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  #31  
Old March 17th, 2005, 10:48 PM
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Jackie467 Jackie467 is offline
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Join Date: Jul 2004
Location: Houston, TX
Posts: 887
Well i'v been looking for angelfish. I'm not quite ready yet, but I am looking. Today I saw some healthy nice looking ones at petco, but they aren't out of quarentine yet so when they are in 8 days i'll go back and take another look. The lady told me something interesting, at petco they take the fish to a vet when the first get them in. I never thought that they would do that with fish, but I guess they do. They had about 9 juveniles, two looked like they were marbels, a double black, and i'm not sure about the others. I really liked the marbel ones. I also bought some PH balancing stuff made spicifically for angelfish that i'm going to put in my tank before I get the angels. Poodletalk, I feed my fish twice a day, but i'm not a fish expert so i don't know if thats right or not.
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Last edited by Jackie467; March 17th, 2005 at 10:52 PM.
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  #32  
Old June 10th, 2005, 09:47 PM
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Sneaky Sneaky is offline
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Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: Ladysmith British Columbia
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Hi All,
I have read this post, and I want to address a few misconceptions people have on here.
The first thing you should know about setting up a new tank is the Nitrogen Cycle.
Heres how it works:
When you add fish to your tank, they pee and poop. This creates ammonia in the water. Ammonia in high quantities is very toxic to fish. After a few days, a bacteria called Nitrobacter starts to grow in your tank. This bacteria consumes ammonia and converts it to another chemical called Nitrite. Nitrite is also toxic to fish in high concentrations. After a while longer, a 3rd bacteria grows to consume the Nitrite present in your aquarium. This is called Nitrate. Nitrate is quite harmless to fish, until it builds to very high amounts in the aquarium.
This process is called the cycle. During this time, you should only keep a couple of hardy fish, and allow the tank to cycle fully. No ammonia or nitrites will be present at this time. You should purchase a master test kit, or individual tests for ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, and ph. The whole process from day to completely cycled usually takes between 21-60 days.

The second thing you should know about, is Water Conditioners. These detoxify Chlorine and Chloramine in the water supply. Chlorine and Chloramine molecules are present in most water (except wells), and are also toxic to fish. You should purchase a water conditioner. The one I recommend is Prime. It is expensive, but you use very very little each time, and it does a variety of functions, including removing chlorine and chloramine, detoxifying heavy metals (very important for well water users), and detoxifys ammonia and nitrite.
You should add water conditioner every time you do a water change on your tank.

Water changes you say? Yes, this is why you need to purchase a "Gravel Vaccuum". You use this, and a bucket, to remove water from the tank, and suck the debris out of the gravel. This should be done approximately 35% of the tank water once a week.
The water that is replaced should be the same temperature as the tank water (use a thermometer, not your finger), and should be treated with a quality water conditioner prior to adding back to tank. Water that is too cold or too hot can shock and kill fish.


Now I have read a variety of comments on here I would like to address for you guys.

Here is the first one:
[qoute]Goldfish (in my opinion) are best left to smaller tanks that are easier to clean. Goldfish are known for three things: looking pretty, eating & pooping. Not much else. [/qoute]

OK - first of all, Goldfish are HUGE FISH. They need 55gallons per fish, of space at adulthood, and thats only the fancys (orandas, ryukins, moors, calicos, lionheads, etc). Fancys, on average grow to approximate 9-15inches in length. Others such as Comets and Koi, need ponds of 150G or larger to survive in as they reach lengths upwards of a foot in length. Goldfish DO NOT GROW TO MEET THEIR ENVIRONMENT. That is a complete misconception.
WHat happens is, as the goldfish grows, it reaches a size at which its body no longer has space to grow. At this time, the body "stunts" but the internal organs CONTINUE to grow. After some time, this results in the internal organs, usually the kidneys, swimbladder, or heart, to rupture and kill the fish.
This can happen in a matter of months, as a Goldfish in a large tank will grow approximate 1 inch per 2 weeks of time until it reaches its adult size of 9-15 inches. I will attach a picture for you to see of Bruce the Oranda, who was only 2 years old at the time of the picture. Goldfish can live from 10-25 years if kept in a tank with enough space (55gallons or larger EACH).
A 150G tank only has space for 3 adult goldfish.

Another misconception is that of Bettas. These fish are aggressive only with each other, but need heated water (76-80F), and a filter, and regular water changes, and a tank size of at least 1 gallon, but 10gallons being preferred. I have kept a Betta in my 75g tank with many large and small fish.

Angelfish are not reeally by nature Fin Nippers. If kept with compatible fish, unless breeding, angelfish are very peaceful fish.
Angelfish need a tank size of 25 Gallons or larger, and a tank height of at least 18 inches, as they grown 12 inches from top to bottom. These fish need soft water, and warm too (78F being preferred).

A good fish website and resource for beginners, as well as advanced aquariasts is
http://www.fishprofiles.com
It has fish information, a forum, and a wide variety of data on all types of fish, including saltwater, as well as other aquatic animals like turtles, newts, and frogs.

I have been into fishkeeping for 3 years now, and have a 25g tank with a breeding pair of 8 inch angelfish, a 75g tank with a variety of community fish, and a 10g tank with dwarf cory catfish and guppies.

I will attach a couple of photos.
I am more than willing to help anyone who needs info, and if cant answer your questions, i can find you some place online that will.

My name is Koran, and I live in Ladysmith. I have 5 fish tanks (3 in use), 2 Cats , a 12 lb Birman male Rocky, and a 32 lb male ragdoll, Ice; and I have a female long haired Chihuahua 9lbs, named Muffin.

Goldfish 2 years old


10Gallon Tank



75Gallon tank
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