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75 Gallon Amazon and 29 Gallon Community

34K views 256 replies 14 participants last post by  Chesh 
#1 ·
Okay so I figured I would start a new journal as I am starting a new tank. I am moving back home to Rockville, MD into the basement of my mothers house...yay! Actually, as soon as I get a job I will be out the door running to get my own place.

Right now I have not yet moved so I have the 75 empty and Neons, Rasboras and the a Bolivian in the 29.

Here is what I am planning and if anyone has any ideas or suggestions please feel free.

29 Gallon Freshwater Planted Community
  • 14-16 Harlequin Rasboras. (8 Current)
  • 8-10 Kuhli Loachs
  • 1 Male Dwarf Gourami (1 Current)
  • 1 Male Bristlenose Pleco (1 Current)

75 Gallon Amazon Planted Tank
  • 40-50 Neon Tetras (12 Current)
  • 20-25 Bronze Cory (4 Current)
  • 5-8 Bolivian Rams (2 Current Males in difff tanks)
  • 1 Male Albino Bristlenose Pleco (1 Current)

I was thinking about this large school of Neons or maybe two schools of 25 but I don't know what other fish. Cardinals?

I could also think about doing two schools of cories.

Here is what the 29 currently looks like. I'm planning on removing the gravel and making is maybe flourite with sand or soil and sand. I need advice and thoughts on this. I will be moving Thursday and setting them up then. Not much time :/

The main idea is to get this tank to have mainly rocks and plants, I am going to need some wood for the bristlenose and hiding spots but I mainly want a mountain side. I can put a cave in the middle.



This picture of the 75 is just me putting the rocks in. I'm moving the big two rocks into the 29 to create that mountain side. I am leaning more towards a heavily planted tank with more wood in it. I think I will need smaller rocks and bigger pieces of wood. I have enough plants though.

 
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#120 ·
Tank and fish look very good, but I would certainly do something about the filter. The current is much too strong for these fish. This may be one part of the Ram problem; these fish occur in still water like ponds and pools and slow-flowing streams. When forced to live in water currents, they have to work harder and remember this is 27/7 as the current is continuopus night and day. The Ram is respirating too fast, and this likely indicates over-exertion.

Byron.
 
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#124 ·
Wow. SO I totally stopped getting emails about this thread....what! Crazy...I checked on here and didn't notice you two had posted :O!

AHH! Sooooo Lucas is doing better. I covered the intake with some plants. I'm going to replace it with a sponge and other things. As for the algae I lowered light exposure down to 5.5 hours a day. I am going to do a black out after I clean the tank tomorrow. Two day black out.

I'm also thinking that tomorrow I can make Lucas a little spot to chill that has very low flow. Even lower than it is now. I will take a video tomorrow once I finish everything.



Thanks Byron and I appreciate the advice. I saw almost immediate results when the flow lowered. He's back to hanging out in the middle. I also noticed that he regrew a part of his fin that was ripped because he was swimming so hard.

Nice update, I love it when you sing :) I fail at updating, too. . . just got a little one up today on the dwarf loaches in QT. More to come. . . now we need info on your other tank :)

It IS Cryptocoryne spiralis, and I did send it to you! So glad it's doing well - mine is going nuts! The D.Sag looks fantastic, too I wish mine would grow in like that. . . still working on it. Love love LOVE the anubias. I got one for Christmas from my husband, just a bitty thing. Can't wait to see how it does. . . But TERMIE! What is up with the algae and the holey swords? This makes me sad! Hope you can figure out what's going on there and fix it - such a gorgeous tank!

I'm sorry to hear about Gabe, poor guy, he really was a fighter. And Lucas!!! Byron might be right about the flow being too high for him, but if that were the case, why is he hiding right THERE??! Isn't that where the current is strongest at the bottom? I have a current that goes right across the center of my tank, and my rams intentionally 'play' in it, but along the edges and back, the water is much calmer, and that's where they sleep. Maybe he needs a little chill spot in the foliage to go hang out in? Poor dude, I hope reducing the current helps him out, I hate to see him so sad. He IS breathing heavily, for sure - though his tail and tummy are looking very nice and bright. Very odd. . . that he isn't colored stressed, but is obviously having a really tough time.

