New Member

Hello

Im a new member of this group and also a new to Aquarium and fishes. I'd like to share my set-up and request for your comments to make this better.

This is my 100 gal tank divided into three



Working with dual overhead filter (carbon, ceramics and filter clothes) and a separate air compressor



On right side is a Red Mercury Flower Horn around 8"



On left is 5" Golden Fireface




In the center is a community tank of Tin Foils, different cichlids, angel fish and few tiger barbs:



Its very relaxng watching my set-up though its my first time, I'm not sure if Im doing it correctly. Your comments and suggestions will be greatly appreciated.

THANKS!

 

Welcome to asupet and nice tank!

 

hey thanks...

I got a problem though with my tiger barbs they became so aggressive and injured one of the angel fish, losing almost all fins and cant float no more... :cry: ...

 

How long has your tank been set up like that with those fish?

I'm asking because you have some incompatible fish there both in terms of aggression and environments. South American cichlids really do best with soft, slightly acidic water whereas African rift lake cichlids need hard, alkaline water. African cichlids are also much more aggressive than tiger barbs and angels.

Also, approximately how many gallons is each section? Do you have plans on upgrading or giving the fireface & flowerhorn their own tanks?

-Chelle

 

Its really new... around 2 weeks only

All the cichlids in the tank are African, no south american.. any incompatibility?

Yup that's also what I was told before setting up, Im just wondering that from my observation the tiger barbs (10 of them) happens to be more aggressive and becomes bullies in the tank :roll:

25gal each of the flower horns and 50 for the community tank... I have no immediate upgrade plans...

hey thanks for the comments and suggestions. please keep them coming..

 

Sorry to burst ur bubble but i wont be surprised if the flowerhorn smashes/Knock over the divider cuz its in such a small area :roll:

 

ey no problem I welcome all comments with appreciation, 8) this is my first time... what do you think is the minimum space requirement for a flower horn? My friend has an FH in a 20 gal tank and seems ok :|

The divide holder is too sturdy to move, the FH cant smash it, hopefully :lol:

 

Nope, the flowerhorn, fireface (which is a flowerhorn color variation BTW), and angels are all South American.

Also, your flowerhorn & fireface are going to need around 50 gallons each. The 25 each of them have now isn't even close to big enough. They can't do much more than just swim in circles. And your friend may be keeping a flowerhorn alive in a 20 gallon, but it likely isn't thriving. Flowerhorns can get 12" long. Keeping it in a 20 gallon can stunt it which will lead to some serious health problems and premature death.

Your africans are still pretty young. Give them a few more months and you probably won't have any tiger barbs left and your angels won't have any fins.

You really need anothertwo tanks. That 100 gallon is only big enough for (assuming they get along) the fireface & flowerhorn, and the tinfiol barbs (there's only 2 right?).

It looks like you have about 6 or 7 african cichlids? In that case you would need about a 29 gallon tank for them, and another tank for the angels & tiger barbs. You'll need to allot about 20 - 30 gallons for the tiger barbs and an addition 10 for each angel.

-Chelle

 

Well in your community section you have some very incompatible fish. Angels are cichlids of south america (see t_chelle post about water conditions) whereas you also have african cichlids present that will probably kill the angels and tiger barbs off with no problem once they grow a little. Also those tinfoils get HUGE and will need to be moved as they grow. Same for the flowerhorn, that is much too small a space for hime

One other thing, if your tank is only two weeks old I'm assuming that you did not fishless cycle it correct? Therefore your tank is going through its cycle right now. This is a VERY stressful time for fish to be in the tank as there will be many toxins present. With your current stocking I would honestly expect you to loose about half your stock if you don't watch the tank very carefully.

Go out and get some test kits if you don't already have them. Ammonia, Nitrite and Nitrate are the most important right now. Also, look up cycling on a search engine and read as much as you can about it. I would try and explain it to you but I'm really bad at explaining it.

Not trying to rain on your parade or anything I just think you need to be aware of some things. Good luck to you

 

Chelle, Tina

Hey thanks a lot these comments will help me a lot. :y_the_best: .. bottom line is I got quite a big number of stock whew! :shock:

If fish cycling means running the flitration and compressor w/o fish, then yes I did it for only 24 hours...

So this is my option:

1. provide 2 x 35 gal tank --> one for the tiger barbs and angels... and one for all the cichlids...

2. leave the whole 100 for the two tinfoils and the 2 FH? (Im just worried my Red Mercury FH and fireface wont get along, any earlyt sign to tell before they hurt each other?)

 

if ur gonna leave the 100 to the flowerhorns, i would say best bet is to just divide it down the middle....that would create nice room for both of them....and if your talking about breeding them, watch them for a little bit and checkup on the periodically...if they start to fight then seperate them immediatly.

 

Running the filter for 24 hours w/o any fish in the tank didn't do anything. For a fishless cycle, you have to add pure ammonia and monitor the water parameters and it generally takes about 4 - 6 weeks. Since you didn't do that, your tank is now cycling with the fish in it. During the cycling process, ammonia and nitrIte can reach levels that will kill fish. If you don't have them already, buy test kits for ammonia, nitrIte, and nitrAte and test your tank every day. Do enough water changes to keep them as close to 0, 0, and <20 (respectively) as possible.

As for the flowerhorns, you can try them together but keep an eye out for fighting & injuries. If that starts happening, then a divider down the middle of the tank would be a good idea.

-Chelle

 

Thanks Chelle,

Seems I've started this hobby in the wrong foot Haay.. why I found this forum only after I set up a tank... :? :cry: Hope its not too late...

I'll do the reco on monitoring asap... but I cant separate them yet as I need more space and furniture re arrangement for the new tanks :roll:

 

Wow nice tank, I like the lighting, But you will need to change your fish selection as the other above have said, they all look good but can all be together! Buts it is a very nice tank!

 

vrion im sure your not the only one to do that, i found it before hand because i was trying to find what fish i wanted. Any way its good to find out whats wrong before its to late, im sure there is something you can still do.

 

thanks you liked it, your comment is very encouraging :y_the_best:

 

I'll try my best to correct this over the weekend, chelle is right I just lost a tiger barb last night with obvious injury near the dorsal fin ....

And I cant find a water test kit yet.. the petshop I inquired don't have them...

 

I'm happy to hear that you're willing to do what it takes to keep your fish happy & healthy. :y_the_best:

-Chelle

 

:y_the_best: 10 points. lol. Thats great to hear, i had a tiger barb that was badly damaged, i just moved him into my main tank and let him be, he almost died, but he is healthy and happy today.