What To Do.......need Some Advice Please?

[ChilliPepper]

I'd put the Minnows, Mollies and Harlequins in the 60L. Then the Swordtails, Danios, Rummys, Plec, Loach and Cories in with the Rams.

How many do you have of each, do you have mixed sexes of the livebearers (mollies and swordtails) or single sexes? Also what kind of Loach and Plec do you have?

From what I can count at the moment I have 3 female mollies (small young and pregnant as male just died), 1 male and 2 female swordtails and one very small swordtail, not sure which sex yet. Clown pleco, he`s about 3 inches in length, 3 albino corys and a snail eating loach, he`s about 3.5 inches in length. One of the harlequins is quite large but the others are only small young ones. minnows look to be about 2 inches (max) in length. I also forgot that I have 2 small neon tetras as well.

Well, what I'd do is try and take the livebearers back to the lfs before they drop! Or you'll be over run with them. Also take back the male swordtail, you could get another female. Probably take back the Sword you can't sex yet s well, just in case. Otherwise they will start breeding too.
The Clown plec is perfect for your tank
The Corys would appreciate being in a bit larger group, so you could maybe try and swap the livebearers for 2 or 3 more albino Corys.
Not sure what loach you have? Do you have a pic?

Also, the Neons would rather be in a group of 6. I think it may be a little risky putting them in with the cichlids, and your 60L will be fully stocked. So maybe take them back as well.

 

[elisew]

So the Rams could go in with the rummys, swordtails, danios, corys and the pleco and all the others i.e mollies, harlequins, minnows and neons could go into the smaller tank unless the LFS agree to take them? I did have 8 neons but over the last 6 months the number has dwindled to just 2 as the others died. To be completely honest I`ve left the livebearers to their own devices and I leave nature to take it`s course as to whether or not the fry survive being eaten. I don`t seem to have many (if any) babies that survive very long so it`s not really an issue if they do happen to get munched.

I`m wondering if any others such as cherry or gold barbs or another kind of Ram would aslo be ok in the large tank once they`re all swapped around?

I haven`t got a pic of my loach but I found this via google images. Mine is the same as this:



Am off to bed now as the eyelids are drooping, will read and post again tomorrow. Thanks for all of your advice so far ChilliPepper, you`re a star.
Night x

 

[ChilliPepper]

Looks like a Botia striata, but I'm not very well up on loaches. If so, they prefer to be kept in groups of 5 or more, and on sand to protect their barbels (which you say you have ). Quite a lot of fish on the bottom area though, as you have the Corys. May be OK, do they ignore each other at the moment?

What I'd do is:

180L
2 x Rams
6 x Rummys
6 x Danios
6 x Corys
6 x Loaches
1 x Plec

60L
6 x Harlequins
6 x Minnows
6 x Neons

I'd rehome the others, but of course that is entirely up to you. I'm not a fan of livebearers as you may be able to tell

 

[Wills]

Wow your LFS have really made a few mistakes Sounds like Chilli has sorted you out, her stocking swapping ideas sound good

 

[elisew]

Looks like a Botia striata, but I'm not very well up on loaches. If so, they prefer to be kept in groups of 5 or more, and on sand to protect their barbels (which you say you have ). Quite a lot of fish on the bottom area though, as you have the Corys. May be OK, do they ignore each other at the moment?

What I'd do is:

180L
2 x Rams
6 x Rummys
6 x Danios
6 x Corys
6 x Loaches
1 x Plec

60L
6 x Harlequins
6 x Minnows
6 x Neons

I'd rehome the others, but of course that is entirely up to you. I'm not a fan of livebearers as you may be able to tell

lol I do like the livebearers, they`re great to watch, so relaxing. Unfortunately they`re just too 'fragile' for me to keep.

Yes the loach and corys completely ignore each other, they all seem quite placid and calm. I had no idea the loaches should be kept as 6 or more though. I did have 6 corys but again, the others died and I haven`t bought any more yet as I wasn`t sure what changes to make. I may have to put the loach in the smaller tank temporarily if they prefer sand as I have pebbles in the big tank. He doesn`t seem to mind the pebbles though as they`re all smooth ones.

