# Advice stocking a planted 75g needed



## Mog (Apr 5, 2011)

Hi and thanks in advance for your advice and help.

I'm in the process of setting up a planted 75g tank and would like some advice and opinions on stocking the tank. The back of the tank is painted black and I'm using eco-complete as the substrate. I have a young daughter who is fascinated by fish and I'm trying to stock it with colorful, active fish; especially against the dark substrate and black background.

It's going to be a low-medium planted tank. I have two pieces of driftwood (one of which is medium sized and has a cavelike area) and some stone I will be using as well.

I don't have enough experience with freshwater fish, which is why I'm asking here. It's difficult to determine which fish will get along with which, which are good for low, middle, surface areas, etc... 

Here's my setup: 75g with stand, back of tank painted black. Eco-complete substrate, Fluval 304, 300 and 150 watt Visi-Therm heaters, glass tops and an Aqualight (Coralife) with four 65 watt bulbs. I'll be using only 2 bulbs initially, until I can get a C02 system up and runnning and then switching over to 3 or 4 bulbs depending on plant growth.

I'll have the tank setup and starting to cycle this weekend, so I'll have a few weeks to research the fish, find local dealers, etc... 

I've always liked Angels, so would like to have 4 juvenille Angels in the mix... but that's just a thought. I'm open to any and all suggestions. 

Also, I live in the Raleigh, NC area and haven't found a decent LFS. If anyone has any recommendations in the area, it would be greately appreciated. Petco and Petsmart would not be my first choices when stocking 

Thank you again for your help and time; I've learned a lot while lurking in the shadows 

Alex


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## BlazednSleepy (Aug 21, 2010)

I think she would Love cardinal tertras. They are gorgeous little fish and its fun watching them school. Gets along with everything.










Cory Cats are awesome cute little fish that have great personalities. Gets along with everything. Theres also a crap ton of species to choose from. They need to be in a group of atleast 6.









German Rams are another beautiful fish that get along with most fish. Not sure about angels though.










Yoyo loaches have some of the greatest personalities of bottom dwellers. They are fun and active and have playful cheer to them Your daughter would love these fish. But you need to make sure your planted tank is set up for a few months so the plants are nice settled in the gravel. Yoyos are diggers.








You could always try Clown Loaches as well.

More schooling fish like Harlequin rasboras will be great too. Great schoolers and get along with everything.










These are just off the top of my head of some fish that are pretty and fun to watch which I think your daughter will enjoy. Best of Luck to you.:thumbsup:


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## lauraleellbp (Feb 3, 2008)

www.aqadviser is a really good resource to start with. 

I'd advise you to let your daughter pick out ONE fish she really really likes, and then you can "build" the rest of the tank stocking plan around that fish.

Dwarf cichlids like angels, Rams, or Apistos are slightly larger, colorful, and fairly intelligent and interactive fish that all do really well in planted community tanks- so those might be a good place to start.


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## Diana (Jan 14, 2010)

Better Loaches for a planted tank are Zebra Loaches, or Kuhlie Loaches. Not Yoyos or Clowns. 
Yoyos are diggers and are predatory, will eat smaller fish. 
Clowns get too big for that size tank. OK for a year or so, but not long term. 

Zebras are plump little guys, will eat shrimp, but nothing larger (Mine were with a breeding colony of Endlers Livebearers and Cherry Shrimp until the Loaches ate the shrimp)
Kuhlie Loaches are about as close to an eel as you can get with a planted tank. Fun little guys, and so thin that if they do start digging they do not harm the plants. 

Harlequin Rasboras are out front and friendly, a good mid-tank school.


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## mistergreen (Dec 9, 2006)

B. histrionica are good little/medium loaches. They're active during the day too so you'll get to see them.


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## BlazednSleepy (Aug 21, 2010)

Diana said:


> Better Loaches for a planted tank are Zebra Loaches, or Kuhlie Loaches. Not Yoyos or Clowns.
> Yoyos are diggers and are predatory, will eat smaller fish.
> Clowns get too big for that size tank. OK for a year or so, but not long term.
> 
> ...


WHat kind of small fish?

My Yoyo loach is almost 4 inches and doesnt eat any of the tetras or rasboras.


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## KShoes (Sep 29, 2009)

I agree with laura, have your daughter pick a fish, then build on it. Of course research that fish first to figure out compatibility. 