Dunno about the neon, could just be a genetic thing manifesting? Lets hope it isn't anything more than that. . .

Those Cories look just about as HAPPY as they can be, though! Love them! Any actual babies survive under all of that moss you have back there? It'd be awesome to have Cory fry :) They're so CUTE!
Love those crypts! I know the algae is totally annoying and I BET YOU that's why my swords aren't growing. I'm cleaning the tank tomorrow when I get home and then blacking it out as i mentioned. I am getting rid of this algae this week. No more mercy or laziness.

As for the neon, he still looks the same. No changes. He eats and swims, acts healthy.

I'm going to clean the other tanks tomorrow as well and I'll take some pictures and videos of the rest of them. The 29 is a pain at the moment. I'm going to restructure the plants a little tomorrow before the video and well the five gallon is just on auto mode. That thing is so stable....I don't even have a filter on it. Plants are doing good too. I only turn the light on in that tank every other day...weird! hahah

I'm planning on getting rid of my 29 gallon and giving it to my friend for his turtle as a birthday present. I will then put the 90 gallon in its place with all those fish in that tank. I'm probably gonna have to get rid of my gourami. I'm planning on putting angels in the 75 that I am getting from the 90 gallon tank. I figured it's best to try angels first before I go discus. Then by the time I move I can decide on getting another tank. I will be taking the 5 gallon tank to the office to live there so I will only have a 10 QT, 75 and 90G at home :)
 
#121 ·
Nice update, I love it when you sing :) I fail at updating, too. . . just got a little one up today on the dwarf loaches in QT. More to come. . . now we need info on your other tank :)

It IS Cryptocoryne spiralis, and I did send it to you! So glad it's doing well - mine is going nuts! The D.Sag looks fantastic, too I wish mine would grow in like that. . . still working on it. Love love LOVE the anubias. I got one for Christmas from my husband, just a bitty thing. Can't wait to see how it does. . . But TERMIE! What is up with the algae and the holey swords? This makes me sad! Hope you can figure out what's going on there and fix it - such a gorgeous tank!

I'm sorry to hear about Gabe, poor guy, he really was a fighter. And Lucas!!! Byron might be right about the flow being too high for him, but if that were the case, why is he hiding right THERE??! Isn't that where the current is strongest at the bottom? I have a current that goes right across the center of my tank, and my rams intentionally 'play' in it, but along the edges and back, the water is much calmer, and that's where they sleep. Maybe he needs a little chill spot in the foliage to go hang out in? Poor dude, I hope reducing the current helps him out, I hate to see him so sad. He IS breathing heavily, for sure - though his tail and tummy are looking very nice and bright. Very odd. . . that he isn't colored stressed, but is obviously having a really tough time.

Dunno about the neon, could just be a genetic thing manifesting? Lets hope it isn't anything more than that. . .

Those Cories look just about as HAPPY as they can be, though! Love them! Any actual babies survive under all of that moss you have back there? It'd be awesome to have Cory fry :) They're so CUTE!
 
#122 ·
And Lucas!!! Byron might be right about the flow being too high for him, but if that were the case, why is he hiding right THERE??! Isn't that where the current is strongest at the bottom? I have a current that goes right across the center of my tank, and my rams intentionally 'play' in it, but along the edges and back, the water is much calmer, and that's where they sleep. Maybe he needs a little chill spot in the foliage to go hang out in? Poor dude, I hope reducing the current helps him out, I hate to see him so sad. He IS breathing heavily, for sure - though his tail and tummy are looking very nice and bright. Very odd. . . that he isn't colored stressed, but is obviously having a really tough time.
Increased respiration with no other signs of stress is exactly what one should expect in this situation. The fish is having to work harder at "living," and this takes more oxygen. I have a male Bolivian in my 115g that I've had for 4.5 years now--which is past its "normal" lifespan of around 4 years--and his respiration is about half what I saw in the video. The water current in my 115g is heaviest at the left side next to the filter outflow spigot because the woodcats live in the wood there and they need this. But even a foot down the tank from the left side, the flow near the bottom is so minimal it barely causes falling food to shift from a straight down fall. Wish I could post a video to demonstrate but I don't have the aparatus.

