was just given a tank now what

[floridalove]

my pops is moving and instead of breaking down his 55 gal 3-4 times while they move, he gave me the tank and is buying a new one. this tank has 2 red finned tetras one 10inches the other one 6 inches, 2 silver dollars at 5 inches each, 3 Plecostomus ( 1 10 inches long, the other are at 8 and the little one at 5 inches) one kissing gourami 6 inches long , his friend died 4-5 months ago. and 2 bala sharks at 5 inches ( they were actually bought like 3 weeks before the tank was given to me).
it has a good dual top fin 60 filter. the floor is gravel. its agreat tank i just feed them the flake food but the 2 big Plecostomus have wounds one their noses and the silver dollar and bala sharks fins look like they been nibbled at a bit. my suspects on the nibbler is from the big tetra which is about 10inches long he is very territorial and the 2 Plecostomus fight constantly what should i do to make this semi-aggressive community a little bit less violent. thanks.

 

[Rena321654]

It may be that your Plecostomus are the ones "nibbling" at your other fishes fins. I woke up one morning to seeing my plecostomus with one of my other fish pinned against the aquarium!!!!!!!!!!!!! Watch them they may say "nice fish" at the pet store, but I'm not sure I believe that any more. Once I removed the plecostomus, my fishes fins healed. Also, another trick may be to get a separator for the tank and put the fish you believe are the vicious ones on one side and see if anybody heals. There is also a slime coating additive that can help to repair broken skin.

 

[wuvmybetta]

Right now they're going through changes. Were they more peaceful when they lived with your dad?
When the tank was torn down and moved, their territory was destroyed so now they have to re-establish themselves and claim an area of their own. They'll probably settle down over time. You could try and set it up just like it was before,that may ease them a bit.

When you guys dismantled the tank, you didn't clean the gravel or filter or anything did you? Did you take some of their old water with them for when you set the tank back up? Just asking to make sure your tank isn't going through a mini-cycle. Did it come with an ammonia ,nitrite test kit? Any extra info will be helpful

Welcome to the forum

 

[floridalove]

thanks, actually the tank was broken down had to put the fish in two large buckets with original water. the aquarium landscape is basically the same i didnt clean the whole filter just put new pads in and did not clean the gravel, i did on the other hand, put new water in. could this be why my fish are getting aggressive.

 

[Cheese Specialist]

thanks, actually the tank was broken down had to put the fish in two large buckets with original water. the aquarium landscape is basically the same i didnt clean the whole filter just put new pads in and did not clean the gravel, i did on the other hand, put new water in. could this be why my fish are getting aggressive.

I think by putting new filter pad in you will have started cycling the tank again. Filter pads should be replaced one at a time and only when they are trule falling apart IMO. Other than that they should be gently washed in tank water every s o often.

I think you may have problems with the stocking level of your tank. Balas need 7f tanks as they grow to about 12" and should be in 3s or more. Your plecs (depending on kind) may grow to bigger than they are (oh and I doubt that it was a plec who injured your fish's fins). Kissing gouramis get to 10" and can be aggressive.

It seems like you have been given a tank full of potentially very big fish.

 

[pendragon]

this tank has 2 red finned tetras one 10inches the other one 6 inches, 2 silver dollars at 5 inches each, 3 Plecostomus ( 1 10 inches long, the other are at 8 and the little one at 5 inches) one kissing gourami, his friend died 4-5 months ago. and 2 bala sharks at 5 inches ( they were actually bought like 3 weeks before the tank was given to me).

I hate to point out stocking issues in an established tank, but...

There are no tetras I know of that even get close to 6 inches, much less 10. They are probably rainbow sharks, or some similar fish with aggressive tendancies, that may be being stimulated by the stress of moving. I'd bet these are the culprits harrassing the silver dollars and balas. Identifying those fish would help out with knowing what you're dealing with; I feel very certain they are not tetras.

Three common Plecos in a 55, when you get right down to it, are just too much. They get way too large and there's not enough real estate there for them to share without being miserable. I don't know how there's sufficient food for three Plecos in a 55 unless they exist entirely on discs you feed them. I'm also surprised you haven't had problems with them quarreling with each other over territory.

Balas eventually get very big and require a lot of tank space to avoid injuring/killing themselves. You've no doubt seen how skittish and "jumpy" they are. When they get sufficently large, they will eventually slam themselves into the sides of the tank and do themselves considerable damage.

The kissing gourami, too, will get very large and, as has already been said, can be an aggressive fish.

I'm sorry to say , but you've definitely got stocking issues, certainly in the long term, but more than likely, probably already. I know 55-gallons seems like a gigantic tank, but it's just not big enough for that combination of fish to coexist happily.

pendragon!