# Pep's new and first 90g



## Pep (Dec 29, 2009)

Well, aftera few months of research and then ordering and buying parts and pieces my 90g tank is sitting on a piece of board styrofoam on its stand with a black background attached. Here are a couple VERY early day pictures of what I hope turns out to be a successful tank 

Long story short it will have black eco-complete substrate and be planted. Early plans for fish are:

Bristlenose Pleco 2 ea
Kuhli Loach 5 ea
Dwarf Neon Rainbows 10 ea
Cherry Barbs 8 ea
Pearl Gourami 4 ea
Ghost Shrimp 8-10 ea

The rainbows might get changed and the quantities may change up or down somewhat as we are still a bit away from putting any fish in it. I have to put together the Eheim 2128 thermofilter I bought and test it out before I put any substrate in and water in. I would hate to get the substrate in and then find out the filter doesn't work and kill off the bacteria the eco complete comes with

Early plans for plants are:
Echinodorus Bleheri - Amazon Sword 3ea 
Vallisneria Spiralis - Corkscrew Val 3ea
Microsorum pteropus - Java Fern on dw 1ea 
Echinodorus tenellus - Pygmy Chain Sword 1ea
Cabomba Caroliniana - Fanwort 2ea
Cryptocoryne - Green Wendtii 3ea
Hydrocotyle leucocephala - Brazilian Pennywort 1ea

The chain sword will not go in right away as I want to play with the layout some before and the quantities above may change as I find holes or lack of same in the layout


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## Mean Harri (Dec 14, 2009)

That's goon look nice planted up nice and heavy. 
Congrats


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## Pep (Dec 29, 2009)

I sure hope so Eric

Anyways as an update, filled the tank today with the Python. VERY nice device. Only small critique is the main plastic parts at the faucet end. I have the brass quick connect adapter and it seems great but I am getting some minor leaks from where the plastic parts connect in the main unit. No big deal other than wiping up a bit of water around the sink. 

After filling the 90g about 7/8 full I primed the eheim and turned it on. Very easy and very slick. And VERY quiet. Without media it worked like a hot d*mn so I know I can go the next phase without worrying about no working filter ;-).

The pyhon drained the whole 7/8 of 90g in about 15-20 minutes which I thought was awfully quick really.

Next phase is plant shopping tomorrow and if I can find what I want I'll be putting in the eco-complete substrate and plants and turning on the filter and starting this sucker up:thumbsup:


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## cbirk (Feb 5, 2010)

Sounds awesome, can't wait to hear about and see pics as the tank develops!!


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## iamntbatman (Jan 3, 2008)

Can't wait to see this tank come together.

You definitely have a lot more space for fish than just those you've listed. I would consider getting 9 cherry barbs instead of 8 (3 males 6 females) and bumping the loaches up to 10 or so. The loaches have a very small bioload and are fond of hiding, so the more, the merrier. On top of that I think you could add another school or two of fish and maybe a couple more "centerpiece" type fish.


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## Pep (Dec 29, 2009)

I appreciate the input. I was basing the fishload on AqAdvisor which I know is a guideline and not necesarily a definitive answer. I think I will start with the 9 barbs and maybe 5 loaches (hard to find Kuhli Loaches where I live so far) and go from there. Do you any suggestions on another centerpiece type of fish that would fit with the ones I am getting? 




iamntbatman said:


> Can't wait to see this tank come together.
> 
> You definitely have a lot more space for fish than just those you've listed. I would consider getting 9 cherry barbs instead of 8 (3 males 6 females) and bumping the loaches up to 10 or so. The loaches have a very small bioload and are fond of hiding, so the more, the merrier. On top of that I think you could add another school or two of fish and maybe a couple more "centerpiece" type fish.


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## iamntbatman (Jan 3, 2008)

Dwarf cichlids are a good choice. Anabantids like gouramis or bettas are nice, too. These fish tend to be territorial so you have to be careful with the stocking, though.

