Stocking?

[emmettbaby]

I've changed my mind...again. So I went to my LFS and bought a huge wrecked boat decoration. I'm wanting to put a few live plants in eventually (small ones though like java moss or something). Anyway not what I'm wondering. The tank is US 29 gallon 30" x 12" x 18". I'd say the boat and bogwood take up at least 3/4 of the length and most of the width. I'm already having to put a cory (trilineatus will have approx. 7 when I buy more) and 2 scissortails that I've rescued and am keeping in a 10 gallon until I can cycle my 29. SO I did want a community tank, but now, I wouldn't mind having a some apistos and german blue rams. I've already been told that I should get like 3f to 1m or something? I'm buying online/auction because my LFSs don't have these kinds of fish and I've noticed they usually sell at least 3 at a time. I was hoping to have:

*6-10 trilineatus corydoras
*2 scissortails rasboras
*3-6 apistos
*3-6 GBRs

About how many can/should I have of the apistos? Are they even compatible with GBRs and cories? I know they'll probably never catch the raboras so I'm not worried about them!

The ship is completely hollow with large holes on both sides, but will decrease the number of fish i can have?

 

[Verminator89]

Appistos arent known for giving aggro to fish such as cories. So you should be ok. As for going with both of GBRs and appistos i would recommend going for one or the other in a tank this size. Mainly because if you were to end up with a pair of each you could get the odd scuffle for territory between your cichlids.


Ideally you would want to go for perhaps 2 of either cichlid and up your numbers of rasbora from 2 to something like 5+ as they are a group fish.

 

[Wills]

I would do

3 Apistos - your choice of species 1m 2 f
2 Bolivian Rams - GBRs have really specific needs that cant be met with the standard community set up.
5 Scissortail Rasboras - but I think these get quite large like 10-12cm? And also they are a very active fish so I wont bash you for rescuing them as Im sure you did the right thing but perhaps think about moving them onto an LFS or an other member on this forum that has a larger tank for them?
8 Trin Cories

Wills

 

[moochy13]

ive got a community set-up (33G 4ft long) with 11 cories (including 4 tri's), 1 m (soon to be m/f) apisto and 2 GBR (m/f i think). neither of them hassle anybody else in the tank. sometimes the rams have a quick dart at each other, and i have an angel that will very rarely do the same, but 99% of the time they are all perfectly peaceful towards eachother. i dont do anything special to my tank, my stats are all good, my food isnt particuarly expensive or super duper, and my pH is about 7.4ish

 

[Wills]

The problem with GBRs is not a short term issue its a long term issue - the common time for issues to arise is around 18 months - these fish should live to be 5-7 years old but if kept in high ph and lower temperature water their metabolism among other things get messed up and their life span gets cut short.

To complicate the GBR thing more - it would seem that the further the fish is away from its wild relatives as well as how it was raised on the farm the better it does in regular community tanks but with the distribution of them being about 50% suitable for community to 50% unsuitable its literally impossible to find which you can house.

Those are the two reasons that I would avoid them but it has to be said there are a number of people that had good success with them recently but IMO they have not been kept long enough to determine how successful it will be. So yeah it can work but its very very difficult to determine how well but there is a decentish chance now that it could work with GBRs long term.

But based on the slim differences between bolivian and blue rams Im not sure its particularly worth the risks personally.

Wills