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Seconding Wampus. Generally, as weird as it is, the smaller the tank is, the harder it is to take care of. Less water means less time for things to go spectacularly wrong, I guess.
I hope your next attempt at fishkeeping goes much better. And I second the guppy recommend for a little tank like that.
Oh no… major hugs from me. I love my fish dearly and even cry (like a sap) when they pass on. 🙁
Don’t let this experience keep you from fish-keeping. It can be very rewarding and enjoyable once you learn how to handle the nitrogen cycle. Have you thought about getting a betta? Mine has his own 5 gallon. Liberating a betta from a lifetime of suffering in a bowl is one of the greatest things you can do, in my opinion. 🙂
You guys are super awesome for all this info and support! We have agreed to try to get this tank up and going again.. we just can’t afford it right yet XD so now it’s running to keep the Algae eater goin ’till we decide what we want to do.
We were thinking guppies or something of that sort, my mom used to keep tanks long ago, she just never did goldfish, so that’s where the trouble with my girl came in at.. was all new ground for the bunch of us!So we’re gonna go back to what we know (knew? It’s been so long! lol), we were introduced to “Moss balls” I was going to research them more before thinking of putting one in the tank but were told they help the tank? (I don’t fully trust what this kid was sayin, I seemed to out-info him a bit at the store with the info Jennifer has been giving me XD lol) ‘n we weren’t planning on getting any more than 5 in there (total). We’re not sure if we’re going to keep the algae eater or find him a new home and look for something that may not have issues with smaller fish. I don’t know if this one would outgrow the tank, it stopped growing a couple months after we got it (It hit a growth spurt and stopped) but my worry is if it’ll leave the little ones alone or not.
I really want to say Thank You to all of you! This community here really is amazing 🙂
If you still find you want a bottom feeder, a couple of otocinclus catfish would do okay. They stay tiny and they are a TRUE vegetarian algae eater. But they dont like to be alone, so you would need at least two. Im not sure you could find them at a petco or petsmart, but the little mom/pop store I used to work at had them ALL the time.
If you still find you want a bottom feeder, a couple of otocinclus catfish would do okay. They stay tiny and they are a TRUE vegetarian algae eater. But they dont like to be alone, so you would need at least two. Im not sure you could find them at a petco or petsmart, but the little mom/pop store I used to work at had them ALL the time.
Thanks! If it assures I get the right fish, I will look and find a mom/pop type store to get them at, if need be! 🙂
Are you talking about Marimo Moss? They look like this:
http://www.aquariumplantsandsupplies.com/images/PL-MO11-06.jpg
I have some, and they’re pretty neat. They are actually a form of algae though, and can start shedding little ‘pups’ that grow on other things in the tank. So I took them out and have them in their own bowl on the kitchen table, as a live centerpiece. They’re very cool!
They’re pretty much the Tribbles of the plant kingdom if you have them in their ideal conditions. XD
BUT, in your 3-gal they might be really nice! Especially if they’re the only live plant in there. I really do love Marimo moss, just wanted to give you that heads up. 🙂 It’s an extremely low-maintenance plant and in your tank it shouldn’t ‘Tribble out’. 😉
Whatever kind of fish you get – make sure you look up information on what a healthy fish of that variety looks like and behaves like.
Find out how long the store has had them – fish from new shipments are stressed and it takes a bit for them to settle. If the fish store just got them, then you take them home immediately afterwards, the chance of issues are higher. The store I deal with will order fish for me, but will hold them for a couple weeks to make sure they’re going to live before I take them home.
Also ask if the store has a guarantee on their fish – some stores will agree to replace stock if your tank water checks out, but the fish die within the first 5-7 days.
Other things to do – make sure the tank is clean and healthy (doesn’t have to be pristine – some algae and other things are a sign of health – I don’t trust big box stores with gleaming tanks), but the water shouldn’t be murky, there shouldn’t be build up on the front of the tank, etc. Make sure there are no sick or dead looking fish in the tank.
If you ever DO move to a larger tank, quarantining new residents can be helpful to make sure they don’t bring something nasty home. For quarantining, it’s good to keep a smaller tank (like the one you have), put the new fish in it at first, make sure they are healthy (and to get rid of the fish store water) and then move them to your main tank. This makes it a much lower risk that you’ll get something nasty into your stock (and if a fish gets sick, you can move it to the quarantine tank for treatment rather than messing things up in your main tank).
