# What are some good beginner-freshwater (Tropical) fish?



## GloFish1999 (May 14, 2011)

I have killed so many fish with my new aquarium. I don't know why, but the longest my fish have lived is five weeks, not even! I have platies as of now, but what are some other, good beginner-freshwater (Tropical) fish? They should be able to be in a 10gal. aquarium, because that is what I have. I have tried GloFish (actually, that's why I have my username) Neon Tetras, Mollies, Platies, Otocinclus... I just want a fish that should live! I don't know why they keep dying... Please help!


----------



## jlpropst00 (Jun 12, 2011)

I would say that the fish are not the problem. Do you test your water or know what the conditions were when your fish died?

Danios and White clouds are both pretty hardy fish but I would test water conditions before adding anything new. Most LFS will test it for free if you don't wanna spend the money on a test kit, but its nice to have one around.


----------



## GloFish1999 (May 14, 2011)

I had the water tested about a week ago at PetSmart. The lady who tested it said it looked good.


----------



## Betta man (Mar 25, 2011)

If you have a filter, you might be able to keep a pumpkinseed sunfish... I just got 4... They're hardy and grow to 8 inches, but they get stunted because of the overpopulation in the wild...


----------



## jlpropst00 (Jun 12, 2011)

I had a guy tell me my water was good at petco b/c the ammonia was really low, but I tested it myself and he didn't tell me my nitrites were through the roof. Some Petco/Petsmart know what they are talking about but most have limited knowledge IMO. Those little universal test strips have questionable accuracy. You can get more fish but if you can't narrow down what the problem is your still gonna have dead fish...just sayin'.


----------



## Trout (Mar 16, 2011)

When I had a 10 gallon aquarium, I kept a school of about 5 tiger barbs and 2 chinese algae eaters. They did really well, but I have no idea what the water conditions were like. I just kept on top of water changes and filter cleanings, and the water stayed clear and the fish stayed healthy. I was really inexperienced back then. I wish I could tell why your fish keep dying... What's the temperature? Is there a draft in the room? Temp fluctuations?


----------



## Fishy Freak (Jun 1, 2011)

Yes I woud doble check the water tests, ask what they are testing for.


----------



## Obsidian (May 20, 2007)

Betta man said:


> If you have a filter, you might be able to keep a pumpkinseed sunfish... I just got 4... They're hardy and grow to 8 inches, but they get stunted because of the overpopulation in the wild...


Yeah one thing to say about this: Don't do it. 
8 inch fish, 10 gallon tank. Uh, no. 
Stunting is NOT good, it hurts the fish, physically.

Get a test kit and test the water yourself. Chances are high that something is off there. API has a good liquid test kit. I would go for that. Strips can be unreliable.


----------



## Betta man (Mar 25, 2011)

Obsidian said:


> Yeah one thing to say about this: Don't do it.
> 8 inch fish, 10 gallon tank. Uh, no.
> Stunting is NOT good, it hurts the fish, physically.
> 
> Get a test kit and test the water yourself. Chances are high that something is off there. API has a good liquid test kit. I would go for that. Strips can be unreliable.


I researched it and it said they were stunted in the wild ! I'd never stunt a fish except if it was an accident.


----------



## CallieDaNerd (Jun 8, 2011)

Betta man said:


> I researched it and it said they were stunted in the wild ! I'd never stunt a fish except if it was an accident.


Deciding to make sure it will never grow by throwing it into a small tank will not help.....

Anywho, I would have your water really checked out test strips can leave large gaps of accuracy. How long did you have the tank cycling before adding fish? And remember you have to leave a week or so inbetween adding fish to let the tank balance out again otherwise it just keeps fluctuating, stressing and possibly killing fish. Temperature may be a factor. I would say let it sit for another 2 weeks then maybe add 4 neon/black neon tetras, wait 2 weeks and add more. Do you currently have anything in there? Matching same water fish also helps, mollies and platys from large pet stores may be.... Not great quality. Have you noticed any health signs? Not eating, loss of color, fish getting sluggish? There may be something in the water that you cant see :-( You honestly may need to start it from scratch all over again, it might help. If you have no fish left, empty it, wash it & filter, set it back up with new water, wait 2 weeks and have it tested again. Sorry this is so long but I hope it helps!


----------



## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

If you match the fish to the water, it helps. Some people keep neons in hard, alkaline water and some keep African cichlids in soft-water. But because someone else lucked out and got hardy fish doesn't mean you will. Keep fish that like your water and the odds of success go up. Buy healthy fish from a store with no sick fish in the same tank or system and your odds go up. 5 weeks in seems about right for a killer nitrite spike. If you don't want to play the testing game. Stock really lightly (like 2 small fish), feed extremely lightly and do biweekly 30% water changes for 3 months.


----------



## Chaos553 (Apr 2, 2007)

Betta man said:


> If you have a filter, you might be able to keep a pumpkinseed sunfish... I just got 4... They're hardy and grow to 8 inches, but they get stunted because of the overpopulation in the wild...


...No.

I wouldn't go with Neons since you're still trying to figure out what's wrong with your tank. For now, keep the Platies and see if they can last the next few weeks. How many do you have in there as of now?

I agree with jlpropst00's recommendations. Danios are pretty hardy fish that can withstand a whole lot and White Clouds are also pretty hardy for a smaller fish, they also look great! I'd recommend a Dwarf Gourami but I'm not to keen on how they'd react in such a small space. Micro Rasboras would also look really awesome, but I wouldn't get them at first, not until this whole situation has been solved. Keep us updated!


----------



## CallieDaNerd (Jun 8, 2011)

I forget neons can be persnickity, I always see Danios thriving wherever and theyre really as neat to watch as tetras are.


----------



## Fishy Freak (Jun 1, 2011)

On keeping fish to your water, another idea is to ask your LFS if they are keeping the fish in your normal tap water or if they are changing it beyond adding dechlorinator. My shop keeps most fish in the tap water, but then there is one tank they change the ph, I stay away from those fish.


----------



## Obsidian (May 20, 2007)

Betta man said:


> I researched it and it said they were stunted in the wild ! I'd never stunt a fish except if it was an accident.


Your suggestion was for him to put sunfish that has the potential to grow to 8 inches in a 10 gallon tank. That will stunt them thus my comment. Stunting in the wild has nothing to do with an artificial tank environment. Stunting a fish in a 10 gallon tank is harmful and not something I would ever suggest. Hope that clears it up.


----------

