60 Gallon Tank Setup

[jtino]

This is what I have for a 60 gallon tank setup so far. Let me know if there are any concerns or if should add anything else for equipment. I’m new to this big of a tank so I’m providing as much detail as possible.

Tank: Clear for Life 60 Gallon Acrylic tank with black background. 48L x 15W x 20H. The tank will have plants, driftwood, and caves as décor.
Substrate: Light colored or Black sand. Not sure if the fish would look okay with black sand and a black background
Filter: Fluval 407 Cannister Filter
Wave Maker

Stocking:
1 Red Tail Shark

12 Tiger Barbs

2-3 Female Kribensis Cichlids – I don’t want any breeding, so I don’t know if not having a male will be a problem.

5 Redline Torpedo Barbs

 

[fishorama]

Welcome to AC!

I haven't kept RT shark with torpedo barbs but there could be a bit of chasing or worse. Sharks tend to dislike other torpedo shaped fish; torpedos may jump, they're a little nervous IME but beautiful. Plants will help, what are you planning?

& that's kind of a lot of medium/biggish when adult. The shark & torpedo barbs will grow to 5+ inches, the tiger barbs 2.5" for males & more like 3" for females; kribs 2.5. I like that you want a group of each of the schoolers but that's kind of a lot bio-load (fish mass).

With kribs & shark you'll need to have at least 2 caves for the shark & 1 for each krib. So I'd suggest only 2 female kribs. Sharks often prefer swim through caves, kribs are ok with just 1 opening.

Is the wave maker able to allow calmer areas for the kribs? I have used powerheads but not a wave maker, I'm not sure of the differences. With PHs you can aim the flow, so you may need to play around with placement/aim.

I use a second filter on tanks that size so I can clean 1 thoroughly & the other in a couple weeks without damaging the beneficial bacteria. I like Aqua Clear 70 HOB.

How are you cycling the tank?

 

[jtino]

thank you for the feedback.

for plants im thinking amazon sword and java fern for now.

I meant power head. and i have heard mix things about about Kribs preference for water flow. I've seen both that they like fast and slow water flow. but the powerhead would be for the stocking i have in this setup and to make the sand cleaner with the debris. especially if i go with light colored sand.

I'm pretty set on using the 407 canister filter as opposed to HOB because of my placement of the tank in my home. I could look into 2 Aqua Clears though. I would also do a fish less cycle for this tank.

So 1 RTS, 12 Tiger Barbs, 2 female Kribs, and probably not the torpedo barbs because of the RTS?

 

[NoodleCats]

Go with the fluval canister, imo the fluval canisters are fantastic.
Can attach a sponge to the powerhead as well for additional biofiltration.

Also, fishless cycle is the way to go! Awesome.

 

[jtino]

Go with the fluval canister, imo the fluval canisters are fantastic.
Can attach a sponge to the powerhead as well for additional biofiltration.

Also, fishless cycle is the way to go! Awesome.

Is there any concerns if i add purigen to the canister? I've use purigen before with HOB and it does its job really well

 

[fishorama]

I meant to use the canister & an AC 70 The HOB will need cleaning more often than the 407 but will be faster. You may need to clean the AC every 2-3 weeks, the 407 less often but more of a chore. I had a 404 once, maybe 407 is easier?

Kribs are from slowish moving rivers. It's not that they can't handle some flow but need an area away from it too.

I've kept tiger barbs & torpedos but not together. The gorgeous torpedos are wimps of the barb world, lol. I have kept tigers & a shark a few times. They're pretty much equal in aggression.

 

[NoodleCats]

I am unsure about the purigen, i don't run it in my filters.

But if you opt to use a canister plus the HOB, can always put it in the HOB if unsure.

I also want to say the torpedoes (am I correct in thinking theyre the same as roselines/Denison barbs?) Would need a larger tank due to size and activity level. I've read they do better 100g+ with 5 foot tanks at least. Very beautiful though.

Id suggest keeping it just the tiger barbs and the shark as they can dish out the attitude equally and can stand their ground with one another.

Krib may clash with the shark though.

 

[jtino]

Hi, just wanted to get some thoughts on my new stocking idea. im getting feedback that the RTS and redline sharks may not get along and the Redline sharks are too big for the tank. Would the below be a better option for this tank ?

Red Tail Shark
22 Tiger Barbs
8 Serpae Tetras
2 Kribensis

 

[NoodleCats]

Hi, just wanted to get some thoughts on my new stocking idea. im getting feedback that the RTS and redline sharks may not get along and the Redline sharks are too big for the tank. Would the below be a better option for this tank ?

Red Tail Shark
22 Tiger Barbs
8 Serpae Tetras
2 Kribensis

Would skip doing red tails with Kribs, both share the bottom level and will fight.

Tiger barbs may or may not attack the serpae, though serpae can be little jerks too. Best keep the tiger barbs as they are as the only upper level fish if you are intent on tiger barbs

 

[jtino]

Thank you for the feedback. I'm getting mixed responses on the Kribs and RTS getting along, which is enough to say they probably wont work together. If i wanted to get rid of the aggressive Tiger barbs all together but keep the RTS, would the below stocking idea work? or any other suggestions for a RTS community tank would be great! Thank you.

Red Tail Shark
5 Pearl Gourami
5 Cockatoo Apisto
5 Blue Ram