New 125 gallon, what to do?

[dang]

Hello everyone, new guy here. I was wondering if I could get some help picking some compatible fish for a new aquarium. Forgive me if this is a little long but let me give you some background first. We currently have a 20 gallon tank for about 4 months now. It's seems to be doing great considering I had no experience when we first got it. It started out when my kids won some "carnival" goldfish this past summer and quickly progressed to the 20 gallon tank we have now. We've only had one casualty so far, not counting the goldfish which didnt last long, thanks to what I've learned here and elsewhere on maintaining an aquarium.

So I was at the fish store on Sunday buying some parasite clear, I noticed the sailfin had an anchorworm attached to it. And like many of you might, me and the kids went over to look longingly at some of the bigger tanks, the 90 gallon in particular, and I turn to the kids, smile and say "one day". We get home and they tell their mother about the big aquarium and how cool it would be to have it, and we joke around about where we'll keep it and so forth. Monday she goes out and orders me a 125 gallon setup from that very same fish store for my birthday! So now I'm in the rather envious (maybe) position of setting up this huge tank with only basic knowledge of what kind of fish to keep in it.

One thing that I know I do want is a big school of smaller fish, the red eye tetras we have are pretty cool, so maybe 20 or more of them would be a good start. But I also want some bigger colorful fish so I was thinking some sort of cichlids, but from what I can tell they're rather aggressive and would probably eat the smaller fish and dig up plants (I'd want some plants in the tank as well). Then I was thinking Discus, but aren't those rather sensitive fish and hard to take care of? Angelfish are kind of cool, but wouldn't be my first choice. Don't want goldfish at all.

So thats my predicament. I'm in no hurry, it'll probably be late next month before I get the time to set it up. But if you could stock a 125 gallon tank, what would you do? Remember a big school of smaller fish and some bigger colorful fish that won't eat the small fish. What would work here? Would it work at all?

Thanks.

 

[rubysoho]

You should check out the Rummynose Tetras, those are really cool looking and they'd look great in a big school. Hopefully BrianNY will come by with info on the Discus. If you are going to go with Cichlids, you'll need to choose from the South American Cichlids (which includes angels), just because they prefer similar water perameters that your tetras will like. Check out all the fish on www.liveaquaria.com , there are a bunch of options you can go with and it gives quick specs on all the fish they have. Don't let the prices fool you though, they are very expensive at that website and for what they sell, you can find much much much cheaper at your local fish store. Oh, and remember when you are picking out those big colorful fish, that anything they can fit in their mouth will be eaten!Aside from that, a school of cories would look awesome as well. Congrats and happy early birthday!!!

 

[BrianNY]

Very nice dilemma dang, and that's exactly what my wife did for my birthday 2 years ago. Just to give you some idea (see my gallery), the order in which I stocked my 125 gallon was - 20 black neons, 12 Otos, 3 clown loaches, 10 assorted dwarf chichlids, 4 dwarf bristle nose plecos, and 5 adult discus.

Much of the key to any successful tank is the amount of filtration you supply and the pH stability of your water. Discus aren't as sensitive as most think (as long as you start with fully grown discus), but they do require frequent water changes.

The nature of your questions makes me think that they aren't beyond your ability. They just require a bit more knowledge, and a bit more elbow grease. I'll be happy to help you if this is what you decide.

 

[rubysoho]

go with discus!!! hehe

*edit* as a side thought, a big gourami would be nice if you decide not to do discus

 

[dang]

wow, thanks for the advice. It is a nice dilemma isn't it!

It's nice to read that Discus aren't that sensitive as I've heard. They sure are beautiful fish. I took a look at a pic of rummynose tetra, those are very cool looking as well. I think they would look very nice with the discus. I'll have to read up on south american cichlids also. I've gone to liveaquaria.com many times, but would skip past the cichlids, never thinking I'd need to know much about them for a long long time!

There's so many possibilities, my head is spinning. I've even had more than a couple of thoughts about a saltwater tank! Chances are I won't go in that direction, major cash outlay there, but I do love a challenge, so just maybe... At least I have a lot of time to think about it and whatever I do you can be sure I'll start it out right and take it slowly.

thanks again!

 

[dang]

Oh and how could I forget the gourami! We do have a gold gourami, and thats my favorite fish so far. gouramies get to be a fairly good size don't they? A bunch of them would work out well in a big tank, wouldn't they?

