Questions on Stocking and Starting 75 Gallon

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CelticSJU

Aquarium Advice Newbie
Joined
Dec 15, 2018
Messages
2
Hello everyone,

I have just gotten into the hobby a couple months ago. Now I am obsessed with freshwater aquariums and I am interested in getting a much larger tank.

In October, I bought a ten gallon aquarium kit and it is now stocked with GloFish and mollies. The tank is doing extremely well. I have been doing as much research as I can to learn more about the hobby and I am ready to get a bigger tank for more stocking options.

I am planning on getting a 75 gallon tank. I have a lot of things figured out that I want to do already, but there are still some questions that I hope you can help me with. I want this tank to be much more natural looking than my ten gallon tank, which has has rainbow gravel and plastic plants/ornaments.

Now here is what I am looking to stock the 75 gallon tank with. German Blue rams (4) Electric Blue Rams (2) Bolivian Rams (6) Angelfish (4) and I was interested in a schooling fish such as blue tetras, but I heard they might nip the fins of the angelfish. Is this true? I would love to add a small school such as blue/cardinal tetra or anything else that is compatible with the rest.

1) I want the 75 gallon tank to have sand as a substrate.
2) I think the 200 Watt heater would suffice. As of now, I am looking at the aqueon brand on amazon. Let me know if you agree with 200 watts or if 300 is necessary.
3) I am planning on having the 75 gallon planted with many plants for the fish. I am open to ideas for which plants because I have yet to do much research on this topic.
4) I am extremely interested in driftwood, but after seeing at my friend's tank, I do not like the look of the water with the tannins. Is there any wood that would not affect the color of the water?
5) I am also extremely interested in rocks for the aquarium. I am looking forward to aquascaping/hardscaping my tank with these rocks and I have been looking at some great rock structures that you can make with the aquarium glue.
6) I am not sure what would be best in terms of lighting so I have to look more into that as well.
7) Lastly, I need help selecting whether or not a HOB or canister filter would be better. The HOB filter would be much easier and affordable so are there any drawbacks. If so, what are the best canister filters at a good price?

Thank you for reading and I hope you can give me some great advice!
 
I'd go 300 watt. Go with low light plants as they are easier to manage. Driftwood tannins will filter out over time especially if you are running charcoal in your filter media. Rocks are fine. Really depends on what your pH is as to what rock you get. Some raise the pH others don't. A standard LED light that fits your tank is fine for low light plants. You can run a hob and canister if you want. Fluval is my go to for canister filters. Aqua clear is my recommendation for an hob. Canisters generally produce more flow and turnover. HOB's are good for surface agitation. Mix the two and it's pretty efficient. Some people don't like the look of an hob so if it doesn't bother you go with a mix of the two and you won't be disappointed.
 
Hello Cel...

I set up a 75 gallon about a year ago for my Goldfish. I used polished, pea-gravel substrate. Very safe for all fish, no rough edges. Driftwood was from the local river areas. Much nicer than what you buy and cheaper. Used rock from the same river area to weigh down the wood. Anubias plants for the bottom, attached to the wood with cotton sewing thread. Cotton will eventually dissolve in the water. By this time, the Anubias root system has attached to the wood. I like Water lettuce and Anacharis for planting the surface. The filtration is four, dual sponge filters. Inexpensive and does as good a job as anything else. I use Active Aqua air pumps. They're very reliable and have a lot of power to run the sponges. Lighting was easy. I use a four bulb shop light from the hardware store. They're 32 watt, T8s and 6500K. Again, cheap but efficient. The Goldfish are growing nicely and because they're heavy eaters and waste producers, I change 50 to 60 percent of the tank water weekly.

Hope some of this information helps you.

B
 
Thanks for all of your helpful tips. I am not sure what a sump is (dry or wet). If someone can give me a basic rundown in addition to the other questions, I would appreciate it a lot!
 
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