# NEWBIE Needs Help! FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT IS HOLY, PLEASE!



## Mr Fish (Sep 9, 2005)

Hi, catchy title, eh? Ok. I'm a fairly newbie here. Getting a 125 gallon tank soon, freshwater. I'm going to make sure I have all the right lighting, filtering, etc... my question for the Fish-Bros is this:

Here is the list of fish I want in the tank, eventually. I've done my research and plan to run the tank tempertature at 76F, even 7.0 pH and KH of 9. My tank will include many rocks and hiding places and at least 1 peice of cured driftwood. I plan to have a moderate number of plants (probably have the corners and some areas heavily planted but other areas open). I am using a sand substrate.

FISH:
Dwarf Gourami. 2 (or 4).
Silver Tip Tetra. 6 or more.
Splashing Tetra. 6 or more.
Royal Farlowella Cat. One.
Otocinclus Catfish. 1-3 (probably 2).
Sailfin Pleco. 1.
Sterba's Cory Cat. 6 or more.
Bosemani Rainbow. 6 or more.
Giraffe Nosed Catfish. 1.

INVERTS:
Gold Inca Snail. 1-3.
Japanese Trapdoor Snail. 1-3.
Freshwater Clam. 5-6.
Singapore Flower Shrimp. 3-5.
Japonica Amano Shrimp. 3-5.
Hammer's Cobalt Blue Lobster. 1.

QUESTIONS: 
Can my tank handle this number of fish? 
Will my fish get along? They are all listed as "peaceful". 
Will my fish eat my inverts (the shrimps)?
Will my inverts eat my fish?
Will my inverts eat each other?

I'm specifically worried about the Hammer's Cobalt Blue Lobster. It's listed as semi-aggressive but the write up I read said it's generally peaceful (except with it's own kind). 

I did most of my research here:
http://www.liveaquaria.com/default.cfm?siteid=20

... and I eventually plan to order most of my fish there.


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## 2complicated (Aug 25, 2005)

thats quite OK....


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## Mr Fish (Sep 9, 2005)

2complicated said:


> thats quite OK....


 Thanks for the response - you mean to say, you think my tank set-up sounds OK? None of the fish will have problems with each other? Even the inverts?

Was off to bed when he was 12,

- Mr Fish


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## fishfreaks (Jan 19, 2005)

I would leave out the lobster. You may find one day that it has eaten one of your other inverts or fish.


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## Cichlid Man (Jan 19, 2005)

Trial and error m8. If you can see that two fish are not compatible, then do something about it! Don't just sit there and say, "They'll work it out in the end, just give em a couple a days".


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## Mr Aquarium (Jan 18, 2005)

You have planed on cycling the tank before you stock it up good right?


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## Mr Fish (Sep 9, 2005)

Mr Aquarium said:


> You have planed on cycling the tank before you stock it up good right?


 Yes and I'll probably just add 2-4 fish at a time. 

I first plan to set-up the aquarium. Fill it up, check for leaks. My substrate hasn't gotten here yet so I'll dump the water out (if no leaks) and wait for my moon sand. 

When my substrate gets here -- fill it with the sand, then fill it 1/2 way with water. Run pump. Wait 2 weeks. Put in 1 mosquito fish from my pond. Wait. Wait. Test. Wait. When it looks like it's finished, remove mosquito fish back to pond. Put in plants. Test. Buy CO2 if needed. Put in some hardy fish from my list (just a few). etc...


I won't have all these critters for months. I guess I'll probably need a CO2 system if I want decent plants... do I need one to keep pH level? All this expense... thanks for all the responses, guys.


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## Chazwick (Aug 24, 2005)

Leave the lobster out, love, unless you want an all lobster tank.. with a few top dwellers (but apparently, the lobsters 'jump' up trying to catch them.. to eat them, and the fish die from stress). I'd stick to something simple-ish for a 125 gal 
And don't cory-cats eat snails. i guess that could be useful for when they have babies... and be prepared to have hundreds with more than one snail??  Make sure you have lots of hideouts for the fish... and some real plants would do good... and you need a heater.. and make sure you have 6 tetras (which you have stated) of each speices.. seeing as they feel more at ease.. it's best to have an even number of them, as they tend to 'pair' even when they school.. mine all do - and with an odd number, one will be left on it's own and possible bullied. The bigger fish you have in the tank the bigger groups of tetras you'll need.. with big fish they don't feel safe with under 6.


