Which Fish To Stock When

[m1lky12]

So over the past couple of months I've gone about getting rid of my old fish that I kept in a 100 liter tank which ended up overstocked and had some fish which were really not compatible with that sized tank. I've now had a complete new start and have upgraded to a 175 liter corner tank up which I'm turning into an Amazon biotope, could even be as specific as calling it a Rio Orinoco biotope as a lot of the fish I'm looking to get come from that area. It's got to the point where I'm recycling the filter after seeding it with some of my previous filter material and I'm looking at a completed cycle which turns over 3-4ppm of ammonia and nitrite in 12 hours within the next week or two (touch wood I haven't jinxed it).
 
Now this is where I could use a little advice, this is my intended stock;
 
2x Keyhole Cichlid
11x Rummy Nose Tetra
7/9x Corys (either Panda or Bandit - would prefer a smaller species)
1x Bristlenose Catfish
1x Twig Catfish
1/2x Banjo Catfish 
7x Marbled Hatchetfish
 
I was intending to start off with stocking the Rummy Noses and Corys first then move onto the Cichlids and Bristlenose and then the other two catfish and Hatchetfish whenever I could find them as they're rarely in stock in my LFS. But my problem is that the Rummys and Corys (especially Pandas if I choose them) need to be introduced to an established aquarium a few months old my research has told me, so I'm basically wondering whether I need to revise this plan or whether I'm reading a little too much into it and that if I'm fully cycled they would be fine anyhow.
 
Any advice or opinions about this or my stock in general would be much appreciated.

 

[TwoTankAmin]

Why do you not want to stock it fully after completing the fishless cycle?
 
You don't sound like you are running a biotope that mimics the parts of the Rio Orinoco where the pH is closer to 5 than 6. So unless you are planning on getting rummies from such a stretch and recently removed from there, this should not be a huge concern. Then the issue is lower resistance due to the underdeveloped immune systems typical of acid water fish.
 
I am working on a pH 6.0 Rio Atababo tank anchored by Altums (yes I know the pH is way to high to be a true Atabapo- which feeds into the Orinoco). I have some in a 55 I have gotten to that level from the 4.2 start. I plan to keep them with the rummies I have parked elsewhere as well as some of my H. Contradens. As an experiment the last time I moved fish around I grabbed a couple of the F1 contradens and dropped them into that 55. Both alive and well and growing bigger after a couple of months. So at least they can handle the 1.0 pH drop into stained and softer water pretty well.
 
I have no doubt my rummies at 7.0 and 90 ppm TDS water would be fine dropped directly into that 55 as well at its 6.0 and 75 or so ppm TDS.
 
In your case, I would want to get as large a bio load in right away to take advantage of the cycling. It also means later additions will have a substantially lower effect on the tank in this regard.
 
Do you mind me asking which of the bn from the Orinoco you plan to keep?

 

[m1lky12]

Hey thanks for the reply! I'm intending on getting the majority of the tetras and corys in straight away and hopefully a twig catfish as at the moment they've got a few at my LFS, but apart from that, funds (everything on the list would come to around the £100 mark based on the prices I've seen recently), and I think I would enjoy it more to build up the stock and give myself something to look forward too and a bit of breathing space to change my mind on anything stocking-wise.
 
And I guess it's not a strict biotope in that respect, just from the research I've done I think all of the fish are from the Orinoco or around that area (might be wrong). But with tank bred fish this shouldn't be a problem as long as the pH is around neutral or maybe slightly lower.
 
And that biotope sounds awesome! Altums and Rummys would be something I'd love to do if I ever got the chance. And I think most fish are fine if acclimatised properly, even the 'fragile' ones.
 
And I'll take your advice and try get as much of the stock as I can in the first week or so in that case, and probably just a common BN, unless the LFS had anything out of the ordinary on that particular day.

 

[Bluzepher]

Would love to see some photos of your tank