As far as schoolers? Oh, any type of peaceful schooling fish that's not so large that it'll eat your smaller fish would be fine. Non-nippy barbs, tetras, danios, rasboras, etc.


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## Angel079 (Feb 14, 2007)

Oh that's gonna be SO NICE - Black back is right down my ally real neat! And yes I can only second the idea of ONE chain sword (E. tenellus ) in there they spread so quick its crazy; 6 weeks into having had my latest one planted I started pulling some out already lol


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## Pep (Dec 29, 2009)

Well, next step. 2 nice pieces of driftwood and about 3/4 of the plants bought. Put in the eco-complete substrate and filled the tank 3/4 of the way up and planted the plants I was able to get. No Pennywort anywhere near where I live and it sounds like it is hard to come by. I might have to substitue another plant similiar for the back wall in the right corner where I planned on putting them. 

Lots of CO2 bubbles so I will let everything settle for a day before taking a picture to post. Will be checking the water parameters tomorrow night as well. Starting to look like an aquarium though:shock:.


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## Angel079 (Feb 14, 2007)

I can't wait to see the first pic's there!!!


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## Pep (Dec 29, 2009)

Ok, pics from tonight. Just played with the setting on the camera to alter the amount of light showing in the tank. Need a few more plants yet. Going to put some more Val on the back and the right back corner is for Pennywort or something simliar. The front left opening is for a rock cave I have on order for the Pleco's to feel safe in. I might put some java moss on the rock cave. I will probably figure something to mount on the DW upright leg as well. Any suggestions on that and anything else to plant welcome 

Tested the tank water tonight as well:

PH 7.6-7.8 (my word its hard to figure out which colour is which)
Ammonia 0.0
Nitrite 0.0
Nitrate 0.0
KH 130
GH 160
Calcium 60


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## aunt kymmie (Jun 2, 2008)

It's looking really good! It'll look great with some vals running across the back. 
(I'm so envious, it's been forever since I was able to set up a new tank.)


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## iamntbatman (Jan 3, 2008)

Looking good! Can't wait to see it once those plants fill in a bit. I really dig the dark gravel.


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## Pep (Dec 29, 2009)

Update time. After a week some of the plants have started to grow. I had not realized how much some had grown until I looked at last weeks newly planted pictures and the pics this morning. 

Last night it was add some fish time to the 90g tank.. The parameters have been great all week so I bought 3 male and 6 female Dwarf Neon Rainbows and 2 Longfin BN Pleco's. One is older and a bit bigger than the other. 

So first off time to acclimate and putting them in the tank. Acclimation no problem. Getting them out of the bag and into the tank....bit more problem. First time I have done and I am not sure who it was more traumatic for...them or me:shock:.

Got them in and zoooooooom down to the plants they all went to hide. I had the aquarium lights off to help them and only had the room lights on. After a couple hours a few were moving around the plants a bit but one was not happy at all. It was up at the surface gulping and hanging tail down on a 45 deg angle. I was worried going to bed that it might not make the night.

I got up this morning and more of the rainbows were moving around the plants and the one from the night before was still up top but was moving down to the centre of the tank then going back to the top to gulp air. 

At this point I decided to turn the aquarium lights on early to get the plants to start to make o2 for the tank. Well what an amazing difference. Withing 15 minutes all the fish were moving around the plants on the bottom and in a couple small schools other than the one top fish which was by itself BUT down in the plants. Within an hour they had schooled up all together and were swimming amongst the plants. They are still breathing pretty fast but to be honest I don't remember how fast they were breathing in the LFS tank so need to go back and check that today to compare. Checked parameters this morning quickly and PH was 7.8 up a bit from 7.6-7.8 but not much. Ammonia was 0, Nitrite was 0.1 and Nitrate was 0 so that was good to see. After going to bed last night wondering if I was aphyxiating all my fish this morning they seemed to be a bit more settled. I wonder if it was my tank or them being in the bag the 80-90 minutes it took me to get home from the LFS or a combination of that and stress.... Anyways I feel a LOT better about them this morning.

