum.

saltwater is not easy on a budget no matter which way you go and although a molly likes salt in their water, they are not a saltwater fish.

Not to put down your suggestions, I just think that some of those would not be best for a beginner.

[Glasstapper]

Now, if you could recommend some plant species...

I can only tell you about the plants I have grown myself. The anubias nana is a beautiful plant that is hardy. It is low light, but if you can manage two watts per gallon on your 10 gallon tank, it will help it thrive. It is also a slow growing plant, but be patient and you'll see new leave sprout once in a while.

The corkscrew valisneria is a beautiful tall grass-like plant for the back. It does best with about 2 watts per gallon and will shoot out new runners all the time. The top of the plant may grow taller than your tank, which may create a sort of canopy over the top of the water.

Java Fern and Java Moss seem to be one of the hardiest plants for beginners. It's best if you attach them to a decoration or driftwood or rocks.

Basically, if you can get yourself a bulb to fit in your hood that is about 20 watts for your 10 gallon, then that will help your plants. For your substrate to plant the anubias nana and corkscrew val., it would be best if you put about 3 inches of eco-complete substrate, then lay one inche of fine gravel on top. Leave a bit of the corkscrew val roots showing (called the "crown") and when planting the anubias, make sure just the roots go in and don't cover the rhizome, which is the stem the roots grow down from and the leaves grow up from.

Maybe some others will have other plants you can try.

[jeffs99dime]

welcome to a.c.

[cocoa_pleco]

Actually yeah, not the dempsies. They get huge. Sorry about that. And salt water is bad on a budget. For all the salt and live rock and protein skimmer and fancy anenome lights/chemicals i paid for for my 10g tank i could have probably bought a 33g starter set.

[minabird]

You mentioned that your dad wants you to set up a tank in the family living room. Since it's his idea and its for the family, try to convince him to spring for the tank to fit the space where he wants to put it. If it's along a long wall, then go for a 36" or longer tank; if it's in the corner or on a small wall, go for a 20-30 gal high, or larger depending on high big you want to get. I bought a 28gal bow front tank (24"Lx15"Dx17"H) kit for a corner in my living room from Petsmart for $110 on sale; it included the filter and heater and other sample starter stuff like food, stress coat, stresszyme, fish food, etc. Gravel, black sand, 3 pieces of driftwood, and several plants have cost arnother $100; added the plants and driftwood over a period of 3-4 months.

The long tank will let you get a nice school of active swimmers like danios or barbs. The tall tank, depending on the size, would be a nice fit for a school of calmer species of tetras. Fill out the bottom with either a school of cories or a pleco; the size of the tank will determine the type of pleco you get. I like a school of cories because they make the bottom of the tank look active also. To contrast a school of neon/cardinal/ or similar tetras or danios, get a couple taller fish like gouramis as suggested by glasstapper.

For inexpensive plants, go with the type that grow and propagate fast. Ludwigia repens grows fast and you propagate it by planting the cuttings when you trim them. Another easy plant to grow, but slowly, is the bacopa caroliniana, or giant bacopa. It's also a stem plant. Most of the sites say that it grows slowly, but for me it grows pretty fast, nearly doubled in size in less than a month. I have both in my 28gal bow and trim about a third off when they reach the water surface and replant the cuttings. Another fast grower are the sagittaria subulata species. They are a carpet plant that grows from 6"-8" tall depending upon the specific species variety. The send out runners from which new plants grow.

Here's a plant site that I like. It categorizes 285 plants by scientific names, light requirements, tank placement, difficulty growing etc. Also includes some nice pics of the more popular plants. http://www.plantgeek.net/plantguide.php

[Severus]

I still dont think i am ready for SW. Welcome to AC

[cocoa_pleco]

saltwater was a pain for me. 25 bucks for a hydrometer?? And the fish are so expensive and the anenomies, I killed all but 1 anenome out of 3