 

[rubysoho]

hmmm... I don't know how territorial the big one's get when they are full grown, so maybe 2 or 3?? But I am just guessing.

 

[workfortheman]

lucky guy! First, be careful about gourami + discus, right? A Gourami(s) might stress the discus, chasing or whatever.

One factor to take into consideration is the $$, especially when deciding on the plant issue. Just remember not only setup costs (lights, bulbs, the plants, ferts, good substrate, CO2, the list goes on) but also upkeep (more plants, more ferts, more bulbs, more CO2 lol). But especially if you are talking about mostly schooling fish and also fish like discus or gouramis, having a fullyplanted tank in a 125 would be *breathtaking*!! Happy birthday by the way!

 

[peterp]

IMHO:
The first thing would be to find a nice safe, stable place to set it up, a 125 gal will weigh in at close to a ton when full of gravel/rock/water. Then start the cycle process, either using a few hardy fish or bio-spira. Using live fish the cycle will take weeks, before you can start to safely stock the tank.

Also what kind of filtration do you have, that would affect the number and type of fish you can add as well. On my 120 gal I have a Ehime 2217 canister, Marineland emperor 400 HOB and am adding a AquaClear 500 HOB. In it I have about 20-30, 4-6 inch African cichlids, a syno, a p*eco and a small herd of clown locahes.

I also do weekly 30% water changes, something to consider when setting it up, is reasonably good access to your water supply & drain (a python really helps on a tank this big).

Good luck with the new tank

EDIT: you probably will also want to get a test kit, water parms go bad can make for lot of grief on a big tank with lots of residents.

 

[oscarbreeder]

How about a nice pair of Oscars in that 125....

Couldnt have said anything else..LOL

 

[MarkLehr]

I'm going to play devils advocate and suggest you continue to get your feet wet in the hobby for a while before your keep Discus.
One question for you: do you intend to keep Live Plants? or artifical plants?
Assuming that live plants are not a requirement, I have a suggestion which would be a good graduation up from your basic community aquarium.

How about: 25 Tiger Barbs, 1 Green Severum, 1 Jurapari, 2 Kribensis, 7 Cory Cats, and your choice of 5 Rainbowfish (Boesmani, Glossolepis, Austrailian, or Turquois).

If you insist on Live Plants, then the Severum can't be in this mix, which would be a shame. I think Severums make a real nice center piece to a community mix! Plus, they make a great "pet fish", so your kids will love it. You couldn't ask for a better blend of small fish & big fish & fish which make for *beautiful* adults!

 

[Menagerie]

[center:849a545ad5] Welcome to AA, dang!! [/center:849a545ad5]

There is so much you can do with a tank that size! Definitely take your time and decide on the fish and we can help you with compatablity and numbers

 

[dang]

Thanks everyone for your advice. I know there's so many possibilities with this size tank and I've decided what I'm going to do. Now I know some of you might not agree with this, considering my level of experience, but I'm going saltwater! Yes thats right, I'm jumping from a 4 month old 20g freshwater to a 125g saltwater. Might seems like I'm getting in over my head, but I'm a quick learner and I do my homework. And I will take it slow, it'll be a fish only with live rock setup and start out with "easy' fish and go on from there.

My wife was actually kind of hoping we'd go saltwater when she got me the tank, she didn't want to say anything to influence the direction of the tank so that kind of sealed the deal when I brought it up. (wonderful woman isn't she!) I also grew up in Hawaii and used to do quite a bit of diving in my youth, so once I started seriously looking at the saltwater fish, there was no turning back.

So, maybe I'll see some of you over at the "salty side". So many questions, fortunately, lots of time!

thanks again.

 

[rubysoho]

awesome. actually, you will have an easier time with the saltwater just because it is such a big tank!!! Congrats and you better post pics

 

[wynn]

I second the idea about the severum. These are really cool fish that get along with just about any fish, for the most part. One thing though, there are other options besides green severums. There is also gold and turquoise, which are also very nice. There is also a newly discovered severum called a red headed severum (link: http://www.tangledupincichlids.com/images/rotkeil7.jpg ). So far, i've only seen these available by order at www.tangledupincichlids.com . Extremely cool looking fish though.


edit: just noticed that you decided to go saltwater with your tank, which of course rules out the severum idea. They prolly wouldn't like the saltwater too much. Good luck with your tank!