The bigger pleco was going to town this morning on the driftwood and looked happy enough. After turning on the aquarium lights he started to slow down some and stay under the dw in darker areas. The small one I had no clue where he was this morning. I couldn't find him and expected he was hiding. I have a small floating log in the tank which I wasn't sure I was even going to use. It was there to give fish that prefer the top of the tank a hiding place if needed. After moving the log a bit this morning I almost jumped out of my skin as the small pleco was hanging from the underside of the log and was almost perfectly camoflauged. He has not moved all morning. I tipped the log up on end and he flew to the bottom. Within 5 minutes he was in the dw and a bit more active so that was good to see. 

So two questions for the experts. How long to wait until adding more fish? I know one does not want to overload the bioload too fast but am unsure the wait time.

The other question is how soon to start feeding the fish. I know you don't want to over feed, feed too often nor feed too soon when they are in a new environment but again am unsure how long to wait. 
All help gratefully received.

I'll take some pictures tonight of the whole tank showing the plant growth. The window behind where I take pictures shows way too much glare for good pics in the daytime. In the meantime here are a couple pictures showing:

Bigger Longfin BN Pleco under HIS dw. There is no doubt who owns the dw in the tank at this point 
Dwarf Neon Rainbows moving/hiding in the plants.


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## aunt kymmie (Jun 2, 2008)

Your tank is looking great!


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## Mean Harri (Dec 14, 2009)

Looking good Pep. I fed my fish later that evening. Just feed sparingly as to not overload the tank. Like you my parameters were all good. I did have one day that I saw .25ppm nitrite. I did a 50% or so water change and it's been 0 since. Same with ammonia. What I would do is give it maybe a week and if all checks out good add some more fish. I'm not wanting to add more although I probably could because I don't want to chance a disease or chance a fish getting a weakened immune system and cause an outbreak. I'm a freak lol

When I look at the dw piece you have and see that opening in the center of it and how the dw insets back in my mind immediately says get a plants that will stay short in height but bush out nice and full and plant it right in that center spot. Something like this Aquarium Plants Pond Plants From Sweet Aquatics


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## Pep (Dec 29, 2009)

I had thought of something for the front of the dw as well but the wife wondered if we might be blocking out views of any bottom fish that hang around/in there. And with the bigger pleco going to town on the dw all over that area she might be right especially after we add 5 or so kuhli loaches which like the bottom. Once we get the thing stocked with everything I'll make up my mind on that spot one way or another. I like the suggestion though, thanks :-D


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## Mean Harri (Dec 14, 2009)

Any of the Anubius would work too. Tie it to the driftwood dead center on the top of it. That leaves that open center open and has a nice plants smack dead center to offset the nice dark dw. Since I am a huge fan of the Anubius Coffeefolia that would likely be what I would put there. I'd have a hard time deciding.


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## Pep (Dec 29, 2009)

Hmmm...interesting idea. I will have to look into how high they grow..


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## Mean Harri (Dec 14, 2009)

I tied an Anubias Frazeri to mine. It's to the waters surface now. I quite like it.


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## Byron (Mar 7, 2009)

Hi Randy,

Your PM caused me to go back through this thread, and a couple comments from past comments. First, the Python faucet part, I had exactly the same issue with three different ones (they also kept breaking), this last time I got the Aqueon part, it fits the Python tube, and is much better made. I also prefer the valve control, a switch instead of moving the bottom piece up and locking it in place. Anyway, you might look into getting the Aqueon part, mine has never leaked or sprayed water like the Python did.

Second thing is remember that the swords on the right (Echinodorus bleheri) will get enormous after a few months; they will be up to the surface and about a foot in diameter (at the upper half) and will certainly need spacing out. Leave at least 6 inches between these plants. You can always move them later as they begin to grow. Just a heads up in case you're thinking of more plants, you will have big sword plants before long and space will be filled. It looks like you have maybe 6 or 7--if so, they will completely fill that tank even without anything else. Given the space, and with nutrients, they grow.

