kkona21599
Aquarium Advice Newbie
I've been wanting a 55 gallon tank for a while and now that my pleco has outgrown my 20 gallon, I finally had an excuse to get one! I set it up Wednesday night. (Newb mistake - I didn't research the pleco before I got it as a baby so I didn't realize it would get so big.) It's a standard 4' long 55 gallon tank with a canister filter rated at 125 gph and up to 80 gallons; the substrate is pet store gravel. Is 125 gph enough? I'll be adding some driftwood, silk plants and an air pump when they arrive. My 20 gallon took about 6 weeks to cycle so I'm hoping I won't have to wait that long again. I had a snail problem and I don't want to risk getting snails in my new tank so I can't take anything from the 20 gallon to jump start the bacteria. :-|
My sailfin pleco and lace syno (both about 4 yrs old & 6-8") will be moving into the 55 gallon once I get it cycled. I am considering adding some of the following fish:
Rainbows - Boesemani & Praecox
Gouramis - Dwarf varieties, Pearl, Giant(4")
Barbs - Denison & Panda
Swordtail
Molly
Penguin Tetra
Zebra Danio
Peppered Cory
(This is just my starting list, my final list will of course be shorter and it will also depend on what fish I can actually find.)
-Are there any problems with the compatibility of the fish I'm looking at or anything I should know abut them?
-I really don't want to get into fish breeding so is there anyway to get just females of these species? I can easily pick out female gouramis but don't know anything about the others except that male swordtails have the "sword".
-If I can manage to get all females, will having just females in the tank cause any problems?
-Will the cories make too many bottom dwellers and/or be bullied by the syno?
Sorry for all the questions!
BTW, I got my info from Freshwater Fish: Freshwater Tropical Fish Species for Tropical Fish Tanks. I've only seen giant gouramis that were "giant" but this site says these only get 4" long. It lists all the fish on my list as peaceful.
My sailfin pleco and lace syno (both about 4 yrs old & 6-8") will be moving into the 55 gallon once I get it cycled. I am considering adding some of the following fish:
Rainbows - Boesemani & Praecox
Gouramis - Dwarf varieties, Pearl, Giant(4")
Barbs - Denison & Panda
Swordtail
Molly
Penguin Tetra
Zebra Danio
Peppered Cory
(This is just my starting list, my final list will of course be shorter and it will also depend on what fish I can actually find.)
-Are there any problems with the compatibility of the fish I'm looking at or anything I should know abut them?
-I really don't want to get into fish breeding so is there anyway to get just females of these species? I can easily pick out female gouramis but don't know anything about the others except that male swordtails have the "sword".
-If I can manage to get all females, will having just females in the tank cause any problems?
-Will the cories make too many bottom dwellers and/or be bullied by the syno?
Sorry for all the questions!
BTW, I got my info from Freshwater Fish: Freshwater Tropical Fish Species for Tropical Fish Tanks. I've only seen giant gouramis that were "giant" but this site says these only get 4" long. It lists all the fish on my list as peaceful.