best tank size and best equipment

[Skorpius]

Hello, I am new to aquatics and new to this site. I am seeking advice on the best tank, equipment and everything I need to buy for a freshwater setup. I plan on beginning to buy the equipment in a couple weeks and begin the process, The following are my thoughts so far:
50-100 gallons fishless cycle for 1-3 months
Fluval canister filter (2x's the tank size)
Aqueon or Fluval adjustable temperature Heater
API Master test kit
Air Stone??
Seachem Prime for cycling
Journal to keep track during cycling the tank
Sand as substrate
Day/Night lights
Mercury thermometer, not sticky on outside of tank
Mopani or Malaysian or Manzanita driftwood.
Python changer
live plants, Anubias / Java fern / moss
If anyone can better guide me on any of this, let me know.
Now the next problem I have is stocking. I've found soooo many freshwater fish that I find very colorful and would like, I have to narrow the list and find which would be compatible together. The list of fish I find the most colorful so far are as follows:
Kilifish
Discus
Mollies
Boesemani rainbow
Lemon Ciclid
Pseudotropheus demasoni (Malawnian Ciclid) (Highly aggressive though)
spotted/candy pleco
bluefin notho
Electric Blue Hap
Ramirezi ciclid
Dwarf gourmi
Rainbow snakehead (channa bleheri)
Pearl gourami
zebra danios
German blue ram
So if anyone can tell me the best combination I can put together, I welcome any and all advice, thank you.

 

[huma-huma]

i believe you posted this in the Saltwater section, that should be a sign

(A sign to start a SW tank, read my post after and that it could be read wrong )

 

[Skorpius]

Thanks, I didn't even realize I did that until a couple of you told me. dragonfish71 was kind enough to move it for me to the correct location for me, thanks all.

 

[tnfinfan]

I would not advise discus for anyone but the most committed enthusiast who knows exactly what they're getting into. Cichlids are also challenging and most are not suitable for a community tank so you'd need to commit to a setup that addressed their needs specifically. Now, if you want a lot of color and variety, going community with several types of nonaggressive fish is great fun! You can make it very colorful, very busy, and everyone gets along. Consider a solid background (black or dark blue are both nice) to pop the colors more.

 

[bribo12]

Hello, I am new to aquatics and new to this site. I am seeking advice on the best tank, equipment and everything I need to buy for a freshwater setup. I plan on beginning to buy the equipment in a couple weeks and begin the process, The following are my thoughts so far:
50-100 gallons fishless cycle for 1-3 months
Fluval canister filter (2x's the tank size)
Aqueon or Fluval adjustable temperature Heater
API Master test kit
Air Stone??
Seachem Prime for cycling
Journal to keep track during cycling the tank
Sand as substrate
Day/Night lights
Mercury thermometer, not sticky on outside of tank
Mopani or Malaysian or Manzanita driftwood.
Python changer
live plants, Anubias / Java fern / moss
If anyone can better guide me on any of this, let me know.
Now the next problem I have is stocking. I've found soooo many freshwater fish that I find very colorful and would like, I have to narrow the list and find which would be compatible together. The list of fish I find the most colorful so far are as follows:
Kilifish
Discus
Mollies
Boesemani rainbow
Lemon Ciclid
Pseudotropheus demasoni (Malawnian Ciclid) (Highly aggressive though)
spotted/candy pleco
bluefin notho
Electric Blue Hap
Ramirezi ciclid
Dwarf gourmi
Rainbow snakehead (channa bleheri)
Pearl gourami
zebra danios
German blue ram
So if anyone can tell me the best combination I can put together, I welcome any and all advice, thank you.

If you're in the us I doubt you can have the snakehead. I'd figure it would murder all those other fish as well lol. The rams can go with most of the other community fish you mentioned.i agree about discus, not for the feint of heart. The other cichlids will have to be species only tanks. Like a rift lake setup. The ramirezi cichlid is the same as the German blue ram too.

