Setting up a new tank.. looking for advice

[pirateshake]

Hey guys,
So i am getting ready to move my current 29gallon tank consisting of 2 goldfish. One normal kind ( won at the fair, hes what started it all) One comet. 4 corycats and a false Siamese algae eater/flying fox. I have had the goldfish for over a year now and there both about 4 to 5 inch's long and its time for a new tank. There are some live plants and driftwood in the tank as well. my normal water temp is usually around 78-81 degress F.

So what my plan is, i want a medium to heavily planted aquarium. Half for show and half so my little guys can nibble on the plants ( though i really prefer if they didn't ) I am thinking about going with Seachems Flourite Black Sand, all the research i have done shows this is good stuff for plants. Plus it looks amazing imo. At the moment i do not plan on doing any type of C02 dosing but its a possibility for future investments but right now i am laid off work so it isn't in the budget. I am also thinking of doing better lighting but i am not sure what i should invest in T5 or whatever else there is.

So i went out and bought a 55 gallon tank and stand. Brought them home cleaned it all out nicely. The tank and stand are used but look to be in very good condition. It has 2 hoods for each side and normal lighting. I am thinking about building a nice canopy for the tank sense my fish like to jump and i don't see many tanks with these so i am wondering what the downside of having one is. If anyone has or knows of good DIY articles that would be a major plus. Also would my fish like power heads or something to make a current in the tank?

As far as fish. I will be adding more corycats. I have all different types and want to add a few more types to them. No more goldfish will be added.I had one of the big brain goldfish but he recently died, and i thinking it was the stress of being over populated and my false sea chasing him around. Now i know the false sea are semi aggressive but i was told that if i put more than one ( thinking of getting 2 more) in a tank they should pick on each other and leave the other fish alone. What do you guys think? If there is room i may put a small type of schooling fish in the tank as well, to add some more color or maybe some other type of bottom dweller, i am not sure. Well thats all i can think of for now. any advice would be amazing. The tank should be ready to set up sometime this week. And should be able to post pics. I am in the middle of installing new electrical outlets for this tank.

What are good plants to think about getting with these fish?
And possibly another type of fish, i dont use a heater but i have them and could if needed.
Thoughts on the substrate?
I want a natural looking tank, what should i use for hiding spots and such?
For filtration i will be running a Fluval 305 and possibly a duel bio wheel as a backup or extra, any thoughts?
Any other thoughts or ideas that come to mind from you guys would be wonderful. I really want this to work out well, i don't want to lose my fish in the move we love them. They are in fact pets. just none furry kinda slimy don't really like to be touched or held pets : )
Im sure ill be adding more later.
Joseph

[rich311k]

The filtration sounds fine. I would drop that algae eater, sooner or later he will start sucking on your goldies, eventually killing them.

Low light plants like anubias and java ferns would work well and most fish will not eat them.

I admire your dedication to your friends.

[jsoong]

You have 2 single tailed golds, and both will get to be 12-24" long. A 55 will be good for them for a few years, but you'll have to eventually relocate them to a pond.

A planted tank with single tailed golds is chancy. They consider pretty much all plants their own salad bar. Although you can try tough plants like Java ferns & anubias, you pretty much have to have big pond plants to survive 2 commons. Doubled tailed fancies are far more compatible with plants. <BTW, you can't really train your golds to only eat the plants you want them to. They are more likely to eat your prized "show plants" and leave all the weeds & ugly plants alone!>

As far as lights goes, the stock hood & lights will not be optimal for plants, although Java ferns & very low light plants may survive. If you are building your own hood, you can design it to contain either compact fluorescent (say 2x 55W) or T5's. For a more economical solution, you can wire it with T8 shoplights. I built mine with the guts from 2 shop lights, giving me 4 x 32W T8's for less than $50. I have a glass top under the lights. If you are going to have the lights exposed to water, then you should install water proof endcaps instead of stock shoplight endcaps.

I am not sure you should spend a ton of money on plants & high tech equipment with those 2 commons in the tank. You might want to go cheap & see how it works out. They might be OK with the plants at 4-5". Once they get big, they might destroy all your plants.

False SAE can be aggressive. I am not sure if having more is the answer. I'd go for true SAE's instead.

Also, watch the Corys with golds. Golds have been know to eat the Corys and get it stuck in the throat (because of the Cory's spine), resulting in 2 dead fish. The only safe way to mix the 2 is to have Corys that are much bigger than the goldfish's mouth (so don't get pygmy Cory) and you might have to seperate the 2 when the goldies get big.

[pirateshake]

Once i move out and stay in my own place, i will then get a bigger tank. Like a 125 or something to put them in. but who knows. I really dont mind them eating all my plants, they didnt used to but work makeing feeding on a schedule hard sometimes so i might just get an auto feeder or something.. How well do those work? So far fuzzy ( regular goldie) and lady ( comet ) do fine with the corys and sometimes school with them when my corys decided to leave there cave. But i will be looking for bigger corys once i decided to get more. How well will the Seachem black sand work with the golds? I cant really find anyone saying yes it works my fish didnt choke and die.. so im still a bit hesitant. As far as t8 goes, where is a good place to look up dyi hoods and/or lighting. I can build and wire almost anything so nothing is really a challenge : ) I love my fish and want them to be happy even if it means i get a stem garden out of my lovely plants.. lol how often do you hear that? Anyone throwing out plants ?