Recommendations from me (assuming compatibility with your daughter's choice):

Schoolers: I'd go one big school of harlequin rasboras or rummynose. Rasboras are hardier but i love the red mixed with my green garden. Rummynose seems to be very sensitive

Algae eaters: amano shrimps, nerite snails, and otos

Bottomfeeders: Panda cories or zebra loaches

Centerpiece fish: If Ram, German Ram or Bolivian. I found Germans to be prettier and more personality, Bolivians to be more hardy. If Pleco, Bristlenose plecos stay relatively small. Bettas or gouramis will fill the top.


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## Mog (Apr 5, 2011)

*This is what I'm considering so far...*

Ack... I just spent most of the morning typing up a post and lost it due to timing out... :frown:. Okay, let's try this one more time.

Thank you everyone for your advice. So far, this is what I'm considering...

1. Two Angelfish - I'm undecided on these, but was orginally planning on having these as the centerpiece fish. The problem is that I haven't found any that I liked. I'll keep looking though... There are not too many quality LFS's in the Raleigh, NC area.

2. Six Blue Cobra Guppies - Upper level









3. I really like the German Blue Ram's, but unfortunately the temp requirement doesn't fit in with the others in the community... I'm considering the Bolivian Ram and Dwarf Neon Rainbow as a replacement. Does anyone have any other colorful, active replacements?

German Blue Ram









Bolivian Ram









Dwarf Neon Rainbow









I found this picture of a Bolivian Ram, now if they only all looked that colorful, I would definitely use them 









4. Ten Cardinal Tetra's









5. Ten Harlequin Rasbora's 









6. Four Albino Cory's








7. Two SAE, Siamese Algae Eaters









8. Two Oto's









Okay, so I guess at this point, my questions are...

1. Do you have any other suggestions for a colorful, active replacement for the German Blue Rams?

2. The Rasboras temperature might be a problem for the others in the community, with a high of 77. If the tank fluxuates a degree or two and say hits 79, would that be a big issue for them? Would these and the Cardinal Tetras be too much in this tank? Are there any other schooling fish that I could replace them with that would be better suited for a 77/78 degree tank?

3. As far as the bottom algae feeders... would the Corys, SAE's and Oto's be okay together? I know the Oto's are good for algae on the plants, which is why I choose them. But I don't know if the Cory's or SAE's will touch the plant algae or not. If not... is there any reason to keep the SAE's? I haven't been able to find out enough info on the differences between the Cory's and SAE's as far as tank maintenance goes.

4. As shown in the picture, can I mix 2 albino and 2 regular cory's together? I'll most likely go with all albino for the contrast against the dark substrate, but thought I would ask anyway.

5. How do my numbers look? Meaning should I increase/decrease the school sizes, etc...

Thanks again for all your help! I'm going to post this now before I lose it again


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## KShoes (Sep 29, 2009)

1. Various apisto species would be a good substitute for the german rams. An expert on them will have to chime in for specific ones.
2. I believe harlequin rasboras have a wide temperature range and have found them extremely hardy.
3. SAE's grow fairly large (although fine for a 75g) but stop eating algae sooner rather than later. They turn into bullies as adults. Mine chases all the other fish away from the food. I have never seen cories eat algae except my algae wafers.
4. I recommend 6 cories. They will stick together but I think it would look better with one species.
5. Numbers look good. You can probably push for more. The aqadvisor is a good calculator.


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## reignOfFred (Jun 7, 2010)

I highly recommend not getting otos - for one, they really are best off in a bigger group and a well planted tank, and for another, they are very difficult fish that most people have trouble keeping alive for long, including people with plenty of experience - it's just the nature of the fish. If algae is your only purpose for including these guys, Nerite snails are a much better idea, or you might consider a bristlenose pleco or two. 

Apistogramma are an excellent substitute for the Rams, friendly in a community but also tougher then your typical Ram.

For sure in a tank this size there is no reason not to keep a nice group of those corys - 6 at least, I would get more like 8 or 10 of a dwarf species.

Don't worry about temperature - all these fish have a certain tolerance range that is actually quite wide. At about 78° you can comfortably keep all of these fish. Keep in mind in addition to the regular tolerance all these fish are captive bred and distanced from their wild cousins. Heck, I even have a "cold water" mountain minnow in a tropical tank (a leftover from bygone days) that is living forever in a tropical tank.

Your numbers look fine otherwise, though I would be inclined to leave out the rainbows and increase the number of cardinals.


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## lauraleellbp (Feb 3, 2008)

Conversely, I would recommend about a dozen otos. That's what I maintain in my 90gal.

I also agree with about a half dozen or so Cories.

I think your stocking ideas look pretty good so far.

First and foremost, though, I recommend getting a quarantine tank set up, and QT all new fish for a MINIMUM of 2-4 weeks before moving them over into your main tank.