Third comment is the wood, it is centred; I would suggest moving it to the right, I think if you moved it directly to the right until the right edge is exactly where the swords start now, and obviously move the small plants that would be behind/under it then, it would make the space appear longer--which may not seem like something necessary now, but once those swords fill out I assure you the tank space will appear much smaller, and the wood repositioned would extend it. Also look less contrived.

Nice setup, terrific substrate, a very nice interesting chunk of wood, and a good start of plants.

Byron.


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## Pep (Dec 29, 2009)

Whoa, I didn't realize swords grow THAT big. I obviously blew that part of my research. I will be taking some out that is for. Once they show which ones will be better plants I think 2 on the right and 1 front left corner by where the Pleco cave is going to. Thank you for the info.


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## Pep (Dec 29, 2009)

Pictures showing the difference in plant growth in 1 week. Also can see the Dwarf Neon Rainbows down front in the middle. They were fed earlier and I broke up an algae wafer for the pleco's to eat. After the plecos left the Rainbows came over and started on picking the wafer the little piggies . I am going to have to figure out how to be smarter at feeding so that doesn't happen

First picture is from day 2 and second picture is from day 7


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## Mean Harri (Dec 14, 2009)

Wow. Nice growth. That Val really shot up.


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## Pep (Dec 29, 2009)

Well, first 25% PWC and the fish hate me :|. Man did they freak out darting all over down low in the back amongst the plants. I had to be real careful in vacuuming any gravel with the python as one fish darted almost under the tube as I was putting it in the gravel. I had one hand on the valve the whole time so I could shut it off almost instantly since I was so petrified I was going to "clean" a rainbow. 
I think I was as stressed as the fish were;-)

PWC went well other than that. It got rid of a lot of green floaties that were in the tank from the various plantings and the first top up went without any issues, other than stressed out fish anyways:roll:. It will be interesting to see how long it takes them to settle and start to move after this. I had to turn the aquarium lights on early so I could see to clean and then turned them right off again after so we are staying away from the tank until the lights come on in an hour or so. Take water parameters at that time and I hope the fish start to move around a bit by then.


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## Mean Harri (Dec 14, 2009)

Lol. Scared fishies. It's probably just their nature to flip out. Tetras are so meek and timid. 
These frickin' silver tips I have are like baby piranha. They're all up in my business when I'm in the tank. 
Python water change time too. Right there are the tube.

Tank is looking good mate. I really like that dw. Makes me want to change mine.


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## Pep (Dec 29, 2009)

Added some fish today. We now have 10 Cherry barbs and 4 Pearl Gourami in the tank. The lady at the LFS was trying to get 1-2 boys with 2-3 girls on the Gouramis but they are younger and it was a bit hard to tell. After getting them home and looking at pictures online I might have ended up with 4 girls.. which are less colourful in the Pearl Gouramis hmph. I might have to go and buy a couple boys to give the girls someone to gossip about 

The Aponogeton in the left back corner is growing TOO fast. Man I cant believe it can grow that quickly.


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## Mean Harri (Dec 14, 2009)

Wow. And those plants in the right rear took off in 5 days. Congrats on the new fish.


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## iamntbatman (Jan 3, 2008)

That tank just keeps looking better and better!


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## Pep (Dec 29, 2009)

Mean Harri said:


> Wow. And those plants in the right rear took off in 5 days. Congrats on the new fish.


Good point Eric. I knew they had grown but I didn't notice how much until you pointed it out. My wife is scratching her head about my green thumb with aquatic plants since, as she says "But you can't even get the lawn to grow properly" :roll::lol:. Of course, I put it down to research, the good advice from experienced planted tank people on this forum, and dumb luck;-)


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## Pep (Dec 29, 2009)

Here is an update after about 1.5 months since building the tank.

