We have a 46 gal tank, I believe it is. We started with two large chiclids, one of them a jack Dempsey, and three smaller ones including a baby that was still transparent. We added three albino plecos, two small Oscars, a small peacock eel, a rope fish, and a freshwater snowflake eel. The chiclids picked both of the Oscars to death one at a time; the peacock eel is picked on, but able to escape; the rope fish is perfectly fine, though I've never seen him eat; and the snowflake eel has eaten all three of the albino plecos. That's $8 a meal. He's rejecting frozen krill at this point, and even seems as though he may be smart enough to use it to lure in the other fish. I know he can't help it and that's just what he is, but he's becoming a bit of a nuisance to the tank community. He will be getting his own tank soon as i forgot to feed him this morning and came home to him terrorizing the tank, chasing all of the fish and snapping at any fish in range. At this point, I think that with removing "Snowball" my husband may want to add a few more fish. Not really sure what I can replace him with that will be pretty, be able to survive the chiclids, and will leave the rope fish and peacock eel alone. Thinking Snowball will end up in my room, but I feel that means I will have to sacrifice the idea of having a pretty, PEACEFUL community to put me to sleep at night.
A problem with tankmates
- Thread starter jaymekelley
- Start date
I believe your "mix" is way out of line for that size tank. Be more specific on "cichlids" as there are many varieties. As for an Oscar, the minimum I would keep ONE in is a 75 gallon tank with very few select tank mates. Ditch the rope fish and eel. How long has this tank been established? How was it cycled? Liquid test kit readings?
We have jack Dempsey's, convicts and Africans. Had the tank about a month or so, haven't gotten around to getting a liquid kit yet, but I'm planning to when I get paid anyhow as I was told that the (nitrate and ammonia?) Levels may be off and may be why the rope fish doesn't seem to eat and alternates days of restlessness with days of sleep/rest. The peacock eel seems quite content, but yes, the other two eels seem either "off" or "savage."
And I'm tellin' you, its a hell of a hostile environment. Only the peacock and the ropfish seem to be capable of remaining pretty docile.
You have a mix of fish that will outgrow the tank, have different needs, and are well-establshed as aggressive. Not a good mix. If you want a docile tank...you need to get rid of pretty much everything and start over. Research first...
Jay- when you started this tank a month ago, was it a situation where you set it up brand-new, added dechlorinated water and then the fish right away? If so, there's more issues than just improper stocking going on. I would start by getting an API master test kit and making sure the tank produces nothing but nitrates, then gear your weekly water change regimen around your nitrate creep. 46g is not a large tank. Most of the fish you listed above need much more than that. Don't feel bad. Most of us started out this way!
Yes, we were given the tank with the few chiclids that came with it, we set up the tank and put the fish in it and bought the other fish in the following days. I knew they were aggressive and tried to pick other aggressive fish, the plecos to clean the tank some, and the rope fish because I was told he was somewhat armored and would be able to withstand bullying, and the snowflake because he was also aggressive. Did not plan on the ciclids nor the snowflake being AS aggressive as they are. The peacock is the only one that seems either happy or safe right now. Maybe I can put the peacock and some peaceful tankmates in my room, the snowflake in his own tank with some freshwater shrimp to keep him happy and fed, and keep the rope fish and chiclids together in the original tank? I like them all (the snowflake creeps me out a little with his temperament), I'd like to keep them if I can figure out how to. What should I have done to the tank other than adding the drops that came in the kit I bought (dechlorinator, clarifier, color enhancer, vitamin boost) and the aquarium salt?
When you were given this setup with the fish, did you use the used filtration and/or substrate? Given that was all kept wet and re-setup quickly, the beneficial bacteria you need to process ammonia would have been saved.
We did at first, but my husband picked up and set up the tank before I got home from work. Having never had a fish tank before in his life I came home to a very dirty, cloudy tank because he didn't realize that party of it should have been cleaned before resetting the tank. Seemed as though they hadn't cleaned it in ages, the large rocks stunk so bad it was gag-worthy. When we cleaned the tank he decided to get some finer sand than what was there as the previous owners didn't have eels and it seemed like the preexisting sand was a little sharp and was irritating Snowball's underbelly. It was about a week after we had it before the sand was changed.
Your husband did the right thing by using the old bio-organisms. If anything, a siphon/vacuum would be best but when it comes to setting up a new tank, the best thing you can do is get some established filter media/bio-load, to speed-cycle the new tank. When you cycle a tank with fish, this is really the only way to do it and prevent ammonia spikes.
As far as stock goes, i'm guessing a lot of research was not done - almost every fish you have is unsuitable for a tank that size. I would do your homework, learn as much as you can about the species you have and decide whether you want to keep fish that can be housed in a 46g for LIFE, or plan on upgrading to a larger tank.
Also, which species of Moray did you get - is it Gymnothorax polyuranadon or G. tile?