Fish for my 33gal

[sdb]

My fishless cycle is coming along way quicker than I thought . I need to figure out what I want to put in and how many.
I'm thinking of an angelfish for the 'showpiece', so it's just putting together the rest. I'm limited with what I can go with in my small town, but I'll be aiming toward medium sized fish like platys, cherry barbs, cories, harlequin rasboras, or maybe some tall bodied tetras like congos. I'm going to talk to the fish guy in the next couple days and go over a list to find out what he can order in for me, but I need to have an idea of how many fish of the above size can go in this tank. I may have a bigger selection to choose from than I'm aware of, but I don't want to overstock.
Would something like 8 cories, 5 cherry barbs, 5 platys, and the angelfish be ok? Any advice on numbers, etc, would be greatly appreciated.

Also, I have to special order my fish since I can't guarantee the store will have what I want when I want (they only occasionally order angels, for example, and today when I went in, their tanks were mostly empty), and I need all my fish at once. Now, here's my question. I can't predict exactly when my cycle will be done, it's showing nitrites after only a week (some seeding done). My LFS doesn't have the room to hold fish. When they come in I have to take them within a day or so. Can I have the cycle done, then order the fish, and just keep adding ammonia to keep the cycle alive until the fish arrive? Could be up to 10 days, since they place the order and it arrives 10 days later.
Thanks for any advice.

 

[sdb]

Hello out there?

 

[mayreee]

When your cycle is done why dont you just keep feeding the bacteria with ammonia until your fish get in? So then you will be sure they don't come before the end of the cycle.

 

[RTR]

Yes, you can continue feeding ammonia to maintain the bacteria while awaiting delivery of the fish. I tend to alternate ammonia one day and fish food the next to keep the heterotrophic bacteria happy as well, but that is for fully conditioned tanks that have been left temporarily without fish.

 

[Copper]

First off-ordering. It will not be entirely possible to predict exactly when your cycle will be finished. I would allow it to finish cycling BEFORE ordering your fish. Once it is done, you can maintain the bacterial cultures by dropping in a little bit of food. The food will of course go uneaten, and decay which will end up feeing your bateria. The cleaner option would be to continue adding ammonia until you order your fish. Once you order your fish, you should have an idea when they will arrive. Stop adding ammonia just before and your cultures should be able to maintain until you add the fish.

My opinon about stocking. Since the angel will be the main focus of your tank, you will probably want fish that are relatively calm fish. The angel is a slow and easy swimmer, and may be uncomfortable around highly active or nippy fish so keep that in mind.

Also, unless you have another tank you can use as a breeding tank, I would steer away from the livebearers like the platy. At your stocking levels, you won't have a great amount of room, and you may find yourself with a school of newborn fry that will quickly overstock your tank. Of course they may end up being eaten as well if you can't segregate them.

I think the rasboras are good fish. They are little guys, and although they are quick, they are pretty calm and will enjoy the same environment as the angel including the available temperature range. Some folks use them as dither fish. You may note that I keep some of these in my 30 gal hex, but I'll be moving them to the 38 gal to seperate them from the tigers and use them as dithers for some incoming stock.

IMO, you could stock the angel, although it would be better in a pair but you don't have room for 2, the rasboras and the cherry barbs. I believe the temperment of the barbs should be okay, and keep these and the rasboras in schools of at least 6, so you might order a couple more just in case some don't make the change too well. Some corys too if you like, but not so many as you have here. I think they are a bit messy.

Hope this helps, but keep fishing for other opinions.

Copper

 

[LMOUTHBASS]

speaking from experience hope you read this 1st

Glad to hear you are thinking about angels! personally my favorite fish! however there's a few things you gotta know before purchasing them!
1 - they are very sesitive to water that is not completly cycled. I would first stock the tank with a few smaller hardy fish (may be a pair of platys) just to start to make sure everything is cool

2 - don't waste your money buying them from local chain stores such as pet smart or pet co thery're angel stocks are always poor and they die within 6 months normally - i only have 1 that ever worked out and she's still going strong but i've lost at least 10-15 others over the years

3 - get your angels from a local lfs or breeder that you trust - since i've done this i've had beautiful angels that have grown quickly and look gorgeous now!

4 - angels will eat small fish like harlequins , neons, maybe even the barbs your thinking of, i swear i think they even picked off one of my ottos!

5 - be sure to treat your angels to a variety of snacks - hikari freeze dried brine shrimp is great as well as tubifex worms and blood worms (also hikari)

6 - the greatest food on the planet (IMO) is New Life Spectrum ! make this their regular diet - you will see vibrant colors come out of your fish and healthy looking skin

7 - don't put more than 2 angels in your tank - they grow big, quick - they bicker amongst themselves in groups especially if there isnt tons of room - i learned the hard way i have 6 in a 55 gal that are way too big for their home - i'm hoping to buy a 90g soon!


some good tank mates - platys, cories, zebras (quick enough to get away and grow just big enough to not be a snack), sword tails, hatchetfish, most bottom fish like loaches, rummynose (caution on their size though) rams, gouramis.


AVOID - tiger barbs - even though they are smaller they will bully and nip your angel's long fins, the same is prob true for other barbs also - I would also say to avoid the normally peaceful silver dollars as i have seen them nip my angels front "feeler fins" - needless to say i was shocked and removed them from the tank and back to the store!


l et me know if you have any q's but you will get hooked on angels give em' a try you'll like em' a lot - they have loads of personality and when you go to feed them they come swimming to the top to beg for food it's cool!

 

[sdb]

Thank you all so much for your input! I have a much better idea now on stocking the tank.
I'll head to the LFS pretty quick to see what they can order in for me so I can make some definate decisions, and I'll go from there. I feel so much better knowing I can keep feeding the tank after the cycle is complete while I wait for my fish.
I'll cut down some on the cories as suggested, and do a school of at least 6 of each on the rest, except the angel. Will the angel really be ok on his own? I actually hate seeing things on their own (that's why I have two cats, not just one!), but I don't want to crowd the tank since they do get big, plus I read that two can cause aggression if they don't pair up.