Happy habitants are:

5 Redline Barbs
7 Dwarf Neon Rainbows
7 Cherry Barbs
6 Kuhli Loaches (only been 5 days in the tank and I have only seen 4 at once so far so hopefully they are all ok)
5 Amano Shrimp (only seen all 5 twice in 2 weeks but see 3-4 a lot)
2 Longfin BN Plecos

Picture 1 - Obligatory full tank shot
Picture 2 - One of the few other shots that wasn't blurry Showing new plants Green Cabomba in middle back which is 2 weeks old and has almost hit the surface already and has many other "sprouts" coming off the nodes. It likes the tank a lot and I suspect I will be trimming it as much as the Aponogetan in the left corner. The Red Ludwigia in the back left is only a week old and just starting to grow.
Picture 3 - Cave on the left where you can just make out 2 Kuhli's inside and 1 on the left of the cave.
Picture 4 - Cave with the master of the cave on top. There is almost always one Amano Shrimp on top feeding off it. They look like they doing a little shrimp dance as they skitter around on it eating. Also I heard a rumour Kymmie likes close ups 
Picture 5 - Shot from left side of the tank


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## LisaC144 (Oct 22, 2009)

Wow, looks great! Congrats on the beautiful setup!


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## aunt kymmie (Jun 2, 2008)

Sweet! Yes, I adore close ups, thank for posting. 
I'm glad you went for the Denison Barbs. Great fish and they get more and more color as they get older. I LOVE mine. Your tank looks fantastic! Very well done. Are your longfin BNs the brown or albino versions??


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## Byron (Mar 7, 2009)

Looking super duper there, Randy, well done. Byron.


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## Pep (Dec 29, 2009)

Thanks everyone.

The BN's are the regularbrown ones Kymmie. I will try to get some close ups of them for you tonight


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## aunt kymmie (Jun 2, 2008)

Pep said:


> Thanks everyone.
> 
> The BN's are the regularbrown ones Kymmie. I will try to get some close ups of them for you tonight


Ha! see that? I didn't even have to ask and you knew what I was after. :-D
Your tank is really beautiful. I keep going back to look at it!


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## Pep (Dec 29, 2009)

Man, my picture taking skills suck. I have a decent canon sd880 point and shoot but I am NOT good at pictures. What kind of settings do people use to take pictures of fast moving fish with the flash off through glass anyways? Some of the pictures I have seen are fantastic.

Well, Auntie Kymmie here is the best I could get tonight after about 2 bajillion pictures. The pleco's are always on the move in the evening and my aformentioned moving fish picture taking skills are pathetic at best:-? I will endevour to get some good ones going forward for both of us:-D


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## donna53w (Apr 7, 2010)

Beautiful tank, Pep, and your photos are great. It's nice to follow along with you and your 90g tank and the plants and inhabitants. Thanks


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## aunt kymmie (Jun 2, 2008)

Awww, thank you for posting! I really like the long fin versions of BNs. Nice looking fish. I have no idea how other people take such good photos. I do the macro setting, camera flash off, lights turned off in the room and tank lights on. I never get any good shots of any of the fast movers. I'm sure you tried to get a shot of your Denisons. Good luck, because those suckers are_ FAST_. The only halfway decent pics that I ever got of mine was when a friend came by with his mucho dinero camera that takes a pic every 1/2 second, or something crazy like that. 
Congo tetras are some very fast moving fish and you should see the pics Jeaninel has posted of hers. She has gorgeous pics of her fish. We should ask her how she does it. Byron has also posted some really nice pics of late.


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## iamntbatman (Jan 3, 2008)

That tank is looking fantastic. Good work with it!


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## Pep (Dec 29, 2009)

Here is a couple close ups of the bigger Pleco for you Kymmie. He is a bit of a territorial bully. He will chase the smaller pleco away whenever he is within 5-6" of him. Other fish come around he flares at them and tries to chase them. He is always trying to chase the shrimp away from his food area but they don't move too fast from him. But he has met his match. This one Kuhli Loach is always eating around him it seems when I drop a wafer down. The pleco will keep his mouth on the wafer and spin around it to try to knock the kuhli off it but the kuhli refuses to be bullied. It is quite funny as they end up in a little dance around the wafer both trying to eat The last picture is actually a non blurry closeup of him after he chased the master of the cave shrimp off his cave perch. Probably my first non blurry closeup ever..just for you Auntie Kymmie


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## aunt kymmie (Jun 2, 2008)

Great pics, Pep. Thank you! I love that your kuhli refuses to be bullied! I love the final with him resting on his cave perch. I see you were even able to get a shot of one of your Denisons. They are such a tough fish to capture with the camera. You made my evening with your pics, ;-).


