# 90 gallon stocking list help



## discuspaul (Jul 27, 2010)

That's a tall order ! Many species are well suggestible for a 90 gal.
For medium-sized fish, compatible with those Zebras, you could consider Harlequin or Copper Rasboras for the top portion of the tank (Hatchet fish if you like those) -
Mid-level, there's a whole gamut - e.g. Cardinal or Neon Tetras, Rummynoses, Lemon Tetras, Serpaes, Glo-Lites, Head & Tail Lites, the list goes on.
Bottom area - no question, 2 or 3 small schools of Cories - Bronze, Emerald, Pepper, Sterbai, Pandas - whatever turns you on.
Or, for a completely different look - you could think about a group of 6 or 8 really nice Angels of your choice - which would occupy all parts of the tank.

If you weren't set on Zebra Danios, I would say forget about those, and just get yourself 6-8 good sized (4" or more) discus of your choice, coupled with a modest school of cardinals & cories, & be done with it, for a dramatic, breath-taking tank !
That give you food for thought ?


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## Fishguy8558 (Jul 22, 2011)

That's a really nice setup you have going there congratulations on the new tank!! . Anyways this is my first post ever and i have zebra danios in my tank right now so i know some stuff about good tankmates that go along well with them. I have a 14 gallon tank with 3 golden barbs, 3 zebra danios, 3 cherry barbs, and 1 small pleco. It might be a bit overstocked but they are all doing great! Anyways i would reccomend barbs! The gold barbs are really pretty and are bottom to middle dwelling fish they add a nice yellowish gold color and also have strays of black and green on their bodies. They do grow a little big but will usually only stay 3 inches or less (i've heard of them getting to 4 but im not sure). Cherry barbs are very striking in color! they add a bright red color that just looks fantastic in the aquarium truly magnificent. They will also look great in a planted tank! The great thing about your tank is that it's very large and you have so many choices! Cherry barbs and golden barbs are both great choices and would look very good in groups of 6 or more as they are schooling fish. Cherry barbs however, can be kept in a pair but i would suggest keeping like at least 6 though definetly if you have the space which you do. Both of these barbs are pretty mellow and aren't agressive such as tiger barbs. You could also try tiger barbs but they will definetly need to be in a 6+ school more like 8+ just cause they're pretty aggressive sometimes but when there in schools like that they are usually fine and are very active and pretty fish! They also have albino forms and green forms of them too! I also reccomend any kind of smaller community fish. I have never really loved tetras that much but it's not my decision it all comes down to what YOU like and what your other fish and water conditions are compatible with. Barbs like a little lower PH like 6.5 but they can probably do fine in higher too as they are very hardy ii love my gold barbs because they always come up to me and follow my finger very sociable little guys! . I think also some platys or marigold variatus would look very pretty in there and really add some nice color to the tank. They are also very very extremely peaceful so you really don't have to worry about that at all really. You may also want some thing to clean/scavenge the bottom of the tank and the sides to keep from any algae from growing. Corydoras catfish are awseome and look cool too! there pretty cute too hahahaha and im a guy and saying that . Also they are schoolers and do a very good job at cleaning the bottom for ecess fod, etc. Also some snaiils and shrimp and otocinclus cats will do a great job at keeping algae down. Amano shrimp eat algae mostly and oto's will do a good job and not hurt your plants either! Just make sure you place them in the tank after its well established and has a good amount of algae and they will go crazy also get them in a group. Snails will also work but they can reproduce quickly and some types may harm your plants and there kind of boring  but hey if they do the job and you'll probably barely look at them just the great fish. I would also add some nice driftwood to make it look nice. Rasboras are also cool little fish but i'm not that crazy on like sharks and big fish because they need lots of space and i prefer a bunch of small fish over a couple of big fish. Also you can use a website like aqadvisor.com to figure out your stocking levels and how many of each fish you can fit and that kind of stuff but its just a guideline so i would get some advice by a local trusted smart fish store or online at a forum like this just to get a little more info. Also the tropical tank is a great website with tons of articles and stuff for you to learn and they also have a fish index and a forum to ask questions and such. Also maybe some guppies might work in there? It's all up to personal preference. Hope my information helped and that your tank turns out to be very successful!!  Good luck mate!