Dunno about the neon, could just be a genetic thing manifesting? Lets hope it isn't anything more than that. . .
Agree, I have had this occur in odd fish. It can sometimes be related to other diseases, but without knowing exactly treatment is ill advised.
 
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#123 ·
Byron. . . man! I wish so dearly that you had a video camera! I'd happily watch vids of your tanks. . . forever! Thanks for the information, even though it wasn't strictly for me - I'm over-the-moon in love with my rams, so it's always good to get information - if I should ever see anything like this in my babies, I'll know what the cause might be. I totally agree - that poor little fish is panting, mine also breathe at about half that rate. Interesting that the flow at the floor is so much lower than at the top - It makes sense, I suppose. In my tank with the canister filter, the calmest spot is under the spraybar - just because of how it's setup, and there's a nice flow through the center of the tank and down to the opposite side. But because of the large rock I have there, I have another calm spot on that side - in all of these places are where my rams have their little territories, where they sleep, though they do 'play' in the current during daylight hours, there are many places in the tank that have a slower flow.

Termie, I really hope that your little 'Livvie responds to slowing the current. He really has grown into a stunning little fish :)
 
#125 ·
Sounds like a good plan to me! SO happy to hear that your ram is doing so much better with the reduced water flow. I'm with you on reducing tanks. I'm determined to get down to one or two. . .good luck with the black-out, cleanup, and rescape(s). I'm sure everything will be back to beautiful in record time :D Can't wait for the update!
 
#129 ·
Thanks Nilet!

Thanks Koi! :)



The floating plant is dwarf water lettuce and for some reason right about when I started having algae problems, it stopped growing.

I want to see if now that the algae has mostly been removed if it will continue to suffer.

I love the neons! I'm actually going to be a getting a bright blue angel with the 90 gallon tank that will be going in here! That should look amazing...hopefully.
 
#133 ·
Thanks for the update, Termie! It’s always nice to hear from you. I know you’ve been really busy lately - it can be tough to find the time, but I miss the ‘good-old-days’ when you were ALL over this forum, loL!

Silly Rasies, gotta say I got a good giggle out of your ‘we’re pansy rasbora and we’re afraid of the forest and the rocks’ voice. HA! Will they be going into the 75, or into a bigger tank? I’m SURE you mentioned this before, but it’s been so long between updates I can’t remember!!! . . . so sad that they’re behaving like this and not taking advantage of all the space they have. I’m sure that when they move back into a tank with more shade and denser planting, it’ll help them out. Something else to consider for when you move them. . . based on my experience with my own tiny shoalers. . .the Rasies have grown SO much since you got them, but they’re still bitty fish, and it’s REALLY easy for a bitty fish to get lost behind big deco and panic without their shoal in sight. This was happening with my Tetra, and the group would accidentally get divided, or a few would end up ‘stuck’ over in the corner, freaking out because they found themselves suddenly ‘alone,’ I redid the tank a bit so that they would ALWAYS be in direct sight of one another, and they immediately spread out and were obviously more comfortable. Could be that they fear the rock because they know. . . when you go behind the rock you might find yourself all alone, :shock: a scary place for a tiny fish to be! What is that jungle, btw? Is that what's become of your Ludwigia??! Gorgeous! I still have the one little piece you sent me, (so nice of you to clip the tip of your nicest stem for me!). I don't have enough lighting in the 55 for it to really DO much, but it's still in there! It grows. Sloooowwwllly, but grows. Maybe one day I'll have a nice bunch of it like you do. Really lovely.

