Hmm...any ideas from you experts?

[SilverDollar_03]

Hey guys! I have a 55G tank currently housing 4 (4 inch) SilverDollars, 5 (1.5 inch) Dwarf Neon Rainbowfish, 4 (1.5 inch) Aeneus Corydoras, 3 (1 inch) Marbled Hatchetfish, and 1 (4 inch) Red-tailed black shark.

If that sounds like alot already, i just want to say my nitrates are at 0, along with ammonia and nitrite of course, and they are always at zero, even after 2 weeks without a water change (right now).

So, as it doesnt look very crowded in the tank right now, and i want some colour, im wondering what fish you guys could suggest to put in with this bunch.?

all ideas greatly appreciated! thanks..

 

[FrAnK3333]

a pair of rams of even a pair of cockatoo cichlids would be cool

 

[sylvia]

The fish aren't full grown yet so whether your tank is crowded or not is still to be seen.

More of the hatchets, cories and rainbowfish would make your tank look more full as well as making your current fish happier. Watch the hatchets as the other fish get larger BTW - they are prone to being bullied.

 

[jflowers]

Sounds like a very nice tank so far.

I am with Frank3333, a pair of cichlids, rams or kribs wont give your other fish a hard time. Or a school of danios 6+ not colourful I know but very nice fish to watch.

Jon

 

[SilverDollar_03]

sounds good so far guys. yeah the rainbows seem happy right now in there group, and i know the marbles might like to be in a larger one, im just not sure i want to get more because they are so fragile/die easily (2 have even dissapeared, not jumped out though, so they must have been eaten).

ok well the rams look like a good choice. by the way, do you think the rams would get bullied by the shark?, because the shark always chases fish around the tank (except the silvers, he wouldnt dare mess with them).

by the way, my tank has fake plastic plants, do you think rams would do well in a non-planted tank??

thanks for the suggestions so far!

 

[FrAnK3333]

you should try a planted tank it looks nice and the fish will like it more, as for the shark the rams should be fine IMO, but i could be wrong

 

[sylvia]

They should do ok without real plants. Just hiding places.

 

[fufanu360]

lol, live plants wouldnt last very long with them silver dollars in der

 

[SilverDollar_03]

yeah, i just dont have plants because the silver dollars would devour them in an instant. so, yeah. any more opinions on the matter? they wont be intimidated by the fast monving silver dollars will they??

 

[FrAnK3333]

who the rams no they would be fine smae with the cockatoos they would be fine

 

[SilverDollar_03]

ok great thanks!

any other ideas

 

[fishman 1]

Hello all,

Well what can I say. This must be a first for sure, a tank with zero ammonia, zero nitrite and zero nitrate. I dont suppose it has zero water in it too? You must have some trace of nitrate? How old is your test kit? Is it working properly? Nitrate is the broken down form of nitrite. This is produced when the filter bacteria breaks down nitrite. If your fish are producing waste, which they will be you should have at least a slight reading of nitrate. This is a less harmless form as long as it is not excessive. Basically you endevour for zero ammonia and zero nitrite. Nitrate is the less harmless form which the friendly bacteria in the filter produce. With the fish you have I would suspect you will have some sort of reading on the tank.

Now to the rams, I would not recomend these to be kept with the fish you have as they are not as rhobust as people think. Thats presuming you are on about the Microgeophagus Ramirezi. A more substancial fish would be the Bolivian ram (Microgeophagus Altispinosa) as it stands more chance of surviving with your current stock. As regards the Cockatoo cichlids (Apisto. Cacatuoides) I do not think you will see much of them as I think the tank will be too boisterous for them with the shark and the dollars. You could try the larger krib types like Pelvicachromis Humilis (Yellow Krib) or Chromidotilapia Guentheri (Gunther's Mouthbrooder) or just some Pulchers (Kribs). They should stand up a bit more to the shark and dollars. I suggested the first two as they are slightly large than the latter so should be ok when the dollars and shark get bigger too. Shirley Aquatics have some pairs of the Humilis at the moment which are very nice.

I hope this has been of some use to you. Wake up lads, I've finished.

 

[SilverDollar_03]

alright thanks. about the nitrate, its not the test kit, i thought so too, so i made sure. so that option is officially out of the picture, haha. yeah, i cant belive it....

anyways, that suks i cant get rams....theyre so cool. could i get bolivian rams? becuase i know the petsmart near my house sells them....

thanks guys, keep the options coming!

 

[fishdudein]

First thing that comes to mind would be some type of gourami, they get to be a fairly decent size and should hold up well against the other fish. Many different "styles and colors" to choose from. Never have had any luck with either rams or cockatoos (and you always want what you can't have!), I think it's the local water.

Gotta agree with fishman1 on the nitrate thing, that's really strange. Do you do a lot of water changes? When I first read your post I figured you were going to say it was a heavily planted tank....guess if I would have looked at your name, I would have known better! Do you have a LFS that can test your water for you? Never hurts to get a second opinion, especially when the first one leaves you scratching your head.....

 

[SilverDollar_03]

yeah, i have no plants. the nitrate is ACTUALLY at zero, and has been for 3 weeks straight, WITHOUT changing the water even once! there is no problem with the kit, nitrate and stuff shows up on my other tanks, it is just my one 55 gallon tank it never shows up in!

ok, i tried blue gouramis before and they died really quick, some fish just dont work in my tank, like the swordtails i used to have (2 died of unknown, 1 got eaten by shark). but yeah, i might try the gouramis again, it might be a good idea! now that the parameters of the tank are so perfect at least...