This practice can save you tons of $$ and heartache over the long run as it will help you discover and be able to treat any illnesses or parasites in a much smaller, easier to control tank BEFORE you expose your main tank and/or other fish already in that main tank.


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## pianofish (Jan 31, 2010)

Hey buddy,
I'm in the process of stocking my 75 gallon planted tank as well, and I'd like to give my two cents.

For a replacement for rams, I HIGHLY reccomend apistogramma's. Species that are more common, but nonetheless beautiful are A. Cacatuoides 'Triple Red' or A. Agazizii 'Double Red'. The Cacatuoides are herem breeders so its best to have 1 male to 2-3 females in a community tank. The agazizii's just need 1 male to 1 female.

I don't have any pics off hand, but I'm super satisfied with mine.

As for a schooling fish I think your rasboras and cardinals will do fine. Although with a 75 gallon tank it wouldnt hurt to get a few more than 10 each. I'd say 15.

I would also reccomend one or 2 bristlenose plecos instead of Sae's, They don't get very large, and mine go to town on keeping my leaves fresh.

I agree with Laura that ottos oughta be kept in a school as well, and I'm also a newly found advicate of a quarantine tank, as I put some healthy looking black neon tetras in my main tank thinking they looked like a good stock, and Wham! ich in my tank just like that.

Hoping it all works out!
Your pal,
Pianofish


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## im2smart4u (Dec 7, 2010)

I also agree with laura on the otos. The thing I have found is that they are really touchy at first. When I buy them, I usually lost half within the first couple of days. Any that lived past that stayed alive for a long time. I figured that they were more prone to changes in water parameters. Once I started acclimating them better, and not just floating the bag, my success rate with them when way up. Also, I have found this to be one of the fish I will now only buy at a good LFS, not petsmart/petco.

Apistogramma are cool, but I haven't found them to be any hardier than rams. I gave my rams to my exgirlfriend, who loved them, and they are still alive and thriving in her tank despite being in a fairly crowded tank with hard water. My apistogramma, however, all died within a month when I got them. I still don't know what did it. They all died with a couple of days of each other, but no other fish was affected.


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## Mog (Apr 5, 2011)

Hey guys and gals,

Thanks you very much for your help, I really do appreciate your time and input. After everyones input and doing a little more research, here is my current list:

*Selected species:* 

2 x Angelfish (Pterophyllum scalare)
4 x Cockatoo Apisto (Apistogramma cacatuoides)
6 x Guppy (Poecilia reticulata)
15 x Cardinal Tetra (Paracheirodon axelrodi)
15 x Harlequin Rasbora (Trigonostigma heteromorpha)
6 x Albino Cory (Corydoras aeneus)
10 x Oto (Otocinclus vittatus)

































































I really like the Apistogramma cacatuoides, I think they are beautiful fish and would be a great addition. I've been looking at them as a replacement to the rams, but to be honest, the price was the reason I stayed away from them. After your recommendations and searching for alternatives, I decided they would be the best fit.

I'm pretty happy with this list and unless someone mentions something that should be changed, this is what I'm hoping to go with. 

The Angelfish and Cacatuoides will most likely have to wait. I don't have many options for LFS in the area unfortunately, so they may take a while to locate. I hate to take a chance with shipping them and will try and find them local if at all possible. 

I was going to start a new post once I had my fish picked out, but since it was brought up here, I do have a couple of questions as far as stocking and a QT tank. 

1. If you buy several fish from the same supplier and at the same time, whether LFS or online, can you stock those fish at the same time? Meaning... if I buy all but the Angelfish and Cacatuoides at the same supplier, can I put them all in the tank at the same time? Since I don't have many options as far as LFS in the area, most of my fish will be purchased online... and the shipping charges can add up quick. 

This is a completely new setup. So I was hoping to stock the tank with everything else all at once, once the tank finishes cycling. And then buying the Angels and Cacatuoides and putting them into a CT before introducing them to the tank. 

I only have a 10g that I am going to use for quarantine, which would require 7 different purchases, CT time, etc... I was hoping to minimize that by introducing several at once. 

I haven't done much research at all as far as CT. Now that the fish selection is completed, that's my next step. So I apologize for the newbie questions. 

Does anyone have any good links to read as far as setting up a CT tank and the typical process? 

Thanks again!

Alex


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## KShoes (Sep 29, 2009)

I wouldn't put the entire stock at once. Better to allow the beneficial bacteria keep up with the bioload. I would put the hardier ones in first and then the next a week or two later (assuming no huge jumps in the water chemistry).

I would put them in this order:
1. Guppies
2. Rasboras
3. Cories
4. Cardinals
5. Otos
6. Angels
7. Apisto's


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