# Intro/First tropical fish tank - Layout suggestions?



## Jazz0r (Apr 21, 2010)

Hey there!

I am new to the forum and the aquarium world in general. Up until 4 weeks ago I thought you were meant to take everything out of a fish tank and scrub it all down weekly - no wonder I could never keep my fish alive! :icon_redf

Bit about myself: 20 year old female from QLD Australia, I have just started working at an aquarium shop and am starting my own fish tank for the fun of it and to learn from the experience.
I enjoy heavy metal, playing video games and I keep reptiles.

SO! My tank will arrive on Sunday the 2nd. It is a 36x18x18inch tank (50 gallon??). I will be making up a barrel of water and adjusting the PH over the next week so it is ready for when my tank arrives. 
It will house a few different South American Cichlids along with a shoal of Serpae Tetras, a bristlenose catfish and a Pantodon Buchholzi.

My lighting will be a 24inch single tube unit, unsure of what type of tube to go with yet. I am not getting a C02 system at the moment, that will come later along with a better light if needed (when I have the $$).

So my tank will have a latex fake rock background and I brought this piece of mangrove driftwood which was collected up North QLD with a permit. It was about 6 foot when I got it and I've just cut it down to fit a 3 foot tank. Next two pictures show top half of the driftwood before I cut it and then driftwood in a 36x15 tank I had laying around - the black silicone was from a fake background I was building in there for a different project (scrapped long ago).



















I've been deciding which plants to use and how I should set out my tank with the help of plant profiles MS Paint  Here's what I've got so far (Can you guess the plants?! haha):











So far I am thinking Bacopa Australis, Elodea, Java moss to grow on parts of driftwood, hair grass, fissidens fontanus for rocks.. I dunno what else... I am having trouble deciding what plants to use and where to put them get a really nice planted look going as the driftwood is quite large heh. But I believe it has potential.

Any ideas/thoughts/tips/insight much appreciated!


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## funkyfish (Mar 16, 2009)

Welcome to the forum! You'll love it here 
LOOOOOVE the driftwood by the way! 
I am not sure about your fish stock so hopefully someone else can shine some light on that. 
IMHO I would get rid of the background you have if thats possible and just get a regular black or blue one that goes on the outside of the back wall. Maybe it will look better once you tank filled up with water but from what I see it just doesn't look right.
If you are planing to get a CO2 system you will need a good light preferably something with a high output T5 bulbs, you should aim for about 2wpg some plants require more, plant database will tell you the light requirement for specific plants. Also read up on EI dosing. I would start with some low light, easy plants like Anubias, Java fern, Ludwigia there is so many, Bacopa sound like a good choice, fissidens are awesome, I plan to get some for my tank  I would actually attach them to drift wood instead of java moss and to rocks, I just love the way they look and I think that fissidens are one of the few mosses that actually attaches to rocks and drift wood and I am not a big fan of java moss it get too stringy for me, but that's just me. If I am not mistaken dwarf hair grass need pretty high light too. Thats all I can suggest for now if I am wrong I am sure someone will correct me  Good luck and looking forward to seeing your tank, so make sure you make a journal


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## Jazz0r (Apr 21, 2010)

Thanks for the reply funkyfish.
I should have mentioned that I wont be making my fish tank in that tank I took the picture of it in. The tank I will be using it in is a brand new one I am getting on the 2nd it has to be made without the bracing in the middle or my driftwood wont fit heh.
I will be getting a latex fake rock background for the new tank so it will look nice.

The stringyness is what has attracted me to the java moss for the driftwood, I think it would look good flowing off parts of the wood.


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## Lindo (Apr 12, 2009)

Oh what side of Brisbane is the shop  always good to know.

I have a 3 footer and lots and lots of plants and live on the west side. So when I do a clean out it might be a good idea to keep an eye out.

My tank is mostly native with some neon tetras for colour and royal whiptails, oh and lots of red cherry shrimp. 

LOVE the drift wood, very very nice.


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## funkyfish (Mar 16, 2009)

Jazz0r said:


> Thanks for the reply funkyfish.
> I should have mentioned that I wont be making my fish tank in that tank I took the picture of it in. The tank I will be using it in is a brand new one I am getting on the 2nd it has to be made without the bracing in the middle or my driftwood wont fit heh.
> I will be getting a latex fake rock background for the new tank so it will look nice.
> 
> The stringyness is what has attracted me to the java moss for the driftwood, I think it would look good flowing off parts of the wood.


Mkes more sence now. And I know which backround you talking about those are nice I wanted to get one for my 55g but it's kind of expensive for me so I'm just sticking with a regular balck  

I think anything would look good on that drift wood :hihi: It evenlooks awesome on it's own. Can't wait to see pictures once you set it up :icon_smil


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## Jazz0r (Apr 21, 2010)

Lindo said:


> Oh what side of Brisbane is the shop  always good to know.
> 
> I have a 3 footer and lots and lots of plants and live on the west side. So when I do a clean out it might be a good idea to keep an eye out.
> 
> ...


I live in Alderley/Ashgrove/Enoggera way that's kind of west side isn't it? The shop is in Oxley.

You sell plants?

I would loooove cherry shrimp, I doubt they would do well in my tank. Was thinking of setting up a small tank just for cherry shrimp to sit on my desk. I'll get this project done first though, lol.



funkyfish said:


> Mkes more sence now. And I know which backround you talking about those are nice I wanted to get one for my 55g but it's kind of expensive for me so I'm just sticking with a regular balck
> 
> I think anything would look good on that drift wood :hihi: It evenlooks awesome on it's own. Can't wait to see pictures once you set it up :icon_smil


Yeah it is quite expensive but working in an aquarium shop has its perks. :icon_smil


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## Swan900 (Apr 27, 2010)

Hey just for a little help. Soak that drift wood in very hot (Boiling if possible) for a day or two, maybe even three. Trust me it will discolour your water if not. Change the water daily for the three days too, to make sure its fully rinsed. But I have no idea what you can use that is big enough for that beast. I ended up using a large old filing cabnet. Good luck


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## Lindo (Apr 12, 2009)

Know the shop and like visiting 3 or 4 times a year. Mind you I was there when that shopping centre burnt down about 9 years ago (at the other end where Barrys is) and went to the local primary school a long long time ago.

When you have the small tank set up, PM me re red cherries.


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## Diana (Jan 14, 2010)

Fish are not looking for a specific pH, but are looking for the correct level of minerals. This is most easily measured as GH and KH. 
If you are keeping soft water fish that have been bred in captivity I would aim for a GH and KH under about 9 German degrees of hardness (under 160 ppm).
If you are looking to breed these fish then softer water, about 3-5 degrees, or even softer would probably be needed, though some research into the exact species is important to get the optimum values. 

In all of this, do not chase pH. Get the mineral levels correct and let the pH do whatever it wants. 

36 x 18 x 18 = 50 American gallons, or 40 Imperial gallons. 

36" floor space might work with a few Cichlids, as long as there is enough territory for them to claim, and clear markers where one border stops and another begins. Driftwood, rocks, plants... We do not know what makes a good divider for fish, but something is better than nothing. Without markers the boldest fish is likely to claim the whole tank. 

Do the fishless cycle.


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