Angelfish

sophiecat22

sophiecat22

AC Members
Jul 25, 2006
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St. Pete, FL
I'm completely confused about angels and the difficulty of their care. Some places say that they're a good fish for beginners and others say that they're better for aquarists with a little more experience. The same place said that they prefer soft, slightly acidic water, which if thats the case then I can't keep them because my water is naturally hard and alkaline, but another place said that they like water in the a wider pH range of 6.0-8.0. Does that just mean that they will adapt to a wide range of water conditions? I'm considering angelfish for my 30 gallon instead of kribs as I haven't had any luck in finding a store that carries them or that will order them for me. OK, I have found one that carries them, but their tanks are in a deplorable condition and I definitly don't want to take the risk of introducing some terrible disease into my tank. Although, I did almost buy a couple right on the spot to "rescue" them, but then my brain started working again and said "time to go!" :duh: . Sorry, I seem to have wondered off topic...

Right, angelfish...there is one lfs that has beautiful angels and they did say that if some more people request kribs then they'll possibly order a few, which kinda makes it a toss-up for me.

I guess I'm just looking for some general info on angels. Thanks in advance! :dance:
 
the place that said they are for more experienced aquarists and that they need acidic water is right, angelfish are a bit more sensitive and arent as hardy as most cichlids.
 
Angels do prefer low PH about 6.5 however they can do well in up to 7.5... They wont breed unless it it 6.5 or less usually. There are some easy ways to get your PH down naturaly, and the Angels will love it as its part of thier natural Amazon habitiat. Lots of driftwood. If you dont soak out the tannis thats even better. It will make your water a bownish color tho... also peat in the filter media, or any kind of "black water" additive will lower your PH.
 
wild angel fish do best when maintained in the same water chemistry that exists in their native envirnment. however, the vast majority of angels in the hobby today are pond/farm bred and raised in 'local' water conditions which can range anywhere from soft to hard. they are an adaptable species and if properly acclimated to YOUR water chemistry, as long as it's not extreme at either end of the spectrum, they'll do just fine and may spawn.

whether or not you are an experienced hobbyist or just starting out, the biggest single factor to successfully maintaining a group of angels in your tank is CLEAN and STABLE WATER conditions. 50 percent water changes on a weekly basis coupled with a gravel vacuum, ZERO ammonia and nitrite at ALL times and nitrates ALWAYS less than 10 ppm. do this and you'll be fine with angels.

finally, check the source any angels you purchase. many come from the far east and arrive here in less than ideal condition. they may have parasites, they may have bacterial infection and they almost certainly will be stressed. definitely quarantine them before adding them to a tank already containing fish.

good luck.
 
if you are worried about the kribs from the low quality shop just quarantine them. it isnt a 100% guarantee, but it will cut down the likelihood of them introducing anything. even in stable conditions i do not recommend the angels in 8.0. many fish are hardy enough to live in conditions outside their desired and natural water parameters, but they will not thrive. and thriving should always be your top priority.
 
good advice from Liv2padl.

it does depend on the source. check with your LFS.

I do raise angels and they can and will spawn in water that is neutral. my water is 7.2 and i am currently raising baby angels that I removed from the parents after they got to free swimmer..

while wild angels do better in soft,slightly acidic water.
tank bred angels over the generations have become more adapted to aquarium life and can thrive in harder water (as high as 8.0). most of this is dependant upon where they come from. if you have a local breeder your chance of having healthy angels is significantly increased.

angels are not a difficult fish to raise and as suggested, do very well in tanks that get large water changes weekely.. my tanks get 30-40% water changes atleast 2 X per week.

also keep in mind you need fairly large tanks for them atleast 10 gallons per angel with a minimum 20 for a pair(if you use a 20 you wil need to change water frequently) I recommend a 29 or larger for a pair.
 
yep. liv2pdl and star_rider are right.

anyone that cares for their water can care for angel fish (dang near any species).

the thing you have to keep in mind is the expertise of the individuals writing the summaries of info you see on-line. or even the descriptions of success written by many hobbyists. then keep in mind how myths about fish gain legs on-line.

i have written more than one description of fish for on-line posting at a couple of sites. when you author something you need to fill in a blank--the pH. many people that write pick the pH they think represents the "typical" habitat of of fish. Or they pick the pH someone else used in their write-ups. They often times fail to consider that the occurrence of a species may be widespread. a single species may be found at many spots in a lake or river. and a single species may be found in many lakes and rivers. Then they often times make a mistake of assuming that pH in a body of water is universally constant.

Why the babble? follow this link: http://fishbase.org/Summary/speciesSummary.php?ID=4717&genusname=Pterophyllum&speciesname=scalare

you will see a HUGE range of pH identified for an angel fish. This isn't for tank bred. this range is for "wild" fish.

I have kept and had angels successfully breed in 6.6-7.8 pH water.

Freshwater fish love freshwater. provide that and most other issues will take care of themselves.
 
My water comes out of the tap at 7.8, but the pH in my tank is right around 7.5. When choosing angelfish in the petstore, is it better to get the larger, more mature angels or the smaller ones?
 
the shift in pH is probably just normal degassing.

size issues are an odd issue. a lot of it depends upon the tempermant of the adult fish. depends on what other fish are in your tank..mature angels can be a bit nasty to smaller, unfamiliar fish.

small angels can grow to be nasty, or placid.

if there are small angels in your tank now thee may be serious problems.

hard to cast an answer to this one in stone--lol. i guess the honest answer can be arrived at with this question: who knows?

sorry if it was not all that helpful.

ps. i just noticed that the link above is acting strange. go to www.fishbase.org. do a genus and species search. that will land you at the page that is linked above.
 
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