Critic my plan

[MQ1]

Please critic my future plans. I have setup my 29G tank about a month ago and went through a fishless cycle. As soon as the cycle was complete I went out and bought 6 longfin zebra danios to further help increase the bacteria growth. Before adding anymore fish Im going to wait about 2 weeks. The following fish I'de like to add in this order:
3 cory cats (in 2 weeks)
1 or 2 anglefish (4 weeks)
1 dwarf gourami or 2 blue rams (6 weeks)
8 cardinal tetras (7 weeks)
Will this be too much for a 29 gallon? Any suggestions for other fish?

 

[kveeti]

It is my understanding that after a fishless cycle, a full fish load can/should be added to the aquarium. The zebra danios did not further increase your bacteria growth - they just partially sustained it. Any excess nitrifying bacteria not needed for the current bioload will begin to die off.

So, in that case, your plan of adding a few fish at a time hereafter is right to do. After each addition, be sure to do frequent testing and water changes as necessary as you may (or may not) get a mini-cycle. However, the bacteria will be quicker to catch up than from scratch.

As for stocking levels and choice of fish, I’ll leave that to others. But I think that since angelfish are territorial and so are blue rams, you might have some conflict there. Also, I’ve read that when they are breeding blue rams are not good with corys because of corys scavenging habits; the rams may beat up on them.

 

[Satin and Tat]

I'd up the corys to 6, skip the angelfish altogether, and go with a gourami rather than a pair of rams since breeding rams can be a bit nasty.

 

[centralharbor]

what kveeti said, youre supposed to add all the fish at once right after the fishless cycle is done, or the bacteria you built up will die since there is no food for them (ammonia)

also for stocking, since 29 gals are tall, i wouldnt add that much into the tank because there isnt as much surface area. maybe leave out the cardinals or the gourami

 

[abnscout82]

I have to disagree a little. When you do a cycle, either a fishy or fishless, your tank reaches an equilibrium, with bacteria and micro-organisims all interacting together. The cycle grows to accomodate its current state. For that reason I would still add the fish on a "time release" to let the tank accomodate and grow to handle the extra load. I would agree with the angelfish, they might get just a little too big for the fish as they are rated as getting up to 6", but i have seen them in a tank that size before, maybe get the runts of the litter... The cories are a great idea, i even went so far as to get different kinds, this makes looking at them a bit better. The dwarf gourami are great fish, but can be VERY territorial, I had 2 and one scared the other to death (he didnt eat and kept hidden) but the one that survived is an awesome looking fish. I would also agree with holding off on the tetras, would probably put your tank above the overstocked line. I do suggest that if you decide to push the tanks limits, then add a couple of live plants, they help tremendously with water levels, especially ammonia.

 

[redbucket]

angels and gourami don't get along

 

[abnscout82]

angels and gourami don't get along

I cannot say for all circumstances, but I have a dwarf gourami and 2 angels and they leave each other alone just fine

 

[zazz]

About stocking after fishless cycle:

... The amount of ammonia added is far above that generated by a reasonable number of cycling fish, resulting in faster growth of the bacterial colonies, and larger colonies when you're finished. In practical terms, this means that your tank cycles faster (reports of anywhere from 10 days to 3 weeks, depending on the fish tank... compared to average of 4-6 weeks for traditionally cycled tanks), and that you can fully stock a tank when the cycle is complete.

~Written by Chris Cow Ph.D. Organic Chemistry
Of course he is referring to the fishless cycling method that uses measured amounts of ammonia.
http://www.tropicalfishcentre.co.uk/Fishlesscycle.htm
so, as was stated earlier, the six danios most likely provide too light a bioload to maintain the acteria colonies that were established by your fishless cycling. Once the bacteria die back, you would then be best adviced to add fish gradually and watch for mini ammonia spikes with each addition.
As far as your stocking, plan, i really think a 29 isnt big enough for even one angel fish. I have always wanted angelsand did a lot of reading not too long ago when I thought I was going to get a 35 gallon. It turned out thateven a 35 would have been kinda pushing it for angelfish.
yeah you see em in smaller tanks but they are likely young, and or stunted.
I don't know about rams, they are ciclids too, yes? you might check out the ciclid forum for more oppinions.
Several people here , myself included,have observed that cories seem to prefer to school with thir own sort of cory. good idea to get at least three Id suggest staying with three of one type.
I'd say if you skip the angel fish/rams, go with cories, cardinals and a gourami, you should be ok. That would make a nice tank IMO
Be sure you have good filtration, expect to do weekly water changes (maybe 50%. enough to keep the nitrate down to around 10ppm)
without the ciclids who are more territorial than thes other fish, you wouldnt need to worry about who goes in first. when it is time for new fish you can buy whichever looks best at your lfs that day.
ottos are smaller than cories and are really fun to have imo. that substitition would make me even more comfortable with your bioload.
I hope you let us know what you decide.

 

[MQ1]

Thanks for the feedback. It really sucks that I have to skip on the angelfish but the gourami should be a good substitute. So the list will be 3-4 cories, 8-10 cardinal tetras, and 1 male gourami.
For now I will push the introduction of the cories back until I get rid of ich which 3 of my zebra danio's have. Right now Im just salt and high temp (83F) to try to fight it. Or should I use store medication?

 

[Holly9937]

I think that list sounds great, you will have a very happy tank . For the ich, the salt and heat is the best way to go, just make sure you treat long enough to kill off all of it. Then I would wait at least 2-3 weeks before adding fish, just be sure you got it all. Its a bit on the cautious side, but I would rather be safe than sorry.