How Big A Tank Would I Need...?

[Mr Melt]

If I were to buy the following fish (tropical btw):

x2 Angelfish
x2 Assorted Discus
x4 Congo Tetras
x2 Mbuna
x1 Ghostknife Fish
x2 Oscars (maybe)

Just wondering what tank would be suitable for that many fish (to enable them to live comfortably). Btw I will be adding plenty of rocks/plants etc, so add them to the equation too =P

 

[Davo86]

The selection above is totally incompatible so is not something that would work in any setup,

 

[Mr Melt]

The selection above is totally incompatible so is not something that would work in any setup,

Oh, I didnt know =/

I assume its the Ghostknife or the Mbuna?

 

[Ben M]

Hi, most of these fish won't be suitable in any sized tank. The mbunas should be kept in a mbuna only tank (even mixing with Victorias, Haps and Tanganyikans isn't recommended). The oscars wouldn't be suitable either, as they would see the congos and probably the angels as a snack. The BGK can grow over 12", so needs a tank of at least 55gal. They are a very delicate fish, so not for beginners, and the congos may nip at them.

cheers

 

[mattlee]

x2 Angelfish
x2 Assorted Discus
x4 Congo Tetras
x2 Mbuna
x1 Ghostknife Fish
x2 Oscars (maybe)

out of the list given you could put in a 60x24x18 minimum -

1 x oscar
1 x bgk
group of congo tetras

another combination would be in a 48x18x18 minimum -

2 x angelfish
2 x discus
group of tetras but i wouldnt go with congos

please research these fish. as stated by davo all of these fish together are no way compatable and just keeping 2 oscars needs a 60x24x24 very minimum tank in my eyes.

 

[Mr Melt]

x2 Angelfish
x2 Assorted Discus
x1 Ghostknife Fish
x4 Dwarf Gourami

Would these be compatible? I cant find anything on compatibility for the ghostknife =/


PS - all this is in its early stages; I defenitely dont plan on buying any fish until I'm certain that 1 - they're compatible and 2 - they have adequate living space. I won't rush blindly into this (which is kinda the reason I asked online =P)

For example; I can see a 400litre tank for sale locally (around 90 gallons I think). Would that be suitable?

 

[mattlee]

i wouldnt trust a bgk with anything under 3-4 inches as they are predatory fish. bgk can get to 20 inches and pretty fast, mine has grown from 3-4 inches to 9 inches in 6 months or so just to give you an idea.
i also wouldnt trust the gouramis and angels together if it were me, ive had nothing but evil gouramis that bully fish 3x their size!
adding discus and angels can work but be carefull as both species can carry bugs/parasites that can effect the other. it is often done with success but be cautious if doing this.

discus arent a beginers fish either so i would stick with angels to start off with.

 

[Mr Melt]

i wouldnt trust a bgk with anything under 3-4 inches as they are predatory fish. bgk can get to 20 inches and pretty fast, mine has grown from 3-4 inches to 9 inches in 6 months or so just to give you an idea.
i also wouldnt trust the gouramis and angels together if it were me, ive had nothing but evil gouramis that bully fish 3x their size!
adding discus and angels can work but be carefull as both species can carry bugs/parasites that can effect the other. it is often done with success but be cautious if doing this.

discus arent a beginers fish either so i would stick with angels to start off with.

Kk, so say:

2 Angelfish
1 Ghostknife
(upon further advice maybe) 2 Discus
x2 Plecos? (depends on variety, from zebra to armored catfish)

 

[twodoctors]

We're back to square one. What size tank can you afford? Get the biggest and you can't go wrong. Then you can consider stocking.

BTW what's your pH?

Adrian

 

[Mr Melt]

We're back to square one. What size tank can you afford? Get the biggest and you can't go wrong. Then you can consider stocking.

BTW what's your pH?

Adrian

Using www.gumtree.com, I can afford £200 worth (and believe me they got some cracking deals on there)

PH water here is usually 7.2

 

[fluttermoth]

OP; you can't just put any fish you like the look of in one tank.

They come form wildly differing waters from all over the world and have different requirements for pH, hardness, substrate/decor and companions.

You need to decide which fish or species is the one you really want, and then arrange your tank to suit it.

 

[mattlee]

i wouldnt say pH was the issue i would say tank size.

most fish we buy arent from a wild source and are farm raised in asia and eastern europe along with others and have never been or seen their natural environment.

once you have your tank then you can decide on what you want/can put in it, as said above get the biggest tank you can afford and fit into your home as you will probably want to upgrade it pretty soon if you dont once you get to discover more species etc.

 

[Mr Melt]

i wouldnt say pH was the issue i would say tank size.

most fish we buy arent from a wild source and are farm raised in asia and eastern europe along with others and have never been or seen their natural environment.

once you have your tank then you can decide on what you want/can put in it, as said above get the biggest tank you can afford and fit into your home as you will probably want to upgrade it pretty soon if you dont once you get to discover more species etc.

Thanks for the advice mate =)

 

[mattlee]

i wouldnt say pH was the issue i would say tank size.

most fish we buy arent from a wild source and are farm raised in asia and eastern europe along with others and have never been or seen their natural environment.

once you have your tank then you can decide on what you want/can put in it, as said above get the biggest tank you can afford and fit into your home as you will probably want to upgrade it pretty soon if you dont once you get to discover more species etc.

Thanks for the advice mate =)

no problem.

while looking for your tank after deciding on the size you can start thinking of what fish you can add in it. the best thing to do is to take a few trips to the shops an have a good look on the net and get a list of fish species like what you already did and come back with it and we can help tweek it and such.

remember that the tiny cute fish you see may well become a 2ft monster within a year so look at potential adult size when making your list. also a lot of people when starting out get 1 of them and 2 of these etc and end up with a complete strange mixture of fish. its by far best to stick to bigger groups and have less species in my eyes.
for example 30 x cardinal tetras, 8 x peppered corys and 4 x angel fish will look much more natural and eye catching than say 3 x cardinal tetra, 3 x harlequin rasboras, 5 danios, 1 x angelfish, 3 x bronze corys and 3 x peppered corys. so if it were me i would go for the biggest group of fish you can house in the tank as they act more natural and it looks much much better.

 

[Didge007]

remember that the tiny cute fish you see may well become a 2ft monster within a year so look at potential adult size when making your list.

I've made this mistake and trust me, not a good feeling when you find out your adorable little cute fish will be unhappy in it's tank

I've read and been told to not put Angels or ANY fast moving fish with Discus as they themselves are slower moving fish and wouldn't be too happy. For example, I'm considering starting up a 4ft+ Discus tank and shifting my black ghost knife fish into there as he/she is a slower moving fish (or so they tell me, mine is a complete nutcase!).

Also when going to get fish, don't take your partner if they know nothing...it's like having a whinging toddler with you - my boyfriend cannot for the life of him understand why he can't have the cute little jack dempsey's in the lfs in my 2.5ft tank with my angel, dwarf gourami and pictus...