Good luck with the blackout in the 75. I hope you get the algae problem taken care of, and that it doesn’t come back. We have to get that tank back to GORGEOUS! I'm LOVING the DS carpet, though! I was *this close* to having one with my PCS in the 29 when the darn powerout wreaked havoc on the plants. I think it looks great, and your little Cories seem to really be enjoying it! Sad to see that Lucas is still looking a bit glum about things. You've really done a TON to slow the flow from that filter, but I can see that it's still kicking out quite a current! Have you considered getting a canister filter for this tank? It’s so much easier to adjust things with a canister, I’ve found, and they’re just all-around so much BETTER than the HOB’s I was using before (and still have on most of my tanks). Maybe that's the way to go to get the flow nice and gentle for him, while still ensuring adequate filtration on the tank as a whole. Poor Lucas! I luff him! The rest of the fishies in this tank look to be thriving, though! So yay for that. I can't wait until you get these little setbacks fixed and we get to see a gloriously green and growing Termie tank again - you rock those plants, boy!
 
#135 ·
This is the third time I'm writing this lol....it cleared my entry TWICE! UGH! I WONT GIVE UP!

OK soo...lol

Thanks Chesh and Nilet!!! The forest really is a dark creepy place that the demons linger apparently...those panzy fish...

The rasboras will be going into the 90 gallon along with 8 more rasboras already in there. I'm gonna have a bunch!

Two of the angels that are in the 90 gallon right now will be going into the 75 gallon tank (they nibble on the sailfin plecos fins...so separation will be good).

Lucas is the weirdest friggen fish in the world....he looks fine today. I am going to cover the intake as some further measures to slow down the flow. It has proved to work well in the past. I'm also going to add some more cover to create slower moving areas of water and shade. The shade will help the plecos come out more because they just hide all the time and I never see them.

The betta tank I am going to clean this weekend to get ready to take into the office. I'm going to basically put the betta and the plants and ornaments into a bucket the night before with a heater so he doesn't freeze. Leave the sand/gravel in the tank after I clean it and the tank. I got a new filter for this tank as well. Then in the morning I will unhook the filter and take him in a lidded bucket to my work place and set up his tank at his new home in our lab at work :).

I wish I had the first two versions...because I've written this three times and each time I say the same thing...but in different ways. It's interesting to see how it has changed haha
 
#136 ·
Bunches of shoaling fish = love :D I can't wait to see how much they like it in there, and that whole tank as it starts coming together. Good luck with all the moves, and with settling lil' Lucas down. I'll be the first to admit that B.Rams are fussy little dudes at times. Mine refuse to speak to me for a day or two every time I prune one of their favorite leaves. *rolls eyes* It's all a part of that amazing personality they have. . . and when they're happy, they're just so gorgeous and FUN, it's worth catering to them a lil' bit!
 
#137 · (Edited)
You know how I'm getting the 90 gallon. That's going to be happening in the next 2 weeks now :).

So this is the plan after I move Lucas out to the office on Monday. First I will need to take down the 29 and keep the rasboras and the gourami in buckets. I'm planning on putting the otocinclus I have in the 75 right away. Thoughts on this?

After I get the 29 broken down I am going to run over to my friends house who has the 90 gallon tank and break that monster down. Here are the fish that I'm getting and what i plan to do with them. I kind of need some advice as I can't find some answers online.

First from the 90 Gallon
  1. 24" Sailfin Pleco (including his 5" tail that comes out of his caudal fin so he's really 19")
  2. 5.5" Striped Plecostomus L199
  3. 2 YoYo Loaches
  4. 1 Female Veil Tail Beta
  5. Around 8+ Harlequin Rasbora
  6. About 6+ Brilliant Rummynose Tetra
  7. 2 Scalare Angelfish Cichlid
  8. 1 Female Kribensis Cichlid

First issue. Should I put the Striped Pleco L199 in the 75 Gallon tank with the Albino Bristlenose and the regular Bristlenose Pleco? I haven't seen the regular pleco in a while. I hope he is alright. The sailfin chases the striped one away when there is food. The giant sailfin rules the tank...ofc.

the L199 is from Venezuela which is partly in the amazon but slightly north. It kind of fits the bio tope. Thoughts?

Second, I'm planning on putting the angels in the 75 along with the otocinclus.

