new tank....need advice

[supafreak]

hi! i'm new here, but not new to fish. I just set up a 20g tank tonight, and i'm not sure what i'm going to put in it. I have experience with african cichlids, and salt water tanks, but i'v been toying with the idea of a community tropical tank with your run of the mill tetras, and danios, etc.....
so here's the question.....I'v put crushed coral, mixed with an epoxy gravel as my substrate. Is this going to buff the ph too much for non cichlid fish? what is the ideal ph of tetras, corys, danios? Also, i put in a piece of drift wood, i just couldn't resist, cause i love the way it looks, but i understand that this will lower the ph. How drastacly will this affect the ph? if i decide to go with cichlids, will this work? (the drift wood i mean) We have a wonderful 7.5 ph tap water in south western ontario, which is ideal for cichlids.
if i decide to go with cichlids, i'v narrowed it down to german rams (south american)
or species 44 (lake victorian)
does any one have any knowledge of these species of fish especially how many to a tank is appropriate, and male to female ratios

[krap101]

i think rams prefer around 7.0 most tetras enjoy a ph of around 6.8 but can live pretty happily in ph around 6.8-7.6. almost all fish can live in any ph if properly acclimated. but some are happier in other ph's. i think danios can probally go in pretty much everything. imo crushed coral will harden the water faster than the driftwood if your all out crushed coral/aragnite. but since your mixing it with gravel i think it'll cancel eachother out. but if your ph does rise to like 7.8-8.0 (not likely) do more freqent changes but with less water. that'll keep your water a steady ph and wont stress your fish as much.

oh and i think corys enjoy neutral 2. but can live in like from 7.0-8.0 somewhere around that. i dont think you should go acidic because i think it craps out their barbels. (sry couldnt think of word)

anyway what are mill tetras? or is it lil or like... neve rheard of them.

[Menagerie]

[center:9fb5f9f1d9] Welcome to AA, supafreak! NOT-SO- [/center:9fb5f9f1d9]

krap: "run of the mill" refers to any tetra.

I'v put crushed coral, mixed with an epoxy gravel as my substrate.

Crushed coral will not only raise the pH, but it is bad for fish with barbels. If you wanted to keep cory cats, the coral would have to go. Acidic water will not affect the barbels as much as the coarse coral.
However, you are asking about rams and #44 (sorry, I have never heard of #44). They both have different water needs; although, most any fish will tolerate pH 7.5-8, which your water will be with coral and wood. Rams would prefer a soft, neural to acidic water and the Lang Victorian #44 would probably prefer harder, more basic water. It also depends on where these fish are coming from. If they are locally tank raised, then they are probably used to Ontario water. However, most rams are bred overseas in soft, acidic water and have a hard time adjusting to local water. I have no idea with numbers for the tank. If you get a breeding pair of either, you may need to set up another tank (happened to me with brichardi in a 50 gal!!). The ratio should be at least 2 females per male. I just purchased a proven breeding pair of German rams and the female is almost as colorful as the male!

[supafreak]

wow, thanks guys. sounds like i could keep almost anything in the ph i will have (7.5) just stay away form corys, and if i want rams than try to bring the ph down a little? anyways, thanks.....now comes decission making time

[Menagerie]

Only stay away from cories due to the coral. Rams will be fine in a pH of 7.5. That's where my tanks are and as a tank ages, even with 25% water changes, the pH naturally goes down.
I encourage you to go through members galleries, or hit the PhotoGallery link at the top of the page and just look and see what fish interest you. Our members enjoy answering Qs about their fish. Any time I have PMed a member regarding a fish in their gallery, I was given great info!