Ilyas
New Member
So my wife has given me permission to start planning a 75-90 gallon dirt tank. I am vibrating from excitement. This will be our 6th tank but our 1st dirt tank. So I am here looking for three things
1.) How do I start a SUCCESSFUL dirt tank? I do not want a flat bottom, I want at least one hill, and to look like a field meeting a forest. The hill should be in the forest. On the hill I plan to but a rock house, a cabin, or a cave with stairs going up the hillside to the door of the abode. I want to utilize the drift wood to look like growing and fallen trees. I would like the floor to appear as though it is grass covered, at least in most of the tank (can be some bare spots if necessary.
2.) We have never done live plants, so what types do you suggest, why do you suggest them, and how much of each?
3.) We are going to add fish we currently have. 2 Yoyo Loaches ( can add more if necessary), 2 dwarf rams ( want some more for sure or another smaller Cichlid that maybe lives longer than the dwarf, 3 Blue Acara (2 female and 1 male). 1 female convict (possibly may get a male or may sell the female we currently have). We are really liking Angels, Flowerhorns, Discus, Severum (we like discus more), Jewel Cichlid, Kribensis, Fire Mouth. We are also considering Gourami, Rainbows, Bala Shark or Rainbow Shark ( we may just put our Jerdon`s Baril in there instead). I am considering the rubber lip pleco, or corey cats for bottom feeders too. We are trying to breed Mystery snails at the moment too.
What we want at the end is a beautiful set up and then the perfect fish for it, using some of what we have already. There should be a nice mix of lower middle and upper tank dwellers. They should all be capable of consuming meat as well, so carnivorous or omnivorous. I am leaning toward the Flowerhorn (a male and female), the Yoyo Loaches (and a smaller pleco of some sort), Dwarf rams, Blue Acara, Convict (female only), a few Kribensis, 2 Jewel Cichlids, and 2 Angels. What I do not want is a tank of look a likes, and I certainly do not want anymore grey bodies with what ever stripes and highlights comes with it.
Please advise away, and as I get closer to population time I may take a vote on here as to what fish to add (at least for a couple species) as I am certain to be torn between some choices I come across in the mean time.
1.) How do I start a SUCCESSFUL dirt tank? I do not want a flat bottom, I want at least one hill, and to look like a field meeting a forest. The hill should be in the forest. On the hill I plan to but a rock house, a cabin, or a cave with stairs going up the hillside to the door of the abode. I want to utilize the drift wood to look like growing and fallen trees. I would like the floor to appear as though it is grass covered, at least in most of the tank (can be some bare spots if necessary.
2.) We have never done live plants, so what types do you suggest, why do you suggest them, and how much of each?
3.) We are going to add fish we currently have. 2 Yoyo Loaches ( can add more if necessary), 2 dwarf rams ( want some more for sure or another smaller Cichlid that maybe lives longer than the dwarf, 3 Blue Acara (2 female and 1 male). 1 female convict (possibly may get a male or may sell the female we currently have). We are really liking Angels, Flowerhorns, Discus, Severum (we like discus more), Jewel Cichlid, Kribensis, Fire Mouth. We are also considering Gourami, Rainbows, Bala Shark or Rainbow Shark ( we may just put our Jerdon`s Baril in there instead). I am considering the rubber lip pleco, or corey cats for bottom feeders too. We are trying to breed Mystery snails at the moment too.
What we want at the end is a beautiful set up and then the perfect fish for it, using some of what we have already. There should be a nice mix of lower middle and upper tank dwellers. They should all be capable of consuming meat as well, so carnivorous or omnivorous. I am leaning toward the Flowerhorn (a male and female), the Yoyo Loaches (and a smaller pleco of some sort), Dwarf rams, Blue Acara, Convict (female only), a few Kribensis, 2 Jewel Cichlids, and 2 Angels. What I do not want is a tank of look a likes, and I certainly do not want anymore grey bodies with what ever stripes and highlights comes with it.
Please advise away, and as I get closer to population time I may take a vote on here as to what fish to add (at least for a couple species) as I am certain to be torn between some choices I come across in the mean time.
