# Setting up tank for wife 55gallon and first tank



## crypticdragons (Mar 26, 2009)

So i have a tank that i had used as a tank for one of my bearded dragons but have now decided to set it up for my wife as a freshwater tank. I have done some research cause i really dont know anything about fish. I am currently looking at getting a 50-75 gallon biowheel (i cant remember the brand name), and a water heater to keep the temps in a good range. for lighting i have been told i should use a aqualight (supposedly it is better for the health of the fish). 

the fish she wants (we checked them via a compatibility chart) are as follows
(note we may not get all of these due to space and schools)
rainbowish
dwarf gouramis
tetras
swordtails
guppies
plecos
sharks

i know that i need to start out with only a few of the hardy fish (probably swordtails) and allow the tank to cycle for about 2 weeks before adding more fish.

what else do i need to know lol
please even the most menial information may be something that i dont know. thanks in advance folks.


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## GupLove (Mar 25, 2009)

crypticdragons said:


> So i have a tank that i had used as a tank for one of my bearded dragons but have now decided to set it up for my wife as a freshwater tank. I have done some research cause i really dont know anything about fish. I am currently looking at getting a 50-75 gallon biowheel (i cant remember the brand name), and a water heater to keep the temps in a good range. for lighting i have been told i should use a aqualight (supposedly it is better for the health of the fish).
> 
> the fish she wants (we checked them via a compatibility chart) are as follows
> (note we may not get all of these due to space and schools)
> ...


Ok, the gouramis, not too nice with the other fish. I was the one that wanted them. They are very beautiful. Love the colours. I don't know if anyone else has experienced this but I find them VERY aggressive. They kept making my gups, mols, swords and platies up top. So when I watched for a few days just long enough to get them settled I took them out and noticed a complete difference. I took them back to the fish store, I didn't want my other fish to die of stress. There was an immediate shift in the tank, all of them started to breathe more and relax. They weren't being run to the top.

Sharks I heard aren't too bad just as long as they have a decent size tank, if too small they can get aggressive and kill the other fish.

Never got tetras, I know peoples tastes are different but I found them to be very sensitive guys, and sometimes made the other fish go into a paranoid state. 

As far as the plecos, rainbowish not sure.

But the guppies are awesome to watch, they add alot of rainbow in your tank! So many different kinds!

The platies are cool too, check out the sunburst, red wage tails and mickey mouse.

Swords are sweet as well, if you like colour they have pineapple sword tails. Very nice looking. (google them on images in google.com) They'll show you the colours and the different types of swords, platies and guppies.

I'm sure others will chime in.

Just my opinion! You're wife will love the guppies! LOL.


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## Dragonbeards (Dec 14, 2008)

Plecos are good fish as long as you don't get the common pleco. This guy grows up to 2 feet (I've seen em, their huge!). I would recommend Bristlenose or Rubberlip plecos. They are cool fish, and they would fit in the tank you are wanting to set up.


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

Read up on "cycling a tank" and "the nitrogen cycle". There are some good stickies on it in this forum. If you don't use anything to seed your filter, it will take longer than 2 weeks. 

Personally, I would pick angels over gouramis and either guppies or swords, not both. I like a large group of the same fish. But one or two gouramis should be ok in that size tank. or skip the livebearers and get a large (8-10) school of rainbowfish. They are pretty and the big ones, like the bosmeni, do fine on flake and pellet. Avoid the gorgeous little threadfins, they aren't for beginners and need live food. 

If you do a "fishless" cycle you will have several weeks to fine tune your wish list. Hurry and get the filter and water in the tank. You can start a fishless cycle and add everything else later.

I don't know much about sharks, but I think they do best 1 to a tank. Avoid the iridescent shark, that will grow too big for your tank.


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## GupLove (Mar 25, 2009)

Emc, I did have an angel in my tank but few fish ppl I spoke to said when they get big they tend to be aggressive towards the others.

So I ended up taking it back.

Angel fish are very sweet. Calm and very sweet personnas.
I enjoyed them emensily when I had them (with a semi aggressive group) before I got the livebearers.


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

Wives always love angels. My mother goes nuts for them. There are two ways to deal with the aggression. Get small ones and sell them when they get large, or keep only 1 or 2 in a 55 with fish that are big and fast enough not no be bothered and mild enough not to bother the angels. Rainbows are good, so are large tetras, like congos or emperors. I don't recommend angels for smaller than a 55, because they tend to take over the whole tank. You often see them on community tank fish lists for 20 gallon tanks and thats a mistake. I've had gouramis that were meaner than angels. Given the choice I think angels are more interesting, but I'm biased toward cichlids. Actually true dwarf cichlids like Laetaca sp. and Bolivian rams are even better suited for a community tank, but they can be hard to find. Visually, you can't beat an angel for a "centerpiece" fish.


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## Againsthecurent (Jan 22, 2009)

I will second the 2 angels and rainbow fish. That would make for a very nice tank. Have your wife take a look at them and see what she thinks. I would recommend the fishless cycle and ask your lfs for some filter media to kick start your cycle.


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## crypticdragons (Mar 26, 2009)

so its not a good idea to do what the lady at the pet store said and merely put a few hardier fish in the tank to cycle it. She said that after i have it set up for around 48 hours i should drop a few hardy fish in there and let it cycle for 2-3 weeks letting the amonia and nitrate levels spike and drop back down.


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## Againsthecurent (Jan 22, 2009)

crypticdragons said:


> so its not a good idea to do what the lady at the pet store said and merely put a few hardier fish in the tank to cycle it. She said that after i have it set up for around 48 hours i should drop a few hardy fish in there and let it cycle for 2-3 weeks letting the amonia and nitrate levels spike and drop back down.


That is a common practice although I prefer the fishless cycle while adding some mature filter media. Ask your lfs if they could supply you with a bit of their filter media to add to yours in order to speed up the cycle. Add some fish food to break down and help create some ammonia for the bacteria or find some pure ammonia to add. Look up fishless cycle and see if it's something you would want to do.


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## Kurtfr0 (Nov 2, 2008)

I second gupLove. gourami's just.. not a nice fish lol.


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## alliecat420 (Mar 28, 2009)

whatever you choose.. look up compatability.. make sure noone is gonna kill or stress out anyone else.. i always use http://www.liveaquaria.com/general/general.cfm?general_pagesid=295 this has a freshwater and saltwater compatability chart.. it also has dozens of profiles with pictures, sizes, care, food ect. hope this helps!


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## crypticdragons (Mar 26, 2009)

the wife printed that out it is what we used to choose our fish. 
i just set up the tank and have it running for the initial 48 hours. the fish store sold me this live bacteria solution i can not remember the name at the moment but its supposed to help with the cycling once i start that on saturday. gonna drop a few guppies in and let it run for 2 or 3 weeks. then will start dropping the fish in.


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