Stocking my tank 40Long

[MidSSouth]

I've got my tank set up and want your opinions on stocking it. I've been lurking here a while and here is what I have:

40 Gallon Long 40x12x16
AquaClear 500 with foam/seeded filter/bio filter
250wt Heater mounted horizontally in the middle of the tank
48" flouresent light
Assorted silk and plastic plants/rocks

I'm going to cycle it with Bio-Spira at 75* and plan to add:
6 White Cloud Minnows
6 Zebra Danios
3 Clown Loaches
1 Red Tail Shark

Does that sound like to many fish? Should I get an algea eater? Also my tapwater is about a 7.8Ph and very soft with around 50-80 alkalinity, should I worry about lowering it or will that be close enough to live with rather than have it bounce around with chemicals?

 

[zanoshano]

uhm... I dont think you have gone OVER the stocking limit, but ur almost there; I dont think i woudl recomend a sucker, not that i wouldnt...but i are going to have three clown loaches and they are good scavengers/cleaners, and they will do most of the same work as the suckers, maybe not as much witht eh galss. SO i would say u could get one if u wanted, but then u would be pretty much maxed out.

 

[zanoshano]

nic elookin tank btw, i can tell that you just set it up by the bubbles, lol.

 

[phOOey]

sounds fine to me. minnows would prefer cooler water than the rest of them, but they will do fine nonetheless. maybe you could add a sort of centre piece fish, like a gourami or something. for algae you could add a small pleco if you wanted, like a bristlenose. That ph should be fine, better to keep a constant ph than mess about changing it with chemicals.

 

[lordroad]

Clown loaches prefer water at 80 degrees, no less than 79... I tried white clouds with my clowns in the 55 and the heat killed them. I've heard of it working, though, so I guess it's worth a shot... if not, black neon tetras would be another option. They look similar to the white clouds, but they are nowhere near as hardy.

 

[MidSSouth]

What should I feed them? I'm looking at Big Al's Online and there are dozen's of different kinds of food.

I'm thinking of this:
http://www.bigalsonline.com/catalog/product.xml?product_sku=4197

 

[Lotus]

I've used that before, and it was OK. You might want to also get some sinking shrimp pellets, which the loaches and shark would enjoy. I know, it can be very confusing shopping for fish food

 

[MidSSouth]

Do you think a pair of Angelfish would work in the tank? The tank is only 16" Tall and the reviews said they prefer a taller tank to a longer one.

 

[phOOey]

well i've heard different accounts of clown loaches working and not working with angels, you could try it, but i'd go with only one as two could lead to some aggression.

 

[Swordtail8]

I have kept my angel with several clown loaches without problems (What kind of problems could clown loaches give angels or vice-versa anyways?). I would either do 1 angel or 3+. But 3+ may be pushing the stock limit.

Any of the fish in my 29 gallon (in my signature) should work with what you plan to put, seeing as how they worked for me. (Keep in mind though that I push the stock limit pretty heavily and more so than most people that post here).

 

[lsweeney13]

swordtail 8...I looked at your list and it doesn't look too bad.
I have a 29-30 gallon and plan to do 6 danio (get about 4") and 3 swordtail. I'm looking at a couple of other fish to add. I was told to do less species of fish, and more fish of the same species, as many of these are schooling fish that don't act normal w/ out the others. It was recommended that I set up a tank to be interesting and healthy at the top, middle and bottom. At this point I'm just doing research.... I have also been told 1-1.5" of fish per gallon. Plus, if you go to the limit of the tank (or exceed it a little) that you should add an air pump or stronger filter to better oxygenate the water. But, I also think that being familiar w/ your tank and watching your fish are KEY to knowing if there are problems.

 

[MidSSouth]

Here's what I have bought so far:
5 Long Tailed Zebra Danios
2 Angelfish
2 Clown Loaches

The Angels were eyeballing the danios while they (Angels) were being acclimated in a bag. Once I let them out they didn't look twice at them, probably because the angels are small and the danios are too big to eat right now. The danio's of course are zipping all around the tank and they tend to keep in a school of 4 with one being off on his own. I can't tell if it's always the same one but it's pretty consistant that one won't be hanging around with them. The 2 clown loaches, on the other hand, they have been hiding in a cave/log for 2 days and haven't even come out to eat.

I think the last thing I will get are some powdered blue Gouramis I saw at the LFS. I am going to go a week or so first to see if anything dies.

The Bio-Spira seems to have worked wonders, I added it, a few hours later added the loaches and danio's. 2 day's later I had measurable nitrates, no nitrites, and about .1-.2ppm ammonia that was left from the fishless cycling I tried.

 

[Swordtail8]

I never heard of angels eating danios, nor would it be easy to catch them if that were the case. Powder blue gouramis I beleive is a variety of the dwarf gourami isnt it? In my experience dwarf gouramis get along with angels but the larger gouramis may be another story.

Lsweeney, doing less species of fish is probably the better thing. My danio and serpaes are what is left of a larger schools they once were. Serpaes are evil though and I would avoid them, they arent even that pretty (unless you get the long fin ones). They chewed up the betta in my 10 gallon about a month ago and as of now and the past couple days, my betta is slowly dying and I think he will pass away today. I had him quite awhile so it is kinda a hard fish to lose.

When I first set up the 29 I planed for levels. But as of now it is the angel and gourami that hang up top with rasboras in the dead middle, clown loaches and pleco at bottem and everyone else mid to lower. The lone danio doesnt hang out in the top void too much like it used to.

The inch per gallon rule really isnt that valid and can easily be streached if you got a good handle on the tank. One source says the available oxygen is one of the factors in the stock limit and also says you shouldnt have so many fish that if the power goes and you lose your bubbles and some fish must suffocate then. Someone on these boards said something like 1 goldfish's waste is more than say 7 neons.

 

[frying nemo]

I was staring at my tank last night for a few hours..and low and behold "towlie" from south park showed up and told me a towl is something good to have when you have a spill on your aquarium...then he asked me if I wanted to get "high"...I just said no...has anyone else seen towlie??