stocking a 55g fw tank

[gypsybill]

I'm new to the hobby and have been lurking in these forums for the last several months. I've learned quite a bit from reading the articles and replies given to others. I have a 55gal fw tank that has just finished cycling and I still have no firm idea of how I should stock it. I have a topfin 60 hob filter as well as two hagen 802 powerheads. Each of these powerheads puts out 400gph. Is this too much flow for my tank? I've read that the rule is 10x per gallon, but I don't know if that's a mean value or a minimum. I also have a couple amazon swords and various bunched plants. Any stocking advice you can contribute would be most appreciated.

 

[TankGirl]

Welcome to Aquarium Advice!!

I don't have any real experience with the Topfin line of filters, but I would say that you should keep your stocking light, and planting heavy, because I don't think this is the best filter for a 55gal otherwise. What kind of lighting do you have? Those swords need more light than what comes standard in the hood of your basic 55gal, but if you have good lighting and thriving plants you can get away with a little less filtration.

Your powerheads are moving the water and hopefully helping it get to the HOB, but otherwise as long as the fish and plants are not going to be buffeted around by the flow you can leave them.

Did you run a fishless cycle? Be sure to continue to supply it with ammonia every day, if that is the method you used, until you get your fish.

HTH

 

[gypsybill]

Thanks for the quick reply TankGirl.
Yes, I did a fishless cycle and I've continued adding ammonia everyday.
My lighting consists of two 20w flourescent lights. I wasn't planning on planting the tank but my lfs was giving away plants for free so I won't be terribly heartbroken should they not survive. I was looking at canister filters online but my girlfriend is going to kill me if I don't curb my expenditures for fish. I've gone a little nuts with MTS and have over $800 invested in tanks and equipment with no fish to speak of, save a couple of guppies. So unless I can find a canister filter for under $50 I'll either have to stick with what I have or risk permanent banishment to the guest room.

 

[TankGirl]

I hear, ya, gypsybill! I prefer not to examine how much I spend, so I spread it out and nickel and dime myself to death....

Well then see how the plants do, but just keep the stocking light and pay close attention to your water changes.

What kind of fish do you like? Do you have very hard, alkaline tap water or is it soft? Do you want a busy tank with lots of small fish and lots of activity, or do you want several larger fish? Goldfish? You have tons of options!

There are also lots of fish readily available at the LFS that are not appropriate for a 55, because they require much larger housing, so post back with what fish catch your eye when you go to the LFS.

 

[poppab02]

Yeah, just give us a starting point and I guarantee we'll run with it. Is there one fish in particular you really want to keep? A species?

 

[Billsgate]

http://www.aquariumstuffers.com/compatibility.cfm?Section=freshwater

It's a chart that shows some fish compatibility, might be a good starting point for you. Also you should to decide whether you want a peacefull or (semi-) agressive tank.

 

[gypsybill]

According to the mardel 5-in-1 test strips I use my total hardness is moderate at 100ppm, alkalinity is around 80ppm. On the advice of a friend I'm raising that with cc. My ph is steady at 6.8.

I was at the lfs a while ago and I wrote down some of the fish that appealed to me, but I seem to have misplaced the list. So here they are from memory: Hatchet fish, silver dollar, lyre tailed molly, glass catfish, bristlenose pleco, tiger barb, and tinfoil barb. I find loaches appealing, though I don't recall seeing any at the lfs, so I'd probably need to special order a few if I were to go that route.

I also really like bettas, but they seem too aggressive to keep in a community tank.

 

[tetrin]

ahah...stocking options...yippee...now i'll blabber on for a few minutes...plz don't pay mucho attentiono (?)...

1.hatchet fish are peaceful schooling fish for upper levels....but boy...they can jump..
2.silver dollars are sure to chow down ur live plants in days...but then again ur not attached to them a lot...
3.mollies are slightly on the touchier side of the livebearers...platies, their cousins are far more hardy...though i have no personal experience with mollies...
4.glass catfish is a sensitive fish too...which u might get just to test ur luck...i believe there are a few more hardier fish without melanin to give them the glassy look (albino blackskirt tetras?...glass fish?...)
5.bristlenose pleco, tiger barb(in shoals of at least 6-7) are excellent choices
6. tinfoil barbs will get monstrous with age...
7. i love loaches...specially clowns and yoyo...
8. the tiger barbs would love to chomp down the betta's fins...but then again, who knows if a truce would result and.....

well there u go... ...