Here is the current stocking of the 75 (yes I used aqadvisor lol)



This would be the stocking if I added the new fish (I put a zebra pleco instead of a striped for stocking purposes because they didn't have the L199 :( )



So the zebra pleco is the striped L199 (they didn't have it) and the rummynoses are:

Brilliant Rummy Nose Tetra
Scientific Name: Hemigrammus bleheri

I'm wondering if I should take the neons out (sell them to a friend) and just get more brilliant rummy noses to fill their school in. I'm going to have some GOOD blue with the two angels. One is solid blue while the other one is blue and has black stripes. They are a mated pair.

Here would be the potential start stocking level for the 90 gallon tank:



The female betta has lived all her life in that tank. This tank is a bit small for this pleco. In the next year or two I'm planning on a 125/150 and going to get rid of the 75 or the 90 at that point. I might do a 75/150 combo or something. or a 90/125...who knows. But I do want to get this big pleco a bigger tank within the year. He needs it. He is as tall as the tank is....24" meaning he is literally half as long as this 90 gallon tank.

Personally I was thinking about trying to get sang to take the yoyo loaches for a good deal. I think she has a shoal of them and they would be a lot happier in a tank with familiar fish. These are full grown loaches too.

Here is my BIGGEST concern about this stocking. The gourami and the kribensis. Last time I did that...they got into a fight and my gourami almost died....neither fish fit into the biotope of the 75 so I don't really know what to do about that. My first thought was to leave the gourami in the 90 gallon and put the kribensis in my 10 gallon quarantine until I figure out what to do with her. Not ideal but temporary solution.

Does anyone see any immediate concerns with these stockings? Please let me know.
 
#138 ·
I don't know enough about these guys to be able to comment, except that I don't think you should put the gourami and the Krib together again. It *might* be okay this time around, since there is much more space than in the 29 where the issue happened last time, but I'd be so nervous to try it after what happened last time. Dude was torn up :(

Talking to Fox about re-homing the loaches is a good thought. . . and I know AQ Advisor isn't, LAW or anything, but I'd say that re-homing the neons and lessening the bioload of that tank a little wouldn't be a bad idea. You really have to be on top of a tank, regardless - but a heavily stocked one like that even more so. . . it's a lot of changes all at once, so be really careful. The nitrate level is going shift with stocking, too, and your ram won't like that, so keep an especially close eye on the little dude.

Hopefully someone with far more experience with these fish will be able to give you some advice!

Good luck, man. . . you've got a busy time ahead of you!
 
#139 ·
First I will need to take down the 29 and keep the rasboras and the gourami in buckets. I'm planning on putting the otocinclus I have in the 75 right away. Thoughts on this?
I'm a bit confused [well, quite a bit actually:)] here, so bear with me. I would keep the fish in the tank rather than buckets if at all possible. If they are going elsewhere, set that tank up first before moving them oout of their present home. Much less stress, thus less chance of problems. Also, is this 75g now running? Otos should never be put in new tanks, only established ones.

After I get the 29 broken down I am going to run over to my friends house who has the 90 gallon tank and break that monster down.
As noted above, leave the 29 running until after all this. Having torn down and reset a 90g myself, this is a day job in itself. I just did my 70g this past week, and that was a 2-day job and the fish are not back in it yet [wil be this morning].


First issue. Should I put the Striped Pleco L199 in the 75 Gallon tank with the Albino Bristlenose and the regular Bristlenose Pleco? I haven't seen the regular pleco in a while. I hope he is alright. The sailfin chases the striped one away when there is food. The giant sailfin rules the tank...ofc.

the L199 is from Venezuela which is partly in the amazon but slightly north. It kind of fits the bio tope. Thoughts?
These three (the two BN and L199) should be OK together, provided there is lots, and I mean lots, of bogwood. If they all happen to be males, they will establish and defend territories.

I have a L199, Hypancistrus furunculus, not sure but I think it is a male; he's in my 90g because it is fine gravel substrate whereas all my other tanks are sand. If this fish goes in sand, the fish will be forever re-arranging the substrate. I put him in the 90g because of this.

