Help with aquarium stocking please?

[AtomicXombie]

Okay. So I’m the first to admit here that I believe I’ve made some awful mistakes stocking my very first aquarium. I was taught about aquariums from a co worker of mine and really wanted to get into the hobby. Little did I know that most of the information I was given was wrong. So. With that being said, I’d like to list my stock here and get some help. Also I’m on mobile so I’m sorry for any mistakes that might happen.

I have a 55 gallon tank with a marineland penguin biowheel filter that supports up to 70 gallons. In this tank I have a common pleco, 1 dojo loach, 1 Cory cat, 1 shubunkin goldfish, 1 comet goldfish, and 2 ryukin goldfish.

I know that I’ve made a lot of mistakes with this and I’m probably going have to rehome a lot of my fish, but I’d like to keep my dojo loach and ryukin goldfish if at all possible. I’m definitely open to any criticism and advice anyone has to offer. Thank you for your time.

 

[Autumnsky]

Okay. So I’m the first to admit here that I believe I’ve made some awful mistakes stocking my very first aquarium. I was taught about aquariums from a co worker of mine and really wanted to get into the hobby. Little did I know that most of the information I was given was wrong. So. With that being said, I’d like to list my stock here and get some help. Also I’m on mobile so I’m sorry for any mistakes that might happen.

I have a 55 gallon tank with a marineland penguin biowheel filter that supports up to 70 gallons. In this tank I have a common pleco, 1 dojo loach, 1 Cory cat, 1 shubunkin goldfish, 1 comet goldfish, and 2 ryukin goldfish.

I know that I’ve made a lot of mistakes with this and I’m probably going have to rehome a lot of my fish, but I’d like to keep my dojo loach and ryukin goldfish if at all possible. I’m definitely open to any criticism and advice anyone has to offer. Thank you for your time.

Welcome!!!

Mistakes are a problem in happy fish keeping, but you're learning and doing better for the fish and that is so important, that you care about them! People here really love their aqua critters and want the best for them.

If you do not have the right information about how to keep your fish well, it is a hard road.

But it can be a fun and enjoyable hobby and I am hoping we can help you have an excellent tank keeping experience!

Are you familiar with the nitrification cycle? Do you know about the beneficial bacteria in your filter? Article link below in my signature can help with that.

Do you test your water? If so what are the water parameters?

Ammonia
Nitrite
NitrAte

pH

TDS - total dissolved solids

GH/KH - General hardness / Carbonate hardness or Alkalinity
Temperature?


Here are a couple articles and a thread for you to check out. Fancy GF can be beautiful in a big tank.

What size are the various GF at present?

The AA article link in my signature is a great resource to get the basics and have something to refer to for help.

For the fancy GF (and Comet)

https://www.aquariumadvice.com/foru...uire-big-tanks-visual-perspective-265871.html

Coldwater Fish threads here

https://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f135/

Lots of good articles too!

 

[AtomicXombie]

I have the 5 in 1 test strips I use to test water parameters. I just tested to double check and these are the results according to the test strips I have.

Nitrate: 20 mg/l
Nitrite: 0 mg/l
pH: 7.5
KH: 80 mg/l
GH: 30 mg/l

Temp is currently 80°F which now that I’m looking at that seems extremely high

Right now, my two ryukin are around 5 inches and 4 inches, the comet is 4 inches, and the shubunkin is 7 inches.

Thank you so much for the links! I’m about to dive in and get some reading done and try and figure out what I can do to help my little friends thrive

 

[Aiken Drum]

In addition, that common pleco will likely get huge. Like upto 2 feet long. Fully grown will need a tank 3 times the size of your current tank. Unless you plan on going really big in the future i would try and rehome that pleco. Will your fish store take it back? I think its irresponsible of them to sell it you. My local fish store wont let those go to anyone until they can confirm they have a tank big enough.

 

[AtomicXombie]

In addition, that common pleco will likely get huge. Like upto 2 feet long. Fully grown will need a tank 3 times the size of your current tank. Unless you plan on going really big in the future i would try and rehome that pleco. Will your fish store take it back? I think its irresponsible of them to sell it you. My local fish store wont let those go to anyone until they can confirm they have a tank big enough.

I bought him from petsmart nearly two years ago, but there is a really nice family owned fish store in the next town over that would probably take him. They have a few in some of the huge tanks they have there.

