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New Setup for Oscars

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oscar oscars
3K views 19 replies 5 participants last post by  jbonez 
#1 ·
I am wanting to set up a 55gal for Oscars and I want it to look like their natural habitat as much as it can. That being said, I need a little help. I need to know what kind of plants, if any, how heavy to plant, kind of rocks, substrate, etc. Any help with this will be greatly appreciated! :)
 
#2 ·
Oscars will tear up plants. A sandy substrate with some large river rocks and maybe some driftwood is what I would do. They'll need all the swimming space they can get once they grow large. A 55 is a bit on the tight side for an Oscar. A 75 gallon minimum would be better since it is 18" wide compared to the 12" width of the 55. Gives more turning space for this large cichlid.
 
#4 ·
As others have already said a 55 is tight for a single oscar. I have my one oscar in a 55 but I have no substrate (gives some more water room) and massive filtration plus I really work to keep my water clean.

I also agree that in general living plants are toast in an oscar tank, better to get fake ones which the oscar will move about to suit itself. I do have a couple real plants wedged in holes in a compressed sandstone decoration (I put in just as an experiment) which my oscar has yet to destroy.
 
#6 ·
The plants at the center are live (their cotton root containers are stuck in two large holes in the pressed sandstone decoration) and the other plants are Tetra Waterwonder decorations which come with faux rock and log bases. I didn't want to put too much in the tank, it being a 55, so as to give the oscar as much room as possible.
 

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#7 ·
Here's a newer pic, taken just today. The front live plant lost many of its original leaves but seems to be growing new ones, I'm surprised the live plants are still there at all.

Notice I changed the faux decorations some. It's good to have decor the oscar can bang around safely because they're going to do that irregardless of your wishes.
 

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#8 ·
With oscars it is better to keep 3 or 1, never 2. My brother kept 2 oscars in a 55 when he first got into the aquarium hobby and it was a disaster once they got large. The dominant fish beat up and chased the other oscar constantly. Twice they knocked the top off the tank completely and another time one jumped right out of the closed lid. I have seen 3 kept together peacefully in a 125 gal if you are interested in going that big. IMHO if you are going with a 55 you should stock it with africans. Mbunas are hardy fish and colorful as well.
 
#9 ·
2 large oscars in a 55 is definitely over the top. My guess is the 3 were peaceful cuz they had enough room to establish mini-territories and weren't constantly on top of each other.

I've always just kept 1 oscar at a time. I know people who've kept pairs and it seems to be a crap shoot as to whether they will get along, they are very individual fish.

In the wild they are solitary predators though they do pair off to mate and raise young.
 
#11 ·
Awesome flowerhorn there and awesome tanks jbones! But do you really have an oscar, pacu and pleco in the same tank as african cichlids as described? How to you keep their water appropriate for both new and old world cichlids. I guess I"ve seen plecos put in african cichlid tanks before but wondered the same thing as plecos need about the opposit pH and hardness to africans as do oscars and plecos.
 
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