This would be the stocking if I added the new fish (I put a zebra pleco instead of a striped for stocking purposes because they didn't have the L199 :( )



So the zebra pleco is the striped L199 (they didn't have it) and the rummynoses are:
Brilliant Rummy Nose Tetra
Scientific Name: Hemigrammus bleheri

I'm wondering if I should take the neons out (sell them to a friend) and just get more brilliant rummy noses to fill their school in. I'm going to have some GOOD blue with the two angels. One is solid blue while the other one is blue and has black stripes. They are a mated pair.
Some possible issues here. Linear characins (neons and rummys) are not good with angelfish. If the angelfish are small and the tetra are large, they may tolerate each other as they grow, but angels will naturally and normally predate smaller linear fish.

Aside from the above, the rummys need a much larger group, no less than 12.

Here would be the potential start stocking level for the 90 gallon tank:



The female betta has lived all her life in that tank. This tank is a bit small for this pleco. In the next year or two I'm planning on a 125/150 and going to get rid of the 75 or the 90 at that point. I might do a 75/150 combo or something. or a 90/125...who knows. But I do want to get this big pleco a bigger tank within the year. He needs it. He is as tall as the tank is....24" meaning he is literally half as long as this 90 gallon tank.

Personally I was thinking about trying to get sang to take the yoyo loaches for a good deal. I think she has a shoal of them and they would be a lot happier in a tank with familiar fish. These are full grown loaches too.

Here is my BIGGEST concern about this stocking. The gourami and the kribensis. Last time I did that...they got into a fight and my gourami almost died....neither fish fit into the biotope of the 75 so I don't really know what to do about that. My first thought was to leave the gourami in the 90 gallon and put the kribensis in my 10 gallon quarantine until I figure out what to do with her. Not ideal but temporary solution.
Is this a planted tank? I would expect this large a pleco to destroy a planted tank. They are best in a natural aquascape of fine gravel, river rock, chunks of wood, and no plants other than floating. But this is not the best for the rasbora. The loaches woould be OK in this setup, but they need more, no less than five. Though if these are older as you say, this might cause trouble as they could bully new fish.

I would not combine gourami and cichlids. They are too much alike, and your previous experience would support this.

Hope this helps.

Byron.
 
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#141 ·
Sang,

That would be great. I just commented on your thread about them. I'm pretty sure they are Yoyo Loaches.


Chesh,

I might have to make the QT tank into a actual tank for the gourami for a while lol. At least I have a cycled ready to go tank :).

Hi Byron and thank you very much for taking the time to respond.

I'm a bit confused [well, quite a bit actually:)] here, so bear with me. I would keep the fish in the tank rather than buckets if at all possible. If they are going elsewhere, set that tank up first before moving them oout of their present home. Much less stress, thus less chance of problems. Also, is this 75g now running? Otos should never be put in new tanks, only established ones.
I have a very limited amount of space available to me. I am living with my mom again so I have to keep all of my aquariums in my room. I'm replacing the 29 gallon fish tank with the 90 gallon tank. In order to do this I need to take apart the 29 so I can place the 90 gallon where it is. What I could possibly do is put all of the fish in another 29 gallon tank that I'm acquiring as a place holder. Use the same filter and let them chill in the spare tank instead of a bucket?

As noted above, leave the 29 running until after all this. Having torn down and reset a 90g myself, this is a day job in itself. I just did my 70g this past week, and that was a 2-day job and the fish are not back in it yet [wil be this morning].
Yea, I agree with you. I realized that after I set up my 75 and stayed up until 6am in order to get the fish into the tank so they wouldn't freeze to death.

These three (the two BN and L199) should be OK together, provided there is lots, and I mean lots, of bogwood. If they all happen to be males, they will establish and defend territories.
The two BNs are males. I have no idea about the L199. I have wood, but I will be putting more in the tank. You can see in the images above how much wood there is. I can see where they have already eaten it. I have some better wood to place in there once I get these tanks.

I have a L199, Hypancistrus furunculus, not sure but I think it is a male; he's in my 90g because it is fine gravel substrate whereas all my other tanks are sand. If this fish goes in sand, the fish will be forever re-arranging the substrate. I put him in the 90g because of this.
The BNs do the same thing, I've gotten kind of used to it hhaha. Everything keeps changing.

