Medium Sized Fish For Rekord60

[Efren]

Guys! need your help
any ideas what Medium Sized Fish can i Keep
in a Juwel Rekord 60 - (Avg. 7cm-10cm)

i'm not planning of too much(small fishes)
a few "eye catching" will do...

let's say:

2x german blue ram (male&female)
1x queen arabesque pleco
2x pearl gourami(male&female)

is it possible?

 

[minxfishy]

I would be cautious of 2 GBR's in a 60L tank. A pair require minimum of 20gallons and if you got a pair and they spawned, trust me, there would be no where for the other fish to escape to.

Maybe one male would be ok with the other fish you mention.

For a shoal of fish, I would suggest some cardinals and then you would be fully stocked.

Are you still going to do the fishless cycle? Hope so, also rams can be water sensitive, they like a ph of 6.6 - 7.2 although this isnt imperative, mine are in 7.6 and thriving, but they do require 0 for ammonia and nitrite and as low as possible nitrate reading, preferably keep it below 20ppm.

 

[Efren]

thanks -for the info about the gbr..
and yup - i'm still on my journey to fishless cycling -
but the Master Test Kit is causing the delay..
I can't proceed without it - -don't want
to end up guessing what my reading is - -

so to keep me occupied - i'm looking for ideas what fishes
to keep - - -

 

[minxfishy]

If the tank is set up and ready to go Efren, I wouldnt worry too much about waiting for the test kit to arrive before adding the first dose of ammonia, your tank holds 60 litres approx of water, therefore providing you have an ammonia solution of 9.5% (homebase ammonia wasnt it?) then you need to add about 3 mls of ammonia to get the level up to 5ppm to start the cycle, it can take up to 2 weeks sometimes for the ammonia to drop before needing to add another dose, by which time the test kit should be with you.

Obviously its up to you, but if it was me, I would add the first dose to get things moving along

 

[Efren]

If the tank is set up and ready to go Efren, I wouldnt worry too much about waiting for the test kit to arrive before adding the first dose of ammonia, your tank holds 60 litres approx of water, therefore providing you have an ammonia solution of 9.5% (homebase ammonia wasnt it?) then you need to add about 3 mls of ammonia to get the level up to 5ppm to start the cycle, it can take up to 2 weeks sometimes for the ammonia to drop before needing to add another dose, by which time the test kit should be with you.

Obviously its up to you, but if it was me, I would add the first dose to get things moving along

3mls - - thanks that's the answer i'm looking for from my other thread - -
cause i've got no idea how much to put in order to get 5ppm - i'll do it now then
yup it's the household ammonia from homebase - -

one more thing - my tank is running for a week now - - do i have to do water change before the whole cycle process?
as long as i can remember the only stuff i put in there before was the Nutrafin Aqua Plus - and 3capfuls of Nutrafin Cycle.
(i don't know about the fishless cycling before so there goes the Nutrafin Cycle)

 

[minxfishy]

No, no need to change the water just add the ammonia. when you do get the test kit, do a full test, ie Ph, ammonia, nitrite, nitrates so you have a base to start from, that way you can see what is going on and have a reference point. Its also a good idea to test your tap water for those levels as well, in case it could cause isssues in the cycle.

Edit: Yep I also replied on the nutrafin cycle thread too

 

[Efren]

BIG THANKS! for now

i'm sure i still got loads of queries to come

i'll start adding the ammonia today - - MONDAY (aug.4)

Wish Me Luck!!!!

 

[minxfishy]

Good Luck.

You could always start a thread on the progress of your cycle, that way any problems that may arise you can be advised on quickly without having to start new threads when/if anything goes wrong or something has you confused It also keeps a record for yourself in case you lose your notes - I always have scrappy pieces of paper lying around with different tanks stats, sometimes I lose track of them

 

[Efren]

will do - - (reminds me of the darn - test kit again) LOL

now - about the FISH...

hehehe - - got to save money for them now - -

so u think this would do?

1x german blue ram (male)
1x queen arabesque pleco
2x pearl gourami(male&female)

*and maybe a few more*

 

[minxfishy]

As a start that sounds fine, you wont know for sure until you get your test kit if the ram is feasible, depends on the nitrates in your tap water, if they are high, i wouldnt recommend one, if they are below 20ppm you should be ok.

As I say I think a nice size shoal of cardinals would look good in there too, however, they need a mature tank so would wait for about 6 months after adding the first fish before getting them.

 

[Efren]

yup - i've checked their photos and they look stunning - -
i'll add them up in my list - i phoned Seapets, Colchester
and there's been a mixed-up with my order - so they promise me
that it will be on priority 24parcel force - so i can have it by tomorrow - -

so hopefully i can start my test after all - - i hope the tap water chem is
compatible with the GBR- or any RAM out there - -cause i want one - -

 

[ALW]

What about a Cockatoo Cichlid http/www.cichlid-forum.com/profiles/species.php?id=245 there a bit more forgiving with water quality so are easier to accommodate for.

 

[tenohfive]

With my GBR's, I've found a minimum of 45% weekly water changes to be essential to keep them happy. Stunning fish and well worth it but something to be aware of.

 

[Efren]

thanks..

your ideas and opinion are much appreciated---
i came across the choc gouramis and dwarf gouramis in some of the threads
now i'm confused - -they all look great..

i'm still positive about the blue ram - the cockatoo is nice as well although IMO
the blue ram's color would match well in my tank--

and a shoal of cardinals definitely a GO as well - - -