Aquariums

Have never purchased an aquarium on-line, LW, but it sounds like a good deal.

Are you planning on salt or fresh water?

What kind of fish are you thinking of getting?

I've kept the standard tropical mix but the easiest and my favorite were four large, fancy goldfish that I kept in a 70 gallon tank. I had a nice calico Shubunkin, a Ryukin, a Bubble-Eye and a Black Moor. They were really responsive and would suck on my fingers when I fed them. I gave them to my roommate ages ago and ten years later the whole set-up was still doing fine.

It really is better to have more surface area than less.... which is why a show tank isn't quite so healthy for your fish, but you can do OK as long as you know that a 25-gallon show tank is more like a 20-gallon tank in terms of surface.

An interesting and colorful tropical set-up is a just a school of neon or cardinal tetras. You could probably get 25 or so in that tank (at an inch per gallon). Add an algae-eater or two and they should be fine as long as the temp & pH are good. Fancy goldfish are so unfussy that they don't need a heater and can be managed fine with an undergravel filter.

You might be able to get a less expensive tank through your newspaper. Even if it leaks a little, as long as there is no broken glass, you can seal the inside corners with sealant from the local aquarium store. It's always best to have the tank sitting on a single piece of one inch or thicker cork board to soak up the bits of water that tend to ooze & splash out.

If you refresh the water, give your fish live food once a week & keep some live plants in there, they'll really thrive.

Hey, good information, Piffka! The sozlet loves fish and I've been thinking about this for a while. Haven't been sure how much upkeep is really required.

I loved it when I had fish. The ex and I used to sit by the tank with cups of tea and talk and watch the fish for hours. They were the best therapists around.

I gave them up when a friend 'fish-sat' and murdered them by over-feeding.

Sozobe -- Fish are fun! They're a great project and you might really enjoy having some with the Sozlet. You can do it inexpensively to start and see how you like it. I'd recommend getting a couple of small but fairly nice goldfish... not just feeder fish that are often sickly and/or damaged. If you ask at the aquarium store, they'll tell you when the new shipment comes in so you can have your pick of the best & healthiest ones. The most important thing in keeping them is to have good water. In the city you'll want to draw the water into a big pitcher and let it sit for a few hours or overnight... it will get to be room temperature and loses some of the city chemicals through contact with the air.

I kept another goldfish in a gallon-sized jar in my kitchen for two years, then gave it to somebody else (who took pity on it and put it in an aquarium). I love goldfish and they are so easy... here's a good website:

Fish-Express

Piffka, you're almost making me want to get companion fish again!

Wonderful! Thanks so much.

How often do you need to change the goldfish water?

(I couldn't make the link work... )

sozobe - why are you so link-challenged tonight?

make it work! make it work! (it's a good site)

Beth? Dogs ARE more fun!

Sozobe - I think I changed the goldfish water once or twice a week when I had just the one fish in the gallon jar. The 70 gallon tank would get topped off as needed. Every couple of weeks I'd scrape the algae off the front glass and drain about half the water out, then refresh it. Five gallon buckets and a siphon are handy for this chore. When I had to clean that big tank, which was every two or three months, I'd put the fish and some old water in a smaller tank. Then I could clean the big tank down to the gravel. No soap, of course! I hardly ever cleaned the gunk underneath the gravel.

Fish in addition to the dogs! I think Bailey would enjoy watching them.

I've still got a lot of the equipment, other than the tank itself. I've still got the pump, and the little nets. I even have charcoal and stuff for the filter.

I dunno what's up with me and links tonight. I suspect something is up with my ever-creakier computer. (Gonna start putting out the word to parental units that we'd loooove XP for a Christmas present...)

What happened both times is a great big window opens, no address bar or any other kind of normal bar at the top, completely blank and white, with only a dark blue Internet Explorer bar at the very tippy top that says "Fish Express - Fancy Goldfish Shop - Microsoft Internet Explorer." Just like the bar at the very tippy top of this page (above the regular address bar et al) says "Acquariums - Microsoft Internet Explorer." It's the kind of thing that looks like it would be the first step toward the whole shebang opening, but nothing happens. Ever.

Will just look up "Fish Express" in Google later.

