New Tank! Stocking problems? ;)

[Cynic]

Hi all,

After months of searching I was finally able to pickup a 6' tank (150G) for my dining room .

Now the filter is in a very nice cabinet complete with hood! it even has a beautiful full grow Oscar

Oh also included were...

2 Oscars (Full grown, so three all up)
1 Silver Perch (About a foot long)
1 Albino Common Pleco (About a foot long)
1 Bala Shark (8" long)
1 Albino Cichlid (Unsure on the species, 6" long)
2 Clown Loaches (Only 6" long)
8 Convict Cichlid (Varying sizes, 1 around 1-2cm )
1 Bristlenose Pleco (Maybe 5" long)

On the plus side it came with a Via Aqua 750 turning my tank over twice an hour

But seriously where do I start with this!?

Cheers in advance

 

[Galligak]

Oh, my goodness. Those are a lot of mismatched fish! Are you trying to get rid of some? Because I'd try the fish stores around you and then craigslist. All I can really say is: wow...

 

[blert]

A good place for folks to start being able to help you would be knowing what, from this group of fish, is it that you are interested in keeping.

 

[Cynic]

Yeah it's a bit of a mess. When I picked up the tank the water was absolutely filthy...I was terrified by the lack of any water condition or a gravel vac :/

I'd like to move in 8 juvenile clown loaches (2" on average), a black ghost knife (Maybe 6") and a Pleco (6", some confusion as to the species sorry).

So really my first concern would be how much do I need to remove to not be overstocked (Which I assume I am) and which fish need to go so my other fish can go in there and not be harassed.

 

[boadams87]

I would get rid of the 3 oscars and the common pleco.

 

[animalzrok2]

do you have any pics of the tank?????

 

[blert]

Personally, for starters I would rehome:

The Oscars because they are too aggressive for my taste.
The Common Pleco because they have a ridiculous bio-load.
The Perch because it's more suited as an entrée then a pet.
The Bala "Shark" because they just get large and they need to be in a group of five or more.

Edit: After rethinking, I would probably get rid of the whole lot except for the BN Pleco and start over.

 

[Cynic]

I would get rid of the 3 oscars and the common pleco.

The Oscars are definitely on my to go list, while they seem to be incredibly passive towards the fish already in the tank (I'm still amazed at how the little convicts survive) I'm not trusting them with any outsiders.

What about the convicts? I know very little about cichlids but I thought they were aggressive and preferred high PH?

do you have any pics of the tank?????

Far from a pretty tank at the moment I basically just threw every spare decoration I have in there to give the clowns/cichlids plenty of hiding spots.

Also avoided putting in substrate until I'd removed some fish in order to make it easier to clean.

 

[boadams87]

The Oscars are definitely on my to go list, while they seem to be incredibly passive towards the fish already in the tank (I'm still amazed at how the little convicts survive) I'm not trusting them with any outsiders.

What about the convicts? I know very little about cichlids but I thought they were aggressive and preferred high PH?

Far from a pretty tank at the moment I basically just threw every spare decoration I have in there to give the clowns/cichlids plenty of hiding spots.

Also avoided putting in substrate until I'd removed some fish in order to make it easier to clean.

That's a nice tank! Im shocked to, with oscars that big I don't see how any cichlids made it. Are you gonna sell the big pleco?

 

[Cynic]

Personally, for starters I would rehome:

The Oscars because they are too aggressive for my taste.
The Common Pleco because they have a ridiculous bio-load.
The Perch because it's more suited as an entrée then a pet.
The Bala "Shark" because they just get large and they need to be in a group of five or more.

Edit: After rethinking, I would probably get rid of the whole lot except for the BN Pleco and start over.

Have to agree. It really is a mishmash of fish isn't it .

That's a nice tank! Im shocked to, with oscars that big I don't see how any cichlids made it. Are you gonna sell the big pleco?

Thanks! Happy with the tank (Although the glass is filthy) and looking forward to being able to work on it post removed fish .

Will probably move on 90% of the fish as blert suggests.

Trying to find out what sort of prices the fish would be sold for is pretty much impossible here though

 

[boadams87]

Have to agree. It really is a mishmash of fish isn't it .

Thanks! Happy with the tank (Although the glass is filthy) and looking forward to being able to work on it post removed fish .

Will probably move on 90% of the fish as blert suggests.

Trying to find out what sort of prices the fish would be sold for is pretty much impossible here though

Can you get a pic of the large pleco? Im trying to find me a big one!

 

[Cynic]

Can you get a pic of the large pleco? Im trying to find me a big one!

Haha I can but on the basis we live 10,000 miles apart would suggest the cost of postage may mean you should probably look elsewhere

 

[boadams87]

Haha I can but on the basis we live 10,000 miles apart would suggest the cost of postage may mean you should probably look elsewhere

Lol. Didn't know we are that far

 

[Cynic]

Well I've rehomed most of the large fish...one of the oscars didn't want to leave though...

The sand substrate has gone in and is settled, the FX5 will be setup tomorrow which will mean the removal of the main filter so unfortunately the inhabitants will have to go through another minicycle.