Tropical Planted Tank Stocking

[AquaArch]

Hi I just wanted to know if these stocking ideas are realistic and ok. Also which one do you think is a better option!!

105 litre 75cm X 35cm X 40cm
AquaEl ASAP 500 Filter
Live Plants and Dirted Tanks

1)

6 Rummynose Tetras 1 Bristlenose Pleco
6 Amano Shrimp 4 African Dwarf Frogs
6 Nerite Snails. 2 German Blue Rams.
1 Honey Gourami. 6 Albino Cory Cats

2)

22 Neon Tetras. 6 Nerite Snails
6 Amano Shrimp. 1 Bristlenose Pleco
6 Albino Cories. 2 German Blue Rams

 

[AquaArch]

Also any ideas on other tank stocking options?

 

[Ch4rlie]

Well, may help if you can let us know what your water parameters are?

Soft or hard water, specifically pH, gH and kH, or alternatively look online your local water authority, should have these details under water quaility or suchlike.

2 things come to mind, cories do best with sand substrate so am unsure if a dirted tank would work in this respect. But do bear in mind cories like to dig and shift through substrate so with dirted tank this may turn out to be a messy option.....

Nerites, depends if they are reared on algae wafers or suchlike, otherwise they need a lot of green spot alge to feed on. You'd be surprised how fast they can clean an entire tank of green alage and then run out of food to feed on then sadly starve, especially if they are of the wild variety as they may not recognise algae wafers as a source of food.

A note about neon tetras, they are not particularly hardy fish, so they do not tend to do very well in newly set up tanks, very suscepticle to diseases, in particular NTD (Neon Tetra Disease) which is usually fatal.

One last thing, rummies and maybe the GBR's may see the shrimps as food.

SO a couple of things to consider there anyway before you actually purchase any live stocking. But do post your water parameters as well as water hardness readings, fairly important.

 

[NickAu]

I would rather go with mystery snails, Nerites lay eggs all over the place and it looks bad.

 

[AquaArch]

I don't know exact water parameters tank not setup yet. However I will get in touch with local water suppliers. Anyway do you think the stocking compatibility is ok and not overstocked?

 

[Ch4rlie]

I'd find out what water parameters you have first.

This is important as soft water fish will not do well in hard water and vice versa. Fish have evolved to live in their natural habitats which has its own chemical and mineral conditions and simply putting fish in an environment thats not suited to them will very likely to end badly.

So as to whether the tank will be overstocked or not at this time is not important, what is important is knowing your choices of fish are suited to your water parameters, THEN you can research what suits your tank size and set up.

Not trying to shoot down your ethusaism or anything, but better to know now and do research otherwise your efforts, time and money may end up in vain. Not to mention how this would effect the livestock as well.

One last thing, since the tank is not set up, have you considered how you will cycle this tank?
Means to get your tank and filter ready with the relevant bacterias to be able to deal with the bioloads your stocking will produce.

Have a read of this article which will help explain in more details what it means to cycle your tank first before adding any live stocking.

Cycling Your First Fresh Water Tank

I have no idea if you already know about these things or not, always better to mention them now first then we can take things from there.

 

[AquaArch]

Around 130mg/l of Calcium Carbonate and pH in my othe tank is around 6-7

 

[Ch4rlie]

130 mg/l CaC03 is actually moderate to hard water.

The pH in your other tank may well be down to the substrate, wood and decor which all lowers pH.
For example my tap water is at pH of 8.0 whilst my tanks tend to show a reading of pH of 7.4 to 7.6.

You may be better getting a pH reading from your tap water rather than from your other tank water.

Rummynose Tetras are soft water fish and do best in acidic water, which is anything between pH reading of 5.5 to 7.

 

[AquaArch]

130 mg/l CaC03 is actually moderate to hard water.

The pH in your other tank may well be down to the substrate, wood and decor which all lowers pH.
For example my tap water is at pH of 8.0 whilst my tanks tend to show a reading of pH of 7.4 to 7.6.

You may be better getting a pH reading from your tap water rather than from your other tank water.

Rummynose Tetras are soft water fish and do best in acidic water, which is anything between pH reading of 5.5 to 7.

Ok thanks for your help. I'll test the tap water tomorrow morning!

 

[AquaArch]

Ok thanks for your help. I'll test the tap water tomorrow morning!

Also what fish thrive in these parameters in a 105 ltr. Any of the above??

 

[Byron]

AquaArch, welcome to TFF.

To your intial question...I'm afraid neither stocking plan will work, for the fish, from the aspect of temperature, and the combination. I'll explain this before turning to the GH and pH.

African dwarf frogs generally do not fare well with fish. I will leave this aspect for other members with more frog experience and move on.

Temperature. In both scenarios you have a fish that needs warmth that some others included do not. The common or blue ram (Mikrogeophagus ramirezi, in any of its varieties)should be kept at 80F/27C minimum. This is much too warm for most cories, including the albino unless these are Corydoras sterbai albino form; the others derived from C. aeneus, C. paleatus, C. panda are better in less warm water, around 75-76F/24C max. Neons (Parachierodon innesi) also should not be warmer than this temp. Rummys, BN and honey gourami would not have problems either way (though the Honey at 80-82F would be at the top of its range and better a bit lower).

Temperature determines the fish's metabolic rate, so it is very important. You might find another current thread on this worth reading, I detailed it in post #5:
http://www.fishforums.net/threads/something-byron-said.444409/

Rummynose tetra is a species that will always be better with more than the often-cited "six" minimum; I would say 9-12 minimum. Tank size here is another factor though, as this tetra does like to swim more than some other species, and I personally would not consider a tank under 3 feet/90cm length. Depth (vertical) doesn't matter but the length does for this species. Neons on this aspect would not care, so in a 75cm tank, fine, as they are not active swimmers but more cruisers or sedate, hovering more than swimming. All the species in Parachierdon are like this, so in warmer tanks the cardinal (P. axelrodi) or the false neon (P. simulans) would be better...but with the latter we come to the GH and pH.

The GH (calcium carbonate) at 130 mg/l (= ppm) or 7 dGH is moderately hard but not too hard for many soft water species. However, P. simulans will be wild caught, and is highly sensitive to parameters so the cardinal would be better here, if you can get tank raised fish. I admit it is still a bit of a push, but worth considering.

Something else with the rams...two would need to be a bonded pair. Males are highly territorial, and I wouldn't recommend more than one in this tank. A pair that have accepted each other (we call it bonded) would be OK. Not every male/female will bond, they need to choose their mate. Sometimes that doesn't last too long either, but...

Cichlids and gourami are not always suited to one another, being so much alike (male territory for instance) so I would go with one or the other. If the Honey, a trio (1 male, 2 females) would be nice in this tank.

There is a great deal beyond simple fish mass to water volume to factor in. Hope this helps.

Byron.

 

[Byron]

Ok thanks for your help. I'll test the tap water tomorrow morning!

In case you are not aware of this...when testing tap water pH, you must out-gas any CO2 that may be present, or the reading could be inaccurate. Letting the glass of tap water sit 24 hours is one way, or you can very briskly agitate a small volume of tap water for a few minutes; this latter usually works and is quicker.

As for the pH lowering, yes, with soil and organics it might, depending upon the KH (carbonate hardness or Alkalinity) of the tap water. This buffers pH in a sense, preventing it from fluctuating. Acids that would normally lower the pH will be buffered by the KH up to the point where it no longer has the capacity. A GH around 7 dGH will likely mean a comparable KH, but not always, so you might want to check this. Also, if the pH has been lowering from the tap water level, that will give you a hint as to what may occur.

Byron.