Advice on starting new 45 gal freshwater tank

Are you considering live plants? Otherwise there would be no need for LED. Looks good, though. You might want to get a thermometer, unless your heater comes with one. I can't remember if they usually do. A knob for setting your heater to different temperatures doesn't accurately reflect actual water temperature, just what the heater is producing. Especially with those package heaters that come with the tank, they are never reliable. I had one that thought the tank temp was 82 when it had actually been slowly rising to a temp of 98. That could kill your fish. If you are going to get a thermometer, get a digital model. Do not get a mercury thermometer because if you crack that, all your fish are dead. Your tank is slightly overfiltered, which is good. Airpump systems always help, and your tank looks suitable for all the fish you considered. The gravel shouldn't be too big of a deal for the cories. Although there might be competition between your corys and plecos for the same tank areas. I would get more corys, as they are highly social fish. Other than that, the stocking isn't overstocked. Good luck!

Some floating plants would add live plant benefits, and be easiest to deal with. Plus the floaters would be much appreciated by the forest fish mentioned and under consideration.

I agree, increase the corys to at least six, more if you like them. You could easily have 12-15 here. While sand is better for corys, the gravel here is smooth so they should be OK. The Glofish should be increased too; this is a man-made form of the Zebra Danio, so a shoaling fish requiring a group. If you really like the fish, add another 5-6, or just the regular Zebra Danio.

Byron.

Deadcell said:

I heard the rule of thumb for stocking is 1 inch of fully grown fish per gallon. I've been trying to abide by that since I haven't had enough experience to make my own judgement. So getting additional corys and tetra (aside from the ones I already have, and adding the ones I mentioned) wouldn't overstock the tank?

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"Stocking" is not well understood by many. The sheer mass of the fish (which is what the inch per gallon guide is trying to deal with) is only one of several factors that affect the tank's biology when it comes to numbers of fish. When you are dealing with shoaling fish like corys, tetra, barbs, etc, the number of individual fish has an impact beyond sheer mass. At some point, the fewer fish in the group, the greater will be their impact on the tank's biology in other ways, whereas having more of the species can result in less impact. Fish that are not in the environment they "expect" will be under stress, and the greater the stress, the greater the fish's impact on the tank biologically. So in a given aquarium, all else being equal, having more of a species can be safer than having too few. So in your case, if you want your corys to be healthy, you must have a larger group. Same for the tetra. Scientific studies have now proven without question that too few fish of a shoaling species does cause problems for the fish, leading to aggression, or the opposite, or just a weakened immune system and premature death.

The inch of fish per gallon is a very rough guide at best, but it fails very quickly even when considering mass. A group of ten 1-inch fish may be fine in a 10g, but a 10-inch oscar is not.

Byron.

Deadcell said:

Wow, totally didn't know that about it effecting tank biology. I wasn't aware that corys were shoaling fish either. I guess I always thought of bottom feeders as loners for some reason.

Ok then. I'll get 4 more corys, that'll make 6. And I plan to get at least 3 more tetra to make 6 (I was planning on getting at least one more anyway).

Question. I have a green, yellow, and pink glofish tetra. I was planning to get a purple one. My wife loves the fact that we only have one of each, she named them all. So to prevent getting multiples of the same color (they are only available in 4 colors), do you think these guys would shoal with skirt tetra and the like? I mean, thats essentially what they are except that they've been genetically altered. If not, I could get additional glofish of the same color. I'd prefer for them to be healthy rather than die because of some stupid preference of ours.

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I have not myself tried this [I am in the group of aquarists who do not condone genetic modification of any fish], but I see no reason why the fish would not be happy together, since as you say they are the same species. B.

One last question, I think. Are rainbow cichlids good in a community tank? The reason why I ask is I told the local fish store I would like some peaceful cichlids, like the bolivian ram or blue ram. And the girl recommended getting a rainbow as well. Everywhere I've looked, the rainbow is listed as semi-aggressive. Of course, so is my gourami, but he is good most of the time.

Btw, thanks for all of the info Byron. I really appreciate your help.

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You're most welcome. I've not kept the Rainbow cichlid, by which I assume we are talking about Herotilapia multispinosa from Central America, but I understand it is relatively peaceful for a cichlid, so presumably close to the two rams in temperament. It can attain 7 inches, though apparently closer to 4-5 is more normal in an aquarium. This is still a decent sized fish, but one that is said to be normally OK with the more robust tetra. BTW, those pictured Glofish are genetically modified Gymnocorymbus ternetzi, the Black Widow or Black Skirt Tetra, which are quite robust for a characin. They can sometimes fin nip, so be careful if they are in with sedate fish like gourami or cichlids.

Byron.