Planning a new 26g tank...

NinjaPenguin said:
I decided to test the "expert" today and asked him how big the bala and red tails get and here is his reply "They will only grow as big as your tank will allow them to grow ... +/- 12cm in a 3 foot tank"
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if fish got as big as their habitats allowed, there would be neon tetras 100 feet long in the amason river and angels big enough to eat them in one gulp... now thats a fish :D

there is some truth to that, but it is called stunting. it is unatural for the fish does not reach adult size, and it makes the fish''s life shorter and miserable because it will be sickly.
 
Thanks again for the informative and educational responses! With all your expert help I am sure going to have some very happy fish! :)

I found another LFS that has some awesome stock and I've come up with some other options and fallen in love with a pair of electric yellow cichlids. This of course limits the population of the tank substantially. Would the following be suitable tank mates?

2 electric yellow cichlids (M+F) - 5" fully grown
2 blue peacock cichlids (M+F) - 6" fully grown

The other option:

2 pearl gourami's
5 zebra danios
5 neon tetras

Not sure how big the pearls get - can anyone help?

Heres some photo's of my new 26g and refurbished 20g:

http://photo.w3b2.com/phish/SSA41222.JPG
http://photo.w3b2.com/phish/SSA41226.JPG

My wife has a hundred other ideas for the 20g so I'll let her have her way there! lol
 
I think that both the electric yellow's and the peacock's would be too much for a tank that size, especially if you plan to get a male and female of each. (fish fry do produce quite a bit of waste, despite their size) I would just stick with the electric yellow's and perhaps 3-4 cory's. It may look empty at first, but as the fish mature, you'll begin to see how happy they'll be if they have that room. As far as pearl gouramis go, they are beautiful fish and can develop quite the personality. (though many cichlids, the electric yellow's included, will show a lot of personality too) Pearl's will get approx. 4" - 4.5" each. Be careful with how you pair them... aggression in a small tank can lead to an injured or deceased fish. I have a pair of Opaline gouramis in my 55 and the male, though he has become more lenient, still chases the female around. I have a lot of plants for her to hide in too, so that helps a bit. If you want to go with the gouramis, I'd suggest going with 2 (if you can get both female it would be easier on them, and the females are beautiful fish just like the males) gouramis and say 10 cardinal tetras. I think you would be happier with cardinals than either danios or neons, but this is strictly my personal opinion. Keep us updated on what you decide to do. :-)
 
You may also want to think about the water you have available for water changes. That could determine what to keep. if you tap is hard alkaline you should stay away from most tetras. But the cichlids would work excellent then. It is better to have you African tanks a a little overstocked than under stocked to keep the pressure off one fish. African cichlids your best bet is demasonis and Yellow Labs. Each have a completly different personalityand they are fun to watch. If you have soft water I would turn the ph. to 7.0 and go with a pair of blue rams, 1 High fin pleco, 2 corys, and about 8 cardinal tetras. It's all depending on your water specs and what extra work your willing to do for your water changes.
 
I have stocked the 26g and the 20g as follows...

26g
3 female pearl gourami's
1 upside down catfish
2 swordtails (m+f)
5 neons
5 glowlights

20g (Wife's tank)
3 fancy guppies (1m 2f)
2 mollies (m+f)
1 zebra pleco

24 hours have passed and no deceased or injured fish! All the fish climbed into a hearty meal of bloodworms last night which I believe is a very good sign that they are not stressed out...

I made a set of lunar lights out of a couple of cheap components ($7.00) available at the local electronics shop - they add an awesome night time effect to the tank...

Photo's:
http://photo.w3b2.com/phish/SSA41268.JPG
http://photo.w3b2.com/phish/SSA41269.JPG

If anyone would like to see how they are made I'd be more than willing to post the construction details on the forum.
 
Nice setup :-) Upside down cats are a lot of fun, but be careful when it starts to get big.. it might try to chase down the neons. One concern of mine... you didn't add all of those fish at once, did you? If so, be very careful to monitor the tank parameters.. chances are that you will be doing frequent (daily if not more frequent) water changes to keep things in ballance until the tank completes its cycle. (adding a large bio-load to a previously cycled tank will send it into a mini-cycle, which can last up to a week or so) Be careful with the zebra pleco too... to what I understand of them, they're delicate and have a very specific diet. Keep us posted and congrats on getting your fish :-)
 
Thanks gatotsu77! :)

Yes I did add them all on the same day (impatience on my part! lol) but I am testing water parameters twice daily and doing a 20% water change every 48 hours.

Zebra pleco seems very happy with pleco wafers and blanched cucumber slices. The upside down catfish seems to spend most of his day hanging upside down under the driftwood but gets very active when the lunar lights switch on.
 
NinjaPenguin said:
Thanks gatotsu77! :)

Yes I did add them all on the same day (impatience on my part! lol) but I am testing water parameters twice daily and doing a 20% water change every 48 hours.

Zebra pleco seems very happy with pleco wafers and blanched cucumber slices. The upside down catfish seems to spend most of his day hanging upside down under the driftwood but gets very active when the lunar lights switch on.
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how much did the zebra pleco cost? true zebra plecos are VERY rare and expensive, and cost anywhere between $150-$400 here in the US. there are a number of more common plecos often labeled as zebra plecos, most commonly flash/butterfly plecos. also, true zebra plecos are mostly carnivorous so I don't think they would be readily eating vegtables, i'm not sure on that though.

this is a pic of a true zebra pleco:
p_89980.jpg
 
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how much did the zebra pleco cost?
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ZAR 35.00 - Roughly US $5.00

For comparison sake a common pleco is ZAR 10.00 - US $1.40

Judging by the photo we don't have a true zebra pleco or it's a cross between a common pleco and a zebra - it has stripes and spots like the common.

I'll try take a photo later if it will lie still long enough...
 
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