Help With Stockiing Level

[Aqua Tom]

I am on the last knockings of my Fishless cycle so have been looking at my ideal stock list & the stock level of my tank. i dont want to overstock the tank but alos i dont want it bare. I would like a lot of colours & variation to keep my kids interested.

It is going to be a south american themed tank with some if not all of the following fish in it. I will write down the adult size of each one but will be reliying on you experts to help me as i know the 1in per gallon rule is not realy what we use any more.

The tank is a 180 litre 40 gallon. The Filter is a fluval 205. Substrate playsand. No real plants except for some riccia & two mossballs. Plenty of silk plants. Lots of wood & slate caves/piles.


Fishy Listy

Cardinal or Rummy nosed tetra as big a school as is practical 4-5cm 1.5-2in (these are a MUST have)

Apistos pair of, Male 7cm, 3in - Female 2.5cm 1in. (may get two females as a harem)

Corys 6cm 2.5 in x6

Bristlenose catfish pair of, 10cm 5in (these are a MUST have)

Hatchetfish for the surface x 3-4 4cm 1.6in

A few assasin snails as somthing diffrent.




Obviously I am flexible on most things but the Cats & tetras are a must.

So what do you think?

 

[james_fish]

Hi Tom.

South America eyy? Good choice! Firstly, if you don't want your tank to look bare, you will want a big shoal of Characins (eg. 15-20 Cardinals) I have 8 in my tank but they are lost, truth betold. They lack presence, but show beautiful colours.
The Apisto's, Cory's and Pleco's will be fine. You've nearly described my South American tank there! (you can find the stocking and link to the journal in my signature, if your interested)

Can't comment on Hatchetfish, as i've never kept them. But can't see a problem there.

The only thing i'd say is if you wanted a biggish shoal of Tetra, aswell as the other fish, im not sure wether you'd need to up the filtration or just keep on top of your W/C etc.

All in all, a nice stocking list.

James.

 

[guppy2198]

I think that a couple of big shoals of tetras, danios etc. would lovely in a tank like yours. You could have 10's and 10's of each fish. There is a wide variety of tetras available from the neon tetra to the orange headed tetra. A couple of species of them would provide stunning colours of fish. However, that is what I would do personally. Your stock list is fine as it is.

 

[Aqua Tom]

Hi Tom.

South America eyy? Good choice! Firstly, if you don't want your tank to look bare, you will want a big shoal of Characins (eg. 15-20 Cardinals) I have 8 in my tank but they are lost, truth betold. They lack presence, but show beautiful colours.
The Apisto's, Cory's and Pleco's will be fine. You've nearly described my South American tank there! (you can find the stocking and link to the journal in my signature, if your interested)

Can't comment on Hatchetfish, as i've never kept them. But can't see a problem there.

The only thing i'd say is if you wanted a biggish shoal of Tetra, aswell as the other fish, im not sure wether you'd need to up the filtration or just keep on top of your W/C etc.

All in all, a nice stocking list.

James.

i will be having quite a nice payout mid january so if the water quality becomes an issue I can get a bigger filter without too much fuss.

 

[OldMan47]

You have plenty of filtration for a 40 gallon tank. Your stocking also looks fine to me. Be aware that hatchets are notorious jumpers. If you have children become attached to them, it can be a tragedy to find one drying out on the floor by the tank. If you like shoaling fish, the rummy nose are a better choice than cardinals. There are almost no fish that shoal more tightly than rummy nose do. Some added considerations would be rasboras. They are tough as nails fish that also look good in quantities.

 

[creg]

if you want something colourful try golden rams, i just got a pair and they are beautiful (gold with shades of pink). you could probably get a pair and the apistos.

if you dont mind not having south american only fish i bet a small school of cherry barb would look nice with cardinals too, or maybe some glo light tetra

im just a beginner but thats my opinions..

 

[karin]

Seems like a single cichlid like an angel might be nice as a focal point. I think it would be okay with the cardinals and rummys. I have angels that are mellow mellow and others that are a bit nippy so like with all cichlids can be a risk.

 

[Aqua Tom]

Seems like a single cichlid like an angel might be nice as a focal point. I think it would be okay with the cardinals and rummys. I have angels that are mellow mellow and others that are a bit nippy so like with all cichlids can be a risk.

Now that is an idea. I may forget the hatchets & go with a single angel.