Should I Tempt Fate?

[mislisa]

Hey everyone, I was wondering if maybe I can get your opinion on adding either a pair or trio of double-red apistos to my 55g, or if you think I would be asking for trouble. My stocking is a bit heavy already, but i would really like to have something a bit bigger than the harlequins and cardinals already in there. my lfs has a bunch of the apistos, and I'm trying mot to impulse buy.

all opinions appreciated. Thanks!!

 

[ZoddyZod]

what is your current stocking?

 

[mislisa]

my 55g currently has 13x khuli loach, 16x cardinals, 14x harlequin rasboras, 7x Espei Rasbora, 9x pepper cory , 1 albino bristlenose pleco, 1 pearl gourami and 2 female guppies.... wow, that sounds like a lot, but it still looks empty!!

 

[mislisa]

also, i've had bolivian rams suggested in the past, but i find i'm not a big fan... anything else that could possibly be introduced? the apistos are really expensive (For me anyway). If you have any suggestions, please say something!!!

 

[Primous]

Sorry but at this stocking level: 13x khuli loach, 16x cardinals, 14x harlequin rasboras, 7x Espei Rasbora, 1xbristle nose pleco. You are just within the margin of error.

Add to that: 9xpeppered cory 1xpearl gourami and 2xguppy you are grossly over stocked. Add to that 2x agassizzi and you're really in the realm of vanity fish keeping. Where you don't actually care about the fish's well being just what looks good.

If it looks bear then I'd suggest you design a better layout as you are already overstocked by about 50% which is a shame as I from the title I was intent of giving you some apisto species advice as they are a great addition to any aquarium.

 

[ZoddyZod]

woooah there, let's be a little more gentle with the advice please.

I do agree that the tank is heavily stocked already I'm afraid, I wouldn't be looking to put anything else in there.

 

[mislisa]

no need to be rude... i'd previously asked for opinions before i added more loaches and harlequins, and was told that I should be fine. I'm trying to make the tank both a nice place for my fish and something nice to look at. I rarely see my khulis, as they prefer to stay under the many pieces of wood. My corys are very happy, laying eggs almost every week.. I haven't had a single health issue in almost a year, and that year had me move twice, with the fish in totes for most of the day. I do weekly 25% water changes, and am doing my best to maintain a healthy aquarium. I was thinking i might be a bit overstocked, but was asking the opinions of other, more experienced aquarists.

sorry for the rant, but i don't appreciate rudeness. you could have phrased your opinion in a less harsh manner.

 

[Primous]

Good grief How and when did we get so super sensitive? The accusation of me being rude are plain unnecessary. To be clear, I said "Add to that 2x agassizzi and you're really in the realm of vanity fish keeping" A term I phrase I picked up years ago from this forum and then went onto explain what that term meant. How is that being rude? I'm online, using not a single form of foul language, not screaming through the screen or even typing in all caps.

I just gave advice which went against the ops intentions. We shouldn't be throwing accusations around so quickly based on that.

 

[magpie]

Is your signature how your current tank looks? For it to look less bare and for the kuhlis to come out more, I'd suggest adding a bunch more plants, taller plants in the back, maybe even some swords. Then add some floating plants to cut the light down a touch and this might encourage all of your fish to be out and about more. The kuhlis probably feel exposed when they're out, so are staying hidden during the day - I bet they come out more when the lights are off. Provide a little more cover and I bet you'll see them!

If you post a photo of your tank in this thread we can help more specifically with the scaping stuff.

 

[mislisa]

sorry if I came off as defensive... your message came across a bit harsh, probably harsher than you meant.

I've tried having floating plants, but they always seem to get caught in my filter intake. any tips on how to prevent this?
also, i have fairly low light in the tank, and have a hard time keeping most plants alive. my java fern and crypts have taken done ok, but others disintegrate fairly quickly.

I'm uploading a couple of new pics of my tank, the other pic is a bit outdated. Any hints on plants or scaping appreciated.

 

[N0body Of The Goat]

Personally, I would pull out the Peppered Corydoras and then add the dwarf cichlids.

Why? Because I'm a strong supporter of temperate fish being kept in a temperate tank, where the water temps change through the seasons. Peppered have been officially recorded in 15C water and I recently (wish I had bookmarked it) came across a post where someone let their Peppered get a winter cooling period of 10C with no harm at all. I also wonder if the sheer size of Peppered may be spooking your Kuhli Loaches, a 13 group ought to be quite active.

The other alternative in my opinion is to choose a more appropriate catfish group that will do well at the ~24C+ temp you will need, especially after adding Apistogramma, for instance Corydoras sterbai.

