I should add that you can often get some really good bargain tanks on ebay or totally free on freecycle or freegle.

Always worth a look!


And read this article if you haven't done so already!

http://www.fishkeeping.co.uk/articles ... ilter-beginners-guide.htm

Yup -

1) Choose a tank (and please feel free to ask our opinions) - I bought mine on the internet and got it delivered - it can be cheaper that way.

2) Find out about your tap water hardness (GH and KH) and PH values. This will affect the kinds of fish you can keep (we can talk more about keeping fish in specialised water - I adjust my water because I keep soft water fish but live in a hard water area. But it's not to be recommended because it is a pain)

3) Start fishless cycle.

4) Whilst fishlessly cycling is going on, think about what fish you would like to add.

Fizz

It's a fact of life that people never want to be told that they are wrong. Many people seek advice, will make all the right noises but will disregard what you've said because it's too much effort to change things.

I'm such a cynic these days

Thank you again - I am just off to have a look at tank options in my local shop - i don't want to rush into this as want to get it right - hence why joining this site.

So tank - then check PH balance - then choose fish?

Sometimes it can just happen that way and there's nothing you can do But I think we're just flagging up the worst case scenario - it is more than likely that the tetra is simply a plump female!

Here it is - have a play with this and put in possible tank sizes just to get an idea.

www.aqadvisor.com

As a rule of thumb, the larger the tank you get, the more fish (within reason) you can add. One of the first hurdles that most beginner fish-keepers fall at is over-stocking which can cause fish illness and death due to poor water conditions and lack of space.

So if you can get a bigger tank - that would be the best place to start. And then make sure that if you want a variety of community tropical fish that they

a) all get along (don't eat each other)
b) don't grow into tank busters like plecs or clown loahces
c) all thrive in the same water conditions e.g hardness. So no mixing fish who prefer soft water with those that prefer hard.

But that's why you're here - to find out. So good on you!

There's a link with a tool to check stocking levels somewhere that you could have a play with. I'll have a look for you.

Fizz

Like fizzi said, get the biggest you can afford and have room for.
There are plenty of choices for a 60L tank, you can get many differnt shoals of fish, you just wont be able to have that many! Like I only have 12 but they look fantastic and I love them
Let us know when you have bought the tank or tested your tap water, then you can decide more on what to get.

Oh dont say that Ive got some plump tetras, but they've been like it since I got them, nearly 2 months ago.

Are it's scales raised in any way (called pine-coning)? Any red patches? White patches?

If it's swimming fine and eating ok then just keep and eye for now.

Have there been any other changes in your tank? New additions? Filter breakdowns? Ammonia spikes? etc? Useful to rule things out.

How's your water quality? If you could post of ammonia, nitrite and nitrate that would help us rule this out as a cause for your fish bloating.

Cheers
Fizz