Tank content

[macattack]

Hi all,

I am still new to this game - and was wondering how often I should change the layout and contents ( rocks and plantlife ..etc..) of my tank?
I have a small cornertank approx 30-35 gallon. I was told it was a good starter!!
to date I have ( Left ) :
All 6 Tetra's
3 x Gouramis - a pearl, golden and a dalmation
1 x Plec ( fondly known as the window licker by my 5 yr old! )
3 x Black widow's ( started with 6!! )
3 x Tiger Barbs ( again started with 6 !!!!)
1 x Albino catfish thingy? - he was supposed to be the bottom feeder but spends his day sat on top off the pump?

I have 5 'plastic' plants and a plastic mangrove root - I am not bored of watching my fish but I would like to add some sort of variety for them to ... play!

Would you advise to put in real plants? some real rocks? what is best for them?

 

[Lateral Line]

You have a few problems there. Your current stock level is not excessive for your tank, but at the same time you don't have any free space, I'm assuming the "tetras" are little ones. I also assuming the plec is one of the little ones, there are many plecs that grow HUGE! Final assumption is the albino cat is a cory or some other little thing.

That said, Tiger Barbs can be very aggressive fin nippers in groups of less then 6, and even then, will nip at trailing fins like gouramies tend to have. The Black Widows should also be in a group of at least 6 as well, although they are not aggressive. I would be tempted to take the Tiger Barbs back and swap them for 3 Black Widows.

In general, moving the decor around will lightly stress the fish for a short period. Usually not significant. Often people move the decor around if they are introducing new fish as all the fish "start again" with regards to territory etc..

Real plants require adequate lighting. What "adequate" is depends on the type of plants. To advise, we need to know what kind of lighting you have, (fluorescent, incandescent etc.), what Wattage you have, how long each day it is on, and ideally, if you can find out, the spectral make up of the light, often quoted as a temperature, (a full spectrum lamp has the range 5500K - 6500K for example - and is ideal). Because of the shape, corner tanks usually are limited to quite short fluorescent lamps and it is often difficult to get enough Wattage on.

Rocks are normally fine to add. Do not add anything with sharp edges. Be carefull collecting rocks from areas where they may have been contaminated, i.e. sprayed with insecticide or whatever. In any case, all additions should be very thouroughly cleaned. Finally, do not add limestone/chalk type rocks, they will harden your water and raise your pH - to check this, drop some vinegar on the rock, if it fizzes, even slightly, do not use it.