I was 8 and I hated it. It was a big tank, with a filter and everything, but my dad made me change the water every day, to “teach me responsibility”. Turns out 8 year olds aren’t that responsible. The fish were pretty. They were the ones with the fancy tails.
You don't need to change the water every day (for most fish). Fish rely on a small amount of beneficial bacteria in the water. Stripping that everyday forces the fish to acclimate quickly all the time. So now you can tell your dad he was wrong :) *edit* When you do change it, try and leave some of the old water in (about 25%). A complete water change should only be done if there's a problem
Big 55-Gal. Gravel, a couple large rocks, both plastic and living plants.
We had like a couple hundred guppies, (probably not literally, but it was a lot of guppies), three goldfish, and three cories, (that quickly grew to an entire school).
And before anyone asks, yes, we kept the gold fish divided from the guppies.
Those weren't really fish, were they? And I don't know what kind of person your dad was but personally I can't think of anything more soothing than gentle frog ribbits.
The 1 and only fish aquarium was with a single male beta in a big vase with a water lily. We went to my brothers wedding in Atlanta and forgot to tell our neighbors.....he died.
But my first adult tank I had hermit crabs!! They're awesome to watch! And even become personable.
Not really going with your post but I have a little 10 gallon one that got a snail infestation out of nowhere! No new plants or decor or anything. They really appeared out of nowhere and I'm losing the battle. Any suggestions? I've tried taking them out by hand and the lettuce leaf trick.
I'll try my best, but I'm not an expert :) *Sorry for the late reply, I didn't get a comment notification*
A possible explanation for the "out of nowhere" infestation would be that the pet store had snail eggs in their water.
Possible solutions: Avoid overfeeding your fish. Carefully control their portions or feed them a little less than normal. It won't kill them, don't worry. Make sure to check your filter/filter material for eggs (if you have one). You don't want to miss any. Normally, I wouldn't recommend doing a 100% water change, because fish are forced to acclimate quickly to bacteria-free water (they rely on some types of beneficial bacteria). However, this is a more extreme case, so I think you should go ahead. Remove everything you have in the tank (decorations/filter/water) and scrape off all visible snails. Scrub your aquarium, decor, and filter thoroughly with WATER ONLY, soap residue can harm your fish. Dry it, then refill and restock. Hope this helps, good luck! :)
We had like a couple hundred guppies, (probably not literally, but it was a lot of guppies), three goldfish, and three cories, (that quickly grew to an entire school).
And before anyone asks, yes, we kept the gold fish divided from the guppies.
But my first adult tank I had hermit crabs!! They're awesome to watch! And even become personable.
A possible explanation for the "out of nowhere" infestation would be that the pet store had snail eggs in their water.
Possible solutions: Avoid overfeeding your fish. Carefully control their portions or feed them a little less than normal. It won't kill them, don't worry. Make sure to check your filter/filter material for eggs (if you have one). You don't want to miss any. Normally, I wouldn't recommend doing a 100% water change, because fish are forced to acclimate quickly to bacteria-free water (they rely on some types of beneficial bacteria). However, this is a more extreme case, so I think you should go ahead. Remove everything you have in the tank (decorations/filter/water) and scrape off all visible snails. Scrub your aquarium, decor, and filter thoroughly with WATER ONLY, soap residue can harm your fish. Dry it, then refill and restock. Hope this helps, good luck! :)