That's great. All that stuff gets expensive and you need most of it. If you use an undergravel filter though, you don't need the charcoal anymore. There's a plastic grid that raises the gravel up about 1/2 inch and then there are two tubes that go all the way down through the grid. Those have bubble-ators on little pumps just dropped down in them. I don't know why it works, exactly, but the water and dirt is pulled through the gravel and then the clean water (miraculously) comes out through the tubes. It's a wonder.

Bailey might really like fish, especially if they were fairly large and bright colored. You'd want to have the aquarium at eye level for him, or else have a bench for him to get up on. I've known cats that were attracted to aquariums.

Sozobe -- I just tried the link and got redirected to another site for a few seconds (FREE DVD- Press Enter) but then it worked. There are other sites that might be more informative... try googling "fancy goldfish."

I'm trying to remember what the Feng Shui rule is for goldfish... something about the number of black to orange fish and how, even if one died, you just replaced it to keep the good ratio. I'll try to find it. It was an interesting idea.

EDIT: Here it is... hmmm, my book Feng Shui Dos & Taboos says "Don't keep an aquarium in your kitchen or you'll lose prosperity" (y'know, I think I lost my best contract when that goldfish was in my kitchen!). "Keep fish in multiples of nine, a symbol of long life, or in odd numbers. Eight fish should be gold in color, since eight is the homonym for the Chinese verb "to prosper." One fish should be black, a color that will provide protection and absorb negative energy." Also, "Don't fret if any of your fish yould die, for it means tha the deceased animal has absorbed something negative that would have happened to you. Replace the fish as soon as you can to maintain your protection." :wink:

So would three be a multiple of nine? Sort of?

Definite yes on the Cardinal Tetras -- I once had a tank of just Blue Discus and Cardinal Tetras and it
was spectacular. I haven't decided whether I want to tackle a salt water tank. I am aware that a show tank can fool one into crowing the tank and have had them before up to 40 Gal. I wasn't that happy about the proportions of the tank I looked at -- I like the wider tanks that give the Tetras especially school across the tank. I think the fish are happier as with enough plants, shells and rocks, they have places to get away from it all! Especially if I include some Red Tail Sharks who love to hideaway, dart out and then hid again. I was more interested in what experience anyone has in buying on line. There is an aquarium specialty store near my house and he says he can order anything. I would likely be happy with a curved face plexi tank and I know that gets way more expensive.

(Incidentally, thanks for all the suggestions!)

LW ~ please go with your local store. I'm sure they'd appreciate the business.....nevermind that I used to work for a pet store that was privately owned.....until they couldn't compete with the big names.

Salt water tanks can be a chore, but fresh water tanks take just as much care. Especially if your desire is to ensure the quality of life for the fish.

Please send pics once you get your aquatic habitat started!

I want seahorses...but they are salt water, of course, and our local ones are a little dull and quiet - still, having a bunch of heraldic/mythical looking beasts in your living room, fluttering majestically around, sounds good.

I understand the tropical ones are livelier and more colourful - but I never see them in aquaria here.

If commercial breeding of leafy sea dragons (like sea horses dressed up in banners and frills) ever gets off the ground, I would love them. They are protected at the moment, because poaching for use in Chinese traditional medicine has made their numbers very low.

How cool... a seahorse aquarium! I think I've seen photos of those dragons but I'm going to look online. Can you imagine how great that would be -- dragons in the living room! But I think saltwater tanks are way too much trouble. I've watched my dentist drop hundreds (probably thousands) of dollars into his tank. He's had really expensive fish that die within a week. It's stabilized for now and looking good with a pair of clowns, those blue & yellow fish, one of those red shrimp & some coral & anemones. But what a hassle!

LW -- I think Rae is right. Patronize your local store -- you're going to need them. They might have a message board with people selling used tanks, too. I just can't imagine shipping a big tank. I guess it could be done but think of the packaging.

Blue Discus & Cardinal Tetras? Nice contrast! Weren't the tetras getting eaten?

During the eighteen month tenure at my pet store, I found sea horses to be the most difficult to keep.

My biggest (and costliest) memory from the pet store......Never, ever mix tetras and puffer fish. Ever. (Puffer fish are a delicacy to other fish species......and they are WAY expensive. Jeezopete.)

LW ~ an afterthought.....I managed to pick up a fifty gallon tank for twenty bucks. The guy selling it knew that it leaked, but I don't think he realised how cheap cilicone sealant is ~ that tank has been in use for over ten years now ~ with no problems.