65 gal. tank, soft sand substrate....What Next?? Stingray?

[Patwa]

Hey,

I am just looking for ideas for my empty 65 gal tank. It has a soft sand substrate....I currently have 1 powerhead maxi-jet 1200 and a 200w heater installed and running...i'm trying to acquire a eheim 2215 sooner or later.

Any ideas of what I can put in that tank?? I was thinking of the smaller Stingrays (retic, scobia, hysterix) but I might reconsider....what do you think??

keep in mind I have SAND in the tank....i'm not able to take it out.

thanks!

Zach.

 

[Menagerie]

I know nothing of stingrays, but what are they compatable with? Are they FW from juvies through adulthood? What are your pH and water hardness values?

 

[madasafish]

Please don't A 65 is really too small, even for a teacup stingray. Seeing them cooped up like that is really depressing... If you got some babies and raised them in order to place them in a 200+ gallon later on, then I'd say consider it.

Why not think about an African Cichlid tank? Or a cool rainbowfish tank; or a bolivian ram tank; or a dwarf Ctenopoma tank? There are tons of awesome fish that stay smaller out there.

Just MHO. Sorry to be blunt.

 

[Patwa]

yeah they're usually sold as babies....maybe 5 to 8" in diametre....the ones i want will grow to about 12" diameter max in a few years.

i've read that it's best to keep stingrays alone, or with other stingrays....as for hardness..well I have not got to that point yet....but I do know the ph will have to be 6.5 to 7

i'll cycle the tank for maybe 2 months before I even attempt to buy anything...i want to make sure everything is OK....whatever it is i'll be buying will be definitely on the pricey side of things.

i doubt i can really keep a stingray..seems these guys , no matter how small they are, will not do too well in a 65 gal.....but i need advice!

Zach.

 

[Atlarge]

I would go with MAlawi cichlids, Kenyi species tank, anyone?

 

[deli_conker]

Don't go with a stingray. Most get at least 24" in diameter. Not much room in a 65 for them...

I would go with MAlawi cichlids, Kenyi species tank, anyone?

Kenyis are nice. But so are yellow labs too. I have a mixed tank which gives me lots of different colors.

If you like aggressive, territorial, colorful (literally and personality wise), then do some research on Mbunas. Great fish. Fairly easy to care for and always entertaining...

 

[Patwa]

Yeah i want an aggressive fish....not necessariliy colourful though....

I was thinking of something more along the lines of ONE single fish....i want to have something that is relatively large and dominating....i've had community tanks for AGES! i want something new and exciting

maybe a freshwater barracuda?? or maybe a black piranha??

does having sand limit me a great deal??

do cichlids/piranha/freshwater barracuda do well with a sandy substrate??

Zach.

 

[Hypostomus]

Piranhas need schools.

Freshwater barracuda...uhm...sounds like something that is going to get too big for your tank, but don't quote me on that as I don't know exactly what fish you're referring to.

 

[cdawson]

Piranhas need schools.

Freshwater barracuda...uhm...sounds like something that is going to get too big for your tank, but don't quote me on that as I don't know exactly what fish you're referring to.

actually I think the max size for a FW barracuda is 6-8", which is actually brackish and not FW, although I believe there are FW varieties just not available in the hobby.

 

[Menagerie]

Get an Oscar. They get large and I believe 65 gals is a good size for them. If you don't care for color or don't want an aggressive community.

 

[Patwa]

Piranhas need schools.

Freshwater barracuda...uhm...sounds like something that is going to get too big for your tank, but don't quote me on that as I don't know exactly what fish you're referring to.

RE: Piranahas....i'm referring to the Black Piranha (i think it may also be called the Black Diamond Piranha)...not the more common red-belly ones that you see all over the place.....from what i've read, the black piranha can grow quite big, and it's quite OK living by itself

Black Piranaha go for about $139CDN over here in Canada, while the red-belly one are much cheaper.

RE: Freshwater barracudas.... yeah they do not grow that large.....but I saw a species of freshwater barracuda a while ago that was unlike anything i've seen before....it had a very blunt face (not pointy at all), but was silvery in colour and it looked MEAN as hell.....and it was priced quite high too!....must have been a rare FW barracuda or something...

 

[Patwa]

Get an Oscar. They get large and I believe 65 gals is a good size for them. If you don't care for color or don't want an aggressive community.

hehehe.....my bro hates cichlids and fish of that sort....even oscars too!....he says they're boring as hell....I think he has no idea what he is talking about....but since he and I are sharing the costs of this tank, he has veto power over anything I do (vice versa).

Zach.

 

[Hypostomus]

If he thinks cichlids are boring, how does he find any of the other fish interesting?

 

[Patwa]

If he thinks cichlids are boring, how does he find any of the other fish interesting?

I dunno..he's a weirdo extraordinaire.....his fav fish are Puffers...but he sucks at keeping them....so i dunno what to say.

Zach.

 

[Patwa]

Black Diamond Piranha....for those of you that don't know:

http://www.geocities.com/heartland/prairie/5962/Spilopleura.html

yep...they're a solitary species.

Zach.

 

[Guest]

I'd go with a Fahaka Puffer. Them guys are awesome. I myself have one and the personality just can't be beat.

 

[jratuszn]

My girlfriend just got an arrowhead puffer- It likes to bury itself in the sand. It's pretty aggressive, but not as aggressive/active as a fahaka. A Fahaka will definitely outgrow the 65 pretty quickly, however.

-J

 

[Patwa]

I'd go with a Fahaka Puffer. Them guys are awesome. I myself have one and the personality just can't be beat.

funny you should mention the Fahaka/Nile puffer...my lfs had a tank full of baby fahakas not too long ago.....they're prolly all gone now though......but yeah I want something that will be comfy in a 65 gal for a while...i prolly won't be able to move to 90 gal for a long time.


How big do 'Arrowhead Puffers' grow??

Zach.

 

[wilson]

a good site to look for oscar stuff if u wanted to check them out is oscarfish.com . i was thinking of getting one, but they need a tank that i cant fit lol.

 

[Patwa]

I'd go with a Fahaka Puffer. Them guys are awesome. I myself have one and the personality just can't be beat.

funny you should mention the Fahaka/Nile puffer...my lfs had a tank full of baby fahakas not too long ago.....they're prolly all gone now though......but yeah I want something that will be comfy in a 65 gal for a while...i prolly won't be able to move to 90 gal for a long time.


How big do 'Arrowhead Puffers' grow??

Zach.