Starting A Freshwater Aquarium, Need Advice!

[Artemis]

Hi, this is my first post here and I'm planning on getting into freshwater aquariums. Around December I plan on putting together my first aquarium ever. Ive read some guides and topics on the basics, and have a book on freshwater aquariums that I've been reading. I plan on getting a 75gal tank if not 100gallon. Right now I'm pretty clueless to what to stock it with, but I know I want sand substrate with live plants.

Some fish I've been looking at:
Red Fin Plecostomus
Red Turquoise Discus
Ocean Green Discus
Hap. Milomo
Tiger Oscar Cichlid
Albino Tiger Oscar Cichlid
Clown Plecostomus
Spotted Puffer
Texas Cichlid
Dragon Goby
Panda Corydoras Catfish


Feel free to critique the list and add/subtract some fish. And if you suggest a fish could you please provide a link to a picture or more information about it please.

Thanks for the help,
Artemis

 

[kelly528]

Welcome to the fish forum! Honestly, I know this isn't really helpful (I know nothing about tanks >50g, much less cichlids) but I just wanted to say that you are saving yourself a LOT of grief by planning this out lol!

 

[anwhyte]

Hi, this is my first post here and I'm planning on getting into freshwater aquariums. Around December I plan on putting together my first aquarium ever. Ive read some guides and topics on the basics, and have a book on freshwater aquariums that I've been reading. I plan on getting a 75gal tank if not 100gallon. Right now I'm pretty clueless to what to stock it with, but I know I want sand substrate with live plants.

Some fish I've been looking at:
Red Fin Plecostomus
Red Turquoise Discus
Ocean Green Discus
Hap. Milomo
Tiger Oscar Cichlid
Albino Tiger Oscar Cichlid
Clown Plecostomus
Spotted Puffer
Texas Cichlid
Dragon Goby
Panda Corydoras Catfish


Feel free to critique the list and add/subtract some fish. And if you suggest a fish could you please provide a link to a picture or more information about it please.

Thanks for the help,
Artemis

hi, i've never kept discus but i'm pretty sure they have very specific water requirements so if you keep them it would limit the other species you could have with them. same with puffers i believe, a lot of them like brackish water. but for a tank as big as you are talking about you keep a lot of african or south american cichlids.

 

[natalie265]

If you want plants, the oscars are out (they'll destroy them in two seconds flat).

I believe that dragon gobys and spotted puffers are brackish fish, so you'll unless you want to do a brackish tank, they won't be suitable.

Discus are amazing fish, but maybe not the best fish to start with as they are very sensitive to water conditions.

 

[Artemis]

If you want plants, the oscars are out.

I believe that dragon gobys and spotted puffers are brackish fish, so you'll unless you want to do a brackish tank, they won't be suitable.

Discus are amazing fish, but maybe not the best fish to start with as they are very sensitive to water conditions.

Ok, I guess the dragon goby, spotted puffer, and Discus are out. No plants at all or only fake plants?

 

[fatheadminnow]

to TFF!!!!

First is first, do you know anything about cycling your tank? You can read about it here: http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showtopic=113861

You must cycle a tank before adding fish, if you want to ensure a healthy aquarium.

Yeah, if you want Cichlids, then just have Cichlids. They do not do well. or should I say the other fish, when you mix Cichlids with other species fish. Cichlids are aggressive fish and best off with other of their own kind.

Also, Cichlids are known for digging/ripping up plants, so live plants are not highly recommended in a Cichlid tank. However, in my sig, I made an article about plants and Cichlids. There you can read about some plants that may survive in a Cichlid tank.

 

[Artemis]

to TFF!!!!

First is first, do you know anything about cycling your tank? You can read about it here: [URL="http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showtopic=113861"]http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showtopic=113861[/URL]

You must cycle a tank before adding fish, if you want to ensure a healthy aquarium.

Yeah, if you want Cichlids, then just have Cichlids. They do not do well. or should I say the other fish, when you mix Cichlids with other species fish. Cichlids are aggressive fish and best off with other of their own kind.

Also, Cichlids are known for digging/ripping up plants, so live plants are not highly recommended in a Cichlid tank. However, in my sig, I made an article about plants and Cichlids. There you can read about some plants that may survive in a Cichlid tank.

If I do a Cichlid tank can I mix sub-species? Like mix Oscars with a Texas Cichlid, and something else? Or will they still be aggressive with each other?

 

[pirate monkey]

you can mix some of the new worlds together, but your example of an oscar and a texas wouldn't really be a great idea - texas are mean mean mean and need a tank to themselves as adults!

There are basically 3 bands of NW cichlids: peaceful, semi aggressive and aggressive. You will have more luck keeping peaceful and perhaps semi aggressives together.

They do better generally kept in species only tanks (not that I ever have ), and mixing species really comes down to the individual fish rather than what species they are. Putting different species together as juveniles is likely to be more successful than putting adults together. I have in my 77g a 8" severum (gentle giant but definitely king of the tank), a 5" green terror, a 3" electric blue jack dempsey, a 4" sajica, a 2" firemouth, 12 columbian tetras and a 10" sailfin pleco. They have minor disagreements every now and again but generally get on well. I am aware, however, that down the road it may not work out - something you might have to keep in mind when keeping different species together.

But as fatheadminnow said, do you know about cycling your tank? if not I'd worry about that bit first, then while that's going on you can think about the inhabitants

If you have questions about NW cichlids, come join us in that forum

 

[Artemis]

you can mix some of the new worlds together, but your example of an oscar and a texas wouldn't really be a great idea - texas are mean mean mean and need a tank to themselves as adults!

There are basically 3 bands of NW cichlids: peaceful, semi aggressive and aggressive. You will have more luck keeping peaceful and perhaps semi aggressives together.

They do better generally kept in species only tanks (not that I ever have ), and mixing species really comes down to the individual fish rather than what species they are. Putting different species together as juveniles is likely to be more successful than putting adults together. I have in my 77g a 8" severum (gentle giant but definitely king of the tank), a 5" green terror, a 3" electric blue jack dempsey, a 4" sajica, a 2" firemouth, 12 columbian tetras and a 10" sailfin pleco. They have minor disagreements every now and again but generally get on well. I am aware, however, that down the road it may not work out - something you might have to keep in mind when keeping different species together.

But as fatheadminnow said, do you know about cycling your tank? if not I'd worry about that bit first, then while that's going on you can think about the inhabitants

If you have questions about NW cichlids, come join us in that forum

Yeah im going to do a fishless cycle, and maybe buy some media that already has some bacteria on it so it goes faster. I know I want 1 Oscar, what other Cichlids would be good to mix with that?