In our "real" tank, along with some rocks, a couple of pieces of bogwood and a lot of plants are the following fish:  a large moonlight gourami, 2 pearl gourami, 2 gold gourami and one robin gourami, just one neon tetra, a small gibbiceps, a kuhli loach, four rummy nose tatras, three red-eye tetras, five platy (these are actually a cross, and have a largely silvery-blue body that is almost neon), and a marbled hatchetfish,

I've deliberately kept this page fairly simple, because a lot of people make out that keeping tropical fish is more complicated than it really is. (I qualify that by reminding you that I am talking about freshwater fish - marine fish are, I believe, a little more involved.) If you are thinking of setting up a freshwater tank, here are some things to consider:

1. Find a friendly fish shop where you can ask advice and where you are not pressured into buying anything. We used to go to the Coral Cave at Pet-Paks in Hardwick, near Cambridge, England, and found them extremely good.  In Enfield there are a number of reasonable ones, but I haven't found quite the personal level of service that I enjoyed at the Coral Cave.  Look around a few, and see which strikes you as best.  If you can, avoid the weekends, when everyone else is there
2. Get a couple of "beginner's books" from the library and read through them thoroughly.  The more research and planning you do, the more successful you will be.  I have heard that the majority of fishkeepers leave the hobby in less than a year, because their fish keep dying.  In most cases this is due to poor planning and care.  The Bible advises us to consider the cost of a tower before we set out to build it.  Management "experts" came late to this, and now teach "Prior planning and preparation prevents poor performance" (or slight variations on the theme.)
3. Buy your tank (second-hand set-ups are often advertised quite cheaply) and get that running. 
4. Do NOT buy your fish until the tank has been set up for at least one week, preferably longer, and the water quality tested and acceptable. (Simple water testing kits are available at the fish shop.) 
5. Introduce new fish a few at a time - don't go on a big spending spree as soon as the water is ready.  Check that the species are compatible with each other if you want a community (mixed) tank. 
6. Only buy fish that you have read about and understand. Don't just buy something you like the look of in the shop. It's only asking for trouble. 
7. Be prepared to lose a few fish as you go along. Not everyone does, but we did, and I reckon at least 99% of fish keepers do!  Doing your homework on fish-keeping and the particular species helps to reduce the number of fish that you do lose, and really is kinder to your pet. 

 

If I started out all over again, I think I would steer clear of the Tiger Barbs that we used to keep (they need to swim in a school of at least five, or they start to get interested in other fishes' fins), and the Chinese Algae Eater we had before getting the pleco (at about 3 to 4 inches long the CAE starts to damage other fish by sucking on to them and causing wounds - but hey, they're only protecting their territory.)