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## Chazwick (Aug 24, 2005)

Must add! Make sure you clean through EVERYTHING, before putting it in your tank.. you probably already know this if you've done your research, but pests and stuff can get onto your ordaments, driftwood.. and even in your sand, little worm things. You must clean everything.. 
Sorry for pointing out the obvious


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## Mr Fish (Sep 9, 2005)

THANKS for the advise -- Nothing is too obvious -- I've done some reading but have no real experience... any/all helpful tips welcome. A heater is coming with the tank I won on ebay. I might put in a redundant back-up heater (maybe set to temp 75, so if the main one ever breaks or can't keep it warm enough - it will kick in...) 

Even Numbers: Wow, thanks - I was going to get 7 (so if one died I'd still have 6...) but I'll stick with pairs. 

The Lobster: It's actually a crawdaddy, grows 5" maximum. Unlike the other two shrimp (which are herbivores) it's an omnivore... Boy I'd love to have one but yea, if he's going to try and eat everyone that just won't work. 

I do plan on using real plants. I would say I'll have a moderate #. Can plants cause my pH levels to change super fast? Do I need a CO2 system in place to prevent this? THANKS

- Mr. Fish


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## Fishfirst (Jan 24, 2005)

the co2 is like plant fertilizer, it helps the plants gain energy when they photosynthisize(sp?). It will actually make your pH drop to a lower pH than 7, but thats fine for most fish as long as it doesn't go quickly. I would set up your filtration/substrait and cycle the tank without the misquitofish, and do it fishless. Then set up the planted tank, get all the plants you want first with a few fish. What kind of lighting do you have? Most planted tanks use hundreds of dollars of lighting.


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## Mr Fish (Sep 9, 2005)

This is the tank I just won on Ebay (dimensions of the tank itself are: 5' wide, 1'6" deep and 2'2"

Plan on putting many red lava rocks (been told they won't affect pH levels), some driftwood in it for hiding spots. Plant on putting heavy vegitation in the corners and towards the back, less vegitation in the middle and front.

(I don't want the gravel or the ornaments currently in the aquarium, when I get it, I'll clean it out and start fresh)


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## Chazwick (Aug 24, 2005)

That's a very nice tank - hope you choose some good fish selections for it - and don't make any stupid beginner mistakes of putting fish in with others that will eat them
Oh - and enjoy the hobby.. i only started a month or less ago.. and i'm loving it!


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## Mr Fish (Sep 9, 2005)

Fishfirst said:


> the co2 is like plant fertilizer, it helps the plants gain energy when they photosynthisize(sp?). It will actually make your pH drop to a lower pH than 7, but thats fine for most fish as long as it doesn't go quickly. I would set up your filtration/substrait and cycle the tank without the misquitofish, and do it fishless. Then set up the planted tank, get all the plants you want first with a few fish. What kind of lighting do you have? Most planted tanks use hundreds of dollars of lighting.


 I forget the range of pH, but some of the fish I listed couldn't handle much below 7 (according to the site I researched)... so I'm not really sure I would want to drop it below neutral. 

CO2: Not sure I want to spring for an automatic one.. kind of $$$, was thinking of running one during the day, shutting it off at night on a timer (when plants actually use oxygen, not co2).

Fishless cycle: I just read about that last night... run the tank 1/2 full... put in some ammonia, no fish... I can try that. Supposedly it works quicker, anyway.

Lighting: I'll be honest.. I don't know what kind of lighting I have. I won this tank for $250.00 and even with 100 or so extra for shipping I think I got a pretty decent deal. I spoke to the lady who was auctioning it on Ebay on the phone and she was selling it for someone else. She wasn't sure about the lighting. It's probably not quite where it needs to be. I forget the watts/gallon ratio I need but I'll look into it when the time comes. Hopefully I'll get the tank this weekend..


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## Chazwick (Aug 24, 2005)

Around 7.5-8.0 is suitable for nearly all fishes, the ph isn't too important, unless it's of the chart.. otherwise it's fine! 
My ph is about 7.0-8.0.. and my neons and betta are perfect, most fish adapt to the different ph ranges.