 

[magpie]

What kind of lighting do you have? Do you ever use liquid ferts or root tabs? Floating plants can help a lot with fish security, but if you already have low light it would be even harder to grow plants down there if you added floating plants. Probably a few would be OK.

You could also look for a couple of taller pieces of branchy type driftwood and replace a few of the shorter ones - that will add some more depth/visual interest, too. Also, you could get some river-type rocks and do some piles. Then you could put some java ferns/anubias onto the top of the pile to add different heights, and make the bottom look less flat, if that makes sense.

Maybe consider upping the light and then adding floating plants, and then you could be more versatile with your plant selection. If you look at my signature you can see that I obviously prefer a more heavily planted tank, so I am biased. But even right now when I have a lighter stocking than normal it's still beautiful to look at and doesn't look as sparse.

To keep the floating plants where you want them - go get some of those little suction cup clips to hold airline tubing. If they're a full circle at the end you can clip the middle and then put the stems of a few of the plants through them. They should hold them in place, then for me, I kind of layer other plants slightly over the anchored ones to keep them there. I used to have the same problem - they would circle around and clump together in one corner until I did this. Works like a charm!

 

[N0body Of The Goat]

To keep the floating plants where you want them - go get some of those little suction cup clips to hold airline tubing. If they're a full circle at the end you can clip the middle and then put the stems of a few of the plants through them. They should hold them in place, then for me, I kind of layer other plants slightly over the anchored ones to keep them there. I used to have the same problem - they would circle around and clump together in one corner until I did this. Works like a charm!

I like that idea of using suction cups to hold stem plants in place, I've always had problems with water surface plants because I run riverine-esque tanks.

 

[magpie]

I had it suggested to me way back in another forum when I was having that issue - it works great. I'm a huge fan of floating plants - all of my fish love them and i saw behavior changes (in a good way) once I added them.

 

[mislisa]

Personally, I would pull out the Peppered Corydoras and then add the dwarf cichlids.

Why? Because I'm a strong supporter of temperate fish being kept in a temperate tank, where the water temps change through the seasons. Peppered have been officially recorded in 15C water and I recently (wish I had bookmarked it) came across a post where someone let their Peppered get a winter cooling period of 10C with no harm at all. I also wonder if the sheer size of Peppered may be spooking your Kuhli Loaches, a 13 group ought to be quite active.

The other alternative in my opinion is to choose a more appropriate catfish group that will do well at the ~24C+ temp you will need, especially after adding Apistogramma, for instance Corydoras sterbai.

I'm not interested in pulling the corys, they seem really happy, and are not having any problems that I can see... When i was having health issues, they were the only ones not to get sick, and have been laying eggs regularly from the beginning. I've only lost 1, and that was a few days after i first brought them home.

What kind of lighting do you have? Do you ever use liquid ferts or root tabs? Floating plants can help a lot with fish security, but if you already have low light it would be even harder to grow plants down there if you added floating plants. Probably a few would be OK.

My lighting is what came with the tank originally, 2 18" 15W bulbs. I'm not sure how i'd go about increasing the light. I'm not that great at doing these things myself. I use root tabs, but i haven't used liquid ferts, as i was told that with low light and no co2, i didn't need it.

You could also look for a couple of taller pieces of branchy type driftwood and replace a few of the shorter ones - that will add some more depth/visual interest, too. Also, you could get some river-type rocks and do some piles. Then you could put some java ferns/anubias onto the top of the pile to add different heights, and make the bottom look less flat, if that makes sense.

I haven't been able to find any branching driftwood in any of my lfs, they all have small pieces, or really huge pieces. i've tried to change up the height by standing a few pieces on their end, but it's not quite what i want. i'm not comfortable buying wood online, as youreally cant tell what it will look like until you get it. I'm also not a fan of the look of rock piles. good idea though.

To keep the floating plants where you want them - go get some of those little suction cup clips to hold airline tubing. If they're a full circle at the end you can clip the middle and then put the stems of a few of the plants through them. They should hold them in place, then for me, I kind of layer other plants slightly over the anchored ones to keep them there. I used to have the same problem - they would circle around and clump together in one corner until I did this. Works like a charm!

I like this idea, and will do so asap!! any taller low-light plants that you can suggest? I have some fairly new Vallisneria plants, which seem to be doing ok, not great but ok.


Thanks for the advice everyone, any more will be appreciated as well! I Figured the apistos weren't a good idea, i just really wanted to get them. Go me for not impulse buying!!!