Hello

[ChipChip]

HI, can't find my way around the site yet, so I hope I'm doing this right! I have just joined, so I wanted to introduce myself.
I have had coldwater for about 2 years, and 'alot' of guppies for a few months. I have 8 goldfish and 10 minnows, in two tanks [one 400 litre and one 180], guppies in another [a 110 litre]. Now I'm getting a 90 litre sorted out with tropicals, not sure what to have yet - very hard water. I don't really want to go down the 'softening the water route', would rather get fish that 'like' hard water. Not sure about chiclids either though - I'm not easy to please!! Just looking into plecs at the moment. Anyway, nice to meet you all, ChipChip.

 

[OldMan47]

Welcome to the forum ChipChip.

A nice 90 litre tank with tropicals in a hard water area. Hmm...
Many of the African cichlids like very hard and high pH water so some of the smaller ones might work. In a different setup you could keep peaceful livebearers like mollies, platies or swordtails. Those are easy to find and very easy to care for in a hard water setting but they would not work with the Africans. Another option for your fourth tank is to start dealing with less common fish. I like my goodeids and some of my other less common livebearers but they are not for everyone. I was just thinking that when you already have 3 other tanks the 90 will need something different to help hold your interest.

 

[ChipChip]

Welcome to the forum ChipChip.

A nice 90 litre tank with tropicals in a hard water area. Hmm...
Many of the African cichlids like very hard and high pH water so some of the smaller ones might work. In a different setup you could keep peaceful livebearers like mollies, platies or swordtails. Those are easy to find and very easy to care for in a hard water setting but they would not work with the Africans. Another option for your fourth tank is to start dealing with less common fish. I like my goodeids and some of my other less common livebearers but they are not for everyone. I was just thinking that when you already have 3 other tanks the 90 will need something different to help hold your interest.

 

[ChipChip]

Thank you, yes that makes sense. I have only really had the cold water and the guppies - they were more for my step-children, but I must admit, they are lovely to watch. I would rather have a community tank to be honest, rather than the chiclids. I don't know what goodeids are I'm afraid....I told you I'm new to the tropical side! I have seen, and liked the look of mollies, killifish, paltys, gouramies and catfish/corys. Thank you for answering me. I've looked, but can't figure out how to put anything on my profile page!! I'll have a good look over the weekend.Thanks, CC. Actually, could you recommend tank mates for a single, male Siamese Fighter please?

 

[OldMan47]

A single male fighter in my tank spends his time in 45 gallons with mostly endlers livebearers, a few bristle nose plecs and some nice corydorus paleatus, the peppered cories. Goodeids are semitropical fish that are a bit hard to find. They are livebearers that need no more heat than you have used for your goldfish, any comfortable room temperature will work with them, but they are not community fish. My goodeids are each kept in single species tanks.

Platies or mollies should work fine with that betta, and cories will work with most typical tropicals. I do have one species of goodeid that has a bad reputation with cories but in general cories fit in almost anywhere tropical. You do need to be cautious with cories because some species of them do not do too well with the warmer waters that other fish will want.

You might say there is no such thing as a tropical in the sense of fitting in any temperature. Each of the individual species have their own water requirements and their own temperature range but not all of them are alike that way. What we try to do as hobbyists is put together a group of compatible fish with both decent temperature matching and similar water requirements.