Stocking A 125 Litre Tank

[aly_starh]

Looks good, i dont now if its just me, but i dont look at the PH of fish, as long as they are normal tropical and not cichlids etc.

Edit: Generally, people dont count shrimp into there tank stocking because they produce very little waste.

 

[Ryandsimmons]

Hmm... further research indicates that Zebra Loches need "fine gravel or sand."

I thing I will be getting something like the following... http/www.aquariumsdelivered.co.uk/catalog/dorset-pea-gravel-25kg-only-in-connection-with-aquarium-order-p-95.html hopefully that will be alright.

Also if I get a large rock such as http/www.aquariumsdelivered.co.uk/catalog/ocean-rock-25kg-p-2770.html will that detract from my allowable stck levels? Although not this rock in particular as if anything I need to lower pH not raise it.

 

[Ryandsimmons]

And I just noticed, to have plants I need 3 inches of substrate. That means 22.4 litres of my tank used!

As regards the plants I really can't get my head around them fully, I think that will need to be a discussion in the shop.

 

[aly_starh]

Oh pricey, a cheap alternative that most of use , including myself is Argos Childrens Play Sand. It looks great in the tank and is <£3 per 15kg bag! this will enable you to keep a much wider range of bottom dwelling fish. As far as planting goes, 2" is sufficient.

I have not used Ocean Rock so cant comment.

And for plants, i highly reccommend using PlantsAlive (on the net). They have collections of plants at a great price. And the good thing is, if your not happy with any of them, they will replace the for free.

 

[Ryandsimmons]

Oh pricey, a cheap alternative that most of use , including myself is Argos Childrens Play Sand. It looks great in the tank and is <£3 per 15kg bag! this will enable you to keep a much wider range of bottom dwelling fish. As far as planting goes, 2" is sufficient.

I have not used Ocean Rock so cant comment.

And for plants, i highly reccommend using PlantsAlive (on the net). They have collections of plants at a great price. And the good thing is, if your not happy with any of them, they will replace the for free.

The gravel was free with the tank which was nice.

Plant wise I am looking at Java Moss, Water Sprite and Hygrophilla. I think that I can plant these in this gravel and drop in some sort of fertilizer weekly? I'll need to keep them on the opposite side of the tank from the filter and prune a lot. I want to avoid anything to do with CO2 injection and stuff, if possible I want to plant and forget apart from maybe once a week prune or add something to the water.

 

[Curiosity101]

I would advise against sparkling gouramis in your tank.

Although they're gorgeous little fish (not lacking in colour at all), they are also very very very timid.
If you give them a choice between open water and dense foliage then they will choose to stay in the dense foliage. This means you practically never see more than a glimpse. I had them in the exact tank you have...but would really only recommend them for species tanks of around 40-60l

Oh and just to demonstrate how they genuinely look when caught by the light, here is a picture of one from google that looks exactly like mine did...

^^That may be a male but the males are often more ornate than that.

And the best picture I ever got of mine in the 6 months I had them.

 

[Ryandsimmons]

I did my pH test last night and it came up around 8. Well defintely between 7.6 and 8 anyway (those are the two colours closest, closer to 8 though.)

 

[Ryandsimmons]

Okay, more help needed. Everything is great apart from I need yellow in the tank. My wife wants at least one large yellow fish.

So... Given the size of the tanks Discus are out. Honey Guaramis are too aggressive, is there anything else that will fit in? Or is there a more colourful alternative to the Pearl Guarami?

Basically my wife fell in love with marine tanks, and is desperate for at least one, bright and colourful fish or a decent size. does anything fit the bill?

 

[indigoj]

A pair of gold rams?

 

[Curiosity101]

Honey gouramis are agressive?

Since when? They're some of the most peaceful gouramis you can get!

So yes, yellow centerpiece fish... Honey Gouramis or Gold Rams.

But with gold rams (a colour morph of the german blue ram), I wouldn't recommend them in a tank below 28C (with 30C being ideal). So you may have to re-think the rest of the tank for them. They are lovely though.

 

[Ryandsimmons]

Okay, in that case how about...

4 Honey Gouramis
6 Ruby Barbs
15 Galaxy Rasboras
4 Zebra Loaches
Cherry Shrimp

And I need to find one largish fish (around 10-15cm) that doesn't eat everything else. Nothing swimming around there is very big. Maybe something black?

Going by everything else I'll have the tank at 25 degrees, so rams are not really appropriate, but thanks for the idea.

Edit: According to what I read Red Tailed Black sharks only need 10 gallons and are only 15cm?

 

[Curiosity101]

You're pretty well stocked there as it is to be honest...

I would definitely suggest sticking with that stocking for now. And adding a final 'centerpiece' fish later on in the tanks life. At least a few months after the final additions.
Other than the possibility of water quality issues, there's also the fact that you need to let the galaxy rasbora get to full size before you inroduce any 'large' fish. Because if you don't they could easily end up an expensive snack.

Also are you aware the ruby barbs will grow to the same size as the honeys? I just thought I'd mention it because I personally would find that a bit 'odd', but if it's what you like then fine.

 

[Ryandsimmons]

You're pretty well stocked there as it is to be honest...

I would definitely suggest sticking with that stocking for now. And adding a final 'centerpiece' fish later on in the tanks life. At least a few months after the final additions.
Other than the possibility of water quality issues, there's also the fact that you need to let the galaxy rasbora get to full size before you inroduce any 'large' fish. Because if you don't they could easily end up an expensive snack.

Also are you aware the ruby barbs will grow to the same size as the honeys? I just thought I'd mention it because I personally would find that a bit 'odd', but if it's what you like then fine.

All the fish are to be added later. Maybe the Barbs and shrimp in the next few weeks, Rasboras around the new year, Gouramis start of feb and then anything else. Mostly as I spent all my money on teh tank and need to save up for fish! ;-)

As regards "odd" I have no idea, I am still learning what works and doesn't.

 

[aly_starh]

Shrimp need a really mature tank, people reccommend 6 months

 

[Curiosity101]

Red tailed black sharks do only grow to 15cm, but they need around a 50gal tank because they need the surface area of the 'average' 50gal tank so they can set up a suitable sized territory and not spend their whole time harrasing tank mates.

It isn't always the case, but more often than not when put in tanks below 50gal (3ft bare minimum length, and 15" depth), they are very agressive.