Temperate tanks

[mort]

Hi, does anyone know of or have a temperate tank? I'm looking for ideas of what will do well in a planned temperate nano. It will be a shrimp tank with some mosses, java, anubias and hopefully crypts. Was just after opinions of what would thrive in cooler conditions (don't expect it to get lower than 16c and in summer will probably be 24-25c).

TIA

 

[Edvet]

I think most of our tanks could do without heaters. Indoor most houses will have those temperatures and most fishes can handle those. I have small heaters on low settings in most of my tanks, even my 400 gallon only has 1 300 W and one 200W one.
I even think temperature fluctuation will be beneficial for most fish.

 

[Tom43]

I have a temperate tank and initially contained myself to cold water species until I realised that many 'tropical' species will be happy in unheated tanks in our homes.

My average temp in the tank is 24 to 25c, which as Edvet suggests is just room temperature. It goes up a bit at the end of the day due to the flourescent lights (LEDs give off much less heat). I've had the tank 3 months, so haven't yet been through a winter with it, but already the outdoor tap temp has been down to 17c and will get colder in winter. So you may want to think about your water source, as you will need to heat the water for water changes if you are in UK. I use the kettle to add boiling water to the buckets of water I use for the weekly water changes, to take the cold edge off the water. Clearly I also treat the water to make it safe for the fish.

That said, the White Cloud Mountain Minnows that I mainly keep seem to love investigating colder water as it's poured in. They have no problem with the fluctuations. Any mountain fish from temperate climates, such as these, will be used to faster streams of colder water after rain.

I recently added some Peacock Gobies/Gudgeons that originate from Papua New Guinea, as they occupy the bottom to middle of the tank mostly (the minnows are top to mid level dwellers mainly, though they will explore all levels). These fish prefer not to go below 22c, so I added a smaller undersized heater (rated 100L, my tank is 200L) to protect from chilly snaps. Though as I heat the water now for water changes, I'm not sure if it will ever be triggered! After this winter I will decide whether to remove it and clean up the tank's look.

I hope this helps. My favourite sites for researching fish are SeriouslyFish and WetWebMedia, both will list habitats.

 

[mort]

Thanks. Our house doesn't get anywhere near tropical temperatures so i'm looking at a much cooler prospect of 16c or so in the winter. For water changes I plan to just make the water up the night before and leave it next to the tank, so its room temperature.
I use seriously fish all the time to check for natural variations the fish encounter and its the reason I keep my planted tank cooler with the heater set to 20c. Its only on over the winter and in the summer the tank sits in the mid 20s.