New World Cichlid Stocking Advice?

[WisChris]

Stocking Ideas for 30 gal pentagon

Blank slate here…shooting for diversity and good amount of live plants. Looking at Marineland canister filter and LED Aquatic Plant lights. Would the more peaceful Central/South American Cichlids be an option to mix with other South American species? Totally open to suggestions and looking for stocking ideas.

 

[jackson123]

30 gallon is a little small for cichlids. You could try dwarf cichlids like rams. They are peaceful and can go with live plants

 

[jackson123]

You could try angels

 

[WisChris]

Dwarf Cichlids-Apistogramma stocking?

30 gallon is a little small for cichlids. You could try dwarf cichlids like rams. They are peaceful and can go with live plants

OK, now looking at Apistogramma species Wondering how many of these guys I may be able to mix perhaps with Zebra Danios, Cherry Barbs, Rasboras and Cory Cats? Hoping to create a 30 gallon community tank with the Apistogramma sp. but not sure how to go about mixing species, qtys, etc.

 

[WisChris]

Looking to start up a 30 gallon pentagon tankThinking of a community tank with a focus on Apistogramma sp. Will have canister filtration and live plants.
Wondering how many dwarf Cichlids I can keep in a tank of this size, and what other community members make senseConsidering Pencilfish, Red Breast Smiling Cichlid, Neon Tetras, Rasboras, Zebra Danios, Cherry Barbs, Cory Cats.
Not sure if I am on the right track
I really appreciate any and all suggestions

 

[Malupoo]

Some apistos you can do a harem with, but the then some of the females can be a little bland.
I read somewhere apisto work well with small rainbow fish makes them come out of hiding with dither fish around.
So could do 5-6 dwarf neon rainbow and 2x apisto of some sort and maybe cories/kuhlis for the bottom

 

[erikmoseley]

I think small schools about 5 each ( of 2 not all 3g) of danios, cherry barbs, neons, and some Cory's and a pair or apistos would be super in that tank. I have a 37 w some serpae, neons, otocinclus, a pair of rams and a random apisto of unknown type going great!

 

[azmodan]

What are the dimensions of your tank?

 

[WisChris]

30 gal pentagon dims

What are the dimensions of your tank?

Hi azmodan,
Tank is 18 x 18 x 18.
Length across at longest point is about 24"
Hard to describe, here's a link:
30 Gallon Acrylic Pentagon Aquarium 18x18x18,Acrylic Aquarium,Acrylic Pentagon,Pentagon Aquarium,Pentagon Acrylic Aquarium,Clear for Life,Clear for Life Aquarium

 

[WisChris]

New World Cichlid Stocking Advice

erikmosley,
Thank you for the info and beautiful tank pics
I have sturdy oak desk for stand and not real comfortable going over 30 gal.
Encouraging that I should have no prob doing maybe 2 pair of Apistos and some others in 30 gal. Maybe I'll stick to all South American species?
Curious what you are doing as far as substrate, plants & filtration?
Your water is crystal clear!
Thanks again

 

[erikmoseley]

My pleasure. I used a bag or pool filter sand ( well rinsed with hose) and plants are quality fake ones! Filtration I have a fluval 206 canister and a fluval u4 internal filter. They do a great job

 

[severum mama]

Since you have a pentagon tank, I'm assuming that it is not as long as a typical 30 gallon tank. Regardless, I would not stock more than one pair of Apistogramma in a 30 gallon. Here's a good example of why.

That's a male Apistogramma borelli. Clearly he is an anomaly, but most Apistos get larger than I think a lot of people realize. The rams in the pics above are pretty, but are also nowhere near max adult size.

I've found that an aquarium looks more put-together with larger numbers of one species of schooling fish vs. multiple groups of smaller numbers. The fish are usually more interesting to observe in larger numbers as well. Pencilfish have never done well for me, unfortunately, but you mentioned rasboras... I'm a big fan of harlequin rasboras for a lot of setups. They're easy to keep, very hardy, and show nice coloration once you've had them a while. You could easily keep 10-12.

Corydoras often make good tank mates, but be sure to research the temp requirements of the species you like- some prefer cooler water than the other fish you want. I'd say 4-5 would be good to start off with. The Apistogramma will stay almost exclusively in the bottom half of the tank, so make sure you don't overcrowd down there.

I usually recommend Apisto cacatuoides for someone new to dwarf cichlids. There are several color variants available, they're hardy and easy to keep, and they breed readily in the home aquarium if you're interested in that. They're a great starter apisto.

 

[severum mama]

Threads merged.

 

[WisChris]

30 Pentagon becoming a 36 Bow?

severum mama, thank you for sharing your experience

My project took an unexpected turn todayI had a ? about the acrylic 30 gal pentagon I was about to buy, called the mfgr and was told it's really 20 gal:face palm: Was planning on purchasing the tank today, so very disappointing

I'm now considering a 36 bow, hoping my amish oak desk can support it Kind of wanted a corner tank, there is a glass 44 pentagon, but it may be pushing the limits of my desk/stand

I think the 36 bowfront will be fine, and may end up being a blessing with more volume and better geometry than a pentagon

Any thoughts

Thought I had this all figured out

 

[severum mama]

I'd say pretty much the same thing for a 36 gallon, except you could bump up the number of schoolers slightly.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I317 using Tapatalk

 

[NYgiantsRP]

You should get the biggest you can right off the bat. As long as the stand is solid wood it should support a lot of weight. Also, you can put some reinforcements to make sure it hold the weight. Try posting some picks of the stand, it might be able to hold more then you think. The bigger the tank the most possibilities. And if you get something smaller you will inevitably want a bigger one!

 

[WisChris]

Oak Desk/Stand

You should get the biggest you can right off the bat. As long as the stand is solid wood it should support a lot of weight. Also, you can put some reinforcements to make sure it hold the weight. Try posting some picks of the stand, it might be able to hold more then you think. The bigger the tank the most possibilities. And if you get something smaller you will inevitably want a bigger one!

Thank you all for your thoughts, here's a pic of the desk. 36 bow front tank will go on right side. Will use computer tower cabinet to house canister filter, etc. Computer printer will remain in far right large cabinet, so this better not leak
Corner tank would have been cool, but a bow front should be nice also

Desk is all 1" solid oak. I was totally comfortable with a 30 gal, 36 gal doesn't add much more weight I guess

Just curious what max tank size people would be comfortable putting on this?

Many thanks

 

[Malupoo]

Hate to be the negative nancy but I'm a little unsure on it. 36kg is around 130 liters so that's 130 kilograms sat on it for a loooong time.
I guess long as the tank stretches over a couple of those vertical supports should be fine

 

[severum mama]

I would strongly suggest buying or building a stand that is designed to hold the weight. I used to have a 29 gallon on a wooden dresser and I wouldn't try it again. Plus, at some point in all likelihood you will spill water around the tank. Trust me on this one. Lol. It's best to keep aquariums a safe distance from electronics.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I317 using Tapatalk

 

[WisChris]

Oak Desk Stand...

Furniture maker was OK with 30 gallon (300 lb) tank on it, but I don't want to push it.

So back to my concept, if I go with a smaller 26 bow front, will that suffice for a pair of dwarf SA Cichlids & some small schoolers (danios, rasborahs, cory cats)?

I am thinking a 26 bow front is still preferable to the 30 pentagon that really is a 20 gallon?

Thanks again, just want to get this right before buying the tank & accessories.