seeking angel fish help & info

[oldnovice]

in december we set up a planted 55 gallon community tank, with a rena xp3 filter, stealth heater and coralife light. we are happy and lucky to say that things are going great and the tank and fish are doing very well.

i bought a 90 gallon tank and stand out of the local paper for $200 yesterday. i am going to get another rena xp3 filter, a heater for 90 gallons, a new light and some glass top covers. i have a 10 gallon tank set up as my quarantine tank.

my wife grew up in a house where her father ALWAYS had tanks with angel fish as the focal point. i would like nothing more than to set up this 90 gallon tank with some angels, live plants and whatever else experienced angel fish owners suggest.

what type of angels? where do we buy them from? how many can i introduce to tank at a time? is 90 gallon too big? how many fish? how many plants?

i read a couple - 3 books before setting up the 55 gallon tank. if there is an angel fish book that i must have for reference, please let me know what it is titled and i will try to find it.

could someone please verify that i should easily be able to get the 90 gallon tank biological set up done rather quickly given i plan to use 2 of the exact same rena xp3 filters. i figure i should be able to take a few filter parts out of the bottom of my running filter, put them in the new filter and tank, and i should be on my way. please tell me if i am right here?

as always, before any one replies, thanks to all those who take the time to reply and share information. you are a very valuable asset.

curtis

[oldnovice]

sorry, i meant to post these pics of the 55 gallon tank set up december 2008.

[Star_Rider]

since you have an established tank you have live bacteria to use to 'seed' the new tank.

you can simply transfer some of the media from one of the filters on the established tank.

as far as angle
there are three species that are available.
the most common is P. scalare.
you will find these an most pet supply stores.
these are the common angels you see in most tanks.

after this you may be able to find either P.Leopoldi or P.Altum.
the Leopoldi is the smallest of the angels and has a reputation for being pugnacious.
the next is P.Altum

IMO the most elegant of the Angels but also the hardest to get. there are few that are captive raised. as a result most are wild caught. these will usually command a higher price...but they tend to be the harder ones to raise and keep.

they are also the largest of the angels with fins it is not uncommon to find them reaching 10 -11" tall.

if you decide to keep angel. please realize that you will need room.. P.Scalare readily pair up and can cause issue to tank mate. particularly other angels. that can be very con specific aggressive.
a 90 should be able to house a few angels but keep the pairing in mind when stocking.

as you increase the number of angels you also increase the probability a pair will form.

[Hebily]

A 90 would be perfect for two pairs of angels... of course, you can't sex them until they pair. If you want, you could get 6 or so, in hopes of two pairs forming. Then you would have to rehome the others. I wouldn't keep much else in there, though... besides bottom dwellers. If you want to have other fish that share the mid and upper levels, you will probably only want one pair, or a single angel. Pairs will get aggressive, particularly when mating. Two pairs wont leave a lot of unclaimed territory in there.

As for the type, almost certainly you will only find scalare. The coloration can be whatever you desire.

Since you will likely get them as babies, you should be able to introduce all of them (6 or so) at once, assuming you've done a proper fishless cycle.

What other fish were you considering keeping in the tank?

[oldnovice]

as we speak...i am ready to set up this tank. my decision on fish has not been made. i was hoping to get some advice and suggestions from others here as to what might be the best way to stock this tank. we want to create a healthy environment for the angels, but we do want other fish in the tank with them. since it is a 90 gallon tank, i was figuring on a couple pair of angels....and who knows what else?

i am open to suggestions.

the tank is 90 gallons, we want live plants and angel fish...the rest is open for discussion.

thanks

[NYCguppydude]

Hi oldnovice
For more info. on Angelfish please check out these links............

http://www.angelfishkisses.com/forum/index.php

http://www.angelfish.net/VBulletin/index.php

http://theangelfishsociety.org/phenotypes/index.htm

[Rbishop]

I would get 3 or 5 angels at the same time and size, adding them all at once. Some various cory for the bottom, maybe even a bristlenose pleco. Hatchets and Harley rasbora to round out the top....

Pulling some media over from your established tank will allow you to stock right away, but monitor your water for ammonia with a good liquid test kit and do water changes as necessary until the bacteria colony grows to handle the load.

