Blue acara?

[Waffle toaster]

I have a 55 gallon aquarium with these fish:

3 tiger barbs
1 rosy barb
2 boesemani rainbowfish
1 electric blue jack dempsey cichlid
1 common Pleco

My question is would it be safe to add a blue acara cichlid?

 

[Cichlid ism]

I wouldn't, I would up the amount of tiger barbs to six since they are a schooling fish.

 

[Rivers2k]

I would rehome the EBJD they stress out very easily. Barbs are very active fish. I just loss two do to a very active fish I added to their tank. Then up the barbs and rainbows.

 

[josh7]

Or rehome the barbs if you want to keep your ebjd

 

[Waffle toaster]

I've had the ebjd for a while, and he's getting along just fine with the barbs. He's a very active one, and he's just as active as the barbs.

 

[Rivers2k]

I've had the ebjd for a while, and he's getting along just fine with the barbs. He's a very active one, and he's just as active as the barbs.

How long is a while? I had mine for a while added a new fish they both died with in a week. Never know with these fish.

 

[Aquaenthused]

I wouldn't add the blue acara, however, I can say from personal experience that my Dempsey has no problems with rosy barbs or schools of tiger barbs over 6 fish large (displacing aggression). Just don't be surprised if one day you wake up to a barb massacre, lol. After 2 months with a school of 10 green tiger barbs my oscar, Gino, and my Dempsey, Jacky O, decided to shred every last one of them to a pulp. You never can be sure what these personality packed cichlids are going to do

 

[Rivers2k]

I wouldn't add the blue acara, however, I can say from personal experience that my Dempsey has no problems with rosy barbs or schools of tiger barbs over 6 fish large (displacing aggression). Just don't be surprised if one day you wake up to a barb massacre, lol. After 2 months with a school of 10 green tiger barbs my oscar, Gino, and my Dempsey, Jacky O, decided to shred every last one of them to a pulp. You never can be sure what these personality packed cichlids are going to do

He has ebjd not regular jack. The ebjds are very passive

 

[Aquaenthused]

He has ebjd not regular jack. The ebjds are very passive

True, I forgot about that- like the gold convicts I had for a couple months (breeding pair that I had to give up). I wouldn't say very passive though, I watched one tear a dojo loach in half at my lfs...

 

[Rivers2k]

True, I forgot about that- like the gold convicts I had for a couple months (breeding pair that I had to give up). I wouldn't say very passive though, I watched one tear a dojo loach in half at my lfs...

An EBJD or gold convict?

 

[Aquaenthused]

An EBJD or gold convict?

Ebjd, 6 inches

 

[Waffle toaster]

I'm planning on adding more barbs, and I heard that ebjds handle new fish better if before adding the new fish you rearrange the decorations and pretend that it's a new tank. I've had him since mid-July, which I guess isn't too long.

 

[Mebbid]

Why not make this a dedicated cichlid tank? The boesmanis you have really need to be in a school of 5+ while the common pleco will absolutely outgrow your tank.

 

[Aquaenthused]

I'm planning on adding more barbs, and I heard that ebjds handle new fish better if before adding the new fish you rearrange the decorations and pretend that it's a new tank. I've had him since mid-July, which I guess isn't too long.

This helps me keep my NW cichlids at a happy medium when territory battles begin. I recommend adding some water sprite or duckweed to assist in stopping a minicycle when adding new fish, and if your tank is properly balanced some Indian almond leaves or black water extract can bring out the color and assist in the breakdown cycle of organic waste. (Don't use if your ph is unstable or higher than 7.5- I lost a couple barbs and loaches to being stupid and not stabilizing ph before adding fish with high bioloads). What type of barbs are you interested in- don't mean to be nosy, just curious

 

[Waffle toaster]

well, I just bought some green tigers and red glass rosies. (I removed the ebjd for a short while, but now he's getting along with them just fine.)