Blackwater Setup

[Rembrandts Hat]

Hey all,

In a year or so I'll be packing up and moving out for grad school, and I intend to take my 29 gallon tank with me. To make things easier I was planning on giving all of my fish to my father instead of dragging them on a trip that may take me halfway across the country. As a result, I'll be looking to start over.

Anyway, with that in mind I was thinking of trying something a little different than my community setup. I'm looking to create a blackwater tank, and I was hoping for some suggestions on occupants. For the most part I'm interested in small schooling fish (particularly Tetras), but over the years I've done most of the usual suspects (Cardinals, Serpae/Jewels, Head-and-Tail Lights, etc.) and I was looking for something that may be a bit rarer. I was hoping for suggestions.

Ideally, I'm looking at a lightly (if at all) planted tank with a pH between 6.0 to 6.5, but for obvious reasons I'm not to sure, yet.

Oh, and I'm not sure if I should post this seperately in the Catfish forum here, or if any of you can answer it. Both my father and I have a Clown Pleco (Peckoltia sp.) in our tanks, and I was wondering about keeping them together when I move out. The tank they would be housed in is a 77 gallon.

Thanks in advance.

[Dtman]

I had a 75g Blackwater set-up for three years. It was a great tank. I really liked the way the tinted water made the fish look. It was primarily a Discus tank, but I had a school of 20 Rummynose tetras. They are a personal favorite. Another great fish that I have been keeping for about a year is the Green Fire tetra. They always look pretty washed out in the lfs, but in my planted tank with the right water parameters they are spectacular. They display spawning behavior often. I imagine their eggs are light sensitive though. Similar to those of Neons.

[wetmanNY]

A blackwater system is more of a struggle than a reward if you don't have access to very soft water. If it's not coming out of your tap, you might consider rainwater. And then there's R/O.

...Altum Angels or natural-type Discus,

...or Apistogramma harems, Chilodus punctatus, pencilfishes, and twig catfish in a tangle of driftwood and twiggy brush with deep leaf litter...

[Rembrandts Hat]

Wetman, I've never had much of a problem with access to soft water. Hell, I've been mixing Schnucks R/O water with my tap for years, and it's only averaged out to a buck-fifty a week. Right now, soft water isn't that big of a problem, and I'm hoping it won't be when I relocate. If it is I'll try something a bit different.

Apistos would be nice, but I really don't have the time or resources to breed them (something I know I'd want to do), and I certainly won't when school rolls around...

The headstander sounds interesting, though. I've never even considered one of those. I looked Chilodus punctatus up in Baensch, but it only provided a brief overview of the fish. Is there any kind of information online about the fish? I popped the scientific name into Google and basically came up empty. There's a little bit here and there, but not all that much.

I'd be interested in the pencilfish as well, but from what I've read they prefer a heavily planted tank, and I really am more interested in a lightly planted aquarium than I am with something heavily planted.

Anyway, thanks for the help.

[ChilDawg]

Originally posted by Rembrandts Hat
I'd be interested in the pencilfish as well, but from what I've read they prefer a heavily planted tank, and I really am more interested in a lightly planted aquarium than I am with something heavily planted.

I hear angelfish...they just need a little driftwood, as most come from lightly planted areas...Altum Angels would be great, if you have the patience to deal with such a delicate fish!

[wetmanNY]

I couldn't find more than a paragraph here or there myself, in species description lists. A little chitchat at www.skepticalaquarist.com . I rarely see a photo that does them justice, btw: they always look scared silver white and black, as they do in the LFS. Get them comfortable and they develop all kinds of golden bronze and rosy flushes. Very beautiful. One of the undervalued fishes.

The Apistos will do the spawning. You don't have to raise the young. Pencilfish too: they keep spawning even when they're getting middleaged...

[125gJoe]

Originally posted by ChilDawg
I hear angelfish...they just need a little driftwood, as most come from lightly planted areas.. .. I agree there..
The "Veil Angels" are real nice...!