Stocking ideas for 125L/33G aquarium?

[markot]

Hey guys,

I need some stocking ideas for my next aquarium. Next month when I come back from vacation I plan to buy a Juwel Rio 125. It's 125 liters or 33 gallons capacity.

I will move my pleco into this tank. But I'm not sure what else.

I would really love to have african cichlids, but I understand they need bigger aquariums. However, I've seen quite a few 33G/125L african cichlid setups on youtube that looked great.
So I have mixed feelings about this. Maybe it would work.

Other option that I'm considering would be different gouramis. I've been to LFS today and they had many different colours of gouramis in stock. But I'm not sure which ones are compatible.

What are your thoughts?

 

[fishenthusiast]

Hey guys,



I need some stocking ideas for my next aquarium. Next month when I come back from vacation I plan to buy a Juwel Rio 125. It's 125 liters or 33 gallons capacity.



I will move my pleco into this tank. But I'm not sure what else.



I would really love to have african cichlids, but I understand they need bigger aquariums. However, I've seen quite a few 33G/125L african cichlid setups on youtube that looked great.

So I have mixed feelings about this. Maybe it would work.



Other option that I'm considering would be different gouramis. I've been to LFS today and they had many different colours of gouramis in stock. But I'm not sure which ones are compatible.



What are your thoughts?

I wouldn't get African Cichlids if I were you because their bio-load is huge--even the smaller ones. What Pleco are you going to be putting in this tank? Many of them can get very big. About the gouramis, I'd go for the dwarf variety. Other options I'd consider would be German Blue Rams; they are peaceful, small, and colorful. In my experience with 30 gallon tanks, or around that range, smaller fish look better. Threadfin Rainbowfish are my absolute favorite fish, but they must be with very peaceful fish. Might be something to look into.


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[markot]

I should mention in my original post that I will run an external canister filter in addition to internal filter that comes with aquarium, totaling well over 1000 liters/hour.

I have a sailfin pleco that I'll be putting in this aquarium, he's 2 years old and 19cm long (just measured him yesterday). If he gets much bigger, I will get him a bigger aquarium in the future. Currently he's in a 60 liter aquarium which is probably already too small for him.

Oh, and I would prefer the tank to be rocks and wood only, no plants.

I guess that limits my fish choices even more.

 

[fishenthusiast]

I should mention in my original post that I will run an external canister filter in addition to internal filter that comes with aquarium, totaling well over 1000 liters/hour.

I have a sailfin pleco that I'll be putting in this aquarium, he's 2 years old and 19cm long (just measured him yesterday). If he gets much bigger, I will get him a bigger aquarium in the future. Currently he's in a 60 liter aquarium which is probably already too small for him.

Oh, and I would prefer the tank to be rocks and wood only, no plants.

I guess that limits my fish choices even more.

There are some plants that would be very easy for you to take care of in a low tech setup. Plants would make your tank look better and there would be a reduction of algae and an increase in oxygen.


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[markot]

I'm leaning more and more to cichlids. I've been to another LFS today and they had quite a few different african cichlids that, according to the sticker, grow to only 10cm. I guess I could have about 7-10 of these in 125L aquarium? The sales lady of course said, yes no problem. But I understand they try to sell fish and may not care about in what conditions fish will end up.

About filtration, aquarium comes with 600 liters/hour filter and I'll get an additional Tetra EX 1200 cannister with 1200 liters/hours, so 1800L/h should be plenty for this tank.

 

[markot]

I've given it some further though and did a lot of research and concluded that while a single species of dwarf mbunas might work, it would still be pushing it to the limit and I don't want my fish to be miserable.

So now I am considering a Gourami setup. And here's my question...

Can I mix gold and blue gouramis (and possibly other colours)?

Some sources say they are peacful, while others say they get aggressive towards its own species. Now I'm confused...

 

[Scottyhorse]

I wouldn't put multiple gourami's in the same tank.

 

[markot]

After a lot of research I pretty much decided to stock it with my pleco and some rainbow fish, plus maybe a gourami and red tailed black shark. What do you think about this setup?

 

[scotty1301]

Nice manage get dwarf rainbow since only 33g

 

[CCXGT]

You could comfortably fit 15+ Dwarf Mbuna in a 30G.

I say go for it.


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[markot]

You could comfortably fit 15+ Dwarf Mbuna in a 30G.

I say go for it.


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Nah... I decided to get a bigger aquarium for cichlids next year.

 

[markot]

I accidentally found a local breeder of Bolivian rams and they look beautiful.
How many could I put in 125 litre tank? Would they go along with rainbow fish and pleco?

 

[absolutangel04]

A couple notes, gouramis are generally mostly peaceful with other fish, and when they are not breeding, and when there are not too many other potentially territorial fish in with them.
What are the dimensions or your tank? In the US, the 33g is usually a long, low tank. It matters a bit for what fish you can in it because fish need horizontal swimming space.
You can do at least 2 Bolivians, but let us know the dimensions first to see for sure what sounds like a good idea for numbers.

Also they should be fine with rainbows and your pleco, though I suggest a larger long term home for the pleco eventually. They get huge and are rather messy poop volcanoes. But, it sounds like you will be doing a larger tank someday anyways. Some rainbows need a lot of space, and the larger ones seem to often be more bossy.

 

[markot]

Tank dimensions are 81 x 36 x 50 cm. It's not a long tank.

 

[absolutangel04]

That is a decent sized tank. You can do at least 2 Bolivians. If you want more, it depends on what all else you want in there. I think you would be fine for 4, just make sure to watch them (they are mostly peaceful, but still capable of squabbling over territory. females are feistier than males IME) and give every body caves and such to hide in so they have their own areas.
For rainbows, check out the forktail, the praecox, and the Celebes. They are some of the ones that I really like and are on the smaller side.

 

[markot]

Just realized that my pleco likes to dig sand, make holes and redecorates the tank every day. In my current aquarium that's not a problems since I only have a couple of anubias on rocks.
So I guess I'm stuck with Java fern and some moss then (don't really want anubias in all my tanks). I have already purchased a really big and nice looking wood for my pleco. I will also add some rocks.

Would Bolivians and Rainbows do well in such tank or should I just forget plants and try some Mbuna afterall?