[MuZI]

Hi,
I've always wanted to start up a freshwater fish tank and have read about it in the past but didn't get the chance to start one up until now.

A friend of mine has offered me a 30G fish tank since he is moving up to a 90G one. It would include a few decorations and gravel.

How should I proceed with this? Should I clean out the tank and all the decorations if I plan to use them?

What are the essentials I need to pick up?

I've already read up on fishless cycling.

Also, I really like colorful fish like angelfish and cichlids. What type/how many fish should I look into adding?

Sorry for all the questions at once.

 

[jrman83]

If you can keep his gravel in the tank with enough water to cover it I would do that and setup using his gravel without washing it all out. For me, it would depend on how well he kept his gravel clean.

As an alternative you could keep a few handfulls of the gravel that you don't thoroughly clean and add once you're set up. It does need to be kept in water though. Better if kept in water from the tank.

Either way I would introduce fish right away. Ammonia is the source of food for the bacteria that is in the gravel. They will die without it.

 

[NursePlaty]

Or, since you said you are reading up about fishless cycling. Use pure ammonia for the source of food rather than fish waste. Ask him for his used filter media to help cycle your tank. Place it anywhere in the tank because it holds a good amount of beneficial bacteria that will help you cycle.

 

[MuZI]

Thanks for the advice so far. I'm still wondering what type of filter I'll be needing. Will one of these be good?

- Aquarium Filters: Hagen AquaClear Power Filters
- Tropical Aquarium Filters & Filtration: Marineland Emperor BIO-Wheel Powerfilters

Also, where can I look up what type of fish I can introduce into the tank?

 

[NursePlaty]

Both AquaClear and Marineland are good filters. I think AquaClear has better reviews. I have a Marineland Bio-wheel and eventually the wheel will stop spinning. I had to file down the 2 nodes at the ends of the bio-wheel to make it thinner to keep it continously spinning, but other than that minor alteration, the filter works very well. Ive had it for about 10 months so far.

The fish you can introduce is up to you. Remember there are 2 kinds, cold-water and tropical. They have different water temperature requirements so get one or the other. Also try to keep the temperaments the same to avoid injuries.

 

[jrman83]

I have two Aquaclear 70s on my 75g tank. I have used them in the past also. Really like them and they are very easy to maintain. They even make a surface skimmer attchment you can add later.