FishProfiles.com Message Forums

I need to get a small, somewhat rather inexpensive tank to hold/grow-out fry for short periods of time. I currently have guppy fry in an unfiltered 2.5g hex which was fine until I noticed that the incandescent bulb was melting the lid and had the temp up to 85°

So these are my options:

-[link=Marineland Eclipse Explorer II]http://www.bigalsonline.com/catalog/product.xml?product_id=29571;category_id=2173;pcid1=2253;pcid2=" style="COLOR: #993333[/link]

-[link=Mini-Bow 2.5g]http://www.bigalsonline.com/catalog/product.xml?product_id=27129;category_id=3217;pcid1=2253;pcid2=" style="COLOR: #993333[/link]

-[link=Eclipse 3g]http://www.bigalsonline.com/catalog/product.xml?product_id=27153;category_id=2173;pcid1=2253;pcid2=" style="COLOR: #993333[/link]

-[link=Mini-Bow 5g]http://www.bigalsonline.com/catalog/product.xml?product_id=27139;category_id=3217;pcid1=2253;pcid2=" style="COLOR: #993333[/link]

-[link=Eclipse 5g Hex]http://www.bigalsonline.com/catalog/product.xml?product_id=27173;category_id=2173;pcid1=2253;pcid2=" style="COLOR: #993333[/link]

The setup is going to be nothing fancy, maybe a few rocks on the bottom and some floating plants. If you could give me your opinion on which to choose and why I'd greatly appreciate it

~~~~~~~~~~~~
There is water at the bottom of the ocean

Given those choices, I would go with the 5g minibow. Really, though, a simple all-glass 10 gal. tank would be cheaper, and a bit easier to maintain. Also, filtration is really important, as fry are very sensitive to water quality. A small sponge filter powered by an air stone would be good for the fry.

Hoping that there must be a word for everything I mean...

illustrae I agree.

You can get a cheap 10 starter kit for about $12-$15 US. Comes with all you really need for a fry tank. Althought it does not come with a hood or lighting- its not really necessary for a fry tank. Just good maintanance is all you need.

If you need a top- you can get a glass top for anothe $10 or so.

http://www.fishprofiles.com/site/aquarank.aspx

I thought about that but space is an issue (sorry, I forgot to mention that)...a 10g definitely won't fit where this tank has to go. This will be #8 in our living/family room and I don't want to push my luck

~~~~~~~~~~~~
There is water at the bottom of the ocean

Out of what you listed, I also say the 5g Minibow. When it comes to aquariums, the bigger the better! They're nice because they come with the Whisper internal filter, rather than a biowheel filter built into the hood. To me, it seems maintenance would be easier on the Whisper filter over the biowheel filter. At work I always recommend a Minibow over the Eclipse systems to any customer wanting to set up a small tank. All too often we have people who come in saying they couldn't figure out the filter on their Eclipse, or it quit working. Then again, I do give you more credit than just about any customer we get

Ahh..

In that case the 5 gal Minibow is fine. My daughter has one.

http://www.fishprofiles.com/site/aquarank.aspx

I'd go with the minibow too.

Hex's are okay considering it's just for growout, but you might as well have a nice viewing area as well and hexes warp it too much for my tastes :%).

^_^[font color="#999999][hr width='40%']"Let's compare scars I'll tell you whose is worse
Let's unwrite these pages and replace them with our own words
We live on front porches and swing life away
We get by just fine here on minimum " ][hr width='40%']"Let's compare scars I'll tell you whose is worse
Let's unwrite these pages and replace them with our own words
We live on front porches and swing life away
We get by just fine here on minimum wage
If love is a labor I'll slave 'til the end
I won't cross these streets until you hold my hand"

I haven't found any problem getting to the filter on the eclipse hex. All you do is lift off a black plastic piece that doesn't attach anywhere and everything is laid out right in front of you. The filter can then be lifted out easily if you really want to clean it or you can just grab the tab and pull out the cartridge for another one. What I don't like about the hex is the height and the lighting. Because of the filter taking up half the top of the tank the light doesn't spread evenly and the filtration setup makes it hard to decorate without causing dead spots. The height also makes it a bit difficult and it doesn't have the best view if your sitting between 2 panels. You end up with a rock or plant looking like it's cut in half. Really I prefer my plain rectangle 5g but of course it doesn't fit where the hex is and the hex doesn't fit where the rectangle tank is. If I could have I would have gone for a bowfront instead of the hex.

I also never leave incandescent bulbs in a tank. I've had fried fish and melted hoods too often. Plus the light from an incandescent looks horrible. I'd rather run no light than an incandescent.

Last edited by sham at 16-Sep-2005 15:56

i like the eclipce tanks myself, so the three would be good, but they were rather expensive, maybe the price went down.

I acutally alread have a Mini-Bow 5g and and Eclipse 6g; my Mini-Bow must be older though because it came with a hob filter.

For some reason I can never get the curved front tanks looking nice aquascpaing-wise not that that a big deal with a fry tank.

Anyhow, what I ended up getting was a standard glass 5.5g, sponge filter, and heater...the whole thing was around $20.

Does it matter at all that there's no light or hood on the tank?

~~~~~~~~~~~~
There is water at the bottom of the ocean

wouldn't the hexigon take up the least amount of space?

I've got a 5g minibow. the filter is whisper, hangs inside the tank. does a pretty good job of cleaning the water up, and a flourescent bulb in the hood keeps it cool, yet brightly lit. kit didn't come with a heater tho, I had one I wasn't using that fit well in it.

Lighting is not big deal for a fry tank.

You do not need a cover either, as they will not jump out, however, if their is a possiblity of anything getting into the tank- i.e. a cat - then you will need one.

http://www.fishprofiles.com/site/aquarank.aspx

While I haven't heard it from any extremely reliable sources I have read and heard that light will increase fry growth. It was suggested on what looked like a fairly knowledgeable livebearer site that leaving lights on for 14hrs will increase the growth rate and eventual size of guppy fry. The only fish I've spawned up until now were mostly accidents in my planted community tank with plenty of light or outside in containers will full sun. With nothing to compare myself I can't say for certain. Since fish do seem to benefit from a day night cycle I would suggest some light at least.

The part of the room where I have the tank doesn't get much light, natural or otherwise, so I'm going to add a light. Increased growth because of light really does make sense, thanks.

~~~~~~~~~~~~
There is water at the bottom of the ocean

i have the mini bow and ecplise for small tanks...either way..its just fine..but as uve said..u dont want sumthing expensive...why not just go buy them (the whole tank) separately.