37 gallon overstocked?

[finsforthewins]

Thank you, I will check out the Seriously Fish site. There is so much conflicting info out there. When I purchased the Oto from a local fish store, there was only one available, and the fish store owner who had been in business for 34 years said he would do well on his own. And then I read online that they should be kept in groups, so I definitely felt bad that he had been alone for so long. I purchased two more but wondering if I should get a few more Otos when I return the loaches. I will see if there is any info on Otos on the Seriously Fish site.

If you have any suggestions for fish for a tank this size, feel free to let me know. I am new to the hobby and open to suggestions.

Thank you and to everyone for the help!

 

[Byron]

I read that at least three yoyo loaches should be kept together (though more is better, but unfortunately my tank is not large enough for more). Is this not true? I attached an image of where I found this information.

What fish do you recommend for this size tank?

No, it is not true. Loaches are highly social fish, and as I have said establish an hierarchy early on. A female is the alpha fish and she keeps the hierarchy in tow. You need at least five, six is better, to avoid possible issues. The stress things like this cause cannot be seen until it is too late. Essjay provided similar facts. These things are in the genetics of the species.

As for suggesting fish, I think it preferable to sort out the list you have in post #1 first. The CAE is gone, I strongly recommend the loaches go. The mollies should go as they need much harder water and will slowly weaken and die. Similar for the guppies, though they seem to last a bit longer these days, but it is still quite soft water. The neons need a group around 10 if you keep the four. The Bolivian Ram is a good cichlid, just a male (or female) alone. A very nice community cichlid, he will consider the tank space "his" which is fine, as the other fish will recognize this and tow the line. I would not have another cichlid though, this is risky.

If you have sand, you could consider Corydoras. Or a smaller loach...but not both in the same tank. And there will be space for other upper fish species.

 

[AlexT]

So many websites talk rubbish. Always use a site written by experts.

For example, Seriously Fish

What you recommend for the most consistent fish database/info? Anything particular?

 

[Byron]

Thank you, I will check out the Seriously Fish site. There is so much conflicting info out there. When I purchased the Oto from a local fish store, there was only one available, and the fish store owner who had been in business for 34 years said he would do well on his own. And then I read online that they should be kept in groups, so I definitely felt bad that he had been alone for so long. I purchased two more but wondering if I should get a few more Otos when I return the loaches. I will see if there is any info on Otos on the Seriously Fish site.

If you have any suggestions for fish for a tank this size, feel free to let me know. I am new to the hobby and open to suggestions.

Thank you and to everyone for the help!

Given the tank size, I would stay with the three otos. This is a shoaling species, yes, but there are "exceptions" to all rules in the world of nature, and this is one of them.

 

[Essjay]

What you recommend for the most consistent fish database/info? Anything particular?

For general fish, Seriously Fish and Fishbase (Seriously Fish includes things like tank size and suitable tank mates; Fishbase is a more scientific site about the fish rather than keeping fish)
For catfish of all types, Planet Catfish.
For cories, Corydoras World, though this needs you to sign up.
For loaches, Loaches Online

 

[WhistlingBadger]

Seriously fish is my go-to as well. Planet catfish and loaches online are both very good too.

 

[finsforthewins]

Update: I returned the yoyo loaches and have not made any additional fish purchases. I tested my source water and the general hardness results differ from the water report. GH is at about 120, picture attached. It must be the lava rock that is increasing it to 180+.

Any ideas on how to soften the water other than taking out the lava rocks? I don’t want it too soft bc of the guppies and mollies but want it soft enough for the tetras. I read driftwood can help. Anyone have any luck with this? Anyone have any luck keeping guppies, mollies and neon tetras together? I read it can be done but I am now skeptical of some of the info I read.

Thank you Essjay and Byron for the information you have provided, it is very helpful.

 

[WhistlingBadger]

It can be done, but the fish probably won't thrive because they need very different things. I would either get rid of the lava rocks or focus on hard-water fish.

 

[Essjay]

The only way to reduce hardness with naturally occurring hard water is by mixing it with pure water which has zero hardness. This is a long term expenditure and it would be cheaper to replace the lava rocks with different rocks which don't change the hardness.