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## Pep (Dec 29, 2009)

Hehe, the pic with the Denison is a fluke. They are not tough to get a good picture of, they are impossible

I need some input from all of you. I posted earlier what I have in the tank for stock. I need another fish yet, maybe even a feature type, and would prefer something that likes the middle to top of the tank. Most everything I have so far likes middle and lower. Obviously I need something that is going to get along with everyone. So I am open to ideas please:-D


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## rosehower (Jan 18, 2010)

very nice set up pep! like the little plec too! what a cutie!


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## iamntbatman (Jan 3, 2008)

What about some sort of gourami for up top? Pearls would look nice. Maybe some pearls and some danios? If you can find some Danio roseus, they're absolutely gorgeous. Both gouramis and danios would go well with your general Asian theme (not counting the two misfit plecos).


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## Pep (Dec 29, 2009)

I thought about Pearl Gourami's and still am but they don't ship well it seems. Not very hardy fishs so it is tough to find good healthy ones locally. I thought about zebra danios but I read/heard they were a bit aggresive. I'll look into the Danio roseus thanks Bat.


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## iamntbatman (Jan 3, 2008)

They're not really "aggressive" just hyperactive. They spend all day long chasing one another around. Especially if you don't have enough of them they can try to get other fish to participate in their perpetual game of tag which sometimes other fish don't really appreciate. I've heard them described as nippy before but I've never seen them nip, myself. Not even slow-movers with long fins like bettas.


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## Pep (Dec 29, 2009)

Interesting. I have an LFS that has some decent looking Pearls and some Opaline Gourami's. They also have some very small zebra danios. I have to think about this some more. I could get a few Gourami's or 7-8 Zebras instead..hmmm.. Thanks for the info Bat.


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## Pep (Dec 29, 2009)

Well, aqadvisor states that the blue, or golden or opaline gourami's are too aggresive for cherry barbs of which I have 7 of. Other sites have not really mentioned that so much. Amazing how much different info there is out there and sometimes it is sooooo hard to know which to believe. 

http://www.aqadvisor.com/AqAdvisor....AqSpeciesWindowSize=short&AqSearchMode=simple

Maybe I'll just try 7 zebra danios and see how it works out.


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## iamntbatman (Jan 3, 2008)

Blues, golds and opalines are all just color morphs of the three-spot gourami. They're one of the grumpier gouramis around but I don't think they'd mess with something like cherry barbs. In any case, pearl gouramis aren't as aggressive. You could also look at the various dwarf gouramis or honey gouramis.


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## Greedy (Feb 7, 2010)

nice tank, im a fan of cherry barbs and khuli loaches myself


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## willow (Sep 9, 2006)

your tank is really beautiful.
just wanted to also add about the pearls,lovely quiet fish,i have 3 and
they colour up very nicely.with your colour scheem they would look
awsome.


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## bones14 (Mar 19, 2010)

I have blue and gold gouramis with cherry barbs.The gouramis don't bother them at all.Your tank looks great.


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## JohnnyD44 (Dec 5, 2008)

great work!!!

in picture 5, what are the fish with the yellow dots on their fins nad the black stripe through the middle??


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## Pep (Dec 29, 2009)

Thanks all.

Johnny, they are a Denison Barb aka Redline Barb aka Redline Shark.

http://images.google.ca/images?hl=e...esult_group&ct=title&resnum=4&ved=0CBYQsAQwAw

http://images.google.ca/imgres?imgu...ges?q=denison+barb&um=1&hl=en&sa=X&tbs=isch:1

They grow to 5-6" and really colour up as they get older nicely. I have seen a difference in the amount of colour in mine in the month since I got them already. Peaceful but active fish that is constantly on the move.


