I'm in the process of setting up a 125 gallon. It's going to have a diy foam/concrete 3D background along with Malaysian driftwood and will be fairly heavily planted, using Flourish Excel rather than CO2. Sand substrate with root tabs for plants as needed. Filtration will be from a Filstar XP L or XL if the L isn't sufficient alone(advice on that?). It'll be a couple months before it's ready for fish accounting for finishing the background project and cycling, so I've got time to think it over.
So far I'm thinking:
12 x Cories(Panda and Schwartz)
6 x Kuhli Loaches
6 x Siamese Algae Eaters
4-8 x of each Mollies, Platies, and Swordtails, keeping at least a 2 or 3 to 1 female-male ratio
4 x Sparkling Gouramies
Along with at least a dozen Red Cherry Shrimp and some Malaysian Trumpet Snails to stir the sand substrate
I struggled for a while trying to decide on centerpiece fish and ended up with livebearers. Maybe it's a bit unconventional choice for this size aquarium but I love those high fin blood red Swordtails especially along with all the varieties of Mollies and Platies. And I feel with that stock I've got a little bit of room to grow into so when they breed I can keep some of the offspring.
I do have some concerns though. I'm really conflicted about having Mollies in a pure freshwater setup. Any advice on whether I should try it or not? If it's truly going to lessen their life span as some say I could wait on them and make a brackish setup later and fill their place with Guppies and Endlers perhaps. But I really would love to keep them. Another potential issue is having multiple male livebearers together. I know they can sometimes be bullies, especially Mollies, but I'm hoping having a good m-f ratio along with lots of room and hiding places will calm any aggression.
Now about those Gouramies. Am I just asking for trouble trying to keep them with Mollies? I know they're supposed to be a bit timid and I don't want them being picked on or starving because they aren't competing for food. Will this be an issue? If so I'll drop them.
As for the shrimp I know there's a risk of them being eaten by the larger fish especially. There will be plenty of plants including Java Moss to hide in, but still I'm not sure how wise a decision this would be. I've already lost to predation all the RCS I tried keeping in a small Betta/community setup.
Other notes: My tap water comes out at 8.2 ph. I've already got Bettas, Cories, and Rummynose Tetras living in this water with nothing to adjust the ph except a small driftwood piece in my 16 gallon, which doesn't have much effect. All are thriving so I'm honestly not concerned much about my high ph. Hardness unknown.
By the way, if certain species above have to be eliminated from the list, the following fish are other species I'm interested in keeping that could take their place, in no particular order: Guppies, Endlers, Harlequin Rasboras, Ghostglass Catfish, Hatchets, Clown Loaches(probably too big for this community), upside down cats(ditto), Opaline, Gold, Pearl, and Dwarf Gouramies, Cherry Barbs, Denison Barbs(surprisingly prevalent and cheap in the stores around here), Boesemani Rainbows, and female Bettas. Phew.
Sorry for the massive post but I prefer to give all the info I can upfront. Thoughts? Thanks for reading!
So far I'm thinking:
12 x Cories(Panda and Schwartz)
6 x Kuhli Loaches
6 x Siamese Algae Eaters
4-8 x of each Mollies, Platies, and Swordtails, keeping at least a 2 or 3 to 1 female-male ratio
4 x Sparkling Gouramies
Along with at least a dozen Red Cherry Shrimp and some Malaysian Trumpet Snails to stir the sand substrate
I struggled for a while trying to decide on centerpiece fish and ended up with livebearers. Maybe it's a bit unconventional choice for this size aquarium but I love those high fin blood red Swordtails especially along with all the varieties of Mollies and Platies. And I feel with that stock I've got a little bit of room to grow into so when they breed I can keep some of the offspring.
I do have some concerns though. I'm really conflicted about having Mollies in a pure freshwater setup. Any advice on whether I should try it or not? If it's truly going to lessen their life span as some say I could wait on them and make a brackish setup later and fill their place with Guppies and Endlers perhaps. But I really would love to keep them. Another potential issue is having multiple male livebearers together. I know they can sometimes be bullies, especially Mollies, but I'm hoping having a good m-f ratio along with lots of room and hiding places will calm any aggression.
Now about those Gouramies. Am I just asking for trouble trying to keep them with Mollies? I know they're supposed to be a bit timid and I don't want them being picked on or starving because they aren't competing for food. Will this be an issue? If so I'll drop them.
As for the shrimp I know there's a risk of them being eaten by the larger fish especially. There will be plenty of plants including Java Moss to hide in, but still I'm not sure how wise a decision this would be. I've already lost to predation all the RCS I tried keeping in a small Betta/community setup.
Other notes: My tap water comes out at 8.2 ph. I've already got Bettas, Cories, and Rummynose Tetras living in this water with nothing to adjust the ph except a small driftwood piece in my 16 gallon, which doesn't have much effect. All are thriving so I'm honestly not concerned much about my high ph. Hardness unknown.
By the way, if certain species above have to be eliminated from the list, the following fish are other species I'm interested in keeping that could take their place, in no particular order: Guppies, Endlers, Harlequin Rasboras, Ghostglass Catfish, Hatchets, Clown Loaches(probably too big for this community), upside down cats(ditto), Opaline, Gold, Pearl, and Dwarf Gouramies, Cherry Barbs, Denison Barbs(surprisingly prevalent and cheap in the stores around here), Boesemani Rainbows, and female Bettas. Phew.
Sorry for the massive post but I prefer to give all the info I can upfront. Thoughts? Thanks for reading!