And, agree with the larger tanks are easier to maintain, odd though it sounds. My display tank is 55 gallons and my sump is around 35 gallons (I do salt water so a sump tank makes my life easier!) Even with that, I really need to move up to 110 gallons or so for the display tank because my set up is too small and vulnerable to fluctuations. (Thankfully, most fresh water fish can live in MUCH smaller systems! LOL).
Finally, if you get a new tank, make sure you cycle it (might be helpful on your existing one too since you were having water quality challenges!) Cycling is a process where you put very few hearty fish into a new tank to start the ammonia/nitrite/nitrate cycle. The fish are needed to produce waste to start the bacteria growing, but they need to be hearty as during the cycling process, your levels will spike at times and the fish need to be able to handle it. Once your good bacteria get established and all the levels stabilized, you can add new fish slowly until you get the stock level you desire and your tank can support.
Some fish stores will let you bring your “starter fish” back once you’re done cycling your tank so you can get something good to cycle with, but what may not be what you permanently want. 🙂
Wow, sorry for the long post… I have never worked in a fish store, but I’ve been keeping fresh water fish on and off since I was about 8 years old and salt water since I was 14.
Are you talking about Marimo Moss? They look like this:
http://www.aquariumplantsandsupplies.com/images/PL-MO11-06.jpg
I have some, and they’re pretty neat. They are actually a form of algae though, and can start shedding little ‘pups’ that grow on other things in the tank. So I took them out and have them in their own bowl on the kitchen table, as a live centerpiece. They’re very cool!
They’re pretty much the Tribbles of the plant kingdom if you have them in their ideal conditions. XD
BUT, in your 3-gal they might be really nice! Especially if they’re the only live plant in there. I really do love Marimo moss, just wanted to give you that heads up. 🙂 It’s an extremely low-maintenance plant and in your tank it shouldn’t ‘Tribble out’. 😉
Yep! Those!
I might get one for my tank and get one for it’s own bowl, that sounds pretty cool to have ’em tribble out (Tribbles was my first thought when I saw them, it’s so accurate! haha) XD My mom fell in love with em when she saw em, she wanted me to buy one on the spot but I couldn’t afford it at the time, lol. I really do think the prospect of one of these going into the tank is what made up her mind that she wanted to try the tank again XD That and looking at the fish at Petsmart when we were there.. we ogled a bunch of ’em that we really liked, looked at the guppies planning the next round with the tank! (We were thinkin after the gold got to her pond)… I think when I’m in a more stable house (Not traveling back and forth a lot) and after learning more, I’m going to get a larger tank (30-50gal)
You’ve got some great advice from other users!
Petsmart does often carry otos, but I would not recommend them in your 5 gallon. They are a bit more delicate and would be sensitive to little problems, and really need a tropical, stable tank temperature to be happy. You really should have at least 5 of them, and 5 of them would be max fish for that tank!
When I worked at Petsmart, our guppies came in as ‘pairs’ and we had to sell them as such, and actually kept strict inventory on them, so you may need to go to a different store to get guppies. I really do recommend males only– even if you get a group of girls only you are not really safe, unless you know without a doubt that they have been in a tank without a male since forever, since they can store the male’s sperm for a long time and still pop out endless guppy babies.. x_x
Also beware Petco’s “moss balls” (maybe petsmart’s too? I dunno these days)– they are often not REAL marimo! They are often foam balls with java moss tied or glued around them. I’ve heard that some even sell non-aquatic moss glued to a ball, which is a bad idea. This is gimmicky, possibly a rip off, and NOT what you want! Real marimo balls are fantastic.
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My art: featherdust.comI bought a couple of marimo balls from petsmart and they’re in the process of reproducing so at least they seem to have the real thing. 😀
You could also do a mini live plant aquarium, and make it into a freshwater shrimp tank. If I ever get a second tank I want it full of lush plants, and SHRIMPS! they come in all sorts of colors….look up blue tiger shrimp, or crystal shrimp sometime.
Wow, sorry for the long post… I have never worked in a fish store, but I’ve been keeping fresh water fish on and off since I was about 8 years old and salt water since I was 14.
No prob for the long post, all advice helps! 🙂
Admittedly right now I’m skimming the longer posts, just cause right now I’ve got some things going on in life that have me very hazy feeling (Life isn’t life if it isn’t being a pain somehow! heh)But I do appreciate everything everyone writes and tells me! When I’m not so hazy feeling I will sit down and carefully read what everyone has posted! ‘n research everything before I actually make much of a move! lol
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