# Help with Tank Tear Down and Rescape



## jonsnow (May 1, 2015)

My 55 Gallon tank has gone to shambles, and I am planning on tearing it down completely, giving my cichlids and rainbow shark to Petco, and starting from scratch. I would love it if people could give me suggestions on everything from the hardscape to equipment, so that I can setup a much nicer tank.

Current Equipment:
55 gallon tank: 36" x 18" x 18"
36" Finnex Planted+
SunSun 303B and a Marineland HOB
DIY CO2
Substrate is playsand with some gravel mixed in

Future stock:
I would like to try putting a breeding pair of checkerboard discus in the tank with a school of Chili/Mosquito Rasbora's and some sort of bottom feeder.
I would like some sort of plant that will carpet on sand in a low tank setup, but I have no idea what that plant is lol. I'd also like something red as well. 

Here is a picture of the current disaster. Part of the reason I want to get rid of my current Cichlids is because they are nonexistant in my tank. There is a single large bully and all the other fish hide all day long. I have tried several methods to find a solution to this problem (dither fish were eaten and rescaping did nothing), but nothing has worked. The cichlids have also been breeding, but all of the young fish are colorless and boring looking.
20150627_123021 by Benjamin Busiek, on Flickr

Here are a couple pictures of the rocks I plan on putting in. I plan on just using these rocks and the sand that is currently in the tank, but I've never seen a nice tank with rocks like these before and I'm feeling rather unimaginative so if you have any ideas or photos of nice tanks with similar rock please post them.
20150627_123723 by Benjamin Busiek, on Flickr
20150627_123748 by Benjamin Busiek, on Flickr

Here is a picture of my high tech 75 gallon, so I know that I can maintain something that is at least marginally better looking.
20150627_122947 by Benjamin Busiek, on Flickr


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## ichthyogeek (Jul 9, 2014)

Umm...I don't think it's wise to house mosquito/chili rasboras with discus. Discus are very, very large, and rasboras are very, very tiny. I think you're school would get eaten.


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## jonsnow (May 1, 2015)

ichthyogeek said:


> Umm...I don't think it's wise to house mosquito/chili rasboras with discus. Discus are very, very large, and rasboras are very, very tiny. I think you're school would get eaten.


That's what I thought as well, but then I was researching tetras and discus and they seem to be compatible according to several sources. Chilis aren't that much smaller than cardinal tetras are they?

This is one of the sites I found that says that Cardinal Tetras and Discus are compatible http://www.discushatchery.com/discustankmates.html

It could very well be wrong though. When researching dither fish for my African Cichlids zebra danios were suggested by many people, a week later and all ten were gone.


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## ichthyogeek (Jul 9, 2014)

Cardinals are normally kept with discus, as are rummynose tetras. Both species are approximately 2x as large as Boraras rasboras (such as chili, mosquito, exclamation mark, etc.). B. brigittae (chili rasbora) are 15-20 mm long (seriouslyfish), which is around half an inch to an inch (approx. 25 mm). P.axelrodi (cardinal tetra) are 20-35 mm, which is around an inch to an inch and a half. Either way, when large cichlids such as angelfish and discus, are kept with smaller fish (cardinals and rummynose tetras), there is always a chance the fish will be big enough to eat the smaller fish.


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## jonsnow (May 1, 2015)

ichthyogeek said:


> Cardinals are normally kept with discus, as are rummynose tetras. Both species are approximately 2x as large as Boraras rasboras (such as chili, mosquito, exclamation mark, etc.). B. brigittae (chili rasbora) are 15-20 mm long (seriouslyfish), which is around half an inch to an inch (approx. 25 mm). P.axelrodi (cardinal tetra) are 20-35 mm, which is around an inch to an inch and a half. Either way, when large cichlids such as angelfish and discus, are kept with smaller fish (cardinals and rummynose tetras), there is always a chance the fish will be big enough to eat the smaller fish.


I think I'm going to skip the Discus, they seem a little too big for a 55 gallon to begin with and I really like the look of the Chili Rasboras and would rather they didn't get eaten.

I think I'm going to go with a school of chilis and a colony of blue neocaridina shrimp. Once I have a large colony of shrimp established I might try to add a pair of german blue rams as well.