 

[Mebbid]

Tank size: I would suggest getting a 75g. This is going to give you a good workable height with the same footprint at a 90g or a 110g.

For fish stocking of fish that you like I would suggest:

10 Boesemani rainbows
1 pair GBR
1 dwarf gourami

That will give you a very active middle swimming school with a few extra fancy fish thrown in.

Other fish to look at and numbers I would keep them in:
10 - Cory cats - Not the most colorful but they are a pleasure to have in the aquarium. Active bottom dwellers.
5+ - Synodontis Petricola - VERY active bottom dweller and very interesting looking.
1m / 2f (2 - 3 trios) - Red Swordtail - Will give a good splash of red to contrast with the boesemani
1 - Gold Nugget Pleco - One of the most popular plecos out there atm
1 pair - Angel - Large fish with a heavy presence in the aquarium. My fav. is the marble veil.

 

[Skorpius]

Tank size: I would suggest getting a 75g. This is going to give you a good workable height with the same footprint at a 90g or a 110g.

For fish stocking of fish that you like I would suggest:

10 Boesemani rainbows
1 pair GBR
1 dwarf gourami

That will give you a very active middle swimming school with a few extra fancy fish thrown in.

Other fish to look at and numbers I would keep them in:
10 - Cory cats - Not the most colorful but they are a pleasure to have in the aquarium. Active bottom dwellers.
5+ - Synodontis Petricola - VERY active bottom dweller and very interesting looking.
1m / 2f (2 - 3 trios) - Red Swordtail - Will give a good splash of red to contrast with the boesemani
1 - Gold Nugget Pleco - One of the most popular plecos out there atm
1 pair - Angel - Large fish with a heavy presence in the aquarium. My fav. is the marble veil.

Dumb question for you,
Are you saying that I can put all the fish you listed in the same 75 gallon tank?... or that its a "either or" stocking solution?..sorry, I'm still learning here and due to my inexperience, I don't want to kill anything off that I put in the tank. You have provided me with a nice plan, I guess Im looking to leave nothing to question and for a "cookie cutter" solution that spells out exact stocking.

 

[Mebbid]

There's not really much that's deemed as a "cookie cutter" tank stock.

But for those species I would not keep the cory cats and synodontis together. They are both bottom dwellers and the synodontis can sometimes be a bit aggressive for a fish like the cory cat.

Offhandedly, I would say you can probably keep all those fish together in a 75g tank but you might want to run those numbers on AqAdvisor - Intelligent Freshwater Tropical Fish Aquarium Stocking Calculator and Aquarium Tank/Filter Advisor to double check.

 

[NYgiantsRP]

Skropius, i would HIGHLY reccomend you dont just look at the fish and say "it looks good i want it". You need to reasearch the fish that looks good. There is WAY to many fish to dissect and give opinions of every thing you named. Mebbid gave you some great options. I think your filtration, and other equipment will be good. Plants dont belong with African cichlids. Just punch in a fish you like followed by "profile" on google and read some websites that give all the info about them. Also, aqadvisor give you great general advise.

 

[Skorpius]

Skropius, i would HIGHLY reccomend you dont just look at the fish and say "it looks good i want it". You need to reasearch the fish that looks good. There is WAY to many fish to dissect and give opinions of every thing you named. Mebbid gave you some great options. I think your filtration, and other equipment will be good. Plants dont belong with African cichlids. Just punch in a fish you like followed by "profile" on google and read some websites that give all the info about them. Also, aqadvisor give you great general advise.

Hi NYgiants,
I thank you for your contribution to my dilemma and appreciate it. I have done quite a bit of research already, and only confused myself....lol. So I have come here to pick the brains of those in the know and have experience with what has worked for them. Mebbid has provided me some great info and has helped me a lot. I am following his suggestions and looking into those fish.