[oldnovice]

NYCguppy dude....thanks for the links.

rbishop...any suggestions on what type angel to get 3-5 of? suggestions where to get 3-5 good healthy fish? should they be the last fish i introduce to new tank?

we are leaning towards including 6-8 cory catfish, a bristlenose catfish/pleco or two, 8-10 harlequin rasboras, 6-8 redtail rasboras, and 8 long fin black skirt tetras. too much?

we plan to heavily plant this tank, with many amazon swords, water sprite and vallisneria as possible, along with some java fern and java moss.

and we are still seeking advice and information.

any thoughts on our filter? rated for 125 gallons, but concerned about flow rate.

[Star_Rider]

flow can be taken care of with structure.

I run multiple filters on my angel tanks. the structure is plants and driftwood.. this will create calm spots and deflect the flow which will help dissipate the flow.

as far as stocking you should be fine.. but I would consider harleys and possibly one more. or a larger school of one.

as far as type.. if you are referring to species.. the most common is P.Scalare, they do come in several color variations tho.

[oldnovice]

so the new 90 gallon tank is up and cycled and fully planted. temp is at 77 degrees and ph is measuring 7.2 and we have the rena xp3 running full bore.

we have 4 cory cats and 5 marble hatchets and an albino bristlenose pleco in the tank. we plan to add 4 more cory cats as soon as we can. can/should we add a second bn pleco?

we are also seeking advice on the following...

we want to add some rainbows, maybe 3-4 boesemani and 3-4 neon blue dwarfs. will the 2 school together? or would it be wiser to go with 6-7 of one or the other rainbow? any reasons why we should choose one instead of the other?

then we would finish by adding angelfish. we have a line on some orange koi angels-dime to nickel size, or zebra lace angels-dime to nickel size, or double dark black angels-quarter to half dollar size. any advice on these choices?

we think 5 angels would be the max we could house along with the mix described. is that a good number? would we be better of with less? would any one recommend 3 or 5 angels in this set-up? and if so, anything we are missing or haven't thought about?

any and all comments are welcomed, thanks.

[jlink17]

If you are looking for some angels now Tropics007 has some koi babies for sale right now in the Ac Marketplace. You can get an assortment of koi and sunsets for $4 each or if you specifically want a certain # of Koi or sunset they are $7 each. Here is the link to her angels. http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=209467 I can also get you in contact with a man I got some smokeys from. He is giving some babies away for the cost of shipping. They are awesome little fish. Very healthy and excellent color already at dime size. Just PM me if you want me to get you in contact with him. Good Luck!

[ponderingky]

Here are a couple of pictures of my 95 gallon potential breeder growout tank. I have 24 adult/sub adults in here - 2 pairs have formed, I am sure others will follow. You have a lot of room in a 95 - the pairs take a small area over and run the others off. With this many in there and aggression is spread out very well. Overstocked -yeah - but I do water changes every 3 or 4 days and I have never had any problems w/this setup. My biggest problem is that I already have 5 very productive pairs - I am going to have to move some around or sell them off - don't know yet.

If you are willing to do the tank maintenance you can stock heavier. If you want to do less maintenance, stock lightly. I am not recommending this high of a stocking level - just wanted to show it can be done if you are willing to keep up your maintenance.

I have several varieties available if you have any questions.

(sorry for the bad pics - not my strength)

[jlink17]

I have some of Ponderingky's angels too and they are beautiful and great stock. I would recommend his fish any day as well as Tropics007. Also, I wouldn't recommend 3 angels because of aggression issues. I would recommend either do a pair or at at least 4 due to pairing and then having a lone angel taking the aggression from the pair. Just my opinion though.

[Woodward]

I have some of Ponderingky's angels too and they are beautiful and great stock. I would recommend his fish any day as well as Tropics007. Also, I wouldn't recommend 3 angels because of aggression issues. I would recommend either do a pair or at at least 4 due to pairing and then having a lone angel taking the aggression from the pair. Just my opinion though.


:iagree:


while doing 3, if a pair forms.....the third wheel will most likely get bullied :/