Some possible issues here. Linear characins (neons and rummys) are not good with angelfish. If the angelfish are small and the tetra are large, they may tolerate each other as they grow, but angels will naturally and normally predate smaller linear fish.

Aside from the above, the rummys need a much larger group, no less than 12.
The angel fish have lived with these rummys their entire lives and haven't eaten them. Keep in mind all these fish I'm acquiring are already living together in this 90 gallon tank. I think the neons would be in more of a threat than the rummys because they have never seen neons. These rummys are currently in a shoal of 6 so I do agree with you ideally there would need to be more rummys. I would want to get rid of the neons and maybe get 18 rummys total?



Is this a planted tank? I would expect this large a pleco to destroy a planted tank. They are best in a natural aquascape of fine gravel, river rock, chunks of wood, and no plants other than floating. But this is not the best for the rasbora. The loaches woould be OK in this setup, but they need more, no less than five. Though if these are older as you say, this might cause trouble as they could bully new fish.
I was going to try to put the big sword in there but he is such a huge fish you are right that he would most likely kill the plants. I'm thinking I could try Java moss attached to rock? Or would he eat it?

I could do a pure rock and wood tank while the other one is heavily planted.

I would not combine gourami and cichlids. They are too much alike, and your previous experience would support this.

Hope this helps.

Byron.
Yeah, I'm going to stay away from doing that again.

Thank you very much for the help Byron. Hopefully some of the information I gave will give some more insight on the situation.
 
#140 ·
Termato if you need to rehome those Loaches I would be happy to take them. My two Golden Zebra Loach taught me a valuable lesson on what loaches can do when they are not kept in a proper shoal.

That said if two fish fought before they are likely to fight again. I'd keep them separated if I were you.
 
#142 ·
personally id just drain out most of the water, say 90%. Put 50% down the drain, and keep 40%, or as much as you can into buckets etc. Lift the 29G, 10% full tank down, nice and light at this point, onto the floor in a corner out of the way, and drop the 40% water you kept, along with 50% new, effectively a water change then, into the tank and plug in what you can so its basically running normal. It'll cost you an extra 15 to do this, but will keep the fish in their 'home' etc before they get moved into the new one. Oh, and leave the lights off the whole day too, always helps.
 
#144 ·
One caution. Never lift any tank containing water or substrate unless it is on a sturdy support such as a piece of plywood. If the tank is sitting on a sturdy piece of plywood or similar, it is OK to lift it by the plywood [never the tank itself] because the tank frame will remain steady. I have done this, with the smaller tanks like 10 and 20, even my 29g. Without the plywood, the tank frame is almost certain to shift, and even a millimeter shift can cause the seal to break and sometimes the glass.
 
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#143 ·
Saying that though, as a point, in order not to shock them too much, you probably wouldnt want to discard ANY of the water from the 29G. If you put 29g of water from that tank into the new one, and 61G of new fresh water, this would likely avoid any 'shock' etc from a change in water params, as obviously Ph etc drop over time blah blah, you know what i mean no doubt.
Just another thought incase you hadnt considered it.
 
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#145 · (Edited)
I have a very limited amount of space available to me. I am living with my mom again so I have to keep all of my aquariums in my room. I'm replacing the 29 gallon fish tank with the 90 gallon tank. In order to do this I need to take apart the 29 so I can place the 90 gallon where it is. What I could possibly do is put all of the fish in another 29 gallon tank that I'm acquiring as a place holder. Use the same filter and let them chill in the spare tank instead of a bucket?
Yes, better. For any project of these size tanks I would not put the fish in anything other than a temporary tank. They will be less stressed for one thing, plus it gives you time. With a heater and filter, the temp tank can run for days.

The angel fish have lived with these rummys their entire lives and haven't eaten them. Keep in mind all these fish I'm acquiring are already living together in this 90 gallon tank. I think the neons would be in more of a threat than the rummys because they have never seen neons. These rummys are currently in a shoal of 6 so I do agree with you ideally there would need to be more rummys. I would want to get rid of the neons and maybe get 18 rummys total?
The neons are more of an issue than the rummys; neons remain much smaller.
 
