For a 12 gallon tank I would go with only 1 male dwarf or a pair of honey's. Neon's or other small tetra's are fine. German rams and gouramis I am not sure of. Rams are pretty "freindly" but I would use caution because they resemble "somewhat" another male gourami. Definatly not both in a 12 gallon. Just my opinoin but you can get a 29 Gallon kit (tank,filter,hood/lighting,heater) for the same price as a eclipse12. With the eclipse you still have to get the heater so add that to the total. A 29 is 30" long making it about 9" longer than the eclipse12. If space is still an issue a 20 Gallon High is only about 2 " longer than an eclipse12. Nothing against eclipse, but you are limited to lighting if you ever want to try live plants, the price is high (acrylic tank and all-in-one hood), the other tanks give you more room for fish and with aquariums the bigger the better. 1-2 hours should be OK. Caution to Temperature is a factor. When cold or hot I use a cooler to transport the fish. I just put the bags in the cooler, also the darkness helps with stress. Just explain to the storekeeper that you are traveling an hour and they can give you a larger bag with more air in it. Some shops have pump oxygen from tanks into the bag, but for 1-2 hours it is not really necessary.

Thank you very much woeisme - you answered all my questions!

Sounds like I do need to make a trip to that "real" aquarium store in the large city. The stores (2) where I am at (which do not have a 25 in stock) kept telling me that the Eclipse was a better deal, and how much better the filter/light system was.

I have not found any "high" tanks except the hexagon ones. The place it needs to fit is 22" wide x 15.5" deep and 30" tall. It is an old wooden cupboard, but it is incredibly sturdy and I don't care if it gets waterstained. It is much sturdier than the tank stands I have seen so far.

Is there anything else I should look for in a tank, if I don't get the Eclipse set up? You don't need to give every detail... .but is there any thing that a "newbie" might make an error on? Anything you would be sure YOU were getting?

Thanks again.

I agree, most tank stands that are somewhat reasonable priced look like they couldn't hold a glass of water, the better quality ones are overpriced and their structure is questionable. I make my own tankstands for this reason. I am not sure you can fit a 20 or 25 gallon high in that cupboard. I am not sure of the extra high 20 or 25's dimensions. Sounds like either a hex or eclipse12 will give you the most room. There are some other non-standard shaped ones now that would allow more volume, but $$$ is also higer on them. One thing to consider is using something else for a stand or possibly modifying the cupboard, perhaps a sturdy shelf and 2-10G? On the otherside of that the Eclipse12 is probably a good "first time" aquarium because of set up ease. The Bio-Wheel filter is great for non-live planted aquariums. A complete 10G set up w/heater is usually

Here is a link that might be useful: Dr.

I would recommend that you get the largest tank that you can fit in that space......there is also the option of making your own tank.....or having someone make one for you...if the standard tanks don't fit into your space.

It would be best to set up your tank.....and start cycling it......before you decide which type of fish and how many. Once you know the exact size.....then we can help you decide how many and so on.

You don't have to worry about fry in a community tank...for the most part they just won't survive.

Fish are often ship for days in bags in styrofoam coolers....so traveling an hour would not bother healthy fish......Do not buy your tank and set up and the fish the same day......that would be a disaster.

I like aqua clear filters......they are easy to clean and easy to add/change filter media when you have to. I also use bio-wheel filters and canister filters.....but by far the aqua clear is the easiest filter to deal with.

Never buy from a tank that has dead or sick fish in it....and even if you can't see anything like that...they may have just scooped them out......ask about the store set up and if all the tanks are on the same system. If there is colored water....don't buy from that tank either.

Sometimes getting healthy fish to start with is half the battle in this hobby. Last week...I visited two local pet stores....I was not happy to find.....hardly any fish in their tanks....and the ones that were there....were in VERY poor health. Some tanks had been closed off the system...and were being treated.....hence the colored water...I don't usually go into these stores...but I was curious as to what the stores offered here.

Sierra

I think I mis-stated the cupboard... It's 30 inches high... open on top. The aquarium would sit on top... no limit to how high the aquarium would be. It has two doors, and when you open them, two shelves perfect for storing supplies. I have a rambunctious 55 lb dog, and I know if she bumped this nothing would budge. You can't wiggle the thing a bit - a friend weighs over 200lbs and he sat on it, and we couldn't get it to move. That's why I want to use it.

Below is a link to the aquarium shop near me. I know they have been there forever, even though I have never been there. They may not be as cheap as Walmart or the two chain pet stores I have gone to - PetSuppliesPlus and I think the other one is PetsMart, but it looks like they would have a lot of selection and maybe have these unusual sizes you all talk about. AND, most important - the knowledgeable staff it sounds like I need!

I'm glad you included the details Woeisme! I just hated to have you type out a long reply.

I've been doing a lot of reading since my questions here a few weeks back, and I knew I would not want to buy fish at the local all in one pet store or Marts. Also, to have it set up in advance and I'm still trying to understand about the cycling - but I figure if I get the tank/supplies and a good book or two - and look around for interesting fish.... then I can be looking them up and deciding while this magical "cycling" is going on!

If I understand correctly, and I get some sort of "tall" tank, that means that I can get fish that hang out at different levels? That would increase the interest.

Here is a link that might be useful: Byerly's Aquarium

just a note on rams: they are sensitive fish. i hopefully will get another pair ONE OF THESE DAYS but a newbie may go insane wondering what they did wrong if it dies. they are also quite docile for a cichlid toward other fish and could easily be stressed out by them, especially a gourami. then again, i am thinking of the larger golden gouramis.

Eclipse tanks is okay, depending on your preferences. Its really nice to have the filter over the water and under the hood, but there is a setback. It gets in the way of lighting your tank. The background will seem darker, thus the tank may not seem that clear. I used to have a small Eclipse, so it was very nice, but was not happy with the lighting. However, bigger Eclipse tanks should be better, but they are very expensive. I have noticed that its very hard to find a very wide Eclipse tank, since alot of them are short in width and taller. Personally, I do not like a tall tank, because it limits the amount of hiding places and fishes swim very shortly back n forth. I recommend that you get the AquaCulture Deluxe kit, which is very affordable at WalMart. That is what I got, a 29 gallons. I am very happy with it. The AquaTech filter with BioFiber is very good. If you do not want that, you can just buy another filter with BioWheel. Both is great. The BioFiber is the latest new design after the BioWheel, so both is great performance.

I have a Blue Pearl Gourami in a 5gal Eclipse Hex and he is doing great. Once the tank cycled water has been crystal clear and stable. I had to keep him by himself though because he is somewhat aggressive toward others.