Congo Aquarium Setup

[areuben]

I am considering setting up a congo type setup and wanted some advice. My 20+ years in the hobby has been exclusively Tanganyikan and I am ready for a change.
Aquarium will be 72 x 30 inch footprint by 27" high with lots of filtration. My challenge is that my local water (well water) has a pH around 7.8 and hardness around 380ppm and that seems to limit my choices of west african fish. And I don't want to fool around with water parameters.
I have several synodontis catfish that will be in the set-up - pardalis, decorus and possibly flavitaeniatus or brichardi and am looking for some interesting fish to stock.
Will congo tetras do well in this water - and what would be a good group size - 15-20 pieces?? I like the idera that they are egg scatterers and that my catfish will take care of (eat) the eggs - I don't want to deal with fry.
What else would be compatible with the congos? or should a good sized group be the focus of the tank? what about brycinus longipinnis or bryconaethiops boulengeri as tank mates? or a pair of pseudocrenilabrus nicholsi?? or steatocranus - but they'll be busy parents with too many fry?? that I really don't want.
I should add that I like a busy tank with lots of activity - such as a tanganyikan tank with lots of cyprichromis or a tank full of tropheus jarring for position all the time, chasing, etc - not mean aggression but active behaviour.
Thanks for any ideas.

 

[TooManyChoices]

With so many synodontis I'm sure they'll get rid of any eggs/ fry so I wouldn't be concerned. Congo tetras are amazing fish so definitely get them. And I'm sure they'll get used to the slightly higher pH. I guess you want cichlids in there. I personally would go for buffalo I heads (steatocranus). They get a decent size and are a spectacularly unusual! Lots of river rocks down the bottom in a spot of high flow will do them well.

I'm not sure how well more delicate fish would go in there so I'll let someone else chime in about elephant noses, ropefish, bichirs etc.

 

[areuben]

What would a good number of Congo tetras be for the size of tank. I had thought of some steatocranus possibly the casuarius or the Irvinei which I have kept before and are both unique fish,  the hump on the cas and the lip coloration on the irvinei . Any thoughts on brycinus or the bryconaethiops or any other suggestions

 

[aether.ed]

Well I've got around 30 large adult congos and they provide one hell of a display. Compatible Africans would be, ropefish, elephantnose, African brown knife. Can post you video of my African river set up, its amost 100% Congo except for my featherfin synos! Congos grow large (larger than any website says) they are incredibly active, they need tons of swimming space and dim lights!

 

[areuben]

Would love to see that video, absolutely. What size tamk do you have the 30 in? and does the tank have just the congo's in it. Any thoughts on how they will handle my harder water? Appreciate the feedback - dim lights are right up my alley as I like to keep low light tanks. This tank specifically sits across the room (15ft) from a couple of 2 x 4 foot basement windows which offer some great diffused light - no sunlight, just brighness and diffused light. I typically never even used a light on the tank that was there before. Is your tank heavily planted for the congos? will they do allright with artificial plants given that low/dim lighting may not support a lot of plant growth?
Thanks,

 

[aether.ed]

My tank is a 60 x 24in so a bit smalller (still waiting for my 10 x 4ft beast) I did have my tank heavily planted with low light plants but recently got rid of the non african plants to make for a more convincing African biotope. The congos share their tank with other African species but apart from their voracious feeding habits the congos are as good as gold and look stunning. Diffused natural light will make these fishes colour pop! A large school of congos is a sight to behold!

 

[areuben]

You've got me pumped now - just have to wait for the tank to come in !! Do post that video if you have a chance.
Thanks

 

[N0body Of The Goat]

I have several synodontis catfish that will be in the set-up - pardalis, decorus and possibly flavitaeniatus or brichardi and am looking for some interesting fish to stock.
Will congo tetras do well in this water - and what would be a good group size - 15-20 pieces?? I like the idera that they are egg scatterers and that my catfish will take care of (eat) the eggs - I don't want to deal with fry.
What else would be compatible with the congos? or should a good sized group be the focus of the tank? what about brycinus longipinnis or bryconaethiops boulengeri as tank mates? or a pair of pseudocrenilabrus nicholsi?? or steatocranus - but they'll be busy parents with too many fry?? that I really don't want.

Given that you have rheophilic synos, which do really well in 10-20x real water turnover, I would forget about Phenacogrammus interruptus altogether (which do far better in a low-moderate current setup with "African oddball" fish). Brycinus longipinnis would probably be one of your better bets, but beware these have been know to starve placid feeding tankmates, so in that respect Alestopetersius caudalis might be better (my group of 12 loved the 12500lph Magnum 8 powerhead I used to have in my 5x2x2). I would probably stick to 12 Brycinus (a fish I might get this year), or ~20 Alestopetersius with two females per male to reduce the odds of the nasty jousting injuries males can and did inflict on each other when I had them.
 
I take it you know Synodontis decora are extremely social and flavitaeniata are close behind on that front? Both do better in 6+ groups. S. brichardi are a little more aggressive, I've been very lucky that two of mine have been together for ~18 months withot major trouble, I have a third one ready to introduce as sson as I get my 72x18x18 setup.
 
Steatocranus casuarius can be problematic when they typically breed once in the UK winter months, I have two bonded pairs with ~25 fry each, one family being in my Rio240 community. Things are very tense in there right now, because the fry are now bouncing to around the middle of the tank with the parents being very protective, so everything else is stuck in one quarter of the tank (including my poor Synodontis notata), which is why I have not introduced my third brichardi when there is already trouble brewing. My two smaller Steatocranus tinanti/ultraslender are far better community fish, which are trusted with my Microsynodontis sp.1 / polli; Pareutropius mandevillei; Nannostomus beckfordi; Ambastaia sidthimunki... But they are not a bonded pair, so I cannot say how pyschotic they might become when guarding fry.   

