New to hobby - stocking a 60l

[Emmifer]

Hi all. I have recently bought a 60l rectangular tank to replace my 30l biorb so that I'm able to give my existing minnows more space to behave naturally in and hopefully get some new friends!
I am planning on setting up the tank with live plants etc and then running a fish less cycle using ammonia and an API test kit.
I was thinking of putting black Caribsea tropical sand in the tank as I would eventually like to add a few panda corys as bottom dwellers.
As mid mid range fish I will begin by adding my 4 wcmm and then add a few more so they can hopefully school. I'd also like to add a small school of harlequin rasboras and a pair of honey gouramis.
Please could you give me advice on my choices so far and if you think I will be overstocked? Many thanks!!!!

 

[hobby5]

Welcome to TFF!

Some quick input:
Cycling with plants is different!

Do you know about (your) water parameters (KH, GH, pH)?

Sand is always a good choice

I would stick with one shoal of fish. Harlequins and wcmm are not a good combination imho.

 

[Byron]

We need to know the parameters as hobby5 mentioned. But in the interim, I do see a couple issues with the plan.

A 60l (= 15 gallon) tank is not all that large. One upper fish in a shoal, and the group of panda cories, will do it. [Which I think is what hobby5 was getting at...].

White cloud mountain minnows are temperate fish, so heat will not be required assuming the room the tank is in does not get too cold. Fortunately, panda cories are similar, in that they come from flowing streams in the Andes that are cooler than the watercourse of most cories down in the lowlands. So this is a good combo, plus you can have a bit of current from the filter that both will appreciate. Add several more minnows, and 7-8 panda cories (acquire them at the same time, they always settle in faster and better with more of them).

Adding rasboras or gourami is not a good idea here, because of both the temperature and the water movement. Gourami and rasbora are quiet water fish, and a bit warmer wold be best. Combining either with either of the others would mean someone is compromising, and that does not always work. Better to go one way or the other with temperature.

If the room is around 70F/21C or warmer during the day, and just slightly cooler at night (thinking more of winter than summer, depending where you live) this should work without a heater.

I agree on the sand, esp for cories. On the cycling, with live plants, you don't need to add any ammonia. I never do. Plants use a lot of ammonia as their preferred source of nitrogen, and fast growers, of which nothing beats floating plants, take up a lot of it. But, ammonia as pure ammonia is still toxic to all lifeforms, and it is possible to add too much and kill the plants, so I wouldn't.

Byron.

 

[Emmifer]

Hi thank you so much for getting back to me. It's much appreciated receiving advice from fish keepers who are a lot more experienced in this hobby than I am!
I don't have the parameters of my water at the moment, but I live just outside London and am pretty sure that it's a hard water area as I get a lot of limescale but I'll check on my water providers website.
That is fine, my 4 existing wcmm will be my priority as I have bought this new tank just to give them more room etc and want them to be happy so perhaps if I get a total of 8-10 (i.e. 4-6 more) and include in the mix some golden minnows it will make my tank look more interesting and they will hopefully all school together.
I just find that they don't particularly stand out in the tank as much as they are cute little guys which is why I thought by adding some other species of fish my tank would look more interesting. I just can't wait to get them out of the biorb so they actually get to swim in a straight line!!
Noted re the plants/ammonia, thank you. I am hoping that dark sand in the tank will help make my corys stand out more. And I will do as you recommended and buy the whole cory shoal at once.
My biorb is unheated at the moment as it is in a corner of the room near a radiator, although I was of course happy to put a heater in my new tank if necessary.
Do you think I could add another fish or two that will stand out more in the tank or would they not suit the conditions we have talked about? Many thanks for your replies

 

[Byron]

There is limited space/volume in a 60l/15g tank. Small fish work best as at least you can have more of them in a small space, and this adds interest. You can mix the two minnow varieties, they are the same species. I'm not sure what you might be thinking of with "school," as most freshwater fish do not school like marine fish will. The freshwater shoaling fish (those that must have a group) need the shoal for several reasons but may not swim as a school much if at all.

Be careful of the radiator; a fish tank should not be placed close to a heat source, as this can cause extreme differences in the water temperature.

 

[Emmifer]

Great, thank you for your advice. I will stick with the minnows and corys as you suggested. Unfortunately I cannot move where the tank will be sitting but I'll make sure it's as far from the radiator as possible!
Next step is to buy some aquarium sand and live plants and fill up my tank. Will take the existing plant out my biorb and put it in the new tank for some added extra bacteria. The new tank I have has been bought off a friend and still has her old filter sponge in. Do you think I should change it or leave it in for now? I read your post on another thread about fishless cycling with plants established in tank so I was planning on leaving my new plants to settle and root for a couple of weeks before checking the ammonia and nitrite levels and adding my 4 existing minnows if all okay. I also have Pure Aquarium balls which I add to my biorb and I understand that these will help to mature my filter? I will then add the remaining minnows and the cory even later once the tank is all settled. Hope I'm not going about this totally wrong as it's a bit of a learning curve!!!

 

[Byron]

Next step is to buy some aquarium sand and live plants and fill up my tank. Will take the existing plant out my biorb and put it in the new tank for some added extra bacteria.

I would recommend play sand; it is very inexpensive (a fraction of the cost of "aquarium" brands), natural in appearance, safe for all fish, and fish and plants love it.

Fast growing plants do the cycling best; what is this plant species? And yes, anything from an existing aquarium will have bacteria on it, so that is another benefit.

I read your post on another thread about fishless cycling with plants established in tank so I was planning on leaving my new plants to settle and root for a couple of weeks before checking the ammonia and nitrite levels and adding my 4 existing minnows if all okay.

You should never see ammonia or nitrite above zero, even after fish are added, if there are live plants. Floating are best as they are easy, quick to start growing, and then fast-growing. And fish like a "roof" over them, they will be more colourful and relaxed with floating plants. Once the plants are growing the fish can go in. I'm being overly cautious here--if this were me, the fish would be in the tank within an hour of the water going in, I've done it so often, but I also know the signs of any problems.

I also have Pure Aquarium balls which I add to my biorb and I understand that these will help to mature my filter?

I've no idea what these are, but existing media from a filter on another of your tanks can be used to help seed the filter on a new tank, though with plants this may not be necessary.

The new tank I have has been bought off a friend and still has her old filter sponge in. Do you think I should change it or leave it in for now?

No, get new filter media/sponges. You never know what may be arriving on filter media, and while some of it may be beneficial, there could be pathogens you do not want in your tank.

I will then add the remaining minnows and the cory even later once the tank is all settled.

Add the new minnows together. Then add the cories together. Once your plants are growing, it is virtually impossible to have "cycling" issues, if there are floating plants or fast-growing plants included.

 

[Emmifer]

Thank you so much for your advice! I will keep you posted as to how I get on!!