#146 · (Edited)
Yes, better. For any project of these size tanks I would not put the fish in anything other than a temporary tank. They will be less stressed for one thing, plus it gives you time. With a heater and filter, the temp tank can run for days.



The neons are more of an issue than the rummys; neons remain much smaller.
Good advice and I think that is the plan I will follow. I don't really need to take the current 29 down, because I can use the spare 29 so that will work perfectly.

What I am unsure of is how to handle the fish that are currently in the 90 gallon tank. The only temporary places I can put them in is a 10 gallon QT tank and buckets while I set up the monster.

I am going to try and find someone who wants my neons, I think a friend of mine might want them but not sure, and just try and go rummys.

Thank you very much Byron! :D My fish tank you, as always :D hahaha.

------------------------

I HAVE BABY CORIES!! HOLY WHAT!! WHAT!!! I just looked and there is this tiny cory in my tank!!! WHAT!!!! SOMEHOW THEY LIVED! AHHH! I don't know how many I have either! :D YAY! I'm so happy now hahhahhha
 
#149 ·
Was this the first time you saw the youngster? It must have been in there for a few weeks, given its size now.

If the eggs are attached in a secure spot they may escape predation by other fish. And in well planted tanks like yours with lots of hiding places the fry can sometimes escape predation. Providing they find sufficient food, which again in well planted tanks is more likely to occur as there is a lot of live microscopic food around plants and wood. With all this, a fry or two can suddenly appear, always a happy moment.:-D

I have one Corydoras duplicareus that I rescued from the canister filter when I cleaned it. The fry was about 1/4 inch or maybe 3/16 and I put it in the 10g which has no fish. When it grew to about 5/16 of an inch I moved it back into the main tank.

Byron.
 
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#151 ·
It is the first time that I saw him in there. Hadn't noticed him before. I actually think I saw a smaller one earlier today when I got home so I think there are two of them. Maybe even different batches.

Oh wow! that's amazing that you saved him! :)

I've yet to find anything like that in my tank filters/intake. I just recently covered to intake with a sponge too.

I came home and I noticed that one of my cories had his pectoral fins either eaten or were deteriorated all the way to the cartilage or bone. His caudal fin was nibbled. I separated him into the 10 gallon. He's freaking out a little but is calming down slowly. I have the light off

The other n the tank are still getting over the stress from me taking him out. I'm considering turning the lights out on the main tank as well.

On another note, I'm looking into a 125/150 gallon tank at the moment. Then when I get the 90 gallon tank I don't have to set it up. Everyone can just go into the 125/150 that will already be here. Sang is looking to buy the 90 Gallon tank from me :)

I love how things work out sometimes.
 
#157 ·
LUCAS!? A BULLY?! WHAAAAA . . . *jawdrop* What a brat that fish is! Glad you caught him red finned, he'd better knock it off. How's the little one in QT doing? Hope he's calming down and starting to heal. . . bummer on the tank being sold, but you know the rule around here is 'bigger is always better. . .' ;)
 
#158 ·
Lucas I take it is the Bolivian Ram. Sit in front of the tank very still for up to an hour and observe. If fish don't see motion, they will forget you are there are behave normally. [Just like kids:roll:]

A cichlid on its own will own the tank. My Bolivian in the 115g does. He will nudge and head-but corys or any other fish that get in his way at meal time, but otherwise he leaves them alone. But the tank is his space, without any doubts, and the other 100+ fish know it.

The other day I observed something I hadn't seen before from the Bolivian after I put in the food. He was getting frustrated by the Bleeding Heart Tetra picking at the tabs on the substrate, and he took matters into his own hands--or fins I suppose--and let them know enough was enough. There he was, mid-tank, just hanging there motionless, and the entire shoal of BH were above him in a group. If one of them attempted to swim down, he would go directly at it, driving it back up into the group. This went on for a good 20 minutes. Normally the BH are down picking at the tabs, etc, but not that day. The Ram was fed up.:lol:
 
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