• You are viewing the forum as a Guest, please login (you can use your Facebook, Twitter, Google or Microsoft account to login) or register using this link: Log in or Sign Up

Needing a point in the right direction please

Andrew Butler

Andrew Butler

Member
Joined
1 Feb 2016
Messages
1,728
Location
Banbury, Oxfordshire
Hi all,
I am unsure if it is just me but I could do with a simple idiots/beginners guide, I have had a look but unable to find one which is upto date or gives any real detail - I have loads of questions which I am finding it hard to answer and unsure where to direct them or look for answers so any help would be gratefully received.
 
I'm not sure what sort of information you're looking for, I've always rather liked The Skeptical Aquarist

You might just post a list of questions 🙂
- that will likely generate some specific answers & some links to explore
 
Thanks for the replies and link alto -
a). Should I post questions as individual threads or just one?
b). Is this the correct place in the forum to put those questions?
new to the forum so a little unsure about what probably seems the obvious to everyone else.
 
Hi
Post them in the relevant sections...as a individual thread.
It can become a tad confusing if multiple replies are made with different answers to various questions!
Cheers
hoggie
 
Andrew Butler said:
AHA it all seems maybe a bit too obvious now Hoggie! I'm sure I will be the newbie with the most stupid questions 2016 😵
Click to expand...

Oh I have questions right across the board: stocking, feeding, lighting, water, dosing, plumbing, filtration, disease - that's just a start and as Neil says it's only February; that leaves a lot of the year left for me to give it a good go!
 
List your setup - if you've got one - or at least your goals for one ... this will provide more directed answers
 
At present I have no equipment and have only a vague idea of what direction I would like to go in. My plan is to start off with a 'budget' setup to make sure the hobby is going to fit my lifestyle and if it does after 6-12 months then I think I will be upgrading to something bigger and of a better quality. George Farmer has kindly suggested to me something like the superfish home 60 as a starting point.
 
Did you go straight to marine without trying freshwater side first? Freshwater planted tank is a subset of freshwater aquarium and shares most of the same basics.

It seems you take the wrong starting point. Instead of deciding what plants and animals you want to keep and start researching from there, you take the opposite direction.
The reason you don't know what to ask may be because you're looking for one universal way to do it while the freshwater chemistry is very diverse and more forgiving at the same time.

"...Simply put, the ocean is a stable environment in terms of water chemistry.

Contrast that with most freshwater environments. The primary areas which are the original sources of most of the fish we have in the hobby experience a wide range of aquatic chemistry conditions over the course of a year or in even less time. For example, the Amazon has a yearly pattern of flooding and drying that results in a wide range of water chemistry. Freshwater fish have evolved to be able to adapt to a wide set of water conditions."

from http://www.drtimsaquatics.com/resources/library-presentations/aquarium-hobby/saltwater-aquaria
 
Last edited:
Looks like ,after your stocking,feeding etc comment,you need a basic understanding no offence meant.Reading forums can be confusing until you get more knowledge, I strongly recommend Stuart Thraves book Setting Up A Tropical Aquarium Week By Week, Practical Fishkeeping Magazine plenty of articles by George and others every month and Q&A section plus,how to set up aquariums for plants and fish well worth it a great magazine Beginners and aquascaping supplements every so often.Also the tutorials on UKAPS as mentioned,very soon you will be giving answers as well as asking questions:thumbup: on the forum
 
No offence taken Paraguay - if you read my first post that is exactly what I am looking for!
Andrew Butler said:
a simple idiots/beginners guide
Click to expand...

Xim - I did start responding to each of your points but gave up replying individually! I hope you take the quick replies in a friendly way
I did go straight to marines which I did thoroughly research beforehand but due to restrictions within my lifestyle and things not discovered when I did research I had to give it up which was a terrible shame as I would love to keep a reef aquarium but if you are unable to maintain one then it is not something you should have in my opinion.
I think I have a rough idea of what I would like to achieve but being unsure of the basics puts me in no place to decide what direction to point myself in long term if at all.
I had a look at the link on Dr Tims and I am not sure exactly whether you are trying to encourage me or discourage me! haha the link compares the water parameters to that of keeping a freshwater to a saltwater aquaria as he calls it and not a reef tank for which there is a big difference when it comes to stable water parameters.
 
Andrew Butler said:
George Farmer has kindly suggested to me something like the superfish home 60 as a starting point.
Click to expand...
George Farmer has an outstanding youtube channel which includes the videos linked in these UKAPS threads & many more

Superfish Home 60
Superfish Expert 70
Superfish Home 80

You should definitely plan on attending this event as there will be lots of friendly knowledge folk & great opportunity to observe hardscape process - & now fantastic raffle
UKAPS Aquascaping Exerience 2016

Tropica also has an excellent site & information pages & videos, especially from the plant handling & care perspective - it's a site that you can easily navigate for good basics & understanding

ETA
just watched the
Flexi Mini Scape Set - Introduction
- great tank kit here as well (though rather different than the Superfish series) ... I'm waiting to get the new Flexi Mini LED SP (upgraded in late 2015)
 
Last edited:
hey alto, I had already looked through the youtube videos but thanks. Really as I said in the first post of the thread I just want to start by looking at an idiots guide to weigh up the basics and then start to look at which twist I think I would like to put on my setup if I go ahead with a system. I will have a look through the other links also thanks. I think if I start by weighing things up for myself and then start asking specific questions I might get a better response.
 
Hi Andrew that's why I mentioned the "Setting Up---"book by Stuart Thraves it's modern enough to give you a understanding of a week by week start up guide and yet still has a comprehensive coverage of plants,fish,equipment etc and reading this before you explore the Internet too much is a good starter point and the tutorials on UKAPS would follow
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top