My Fishkeeping hobby

groom · 13th January 2016, 09:52

Quote:

Originally Posted by deathwalkr

edit: looks like they are still active
http://www.gulmargaquarium.in/

Gulmarg is very expensive and for a novice its isnt the place to go.
They can easily take one for a ride. My personal experience. Avoid gulmarg.

deathwalkr · 13th January 2016, 11:06

Quote:

Originally Posted by TorqueyTechie

Thanks buddy!

I will have spend some time over the weekend researching about the places to buy from. Any ballpark estimate for the above setup?

Haven't really bought a new tank in a while so i am not sure about the tank price these days.

Gravel would be 20 bucks a kilo, internal filter would be 600-1000, external filter would be 3000-5000.

Quote:

Originally Posted by groom

Gulmarg is very expensive and for a novice its isnt the place to go.
They can easily take one for a ride. My personal experience. Avoid gulmarg.

oops ok. did not know that. like i said it was like more than 10years back. When i was in blore i got my Oscar from shivaji market.

And any LFS will take novice hobbyists for a ride. it's how they can survive. if they start educating all customers about fish compatibility then their business will suffer :P

groom · 13th January 2016, 11:27

Quote:

Originally Posted by deathwalkr

And any LFS will take novice hobbyists for a ride. it's how they can survive. if they start educating all customers about fish compatibility then their business will suffer :P

Interesting, actually i havent met any aqua store owner who doesnt educate about the fish. they do educate about the fish and compaitability, how many to keep, what is a starter tank etc. They usually dont straight away want to make money on fish.

Their first round of money making is on the equipment. In this case, the aqua stores like gulmarg, never tell you how easy and cheap it is to assemble a tank and keep it. Instead they want to sell you a awesome looking fully planted tank for several thousands of rupees. This is a killer for a novice.

deathwalkr · 13th January 2016, 11:53

Quote:

Originally Posted by groom

Interesting, actually i havent met any aqua store owner who doesnt educate about the fish. they do educate about the fish and compaitability, how many to keep, what is a starter tank etc. They usually dont straight away want to make money on fish.

Their first round of money making is on the equipment. In this case, the aqua stores like gulmarg, never tell you how easy and cheap it is to assemble a tank and keep it. Instead they want to sell you a awesome looking fully planted tank for several thousands of rupees. This is a killer for a novice.

ha ha ok. yea a friend told me about his experience at a store here which was very similar to what you described. he walked in looking to talk about setting up a small neon tetra tank and the lfs guy ran up a budget for 50k! needless to say he walked out and called me

Ultimately like cars, it's best to ask people who are more knowledgeable about them instead of directly going to car showroom and asking

ptaneja · 13th January 2016, 12:30

Guys, I am a bit short on space, external filter seems difficult to fit in. Whats the next best I can buy ?
Maybe couple of filters ? One internal and another hang-on , like this > http://www.indianaquarium.com/Filter...d-1668557.html

deathwalkr · 13th January 2016, 12:51

@ptaneja: nothing comes to an external filter for bio filtration [unless you have a sump setup]. hang-ons don't really have the space to store enough bio media.

if you are getting cichlids then it's going to be tough without an external filter. dont you have space underneath the stand for the filter to be placed?

lucifer1881 · 13th January 2016, 17:04

Quote:

Originally Posted by lucifer1881

Get out of the hobby, please. This is not for you. You are treating your fish as a commodity with no regard to how its release affects the native population of a lake. This is not only unethical, it is against the very tenants of humanity.

Quote:

Originally Posted by ptaneja

Dude, chill ...you all right ? or had a bad day ?

We were discussing something else, and you have directed this whole conversation to ethical/non-ethical never ending cycle.

I gave a very simple statement, which every new comer to this pet keeping will face - either he will loose fishes, or the fishes will outgrow his aquarium. What choice does one have in this case ? let them live as long as they can, return it to the shop, pass it on to known person, or release them to a water source.

And yes, next time something unfortunate like this happens, I would have to choose one of the above options - be it ethical or what.

Quote:

Originally Posted by ptaneja

Guys, I am a bit short on space, external filter seems difficult to fit in. Whats the next best I can buy ?
Maybe couple of filters ? One internal and another hang-on , like this > http://www.indianaquarium.com/Filter...d-1668557.html

Like I said, this hobby is not for you. I don't see why you should get offended when someone tells you the truth. That's just the way it is. Some people are fish keepers. Some aren't.

What deathwalkr and I have been telling you has been gathered from our own experience and also the collective experiences of other hobbyists we know. If you still want to disregard that and go with what you think is best, then I do suggest that you get out of this hobby. You are playing with lives.

ptaneja · 13th January 2016, 17:09

Quote:

Originally Posted by deathwalkr

@ptaneja: nothing comes to an external filter for bio filtration [unless you have a sump setup]. hang-ons don't really have the space to store enough bio media.

if you are getting cichlids then it's going to be tough without an external filter. dont you have space underneath the stand for the filter to be placed?

