First large(er) aquarium

Hi all! I hope to recieve my first 100+ (915cmx325cmx325cm) litre aquarium soon, along with stand, heater and filter. I am very excited! Going to let it cycle and then transfer my (ever increasingly huge) pleco, 2 bolivian rams, 4 harlequins, 7 guppies and 3 cories to it from their 30l planted home of the last four months.

However, I need your experienced opinion about what else I can add to this combination regarding substrate, fish, plants etc. I intend to add a few more cories and harlequins as I believe their schooling behaviour (and thus general well being) can only benefit from this.

I don't trust my LPS with this kind of advice, as everytime I ask a different staff member the answers vary greatly. If any of you could recomend a trustworthy LPS in Pta east it will be a super bonus.

Thanks in advance!

 

The bigger the tank the simpler keeping fish becomes - with that said a Pleco could have a negative impact on a well planted tank - see if you can swap / give it back to the LFS.

For easy plants see http://www.tropicalaquarium.co.za/showthread.php?t=3921 some of them are available in the trade.

Also read the 4 sticky threads http://www.tropicalaquarium.co.za/forumdisplay.php?f=6

As a first big tank ... do silica (pool filter sand - well washed) you will need to fertilize in the water column. For fish - use the 30l as a QT tank - but let the other settle into the new home first before adding more - not that I think you should - depending on the the water maintenance you want to do.

BTW what filter and lighting you getting?


"trustworthy LPS" hmmm bit of a contradiction since the whole business model is based on annuity income tied to an emotional response - if you need something specific see if the sponsors are able to help - Prof also has some good food and other products - ask him for a price list.

 

Thanks f-fish! Only problem is, the Pleco is my favourite and is one of the main reasons for the larger tank. He doesn't cause much damage in the current planted tank as he seems to enjoy munching the cheaper plants (lol) and I keep his tummy full by feeding him in his cave away from the more aggressive eaters.

I am concerned about wood for him though, as I have read that they need to nibble on it and the driftwood from my LPS stinks up my tank in no time flat. Any ideas?

As far as lights and filter are concerned I ordered an internal filter/pump combo much the same (only larger and with the correct output) than the one I currently have, not sure how to differentiate between all the filters yet but this one works well so far. I will have to buy the light and fitting from the LPS as I order directly from Daro (work at a vet practice) and was not sure about the size and strength.

 

"driftwood from my LPS stinks up my tank in no time flat. Any ideas?" Sounds odd - not sure what wood your LPS sells but try boiling it for a few hours - first with loads of salt then without. Failing that soak it in a bucket a few days - with salt and without. Or find an alternative source for driftwood.

If you really want to keep your pleco happy you are going to need a way bigger tank ... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plecostomus a 2ft fish needs a serious tank.

 

Thanks! I tried boiling and soaking every which way, will try a different LPS. Luckily I have been warned about the obscene dimensions of the adult Pleco, but for time being I'm expanding the tank as he is expanding... Will have a look at your link, thanks a mil!

 

No problem .. don't get to attached to said pleco .. see http://www.tropicalaquarium.co.za/showpost.php?p=51778&postcount=11 but we are waiting to what the story is once it becomes law.

 

Nooooooo! Why though? Sorry for highjacking my own post, but I have one more pressing pleco question: what do I feed him if/when he starts to get too big for the bottom feeder pellets? The current food is roughly 0.5cmx0.5cm and it looks as though he can nearly swallow it whole.

 

LOL - no clue maybe somebody else on the forum knows .. but eukanuba comes to mind ;-)

 

LOL! Hope you are joking... I have heard many strange stories about people feeding very odd things to their reptiles and fish.

On the orginal thread, any idea what and how I should fertilise the substrate with?

 

I'd say don't try anything funny like PFP (since you have a pleco and all) rather get Prof's fertilizer drops - he will want to know your location since his stuff is done for the water types we have. PM him your email and ask for his price list ..

http://www.tropicalaquarium.co.za/member.php?find=lastposter&t=3950

 

Ansu, try some baby-marrow for the pleco.
See the PFP thread for great sub-substrate fertilizer. But then the pleco could cause problems. I strongly suggest that you should get rid of it , while it is still small, and if not too late- you become too attached to it!

 

Ansu you can also feed your pleco weighted down cucumber use a spoon or teaspoon to weight it down on the bottom and watch what happens they love it! I don't have a planted tank for just that reason he eats all the plants so now I use plastic. He's a spoilt brat non the less!

 

mine swallows whole floating cichlid sticks,bloodworms and even frozen krill(off topic i know)

 

Come to think about it so does mine bloodworms, even flakes off the surface just sucks them right in like a hoover, it's so weird though as the pleco is a veggie/algea eater, seems like they are adventurous eaters! epsi:

 

Yay yay yay yay! I got the aquarium yesterday and I am psyched! Thanks so much for all your input and advice so far, I am sure I will need exponential amounts more now that I actually have the tank staring me in the face.

It seems I will seriously have to consider what to do with the pleco (deep sigh) if its going to be that much of a bother, but I find consolation in the fact that I will now be able to accommodate other interesting fish I have not even heard about yet.

I am still very new to this fish keeping thing, but so far nearly all the plants (mostly ferns and large solid looking broad leafed plants) and all the fish but a few guppies (I blame the holiday house sitter and the cat) have survived me. Seems the same rules apply everywhere: feed it as best you can afford, clean up after it and give it a safe environment with stimulation of it's natural instincts and it can't but live and prosper.

About that substrate (sorry if it sounds stupid), will sand bought at a pool shop do or do I need to order it especially?

 

"will sand bought at a pool shop ... " yes - that is perfect .. just wash it before you add it to your tank.