 

[aether.ed]

Sorry about the delay, at work at the mo!
 
Heres the most recent video, nice close ups of my fish but cant see much of the tank, all these fish are species found in the congo except for the featherfins which are african but from the nile and the niger river. Love my african fish!
 
http/www.youtube.com/watch?v=WsU-xDYBqSc
 
 
I have to say out of all the fish i have i always get compliments about the congos, i think with the price these things are (£12.50 a piece in my local!) its rare to see such a large group of them and it really has an impact on people. Most people keep 5 or 6 and wonder why they are so aggressive, terrorizing other fish. But just like any tetra they need to be in considerable number with a considerable amount of space. 
 
Il try take a video later of just my congos for ya!
 
Oh and RE: plants we'll they certainly like the plant cover as long as it isnt in the middle of their swimming space, mine never swim amongst plants but love the leaves floating on the surface, but then again I have a light on my tank (only a 30w mind!) I would very much say that they are an open water swimmer tho, the only time mine dart for cover is if theyve been startled, lid slamming down or lights coming on in the morning sort of thing.
 
Oh and I had a duckweed problem, it took over the tank, diddnt feed the congos for 2 days and the duck weed had entirely gone, the congos ate it all!
 
Enjoy the vid, watch in HD if poss, the tetras pop in 1080p!
 
Just you wait, my next aquarium venture will have 100+ congo tetras! I will keep buying them until i run out of money!

(edit Ah yes Nobody of the goat is correct. They like a more gentle flow. Something tells me that you dont have the 10-20x water turnover of which mr/mrs goat refers to though. Not insinuating anything here, its just that sort of turnover on that size tank would be well out of reach for your average aquarist.   

 

[areuben]

Fish Fanatic - terrific vid AND sound - could have watched that for hours, just needed a red wine but it's too early here in Ottawa, Canada. !! And at -10 to -20C here the last few days, a hot chocolate would be better but not nearly as much fun.
Nobody of the Goat - I hear you and agree on your points regarding the flow and numbers of synos - I have them in numbers now and just need to figure out the best set-up. I am still hyped on the congos but from what you're saying and what I have read certainly B longipinnis would be great. Are the B longipinnis as stunning as the congos?
Will both of these adapt to my water - pH 7.8, 380ppm - or are they touchy on water. The synos have adapted no problem.
As for water flow, the tank will be filtered with 1-Eheim 2262 @ 900gph plus either 1-2080 or 1-2260 at around 500gph - these are all filters I have currently on other tanks. There will also be a Sicce Voyager 7 powerhead @ 2800gph and a voyager 4 @ 1600. I have these 2 powerheads running on a 6 foot 125G right now and the decora, pardalis and brichardi love it !! The Sicce push water nicely and I find them a little quieter than my Hydor's. 

 

[aether.ed]

Okay maybe you are beyond the average aquarist. I shall call you mr. Powerhead!   (that's if U are indeed a mr. ;-)).  Yeh the congos n their long flowing fins won't enjoy the current much. Apart from that it could have worked nicely!

 

[areuben]

I'm not giving up on the congos yet and indeed the tank can be set up a little differently flow wise to still make everyone happy. mr Powerhead - that's a good one !! had a good laugh at that comment. Thanks for the feedback.

 

[N0body Of The Goat]

Fish Fanatic - terrific vid AND sound - could have watched that for hours, just needed a red wine but it's too early here in Ottawa, Canada. !! And at -10 to -20C here the last few days, a hot chocolate would be better but not nearly as much fun.
Nobody of the Goat - I hear you and agree on your points regarding the flow and numbers of synos - I have them in numbers now and just need to figure out the best set-up. I am still hyped on the congos but from what you're saying and what I have read certainly B longipinnis would be great. Are the B longipinnis as stunning as the congos?
Will both of these adapt to my water - pH 7.8, 380ppm - or are they touchy on water. The synos have adapted no problem.
As for water flow, the tank will be filtered with 1-Eheim 2262 @ 900gph plus either 1-2080 or 1-2260 at around 500gph - these are all filters I have currently on other tanks. There will also be a Sicce Voyager 7 powerhead @ 2800gph and a voyager 4 @ 1600. I have these 2 powerheads running on a 6 foot 125G right now and the decora, pardalis and brichardi love it !! The Sicce push water nicely and I find them a little quieter than my Hydor's. 

I would say Brycinus longipinnis look as good as Phenacogrammus interruptus...
http/www.google.co.uk/search?q=brycinus+longipinnis&hl=en&safe=off&tbo=d&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=YyASUYulBInK0QWr_oFg&ved=0CAoQ_AUoAA&biw=1920&bih=1109
 
Here is a great "Congo rapids" tank kept by Jippo (check his other clips), who is active at PlanetCatfish...
 
[video]http/www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1FCS3UjA5U[/video]

 

[aether.ed]

I'm not giving up on the congos yet and indeed the tank can be set up a little differently flow wise to still make everyone happy. mr Powerhead - that's a good one !! had a good laugh at that comment. Thanks for the feedback.

Well, what if i said that in my 2ft wide tank they only use the front 12inches along the length? they never venture into the back of the tank, they just rush up and down its length. With the generous 3ft that you have and the smorgasbord of powerheads you could (with a bit of fiddling) keep the back half with fast flow leaving the front at a more ambient gentle flow. It may indeed be possible!
 
Oh just incase it matters, they seem to hang around the mid to bottom layers of the tank, mine only go near the surface to feed. 

 

[areuben]

Yes I can definitely concentrate the powerheads to a certan area with the floorplan I will have. Again appreciate the suggestions and notes - useful to know for a steadfast tanganyikan holder. I'm definitely looking forward to the change.