20g Planted Tank Stock

[Micro Rams]

Hey all,

Im just starting a 20g planted tank and its in its 2nd week and its no where near cycled. Ive always wanted a pleco, but nothing insane, so i added a clown pleco (L104) on Wednesday to start cycling the tank, i read that they dont get that big- 4" should be fine in a tank that size right?

But my real question is would i be able to have a pair of apistos in the tank? maybe the double red or something else with a little color? Or German blue rams? I had hoped on adding some green tiger barbs as well (maybe 7-8). I'm coming to you guys for some help and guidance on wether the fish will get a long fine, I know the fish can be territorial but lets hope it work.


On a side note, I see it working fine in my 37 gallon tank, i have 4 angelfish who have started charging at eachother, I guess theyre starting to want their own privacy. I have those angel fish, an opaline gourami, and 2 german blue rams. I can see the alpha ram clear as day, where the beta doesnt show his color much and is chased around the tank some, not to the point of injury. It's an interesting mix of fish i think.

Any help is appreciated guys, thank you.

-Luis

 

[dw1305]

Hi all,

I'm just starting a 20g planted tank and its in its 2nd week and its no where near cycled. Ive always wanted a pleco, but nothing insane, so i added a clown pleco (L104) on Wednesday to start cycling the tank

Could you put it in with the Angel fish? You need to try and remove it as soon as possible. These small Panaqolus sp. come from clean, running water and have a high oxygen requirement. As soon as the lights go out oxygen levels will fall, and your Clown Plec. is in real danger of asphyxiating.

They are fine in established planted tanks, where you have some surface agitation. Have a look at <"Plecoplanet: Aeration and dissolved oxygen....">.

I've not kept a Panaqolus with dwarf cichlids, but I have had Ancistrus L100 and Hypancistrus debilittera and H. L333 fry grow-out and it didn't work as the catfish got bigger. Otocinclus are fine with Apistogramma.

But my real question is would i be able to have a pair of apistos in the tank? maybe the double red or something else with a little color? Or German blue rams? I had hoped on adding some green tiger barbs as well (maybe 7-8). I'm coming to you guys for some help and guidance on wether the fish will get a long fine, I know the fish can be territorial but lets hope it work.

I think Tiger Barbs are a non-starter.

cheers Darrel

 

[Micro Rams]

Thank you, i had no idea. I guess my thought process was that since the pleco made so much waste, it would help with establishing the beneficial bacteria for fish, but it seems its different in a planted tank. Your responses have been extremely helpful! Thank you so much.

What do you mean by Tiger barbs being a non-starter?

 

[dw1305]

Hi all,

Thank you, i had no idea. I guess my thought process was that since the pleco made so much waste, it would help with establishing the beneficial bacteria for fish, but it seems its different in a planted tank.

The main difference in a tank with plants is that "plant/microbe systems" are much more efficient at biological filtration when they are compared to "microbe only" filtration systems.

This is due to a combination of factors, the principle ones are:

1. Plants create a larger area for microbial colonisation.
   
2. Direct uptake of ammonia by the plants
   
3. and oxygen production during photosynthesis.

The last factor is often disputed, because plants respire (and contribute to the bioload when light levels are below compensation point), but plants are actually net oxygen producers.

Oxygen is really the principal metric in biological pollution (we quantify pollution using "BOD - Biochemical Oxygen Demand"), rather than ammonia, if you have enough oxygen your microbial community can oxidise a large volume of ammonia and nitrite (NO2-), although that ammonia may still be present at levels which are toxic to your fish.

Because they process a lot of wood your Clown Plec will produce a lot of waste (both saw-dust and faeces), but this doesn't contribute much to the bioload, because it is mainly structural carbohydrates, with few sugars and little nitrogen present. In a carnivorous fish, of the same size, more ammonia will diffuse from the gills, mainly because they are eating a much more protein rich diet.

What do you mean by Tiger barbs being a non-starter?

The thought was that they will out-compete the Apistogramma for food, and eat any fry, but it isn't a combination I've tried.

cheers Darrel