20G Long Questions

[kahira]

 
 
This is my tank right now. I just got my order of slate rock and I till have a ton left over@_@ I didn't get many big pieces sadly ;-; so mine can't be super grand but idk where to put the rest. Worked hard to get that one up. I could extend it to the left and add another 'arch' I suppose that goes in front of the filter (not up against it) but I don't know if blocking my filter like that would be a good idea.
 
I have an order of plants coming in (thursday or friday) and I kind of want to make the corner area behind the driftwood a little 'jungle' area. I don't know.. thats my first question, what do you guys think I should do?
 
 
Secondly.... stocking.
I originally wanted a 55g+ but I can't go above 40g in this apartment complex (no matter what floor lvl) so I settled on a 20g long. Which means no pictus catfish (though I wish...) I still want bottom dwellers though... and even though Zebra Plecos are my second favorite (who doesn't love them?) they are WAY too expensive to actually have them shipped to me and I don't even know how they'd fair in my high pH and hard water enviroment. I thought about Bristlenose Plecos but... I think they might get a 'bit' to big. So now I guess that just leaves me with cories?
 
I'm limited to what Petsmart has, so nothing 'out-there' because Petsmart sucks and probably wont have it and I do not have the money to order fish.
 
I'm gong through the nitrogen cycle atm with ammonia because Seachem's bateria-in-a-bottle didn't work worth a ****. Oh well, that's life. So I have time to decide on fish. I want something on all 3 levels.

 

[ray311]

Its looking pretty neat, i actually thought it was a 55g at first glance Is that soil on the bottom layer? How strong is the flow with the filter or is it like a type of sponge filter? I personally have a pictus cat its grown pretty fast its about 3 1/2" long atm but its not as active as when i first got it. He/she usually hangs in a slate cave or under driftwood i have, its pretty active sucking up food during feeding time and slightly territorial at times. I honestly dont see a 20g being too small to be honest. You can also try A German ram or the German blue ram, lots of personality and ive seen them at petco/petsmart around $8take or give a few dollars

 

[Ninjouzata]

If you don't like cories, what about red lizard whiptails? I think petco can get them in but not sure about petsmart.

 

[kahira]

It's flourish plant substrade under the sand

I have root tabs to put in my tank but I'm not going to put them in until I get the rest of my plants later this week. The filter is meant for a 40 gallon and turs 171g/hr. I have it on the lowest flow rate. There's a good flow in my tank (i think) but I don't want it too fast. The plants sway, so I'm sure it's decent enough, but i always have the option to turn it up.
 
Yeah, well I mean it would be nice to have a pictus. They won't get to big/wide for a 20g long since it's 30x12x12 and Pictus cat's (not the 4 liners, the P. Pictus) only get about 5" max. so they'd have room to turn around and I'd like to believe having almost 3 ft of length to swim around in is decent enough. Petsmart does have the rams, but don't you have to start out with a large group and then allow them to pair off and return the others? Idk.
 
Unfortunatly Missoula doesn't have a Petco, We have a marine store, and Petsmart.... lol We used to have Tropical World but they had really bad reviews and I have no idea if they're even still open since they 'came under new management'.
 
Its not that I don't like cories. They're cute, and definitally active, it's just not my 1st choice type of fish ya know?

 

[Ninjouzata]

From all I've heard of pictus they would not be suited to this tank size, but I don't know what ones I was reading about and I didn't specifically look them up
I'm not sure on the rams, have not heard of buying a bunch and waiting for them to pair off. Could you be thinking of angelfish?
Sorry ya'll don't have a petco I get what you mean I think.

 

[kahira]

no, I've read that rams have to pair off too. I know angelfish do too. I don't know what ram I was looking at though.

 

[ray311]

Well you can house 1 ram.... I had 2 but i guess they were both males and eventually rehomed one cause of constant bullying my 55g. the pictus is cool but he kinda disapointed me since he got lazy. I think prtsmart has a bit more fish than petco more variety, atleast over here.

 

[Ninjouzata]

Rams do pair up but I was unaware of people getting 6 of them like they do with angelfish and then waiting for them to pair. Not saying you're wrong, I havn't looked into it. Definitely makes sense to do it that way.
I love slate pile in the back & the arched wood!

 

[kahira]

Well perhaps it was me reading about people who wanted to keep more than just 1 male and 1 female. P: hehe been awhile.
 
Thinking about maybe a center fish like... Dwaf Gourami's? 1 male and 2 females?
Maybe Dwarf Rainbowfish?
 
Then as a larger schooling fish maybe... I don't know I really like Red Minor Tetras, Harlequin Rasboras (though they wouldn't be my first pick), I could do barbs but... I heard that most barbs are turd-heads, Bloodfin Tetras (they seemed a bit see-thru in the petsmart tanks as compared to how they should be, but i take it thats just the water quality)? These would be a school of 5 minimum or 7 max. I hate even numbers... I know i'm weird, though I wonder if that could be a bit too many.
 
For the bottom, I didn't really see anything other than plecos, the pictus cats, and cories. So that would pretty much limit me to cories, which I don't mind.
 
Thoughts?

 

[rikkitiger]

dg are so beautiful in a big tank like that! i have my dg in my 20 gallon tall and he just LOVES the space.
 
cories are such beautiful fish too. and you have the perfect substrate for them, so i would thumbs up that idea.
I don't personally know much about the other species you mention, although i can give you a suggestion?
 
try a group for 5-7 (ha ha i remembered no even #s) platies. Get the ones that look a bit more out there with the interesting patterns, petsmart should have them. They are very hardy and suprise you with wildly different personalities. i think you would like their look.
 
good luck, and remember things could be worse than petsmart. in my town we only have a walmart and a cat and dog shelter. and i have turtles, chameleons and frogs, so i have gotten a lot of loss from shipping things, but i love it, so everyday it pays off for me.
 
good luck again and it looks beautiful and lovely already! i also really like the jungle idea.

 

[kahira]

eeh im not really a fan of livebearers. They're pretty, don't get me wrong. I love fancy guppies, but trying to sexy them when they're that small? (my petsmart usually has very young livebearers, though I've seen a few large platies) @_@ meeh, and I do NOT want my tank to get overrun with babies, and there is no guarantee that the fish I get will be male until they get older.
 
Yeah I wouldn't mind buying fish online, BUT, i would have to wait till spring at the earliest, and even that weather is setchy since our winter months seem to last till about mid june -shot-

 

[kahira]

oh yes, and here's an updated picture

I added on to the slate and mad a little 'bench'/'arch' outwards which I feel i like a bit more now. the left and the right sides of the tank will be densly planted leaving the center fairly open though I might eventually buy some short forground plants that will stay low (might put it in front of the rock closest to the front of the tank) so I think I have my scape pretty well planned out

I don't know if I'll get more anubis in my batch, but I REALLY want an Anubis Nana. i just love their color SO MUCH. might either put it on the drifwood or atop the rock

 
Along with root tabs I'll eventually get liquid plant ferts too. Any preference? All we have in petsmart is the Aqueon, API, and... Flourish (but its the most expensive)
 

 
 
 
EDIT:
Also... I was still really confused about Seachem: Stability, because I've seen nothing but good revies from it from over 100 people and they all said within a week their tanks were cycled just like the bottle promised. I was thinking... it was maybe because I wasn't shaking it enough? I read by one reviewer that you have to shake it until you hear that "sizzling foamy" sound from the bottle and that's when you know its ready? It was really foamy when I did that, and it was never foamy at all for me before so..... I think I may run this experiement for another week to see what it does... I do have the 4ppm of ammonia still in the tank (for 5 days now) so we'll see if it starts to change at all.