 

[Byron]

The issue with something like lava rock increasing the parameters is not knowing just how much this will progress. You mention river rock, and if this is the rounded various-sized pebbles it is granite and inert. Lava rock is volcanic and contains minerals, this is probably the cause of the increase in GH, assuming you are not adding some other substance to the water (other than just conditioner).

I would suggest removing the lava rock, and replacing it with wood. I don't have a photo of the tank now, but chunks of wood might well look as good or better than the lava rock. The river rock is fine, I used some in several of my tanks for effect. Wood is organic obviously, but its effect on parameters is negligible. It depends upon the initial source water parameters. These will not change much if at all, depending what they are and other factors like fish load, plants, etc. But the wood also provides something found in the habitats of almost all soft water fish. So it is a win-win situation.

You also mention river rock forming the substrate...can you explain? The substrate itself should be a small-grain sand or fine gravel, for good biological processes to thrive. And some fish, those living and feeding fro the substrate, need soft sand or fine gravel, depending the species. Loaches can use sand or fine gravel, whereas cories must have soft sand. A photo of the tank will give us more info here.

 

[finsforthewins]

I have attached a picture of the tank. I think the water is a little hazy, so I purchased a UV filter today.

Are the rocks I have as a substrate not the best?

I will plan on removing the lava rocks to see if it softens the water a bit. Mixing the source water with pure water is an idea. Also like the idea of wood in the tank.

Thanks all for the help!

 

[Byron]

I have attached a picture of the tank. I think the water is a little hazy, so I purchased a UV filter today.

Are the rocks I have as a substrate not the best?

I will plan on removing the lava rocks to see if it softens the water a bit. Mixing the source water with pure water is an idea. Also like the idea of wood in the tank.

Thanks all for the help!

The large substrate material means that bits of food gets trapped and it can cause bacterial issues. In a small-grain substrate, of which frankly sand is the best, this is not an issue. You presumably intend substrate fish, like small loaches or cories, and they need sand.

Can you return the UV? The haze is normal, it will clear on its own. UV is expensive, some of them do basically nothing. You would be better spending the money on a soft sand.

On the GH, the tap water will remain what it is parameter wise. Mixing pure water is here not a good idea, as this is creating fluctuating conditions. Best to remove the lava rock, get some wood, and make the fishies happy. You want to establish a stable biological system, and that begins with the substrate, the bacteria bed of an aquarium.

Some floating plants will greatly benefit the fish by shading them, and help with water benefits.

Wood like Malaysian Driftwood is about the best, it comes in various sized chunks, all natural, heavy so it sinks.

 

[finsforthewins]

Makes sense about the substrate. When changing to sand, should all of the river rocks be removed, or could I remove half of them and put the sand on the top? When vacuuming sand, is there a certain siphon that you find works best?

I looked online for the Malaysian driftwood and found a few online retailers. Is there one in particular that you recommend?

Thanks!

 

[Byron]

Makes sense about the substrate. When changing to sand, should all of the river rocks be removed, or could I remove half of them and put the sand on the top? When vacuuming sand, is there a certain siphon that you find works best?

I looked online for the Malaysian driftwood and found a few online retailers. Is there one in particular that you recommend?

Thanks!

I have always had one or more local fish stores that stock Malaysian Driftwood, so I have been able to see the pieces (all are different) and find what I was looking for to provide say tunnels for loaches, or whatever. Know the fish you are intending, as some of them like loaches will need tunnel wood. Others like branches.

The River Rock is fine, but to make things easier I would take it out and put it in a bucket. Rinse the sand and dump it in, overall spread out you want anywhere from 1.5 inches to 3 inches depth most of the time. You can push it to have more in the back, though it will over time level out unless you have some sort of terracing. Then place the rocks in groupings that suit you. Heavier rocks can be worked down to sit on the bottom glass (but carefully) so they don't fall and crack the glass. Some fish will dig under them. And arrange the wood.

You can hold the water changer just above the sand, move it to disturb anything on the sand, and suck it up without bringing the sand as well. In some tanks I never did even this; my tank of cories were tremendous housekeepers! If you are not overstocked, and do not overfeed, cleaning the sand is minimal effort.