No space underneath :( Have a chester drawer ... Also, I have not decided on the fishes yet ... so what should be the fishes to keep with hang-on and internal filter ?

deathwalkr · 13th January 2016, 17:44

If you are getting hang-on's then get the ones from fluval:

http://www.ebay.in/itm/Hagen-Fluval-...IAAOSwHQ9WVGlX

expensive as heck but consider it as an investment

i have always had good experiences with solitary monsters like Red devils, flowerhorns, Oscars and such.

Like i said earlier, i would suggest you get one Oscar and one convict cichlid if you plan to keep cichlids. If temp gets low in your area get a heater as well.

deathwalkr · 13th January 2016, 17:47

Quote:

Originally Posted by lucifer1881

Some people are fish keepers. Some aren't.

What deathwalkr and I have been telling you has been gathered from our own experience and also the collective experiences of other hobbyists we know. If you still want to disregard that and go with what you think is best, then I do suggest that you get out of this hobby. You are playing with lives.

One of the most important questions to ask one before getting into the hobby is very similar to what you said...are you a fish keeper or a fish haver? :P

He is asking the right questions and we can only keep offering tips

groom · 16th January 2016, 15:16

More babies coming through... :-)
I was wondering how to handle, made a jugaad fry tank out of a aquafina bottle. cut out the upper section, made several small holes all over so that water circulates.

Two holes on the top to tag the tank to the filter truss.
Any other ideas?

My Fishkeeping hobby-20160116_112507.jpg

My Fishkeeping hobby-20160116_112525.jpg

Spot the fry in this picture, cobra guppies.

My Fishkeeping hobby-20160116_150422.jpg

swift_guy · 16th January 2016, 15:59

Feeling happy to find this thread.

I am a complete noob in this hobby but have a small tank (2 ft × 1.5 ft x 1 ft) since around 4 years. I had those 2 black sharks around 4 years ago (bala sharks I think) and they grew to 8" each in 2 years. Both were healthy but felt cramped in my small tank. I had to give them to an aquarium shop which keeps big fishes for display (no selling) and my aquarium had been empty since then.

Thought of getting some small fishes today and bought 3 from a local shop. One appears to be a goldfish but I have no idea about the other 2. The shop owner was also having no idea about them and concluded that all were goldfish.

I plan to keep only 3 this time in the tank. I have set the entire thing today, with some stones, filter (internal) and a heater. Checked the air pump and light, but both were kaput and had to make do with a spare internal filter for now. Planning to add some plants, lighting and make an overall better environment for my fish. I want suggestions on this, and if someone could help me identify the fishes, it would be great. I shall post some photos in some time.

Good thing is that I visited the same shop and saw one of the sharks that I had donated, which is almost 10 inches now! The other one had died.

Also need advice whether I should continue with the same tank (4-5 year old now, edges were re-sealed using some hot glue like thing 3 years back) as it is perfectly fine or get a bigger one (3 ft. maybe) with 2-3 more fish? I will anyway get a new 4' tank before August 2016 (after we shift to a bigger house) and need advice based on that, i.e. things bought now should be usable in that tank also. I will keep this 2 ft. tank as spare, for temporarily keeping ill fish or while cleaning.

swift_guy · 16th January 2016, 16:48

Moderators can merge with the above post. Time limit had expired.

- - -

So here is the picture showing all 3 babies together :

Third one is the a goldfish I think, but have no clue about the other 2. All are around 1.8-2 inch long and healthy. I have some noob questions to ask, and even one word answer from experts would be appreciated :

1. When should I change water - depending on time interval (age of water) or when the water gets dirty?

2. Currently there are no plants in the tank, and fishes have no place to hide or play. Should artificial plants be fine or I shall go with live ones? Or do fish like open places without plants and all?

3. If I go for live plants, do I need to replace the stones also, with gravel or something? Any pointers on this.

4. What temperature should I select for the heater? Currently I have set it to 28°.

5. Fish are getting terrified on seeing external light currently. Should I let it be or add light in the tank? Does it affect their behaviour or environment?

6. Breed names of the fish please. Also if they are compatible to live together or not?

7. Which food should I use? I have some "Tokyu baby pellet" with spirulina for enhanced colour and growth. I have attached a picture also. Let me know if this is fine for all the above fishes? Other than this, any other thing that I can feed them (available at home preferably)?

8. What should be the feeding time? I give around half tablespoon of food in the morning only. In the food packet, it is mentioned to collect remaining food after 5-6 minutes and re-feed after some time. Is it so?

9. The first fish in the picture has a slightly raised tail, is it normal for this breed or any deformity?

10. My heater has some solid deposits (rust like but not actually rust) on the lower area, which are rock hard and couldn't be removed by me. Any solution on this?

I have named them Leo, Shadow and Oscar (in order, lol). Sorry for so many questions. Also my ignorance in selecting fish without proper research.