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## RainSong (Jun 30, 2011)

Thanks for the quick responses. My head is still spinning with all the info online!

I have a large Mopani wood piece and a few rocks that provide nooks and crannies.

With livebearers, do I need to worry about population explosion?

I like the Discus idea, but feel a little intimidated because I am a noob and the fish are expensive ($50 ea). Are they really THAT hard to keep? Can I buy 2 at a time?

Any opinions on Rainbows, Blue Rams, Gouramis?

I appreciate any and all input. Once I get a tentative stocking list, I plan on gradual introduction of fish over many months.


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## bpb (Mar 8, 2011)

You can try discus, but they are advanced level fish to keep, ane be prepared to lose them. They like some pretty specific water requirements and can be tough to maintain. They're pretty much the holy grail of tropical fish. 

If it were my tank, I would stock it with a massive school of cardinal tetras or another kind. Like 50+. Then maybe a few varieties of cories on the bottom. I think one or two large schools of fish look better than a mix of many types.


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## discuspaul (Jul 27, 2010)

Discus are not really very hard to keep - they're just intolerant of poor water quality, so they do require a little more work & attention, a good tank maintenance routine, temp in the 82-84 F range, and a good diet to keep them happy and thriving. The key element is to buy good healthy stock of a reasonable size and age from a reputable supplier, breeder or importer. And the main ingredient to maintaining good water quality is simply fairly large & frequent water changes. In a tank the size of yours, 6-8 discus around 3" to 4" in size would likely do well with 50% wcs twice a week.
If discus interest you, you may wish to have a read of my illustrated Guide to Getting Started with Discus, a Sticky in the simplydiscus.com forum in the Discus Basics for Beginners section - here's the link:
www.forum.simplydiscus.com/showthread.php?86009-Beginner-s-Guide-to-Getting-Started-with-Discus
It's not rocket science, by any means, and many folks (even those new to the hobby) are successfully keeping these magnificent character-laden fish.
Also, FYI & look-see, here's my 75 gal planted discus tank - pics taken several months ago when the discus were barely 3" - they're now 4" + to 5".
http://s1105.photobucket.com/albums/h357/discuspaul/FTS-Osaka260


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## RainSong (Jun 30, 2011)

Thanks for the info on discus. Your pics look awesome. I am still intimidated by the price of discus. I might still do it though. 

Meanwhile, anyone have experiencer/opinions on rainbows, blue rams and gouramis in planted tanks?


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## Fishguy8558 (Jul 22, 2011)

I'm not that crazy on gouramis but again it's all your decision. They are pretty peaceful fish that don't like very active or robust fish that much (i think) and faster and more active fish will probably eat all the food before they get a chance. I had flame dwarf gouramis in my tank but they all died either because i had to much fish in there or because they were sick or just not compatible with my other fish. One of them didn't even eat and i think that's why that one died. I would just be worried that the danios might get all the food before they can. Did you like my ideas abiut the other fish like barbs, guppies, livebearers like platys, swordtails, etc. ?


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## jstehman (Dec 13, 2010)

I would advise against barbs, as mine destroyed my plants. Takes forever to net fish out of a planted 90!

Love the rainbows though.


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## Coursair (Apr 16, 2011)

I have Cherry Barbs in one of my planted tanks. +1 for them. Mine are peaceful and very colorful. Just make sure you get both sexes. A lot of people just buy the red males (females are gold/bronze color) and never see the intense deep red color that they show for the girls 

I too love large schools of small fish. 

Another new favorite of mine are Roseline Sharks. Beautiful fish !