Anyway, thanks for the suggestions about swapping and changing between the tanks, it sounds good.

Wow your LFS have really made a few mistakes Sounds like Chilli has sorted you out, her stocking swapping ideas sound good

Wills you`re not wrong that the LFS have made a few mistakes! I`m glad I changed to using another one.
I think I`ll be making some changes this weekend now that Chilli has given me some good ideas. I`m just glad I found out about the Rams and that they`re ok to put with the others. They are placid little chappies so should fit in well with the other fish. Hopefully I`ll be able to look at adding a couple of other fish but the compatibility with the ones I like will have to be sorted. I don`t want to go making yet another cock-up.

I`d quite like to put another pair of placid Rams or a pair of Kribs in the big tank too but I`m not sure how that would go. I definitely would like something more colourful.

 

[ChilliPepper]

Looks like a Botia striata, but I'm not very well up on loaches. If so, they prefer to be kept in groups of 5 or more, and on sand to protect their barbels (which you say you have ). Quite a lot of fish on the bottom area though, as you have the Corys. May be OK, do they ignore each other at the moment?

What I'd do is:

180L
2 x Rams
6 x Rummys
6 x Danios
6 x Corys
6 x Loaches
1 x Plec

60L
6 x Harlequins
6 x Minnows
6 x Neons

I'd rehome the others, but of course that is entirely up to you. I'm not a fan of livebearers as you may be able to tell

lol I do like the livebearers, they`re great to watch, so relaxing. Unfortunately they`re just too 'fragile' for me to keep.

Yes the loach and corys completely ignore each other, they all seem quite placid and calm. I had no idea the loaches should be kept as 6 or more though. I did have 6 corys but again, the others died and I haven`t bought any more yet as I wasn`t sure what changes to make. I may have to put the loach in the smaller tank temporarily if they prefer sand as I have pebbles in the big tank. He doesn`t seem to mind the pebbles though as they`re all smooth ones.

Anyway, thanks for the suggestions about swapping and changing between the tanks, it sounds good.

Wow your LFS have really made a few mistakes Sounds like Chilli has sorted you out, her stocking swapping ideas sound good

Wills you`re not wrong that the LFS have made a few mistakes! I`m glad I changed to using another one.
I think I`ll be making some changes this weekend now that Chilli has given me some good ideas. I`m just glad I found out about the Rams and that they`re ok to put with the others. They are placid little chappies so should fit in well with the other fish. Hopefully I`ll be able to look at adding a couple of other fish but the compatibility with the ones I like will have to be sorted. I don`t want to go making yet another cock-up.

I`d quite like to put another pair of placid Rams or a pair of Kribs in the big tank too but I`m not sure how that would go. I definitely would like something more colourful.

Yeah the loaches should be on sand because other surfaces can wear down their barbels. If they are anything like my Khuli loaches, they love to half bury themselves in it sometimes, and it makes them feel more secure.

The trouble with Kribs is that as they are African, they can be aggressive. I have read that they can nip Cories fins. They are a bottom dweller as well, so you'd have a lot of fish on the bottom and that could cause trouble with territories. Rams and the rest of your bottom dwellers are peaceful, so the Kribs could upset the balance.
If you swapped one of your schools in the 60L, you could have a pair/trio (1m 2f) of Apistos. They are very colourful, however they can be delicate. I have a pair in my 190L and the male is doing fine, but the female is quite weak, so not sure about her. Just thinking of other dwarf cichlids you could have really. Definitely don't bother getting German blue rams or gold rams, as although beautiful, they are soooo sensitive and can't handle hard water.

Hopefully the LFS can help out, as it seems they have given you a lot of really bad advice!

 

[meguro]

large tank:
4 angelfish
6-15 rummynose tetra
however many danios u have
3 corydoras
5 loaches
2 rams
1 clown plec
3 mollies
4 swordtails

id be tempted to put the 3 cories in the smaller tank. the other misc fish like neon tetras etc. can get moved into the smaller tank too. it looks like u have a male and female ram and that they could do with a bit more food. rams cant eat neons btw

if u got a group of gourami instead of the angelfish u could keep the neons in the large tank

tank @ ~25C and ~30% water change once a week. preferably sand substrate

 

[elisew]

Thanks Chilli, again.