 

[Mebbid]

Wether or not you choose to go with the synodontis I can offer some other suggestions for other fish. But the synodontis restricts you from some of the more fragile fish in the aquarium. I am actually switching my entire tank stocking around just to accommodate them in my upcoming 90g

 

[Skorpius]

Wether or not you choose to go with the synodontis I can offer some other suggestions for other fish. But the synodontis restricts you from some of the more fragile fish in the aquarium. I am actually switching my entire tank stocking around just to accommodate them in my upcoming 90g

I used the stocking calculator that you pointed me to. I think the synodontis were the ones that were flagged by the stocking calculator as too high of PH levels for the other fish you recommended. I think I am gonna use your model for stocking that you have provided me because of the colorful variety and angel fish. Angels fish were my wife's only request that she made when I decided to get an aquarium.

 

[nshepler]

I don't want to be rude but all to often I see someone who is new to this hobby and bite off a little more than they can chew. This hobby is a lot more work than most people expect even if you do research. Which I can tell you have. I wish you the best of luck and I would suggest sticking to something more basic until you get used to the hobby.

 

[Mebbid]

I don't want to be rude but all to often I see someone who is new to this hobby and bite off a little more than they can chew. This hobby is a lot more work than most people expect even if you do research. Which I can tell you have. I wish you the best of luck and I would suggest sticking to something more basic until you get used to the hobby.

What do you mean by more basic? Every fish I suggested aside from the GBR are hardy and easy to care for.

 

[tnfinfan]

True, there is a good deal more to the "best" tank size than a number. Budget, how it fits in your home, how comfortable you are with the water change quantity and schedule, etc. 75G is a terrific size for an experienced hobbyist but it may be more than some can manage and turn off a newbie to the hobby. The two biggest mistakes are biting off too much, too soon and getting a little tank and then stuffing far too much in. Some would be happiest with a 10G planted betta habitat. Or 5G with shrimp. Bigger isn't always better. Or, maybe a 55G so they have room for more or bigger fish but it hugs the wall. Perfect is in the eye of the beholder.

I will say my first tank was a 30 that I bought at a garage sale. I had a school of tetras, brightly colored platties, swordtails, and Cory cats. It was a lot of fun and a reasonable size for a tween to manage solo. I fell in love with fishkeeping and I've upgraded and downgraded and even taken years off but I keep coming back.

 

[Rodeo one]

Welcome to AA, you re starting out right by being here & asking good questions. Great choice for tank size & going with fishless cycle.
Here s a pic of my favorite heater & thermometer. I use an extra thermometer when I do water changes. I attach it to the inside of a large coffee cup & have the end of my hose in the cup so I can easily monitor the temp & no substrate is disturbed.
Best of luck with your new set up. Looking forward to watching your progress.

 

[Skorpius]

I don't want to be rude but all to often I see someone who is new to this hobby and bite off a little more than they can chew. This hobby is a lot more work than most people expect even if you do research. Which I can tell you have. I wish you the best of luck and I would suggest sticking to something more basic until you get used to the hobby.

Thanks for your input, and I don't think your being rude. However, if your going to make a bold statement such as you have in regards to Mebbid's recommendations. Have something to back it up instead of only stating your opinion. I welcome all input and will research all suggestions made by everyone who contributes. Right now Mebbid is the only one whom has not only offered an opinion but has also offered a template giving me guidance. From researching his template and suggestions, the fish seem hardy and easy enough to care for. I have past experience with saltwater growing up but that was many years ago, so I understand the work involved. I want freshwater this time around because it is a little easier and less costly, again thank you.

 

[Skorpius]

Thanks Rodeo,
I didn't think about a second thermometer, that's a great Idea, I like it.

 

[tnfinfan]

It's kind of like asking what kind of dog you should get to a group of blindfolded strangers. We don't know you. At all. We might guess right (lucky you, someone did) but don't be upset if others are more conservative in their approach. I may love black labs but I wouldn't recommend them for a 70-year old granny living in an assisted living condo and, in fact, wouldn't recommend a dog at all if you haven't done enough research to understand the commitment.

 

[nshepler]

I wasn't saying anything Mebbids suggestions. I was just saying in general.