ive got a few questions

[sin]

hi i dont really know anything about fish exept for the fact that they look awesome.all my life ive had fish i just never really bothered to get decent fish ive always had betta's and goldfish and whatnot.well now ive got my own job and i want to buy a decent sized (thinkin 75 gallon)aquarium and im gonna do fresh water for now becuase ive hear the initial price of saltwater tanks is insane so untill i get more saved im gonna do freshwater.currently ive got a 10 gallon aquarium i had alot fo fish in it

i had 2 african cichlid's
1 black molly
1 molly (not sure what kind it was i dident buy it)
1 sucker fish (dunno what they are called)
1 albino rainbow shark
and 2 goldfish

i was told after i spent all the money that was a bad idea...ive had the tank for about 3 or 4 months now and im down to just one of the african cichlid's.well ive decided i want to go bigger and i want to do it right this time.i basically just need to know where to get this stuff at,what kind of fish are good to get,what fish are pretty looking,what plants are good (freshwater),price,and just basic info really.like i said i dont konw anyhting about fish so please be as basic as you cna when explaining stuff

[mhaynes01]

let me ask you this...

whats keeping you from started a saltwater? besides the price,

you can always buy used, buy smart so you only buy once....research.

i say start a saltwater, but thats just me, i did freshwater for a while too, take the plunge.

[blueboy]

it looks like you will need to do some research first. as for fresh water, you generally don't mix african cichlids with tropicals, you also shouldn't mix goldfish with tropicals( GF are very dirty). i'm thinking you probably want a "community" tank, with all peacefull fishes(cichlids are out!). this will give you a larger variety of fish to choose from. i wish i knew of a freshy site to refer you to, maybe someone else knows? but, a 75 would certainly have the potential to be a very nice community tank. if you get into live plants you will need some good lighting, expect to spend some money on that. as for filtration, on a fresh tank, i'd probably go with a canister filter. it would be a good idea to find a good reliable fish store were there are knowlegeable employees, who can answer your questions about stocking, and compatibility( appharently noone did this before, because anyone who works with fish could have told you that if you put that fish list in a 10G tank, that after several months, all you would most likely have left is one cichlid!) just research first, and remember, your better off spending your $ on quality equipment than getting too eager and stocking an inadequate tank with fish who are destined to die anyways. i guess what i'm saying is, do your research first, then buy your equipment, then be shure the tank is cycled, then start stocking it!

[blueboy]

oh, if your in austin, i would recomend Aquatek. they have a good selection, and knowlegeable employees, who will honestly answer your ?'s.

[RayAllen]

if you want to stick with freshwater for now especially africans check out www.hillcountrycichlidclub.com
They are a local club here in the San Antonio/Austin area that specialize in Africans

[sin]

hm thanks for all the replys


i would love to do saltwater my dad is huge on his tank hes got some kind of reef nano or somehting i dont really know.hes huge into fish and he always tell me what i need to go buy but i dont know where to get it at.and no im not in austin i live in san antonio and yes i do want to do plants i dont want any more fake plants i want to go completly live now.


only problem i have is with saltwater id have a hard take with the upkeep i dont have alot of time to dedicate to the fish and from what ive heard saltwater tanks are hard (and expensive) to keep alive

[urban79]

RUNNING WITH THE HATCHET!!!! LOL I love that record label.