II`m not sure what to do about the loach on a long term basis to be honest because I wanted to keep the larger tank as it is with pebbles.


How about, cory`s and loach in the smaller tank with the swordtails, mollies and neons and then the Rams in large tank with the rest of the fish? Are corys ok with sand??

 

[elisew]

large tank:
4 angelfish
6-15 rummynose tetra
however many danios u have
3 corydoras
5 loaches
2 rams
1 clown plec
3 mollies
4 swordtails

id be tempted to put the 3 cories in the smaller tank. the other misc fish like neon tetras etc. can get moved into the smaller tank too. it looks like u have a male and female ram and that they could do with a bit more food. rams cant eat neons btw

if u got a group of gourami instead of the angelfish u could keep the neons in the large tank

tank @ ~25C and ~30% water change once a week. preferably sand substrate

Hi meguro, thanks for your reply.

It`s all very confusing, I wasn`t too keen on the Angelfish to be honest. Not because I don`t like them but because I`ve always been led to believe that they can be very aggressive. Obvioulsy if this is incorrect it is another thought and maybe a further option.

I feel like my head is going to explode!!

 

[ChilliPepper]

Cories much prefer sand, as they are like the loaches, their barbels will wear down on any other substrate.

I'd definitely put the Rams in the larger tank, they will appreciate the space.

What fish do you like the best and really do not want to get rid of?

I wouldn't recommend Angels either as they can be a little sensitive.

 

[elisew]

Well, I will no doubt get moaned at by hubby as I changed from pea shingle to pebbles only a few months ago, now I`ll be changing to sand! lol If it`s better for the fish then that`s what they`ll get.

I actually would like to be able to keep all of the fish Chilli, it`s only because they`re dying off that I`m looking at something which is more 'hardy', the Rams appear to be exactly that so they`ll be going into the bigger tank. I`m going to go to the newer LFS tomorrow to get some more sand and some more plants so that it`ll be denser for the Rams. While I`m there I`ll have a look to see if they have any Apisto`s, I`ll have a chat with the more experienced guy there and see what they say as to what they have in stock or what they may be able to get.

It looks now like one of my minnows is on it`s 'last legs' so they`re definitely dwindling and one of my corys has disappeared since last night

I won`t be getting Angels, reading some of the other posts on the site it seems my perception is actually shared by quite a few people. They`re not my first choice to add to the tank anyway. Each to their own and all that.

 

[ChilliPepper]

Yeah, I'd steer clear of Angels as well. Had some before but they didn't last long, and were mean to each other.

I wouldn't get any more fish just yet. Swap to sand, plant it up a bit and do 30% water changes weekly (including vacuuming the sand) and see if that helps. Have you got a liquid water test kit?

 

[elisew]

Yeah, it`s better to be safe than sorry so I`ll get the sand and plants tomorrow, get the tank fully sorted and then look at which fish would be best.
I use the API master test kit regularly and vacuum the sand in the smaller tank so I`ll carry on with that. I`m also back to doing a higher percentage of and more regular water changes too. I`m determined to get it right so hopefully I`ll get there soon enough

I`m definitely not interested in getting Angels but I think when the time comes I`ll be looking at getting the Apisto`s to add to the big tank, as you say I need to get the tank sorted first though. I`ll let you know how it`s going. Thanks again for your help and advice.

 

[ChilliPepper]

Yeah, it`s better to be safe than sorry so I`ll get the sand and plants tomorrow, get the tank fully sorted and then look at which fish would be best.
I use the API master test kit regularly and vacuum the sand in the smaller tank so I`ll carry on with that. I`m also back to doing a higher percentage of and more regular water changes too. I`m determined to get it right so hopefully I`ll get there soon enough

I`m definitely not interested in getting Angels but I think when the time comes I`ll be looking at getting the Apisto`s to add to the big tank, as you say I need to get the tank sorted first though. I`ll let you know how it`s going. Thanks again for your help and advice.

No problem! Good luck

 

[elisew]

Thanks