Posts Tagged ‘Fish’

Jan

Update On My New Fish

Posted by: ZandyMan in Random Schmooze

So as noted earlier, I decided to setup an aquarium and get some fish. Having never setup an aquarium before I went with what most consider a good setup for a beginner: a 10 gallon freshwater tropical tank. After waiting a week for the tank and water to stabilize, I bounced over to Petsmart this past Friday to buy my fish. The general rule of thumb in determining the maximum amount of fish you can have in your tank is to use a ratio of 1″ of fish per 1 gallon of water. I have a 10 gallon tank so it can accommodate 10″ of fish. With this in my mind, the girlfriend and I picked out 3 fish to start our tank with. All 3 are different versions of the Gourami fish. What has been fascinating to watch over the last few days is how all of them have their own distinct personality. Meet the crew:

Spike, a Powder Blue Gourami, is chill as a cucumber. He hangs out exclusively on the left side of the tank and rarely bothers anybody.

Albert, a Blue Paradise Gourami, is by far the most aggressive. He is very territorial and consistenly goes after the other fish. I am hoping this will change after a week.

Zeus, a Dwarf Gourami, is between Albert and Spike temperment-wise. Though he generally chills by himself towards the top of the tank, he will occassionaly take a snipe at Spike. Him and Albert tangle throughout the day.

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Tags: aquarium, Blue Paradise Gourami, Dwarf Gourami, Fish, freshwater, Gourami, Powder Blue Gourami, tropical

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Jan

Sleeping With the Fishes

Posted by: ZandyMan in Random Schmooze

The only pets I have ever owned were a couple of fish when I was 6 years old. In July of 1990 I was unexpectedly transplanted from New York City to Boca Raton, FL. Lets just say the fish did not make the trip. Nearly two decades later I decided it was time to bring the fishies back into the family. Today the girlfriend and I took a trip to Petsmart, determined to experience the immediate gratification of a new pet. The place was clean, not crowded and had free parking!

After making our way to the fish section, we were faced with our first choice…what size tank did we want? We decided that a small manageable 10 gallon tank was the way to go. We were in luck. In the middle of the fish section was a 10 gallon “starters kit” aquarium. The kit included the aquarium, a filter, a heater, a hood lamp, water bacteria and some fish food. If there is one thing I love in life, it is simplicity. This kit had all the pieces we needed to get rolling. After throwing the kit in the cart, we moved on to “designing” our tank. Gravel color, plants, little houses for fishies to swim in.

Finally, we moved on to the really fun part…picking out the fish! As 10 gallons is a relatively small tank, our options were limited. Frankly, I was a little disappointed in the selection at Petsmart. After spotting a few fish that did catch our eyes, we summoned Jon the Fish Guy to come help us. And guess what Jon had to say. “You can’t put fish in the tank for at least a week.” Way to ruin the fun Jon.

What I didn’t know (what do I know about fish?) is that after you setup the aquarium, you have to allow about a week for the water to detoxify so it is safe for the fish. Lesson learned. We were not too discouraged though. I was excited to get home and get to work on putting everything together. The faster I put it together, the faster I could put fish in it.

Once home, it took me about an hour to put everything together. I had to: clean the gravel, pour the gravel in the tank, arrange the tank decoration, fill the tank with 10 gallons of water (I used an empty 1 gallon water jug), assemble the tank filter, install the tank filter, install the heater, assemble the hood lamp, and install the hood lamp. It was all pretty straightforward and certainly a good experience to have under my belt.

For the next week it is just a waiting game. Over the next several days I have to test the water for proper PH balance and temperature. Next Friday will be fish day. I know a lot about a lot of things, but I love learning about things I don’t know about. I’m looking forward to learning all I can about fish, aquariums, etc. Here are some quick and dirty photos of the tank. It is pretty with the lights on.