Gouramis are great in planted tanks. Just get appropriate sizes. Perhaps a Dwarf or 2 with small tetras or a larger one with Angels. Dwarf Gouramis are almost always males. The females are rarely sold at stores as they are less colorful. Males want their own territory. So only one in a small tank. Big tanks may handle more. 

Larger Gouramis can be sexed and a pair would be fine. 

Livebearers such as platies will breed. If the tank is heavily planted you will get more babies surviving. Some stores will not take babies. Especially if the strains/colors have mixed. 

+1 for Harlequin Rasboras. Mine are over 4years old and doing well. 

Congo or Red and Blue Columbians are also lovely fish in big schools. The Columbians are very aggressive eaters though. 

Blue Rams are lovely. Need clean stable water. 

And I do like to decide on slower graceful fish or fast active fish as even though they should get along the faster fish may get the food. Some mixes work. 

+1 for Cory Cats


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## Eddie80 (Oct 29, 2010)

Medium sized fish? harlequins? neons? I think those are small sized fish...

I would advise rainbowfish. Gouramis, the only ones i like are pearl gouramis...

I would love my harlequins to grow big but they are all dieing


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## RainSong (Jun 30, 2011)

Well, so far I have 7 longfin zebra danios, 10 otos, 12 amanos and a bazillion snails. I am going into a holding pattern while I learn more about tending to them and to the plants.

Currently I am thinking I would eventually like to add 6-8 Bosemani Rainbows, 6-8 Turquoise Rainbows and maybe 12 harlequin rasboras. Would all these guys play nice?


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## NJAquaBarren (Sep 16, 2009)

Always a challenging question. I have a personal rule for stocking size. I never put a fish in a a tank that is less than 12x it's length - a 4" fish in a 48" long tank is my max. That's because in think fish look best when they have room to swim and move about more naturally than when cramped. The 1/12 scale rule, so far for me, maintains that.

Bigger fish may survive just fine, but if they move across the tank in 3 swishes of a tail and have to do a 180 and do it again, they start to look like caged animals to me, so I adhere to that rule.

I have 15 M. Bosemani in an 84g tank and they are at the max for me and still look great in the tank,

Small fish can have the opposite problem in that they can vanish in the scale of the tank, but a lot depends on how you will be viewing it. If typically from a distance, avoid too many small fish. Even large schools of them, if not brightly colored, disappear. If viewing closely, small fish can be great as you can have a lot of them and in a big tank, you can create very nice and detailed communities within. 

As for species, everyone has their favorites. Rummy nose are a favorite of mine as are various rainbows. Rainbows tend to stay high, rummy noses low to mid, with periodic forays all over. A school of chain loaches are great for the bottom.

Of course, once the tank really establishes, you'll need a cleanup contingent, so save bio load for otos, bristlenose or two, Amanos, snails....

How's that for not really recommending anything?


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## elbandito78 (Apr 23, 2011)

Coursair said:


> I have Cherry Barbs in one of my planted tanks. +1 for them. Mine are peaceful and very colorful. Just make sure you get both sexes. A lot of people just buy the red males (females are gold/bronze color) and never see the intense deep red color that they show for the girls
> 
> I too love large schools of small fish.
> 
> ...


+1 on the Roseline Sharks. They are a new favorite of mine too. Every time I see them in the store, I have to stop down and look at them. Makes me want to get a bigger aquarium.


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## NJAquaBarren (Sep 16, 2009)

Roselines are great fish, but they get a little big for a 90 aesthetically. They're fast swimmers too, so expect that caged animal look as they constantly swim back and forth. As much as I live them I wouldn't add them to a 48" tank.


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## RainSong (Jun 30, 2011)

Thank you everyone.

I now have:

7 longfin zebra danios
9 otos (1 got bloated and died)
12 amano shrimp (not sure how many are left)
9 Rummynose tetra (1 jumped out of the tank and died)
10 Gold Barb
10 Harlequin Rasborra
5 Julii cory

According to aquadvisor.com I don't have very much capacity left.... I would love to add a school of Rainbow M Praecox and maybe some guppies or a betta sorority.


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