i have a new ginormotank! and a few questions

[thisisyesterday]

just got a bargain 3ft tank on ebay for £26!!!

i do need a filter tho... was looking at the fluval u3- anyone used it? is it good?
hopefully can pick one up on ebay too

sand- my assassin snails like to bury themselves so i want at least a small area of sand... the sand in the fish shop was ridiculously expensive. can i use sand like i put in the sandpit? or does it have to be special?

[EauRouge]

Woohoo! I love bargains Yes, you can use play sand as long as it's not been coloured or anything.

I'd probably go for an external filter rather than an internal one, they are more efficient and it looks better BUT they are more expensive. How many litres/gallons is your tank? An Eheim 2213 would be around the right size probably, i used to have one and it never broke or caused me any problems.

Most importantly, what are you putting in there?

[thisisyesterday]

i am not sure how many litres it is actually, it's 3ftx1ft (approx) and maybe a bit over 1ft high

will have a look at external filters too

i haven't decided what to put in yet. ds1 wants to keep the smaller tank in his bedroom, so he will keep the guppies in it

but i also have some panda corys which i think need to move to the bigger tank which will have sand in it- have only just found out that they don't do so well with gravel. i wish the fish shop would tell you this stuff instead of just sellign you whatever you ask for

sooo.... some panda corys and... something pretty!

[EauRouge]

They probably don't know, most fish shops are staffed by idiots. Don't forget to do a fishless cycle before you move the corys!

Something pretty, that narrows it down a bit what's you water like? Mine's mega-hard and I can't afford RO any more so my choices are really limited :(

[thisisyesterday]

yeah we will, how long do you reckon it would take to cycle it? obviously we can put some water/bit of filter sponge in from the other tank to help it get going

our water is pretty hard

[thisisyesterday]

thought i might have a little shoal of tetras... i saw some really pretty ones at the fish shop, i can't remember what type they were tho

[EauRouge]

You need to be careful with tetras if your water is pretty hard, they are softwater fish. Rainbow fish are a better bet, dwarf neon rainbows are very pretty. They always look rubbish and pale in shops though so here are some pics of them not looking rubbish- Tempting shiny fish. They look great when they're settled in.

Fishless cycle without putting in sponge from the other tank would be about 4-6 weeks so shorter than that

[thisisyesterday]

ahhhh ok, will make sure to do my homework before buying.

those rainbow fish do look nice...

how about hatchet fish?

[EauRouge]

Hatchet fish are cool they are in the tetra family as well (as are piranhas- geek fact of the day) so they need similar conditions.

[thisisyesterday]

ah ha! you learn something new every day lol

what i will probably do is see what the fish shop has, pick a few I like and then come online to see if they're suitable :)

[EauRouge]

Sounds like a plan. Don't forget to find out their adult size so you can see if your tank's big enough. Generally you should allow 1/6th of the tank's length so 6" maximum, although some fish are really active (or anti-social buggers) so they need extra space.