Advise On Community

[Gazo]

Hi Guys,
I'm a total newbie to the tropical fish game.

I have my tank set up Juwel Rio 180 with all accessories.
Tank has been cycled, left for a week and chemical tests done etc and bought my first lot of fish last weekend.
Got a few cave and 10 small plants in there.

2 male Guppies and 6 female Guppies.
1 of the females has died due to what appeared to be mouth fungus.
1 of the females has given birth to about 11 fry but only 2 left now as I have no breeding traps!! 1 of the young is stuck inside the filter housing and seem quite at home. The other is getting bigger and seems to be ok, but I fear for this little one.

I'm looking at adding some Neon Tetras and Danio Roseus to the mix this coming weekend.
In the coming months my aim is 6 Tiger Barbs, 6 Clown Loaches and a few catfish maybe Feather Fin.

Does anyone have any hints/tips they could shower my way.

 

[vinylman]

You say your tank has been cycled, then left for a week. What exactly do you mean - did you do a complete fishless cycle, then leave it for a week, or just fill the tank then leave it a week before adding fish. We need to know the figures for your water tests, too.

 

[bobross]

If I were me, I would check a little bit about the sizes of all of these fish you plan on keeping together. I'm not sure off hand if those could all go together, but schools of all of those fish seems a little overstocked. Then again, I didn't look up anything on any of those fish before typing this

...That reminds me, is this tank 180 us gallons or 180 Litres?

Also, if you were planning on keeping/raising the guppy fry, their chance of survival would deminish(spelling?) the more fish you add. Assuming you knew that as you mentioned breeding nets; not having one...


Good luck on the community tank, if all those fish would work together somehow, it would be n-e-a-t to watch

 

[Gazo]

You say your tank has been cycled, then left for a week. What exactly do you mean - did you do a complete fishless cycle, then leave it for a week, or just fill the tank then leave it a week before adding fish. We need to know the figures for your water tests, too.

Complete fishless cycle for a week, then fish added. Water tests were all very low if zero for ammonia, a little nitrate and practically no nitrite. PH 6.7 - is this what you mean?

And its a 180l tank, don't do gallons thats just wierd!!!

 

[dwarfgourami]

You say your tank has been cycled, then left for a week. What exactly do you mean - did you do a complete fishless cycle, then leave it for a week, or just fill the tank then leave it a week before adding fish. We need to know the figures for your water tests, too.

Complete fishless cycle for a week, then fish added. Water tests were all very low if zero for ammonia, a little nitrate and practically no nitrite. PH 6.7 - is this what you mean?

And its a 180l tank, don't do gallons thats just wierd!!!

Was that a fishless cycle adding ammonia, or Biospira/Bactinettes, or how did you do it?

As for the choice of fish, the tank (180 litres) is on the small side for clown loaches, they grow slowly but can grow big. How about a school of khuulie loaches instead? Or a school of corydoras.

Tiger barbs are not a good match with guppies, as they are renowned fin-nippers and very boisterous, while guppies sport long fins and are more easily stressed. If you want barbs, pentazona barbs would be a better choice, as they are a bit quieter. Golden barbs might be ok too. Or if you're aiming for a shy and peaceful tank, cherry barbs.

Dont know anything about the featherfins- I would ask in the catfish forum about how much swimming space they need, and if there is any risk they might eat your smaller fish.

 

[Gazo]

The filters I used had all the ingredients I would need plus I added the cycle solution to the tank, then left it to do its think for a week before adding any fish.

I hope I've done it properly now because I'm doubting the advice I was given by various sources including websites and pet stores!!!

As for the fish, I've done so much research on them that my head feels like its about to explode. Tiger Barbs are better in groups so 6+ should be ok. My other choice was the Pentazona!! Clown Loaches are just lovely so I may see how it goes and if there is trouble buy another tank.

Keep the info coming guys it is greatly appreciated.

 

[Brette]

I would leave room for the baby guppies, which you will probably have more of. Unless you plan on selling them to a fish store or something.

 

[vinylman]

You say your tank has been cycled, then left for a week. What exactly do you mean - did you do a complete fishless cycle, then leave it for a week, or just fill the tank then leave it a week before adding fish. We need to know the figures for your water tests, too.

Complete fishless cycle for a week, then fish added. Water tests were all very low if zero for ammonia, a little nitrate and practically no nitrite. PH 6.7 - is this what you mean?

And its a 180l tank, don't do gallons thats just wierd!!!

That's not a fishless cycle; a cycle can take 3-8 weeks to complete. We need the figures for your water tests - don't even think about adding more fish until it's been properly cycled. Please read the thread on cycling.