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## JohnnyD44 (Dec 5, 2008)

i thoughts thats what they were...I've always been curious about them. How many do you have in your 90G? my LFS store carries them, but I've always been leery because they label them as sharks


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## aunt kymmie (Jun 2, 2008)

JohnnyD44 said:


> i thoughts thats what they were...I've always been curious about them. How many do you have in your 90G? my LFS store carries them, but I've always been leery because they label them as sharks


No need to be leery! I keep a school of Denisons in my tank and they are the most peaceful fish in the tank. They are incredibly active but totally mellow in personality. I had a school of nine but I'm now down to seven. They are big time jumpers and that's how I lost two of them. Your tank needs to be covered 100% or it seems they will find a way out! Somehow my two managed to jump ship out of a two by six slot in the top of tank (now covered up).


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## JohnnyD44 (Dec 5, 2008)

so how many you think I could fit in my 55?????

i think i want to get some denisons and some bolvian rams!!!! that will add so much cool color and contrast to my tank!

any advice?!?!


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## aunt kymmie (Jun 2, 2008)

JohnnyD44 said:


> so how many you think I could fit in my 55?????
> 
> i think i want to get some denisons and some bolvian rams!!!! that will add so much cool color and contrast to my tank!
> 
> any advice?!?!


I can't recall what other fish you have in your tank but a school of at least five Denisons and 2 to 3 rams would be great. A 55gl affords four feet length in swimming room, right? Heavily planted will give the Bolivians enough room to stake out their own territories. I keep both Denisons and Bolivians together and I love them!


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## LisaC144 (Oct 22, 2009)

Johnny, you know I love the Bolivian Rams. I have 2 of them in my 55g


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## JohnnyD44 (Dec 5, 2008)

very cool!!!

I only have a shoal on 8 neons, and a few other sporatic fish...a couple of random tetras, and a shoal of 7 corries....

voicemail on wife's phone: hey hun, i'm going to the fish store, do you need anything while I'm out?!!? hahahaah


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## Pep (Dec 29, 2009)

LOL Johnny. That is a loaded question.

I have 5 in my 90g. They like the middle of the tank mainly but will go down lower to swim amongst the plants and pick at the substrate like most barbs do. Keep in my they will get to 5-6" long so its nice to have some room for them to move. 5 might be the top end amount you would want in a 55g but that is as much of a personal choice. I tend to keep my tank understocked a bit on purpose to everyone has room to enjoy themselves.


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## Pep (Dec 29, 2009)

New stocking decision made. I bought 9 Zebra Danios today and the LFS also had some decent looking cherry red shrimp so I added 9 of them to go with my Amano Shrimp of which I had 5 but I only see 4 of maximum. I am hoping the red's get up on the plants and work on the brush/staghorn alage that has been growing on them some. The amano's seem to get enough to eat from the dw, top of cave and substrate so rarely go into the plants. Dang spoiled amanos The cherry red's had a nice colour and decent size to them in the store and washed out in the shipping bag home. A few are already starting to show a hint of pink in them so hopefully they all become comfortable and colour back up pretty quick.


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## Pep (Dec 29, 2009)

Here is a short video of some of the kuhli's and the bn pleco competing for an algae wafer. I tried uploading the video to my log but for some reason it doesn't load. Obviously I am doing something wrong on the upload Any suggestions on how to do that would be helpful

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g5kl_JQ3VwA


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## aunt kymmie (Jun 2, 2008)

I have no idea how you upload a video (anyone know?) but that is a great clip. You got lucky with your kuhlis because yours aren't shy at all! Really nice looking BN too.


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## Pep (Dec 29, 2009)

Oh mine are pretty shy as a rule but for some reason when they are in behind the java and underneath that red ludwigia they feel more comfortable. And when I drop an algae wafer in that area for them a few times a week all 5 come out and go nuts in the area feeding 

And I got the video uploaded now. It seems it had not been up on youtube long enough to "be found" by our uploader here. In other words, user error, as per usual heheh


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