 

[AtomicXombie]

Update

After going through and reading a good bit here in the forum I’ve definitely decided I’m going to be getting a more accurate testing kit. I’m also aware now that I should be testing for ammonia and I’m going to be testing for copper in my smaller 10 gallon tank that I’m having problems keeping shrimp in.

I’ve read about how goldfish should ideally be kept by themselves and I think that might be the best route to go for my situation. I will be rehoming my common pleco, and likely a few others as I realize my tank is horribly overstocked.

I do have a question about this though. I do have a spare 29 gallon tank that I haven’t set up at all yet. After decorating and cycling would it be possible to move my dojo loach into there and get him like 2 other loaches to hang out with since I’m now aware they need to be in groups? Or would that tank be too small for him? I’ve seen the gallon per inch rule around but I’ve also seen a lot saying that it’s inaccurate.

I’m thinking about making my 55 gallon a dedicated goldfish tank and getting a new filter to accommodate waste. After I’m able to get the new test kit in I feel like there might be a period of fish in ncycling I have to do.

 

[Aiken Drum]

I bought him from petsmart nearly two years ago, but there is a really nice family owned fish store in the next town over that would probably take him. They have a few in some of the huge tanks they have there.

Out of interest, how big is your pleco?

 

[AtomicXombie]

Out of interest, how big is your pleco?

He’s currently 7 inches long.

 

[Autumnsky]

The big box stores will price match even their online website prices or their direct competitor

The Pleco, Comet and the Shubunkin which can get 12-18 inches should get a new home unless you are going to set up a decent pond for the big Goldies. Next year. Not sure where you live if with snowy winters or not, you could make a pond anytime if you don't worry about the ground being frozen.

Then the Dojos could stay and have a group for a little while and maybe upgrade to a larger tank if you can, sometimes bigger tanks are available on sale too. Used might work as well but have to be confident in the seal of the tank, or consider resealing depending on condition and or age.

The other thing is consider looking for a Fluval FX5 older version, (or the newer FX-6) canister filter used will run $100/125-150. for the FX-5 (usually in my area) sometimes available. The gallons per hour is around 550 actual running filled with media, says near 100 g p/h.

AquaClear also has a 110 which is also around max. 500 -160 g p/h. A couple of those are a possible option. Online seem to be around $80.

Good water change scheduling plus 10x or more tank size gallons per hour filtration is standard. You need more BB and filter media to get a better level for processing the food and waste from the GF.

Substrate can be an issue with fancy and other GF in them accidentally swallowing gravel /small stones.

 

[AtomicXombie]

The big box stores will price match even their online website prices or their direct competitor

The Pleco, Comet and the Shubunkin which can get 12-18 inches should get a new home unless you are going to set up a decent pond for the big Goldies. Next year. Not sure where you live if with snowy winters or not, you could make a pond anytime if you don't worry about the ground being frozen.

Then the Dojos could stay and have a group for a little while and maybe upgrade to a larger tank if you can, sometimes bigger tanks are available on sale too. Used might work as well but have to be confident in the seal of the tank, or consider resealing depending on condition and or age.

The other thing is consider looking for a Fluval FX5 older version, (or the newer FX-6) canister filter used will run $100/125-150. for the FX-5 (usually in my area) sometimes available. The gallons per hour is around 550 actual running filled with media, says near 100 g p/h.

AquaClear also has a 110 which is also around max. 500 -160 g p/h. A couple of those are a possible option. Online seem to be around $80.

Good water change scheduling plus 10x or more tank size gallons per hour filtration is standard. You need more BB and filter media to get a better level for processing the food and waste from the GF.

Substrate can be an issue with fancy and other GF in them accidentally swallowing gravel /small stones.

I definitely agree with rehoming the ones that will outgrow the tank and I’ll be setting up arrangements for that very soon.

I wish we could do a pond, but this is Mississippi and we rent the house we’re in, so that’s probably not an option.

I’ve been digging around price checking 75 gallons and I think I’m going to try upgrading to that for the remaining fish I’ll have after rehoming. I have a spare 30 gallon I might set up for my Cory cat and get him some friends so he can have the group he needs. I just have to make sure I accommodate him in that size of a tank.

I’ve heard of canister filters and I certainly appreciate the recommendation because honestly I didn’t know where to start with them! I’ll definitely check it out and fall back on the other if I can’t get the FX6.

I just want to take a second to thank y’all as well. This has been so helpful! I think I’ve found a nice new spot to learn things here lol