I rescaped the tank and it now looks like Tatooine. It definitely still needs some cleaning, but I'm pretty happy with how it came out. I plan on adding Marsilea Minuta (Dwarf Water Clover) as a carpet, Sagittaria Subulata (Dwarf Sag), Myriophyllum Mattogrossense, and Ludwigia Arcuata (Needle Leaf Ludwigia). All of which I hope will do well in my tank.

Rescape by Benjamin Busiek, on Flickr


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## Raymond S. (Dec 29, 2012)

Shrimp are born to be fish food.
They should be in a species tank...one only. Just shrimp or any combo of fish that you know can co-exist. But not shrimp and fish.


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## jonsnow (May 1, 2015)

Raymond S. said:


> Shrimp are born to be fish food.
> They should be in a species tank...one only. Just shrimp or any combo of fish that you know can co-exist. But not shrimp and fish.


? People keep RCS and fish together all of the time. I have had RCS in my 75 gallon with guppies, SAE, a betta, and a rainbow shark for a few months without any issues, and I have never noticed any of the fish bothering the shrimp. 

I know there are certain fish that will decimate your shrimp population and should never be kept with them, but from most of the research that I have done it sounds like there is no definitive answer for most fish species. People have stories about there fish eating shrimp and then someone else keeps that exact same type of fish with shrimp without any issues.

I love RCS, so I'm willing to risk the investment on the possibility that they can coexist with whatever fish I choose. If I establish a large colony to begin with, even if I have an active shrimp hunter some shrimp will probably survive and repopulate leading to a good live source of fish food.


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## Raymond S. (Dec 29, 2012)

I had such a set up, but with a very dense aria that took up 1/3 of the tank.


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## Jcstank (Jan 3, 2015)

Raymond S. said:


> Shrimp are born to be fish food.
> They should be in a species tank...one only. Just shrimp or any combo of fish that you know can co-exist. But not shrimp and fish.


Unless you have a completely blind fish like the blind Angel fish I have with my shrimp. I have to feed it by hand every day or it'll starve. :hihi:I might be looking for a good home for him because I want to consolidate my tanks to just my 75.


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## Hoppy (Dec 24, 2005)

jonsnow said:


> I think I'm going to skip the Discus, they seem a little too big for a 55 gallon to begin with and I really like the look of the Chili Rasboras and would rather they didn't get eaten.
> 
> I think I'm going to go with a school of chilis and a colony of blue neocaridina shrimp. Once I have a large colony of shrimp established I might try to add a pair of german blue rams as well.
> 
> ...


That is a very good looking rock arrangement! Much better than anything I have ever done with rocks. I would stick with a carpet and a very few taller plants if I had that arrangement.


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## jonsnow (May 1, 2015)

Hoppy said:


> That is a very good looking rock arrangement! Much better than anything I have ever done with rocks. I would stick with a carpet and a very few taller plants if I had that arrangement.


Thanks  I think you are right about going with mostly carpet. I was thinking of putting tall stems on the left side behind the rock. They will cover the heater and flow over the top of the tank from the spray bar which might look cool. Other then that I might just stick with a carpet.


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## ichthyogeek (Jul 9, 2014)

If anything, the chili rasboras shouldn't make too big of a fuss. They'll eat shrimplets, yes, but if there is plenty of room and cover, you should have a growing shrimp colony. However, the GBR's might make too big of a fuss and eat your shrimp. Cichlids are normally a very bad idea for shrimp tanks. 

How big of a school of chilis are we talking here? How big of a herd of shrimp are we talking here?


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## jonsnow (May 1, 2015)

I'm prob going to start with 10 shrimp and plants to start, and let them populate and grow in the tank for a couple of months if I can be patient enough. Then I'll probably buy about 20 chilis. Supposedly they breed fairly easily in home aquariums, so eventually I'll probably end up with a pretty big school. I'm not sure If I'll get the Rams at the same time as the Chilis or hold off a bit longer and let a few chili babies be born and grow.


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## big b (Jun 3, 2015)

In your last picture of your first post, what is that blue thing?


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## jonsnow (May 1, 2015)

big b said:


> In your last picture of your first post, what is that blue thing?


It is a polished piece of Labradorite.


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## VelcroWY (Jun 9, 2015)

I really like yesterday's picture of your tank - nice hardscape. Add some plants and it should be beautiful.

As for shrimp & fish, I have shrimp in a tank with Corydoras pygmaeus and Otocinclus and Endlers. Works great. On the other hand, I had to remove several other fish before I could add the shrimp or the Endlers to this tank. lol There are a lot of fish out there (most?) that really love sushi.


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