Ive just joined Fishkeeping - after reading everyones posts for many months.

Iused to have a few aquariumas as a teenager but knew nothing other than what the local garden centre aquatic shop had told me so over time i learnt the hard way..and after too many heartbreaking losses i gave upafter a few years.

But with the Worldwide web at my finger tips these days,and the wealth of infomation relating to fishkeeping is just a few clicks away, I thought why not try again!

So here i am with a 150-160L(roughly as im allowing 10L for the substrate and plants etc)

Its not an ideal shape Tank(as ive discovered) its taller raher than longer but i thought it would be a good starting point

Its standing proudly in our study,has a powerfull ehiem external filter (with substrat pro and the norm filter media)

Its cycled(using the household amonia method) and i have 6 Zebra danios and Malaysian trumpet snails!

I also chosse some hardy starter plants- cryps,moss balls,floating salvinia natans,and two other larger plants that have names that ive forgotton..all is well apart from a few too many round gold shimmering snails - that i think are pests

i have hard water and high tap water nitrates so im very limited to what fish i can keep-without going down the RO route the rather expensive polanzzi(not sure of spelling?) under sink filter system

Im loving every minute so far (7 weeks now!) and apriciate any advice

Many Thanks

Hi and welcome to FK!

I'd like to knowthe dimension of your tank (LxWxH). Your tank is tall but with 180l then it should be at least 1m long right? 1m will make danios very happy as they're active swimmer! My danios breed like crazy that I have to give away all the adult :(
To make danios even more happy and active, make sure your water temp is around 25C and pH is 8. And if you want them to breed successfully and easily, densely plant your tank and feed them live food more often =D

About the pest snail, don't worry too much, I have a snail pest in my 60l too. Start out with 3 snail and now it's definitely over 50! You can either use assassin snail to get rid of them or take them out manually, however I don't know if assassin snail will go for malaysian trumpets.

Fishkeeping is a very interesting hobby and will give you lots of surprise!

We love to see pics on here (hint hint)

Oh, and welcome

Hi and welcome,

To help us with suggesting fish for you can you please give us the dimensions of the tank and the pH and hardness of your local tap water? When you say tap water nitrates are high, how high exactly?

As you've chosen Zebra Danios to start with, you'll need to choose other temperate species who like the same conditions as they do (assuming your tap water suits them). That means species' that like a pH between 6 and 8, but preferably more towards the alakline end of that and medium to hard water with a temperatuire range from 18-24C ideally around 22C. Typical tank mates include other Danio varieties and species, White Cloud Mountain Minnows, Rosy Barbs, Golden Barbs, Paradise Fish and Peppered Cories, though which would suit best will depend on your water parameters.

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Just a quick note Nathan - Zebra Danios are temperate fish who need temps below 24C, preferably 20-22, and pH8 is the maximum they can tolerate.

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If they are increasing in number that much, you are probably overfeeding - try giving your fish a little less food.

According to your profile your tap water nitrates are 21-30ppm which isn't necessarily ideal, but is certainly better than it could be- the legal limit is 50ppm, but fish shouldn't be kept in anything above 40ppm. As long as you keep an eye on things and do regular large waterchanges you should be OK. Several companies make nitrate absorbing sponges (the green Juwel ones) which you can add to the filter to help matters. Moss balls and fast-growing plants like Vallis and Elodea will also help. Salvinia and other floating plants are very good at this, as they take all their nutrients from the water column, and will also provide cover for your fish.

I'm not convinced Zebra Danios and Paradise Fish make the best companions- Danios prefer tanks with a decent amount of current, which the Paradise Fish won't like that much. Paradise Fish and Peppered Cories both prefer soft, rather than hard water, as do Hillstream Loaches, which would have been another option if you had enough flow.

Buenos Aires Tetras are another option, and will do well in unheated tanks. They're from relatively far south compared to most South American fish in the trade, so will like temperatures that are allowed to rise and fall with the seasons.

Keeping the Danios at 25 degrees along with the live food might well be what's encouraging them to breed for Nathan, but its not something I'd try long term, they won't live nearly as long, and will be more susceptible to disease.

Bitterlings are another suitable choice, although they are rather shy, so will need plants to provide cover (the Danios will also help here, acting as dither fish, drawing them out into the open more). There are several species, and they tend to keep to the lower levels of the tank, while Zebra Danios swim near the surface. They're not common, but Rosy Bitterlings (Rhodeus ocellatus) are probably the most often seen.

The smaller American Shiner species (Red Shiners, Notropis are the most commonly seen, and cheapest) are definitely worth looking at- A tank of Rainbow Shiners ([i]Notropis chromosus) in breeding regalia will match even some marine tanks for colour. However, as with the bitterlings they're hard to find, and usually expensive when you do get them.

Personally for bottom-dwellers in hard water (with a lot of current) I'd look at some of the Rhinogobius species. They may have to be fed live or frozen food to start with- although they can be weaned onto tablet foods. They're not particularly cheap, coming in at about £10-£15 each, but are comparatively common compared to the American Darters, which are often even more brightly coloured.

I see.. so 25C was the temp that they breed a lot, not live happily. Thanks for the info!

By the way Fishlady, The snail feed on fish poo right?

No 25C is too high for Danios - they breed just as well, if not more at lower temps.

Snails don't eat fish poo - nothing eats poo! But if you're overfeeding there will be spare food in the tank and that encourages the snail population to increase. If there's no spare food, they stop breeding and die off.

What about tubiflex, do they eat fish poo? (just asking, won't add tubiflex to the tank)

It's weird cause I've been only feeding danio with live food, mostly moina, mosquito larvae, tubiflex. I rarely feed them with flake or pellet and if I do, I feed them very low amount cause I don't want to pollute the water, there rarely any spare fish food. I just don't think snail can prey on live food, they they feed on algae?

Nothing eats poo except for certain micro-organisms (bacteria etc). Tubifex live in the sediment at the bottom of waterways, drainage channels etc and feed on decaying organic matter and rotting vegetation. There is only one reliable way to deal with excess fish poo and that is to remove it during water changes.