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## Lydia (Feb 6, 2005)

It sounds like you got a great deal! I am glad you are researching first, too. You could try the crawdad and see if he eats stuff or not. If he does, get rid of him, and if he doesn't than that's cool. I would try it if I were you. Just as long as you don't have anything that he might eat that is really hard to replace.

BTW Cory cats do not eat snails.


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## Fishfirst (Jan 24, 2005)

pH shouldn't be any factor at all if your fish are acclimated right. Most fish will adapt to a lower pH or a higher pH. IF you need to lower it, get some sea shells or marine sand... this should buffer your pH a bit and keep the CO2 from getting out of hand if I'm not mistaken.


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## TANKER (Apr 28, 2005)

The one obvious obstacle that everyone seems to be overlooking here is the giraffe cats. While not overtly agressive these are true omnivores, and omnivores of considerable size to boot. When mature the giraffe will be over 2 feet in length and would love nothing more than to wander across a school of sleeping tetras. Add to this the fact that these are social fish as well and do best in groups of 3 or more, and you will quickly run out of space and competitors. The last ingredient is that giraffes love to filter, as such your plants will quickly fall prey to their natural insticts. These guys are the king of interior decoration and will quickly move the decor to the place where they most like it. For these reasons these guys are kept in my african tanks only. Bare bones, rocks and gravel, and no problems other than the occasional scooping of gravel back into place to cover the bare tank bottom.


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## Mr Fish (Sep 9, 2005)

http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_Display.cfm?pCatId=939

"A 125 gallon or larger aquarium is required for this catfish due to the large size. Provide an aquarium with a warm, stable temperature, and plenty of rocks and plants. The Giraffe Nosed Catfish is a very peaceful tank member and appreciates having several hiding places."

-- That's why I listed all these guys out... what you're telling me is slightly different than the fish description (and you clearly own some, so you ought to know...). Hrm.. wonder if there are any smaller peaceful cats that I might be able to use... probably not with the shrimp. I'll keep checking. Thanks for the feedback.


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## fishfreaks (Jan 19, 2005)

Chazwick said:


> That's a very nice tank - hope you choose some good fish selections for it - and don't make any stupid beginner mistakes of putting fish in with others that will eat them
> Oh - and enjoy the hobby.. i only started a month or less ago.. and i'm loving it!


People do make mistakes, and that's how they learn. They're not stupid mistakes. Not everyone does it in this hobby, but the best thing you can do is teach them what you know.


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## TheOldSalt (Jan 28, 2005)

I'd lose the clams, too. They are very un-interesting and pose a risk.

Your plan for setting up & testing is far more complicated than it need be. Just get some BioSpira and be done with it if the thing doesn't leak. You might want to mix something else in with your moon sand in order to feed the plants. Simpte and MyraVan can give you all the excruciating details.


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## fishboy (Feb 26, 2005)

^
well theoldsalt stole my comment about the clams. The risk is if they breed the lavra are parasites to fishes gills. If you want a more interesting filter feeder you might try some bamboo shrimp. They get 5" long and filter feed with large fan like apendages


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## Mr Fish (Sep 9, 2005)

fishboy said:


> ^
> well theoldsalt stole my comment about the clams. The risk is if they breed the lavra are parasites to fishes gills. If you want a more interesting filter feeder you might try some bamboo shrimp. They get 5" long and filter feed with large fan like apendages


 Bamboo Shrimp? AKA Singapore flower shrimp?

http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_Display.cfm?pCatId=1842

(think I had some listed to get, already - but the names are diff)

FISH


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## fishboy (Feb 26, 2005)

my mistake. They are the same shrimp but i didn't know singapore shrimp was a common name as well


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## Mr Fish (Sep 9, 2005)

fishboy said:


> my mistake. They are the same shrimp but i didn't know singapore shrimp was a common name as well


 I think everyone calls them bamboo shrimp, it's just that the place I found out about them doesn't. No big deal! Thanks for the input... I'm very excited to get my tank going but I don't want to have a bunch of little guys die on me b/c I didn't do my homework...


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## fishboy (Feb 26, 2005)

Also look out for continued bullying. Bullying may happen on the first few days, but if you see bulling continues add stress coat, remove the bullied fish, and medicate it. I lost 2 tetras and my favorite platy because i ignored a bullying case


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