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I've convinced mom for $800 and nothing else

So, I need help planning just about the whole thing. I know I want to have Air Bubbles and I want "natural" looking grvel(like the tan kind of pebbles, ya know?) and I would like a "natural" setting.

What I would like to kind of "get out of the tank" is to kind of have a little color. I would like it to be a cichlid tank as a main inhabitant but I would like to have some schools of 5 to 8 of Tetras, Rosaboras anything as long as they don't nip. I would love to have an Angel(s). I would consider Discus but way to expensive(cheapest I've seen is $50 online). I would like Cockatooes but I haven't looked up if they're African or SA or Asian, you get the point.

So here's what I need help with:

Fish(I want Cichlids, DEF Angels) Stocking
Plants(Live)
Decor(like would you think a cave for example would go with my "natural" theme)

Thanks so much!

10G- 6 Zebra Danios, 1 Upside Down Catfish
20G- 1 Goldfish
72G(maybe95)- Need Stock suggestions

Wow, you're setting up all kinds of tanks... And you like cichlids

Angels are great, but they can be picky about hanging out with each other. If possible, start with very young angels and let them grow up together. I probably wouldn't keep more than 6 angels in that tank, especially if you end up with pairs. Also, if you get angels, mixing in other cichlids can be tough. I believe cockatoos are a type of apisto, in which case they are south american, like the angels. Apistos are quite small and tend to hang out around the bottom areas of the tank, but they are very territorial, so I honestly wouldn't keep more than two pairs, and hope they find homes at opposite ends of the tank from each other. The Apistos will appreciate lots of plants and some small caves to hide and potentially breed in. As for small schooling fish, any larger tetra or rasbora will be fine. Lemon tetras, diamond tetras, rummynoses, or harlequin rasboras would be great. I would stay away from barbs or serpae tetras.Have you given any thought to bottom feeders or catfish, or surface fish? A large group of hatchet fish would look pretty cool up top. For the bottom, maybe a couple of bristlenose plecos, or other small pleco like zebra or mango plecos.

Now as for plants, this depends on what kind of lighting ou have and what kind of work you're willing to put into a planted tank. I am lazy, so I tend to go for low-light, low-maitenance plants like java fern, anubias (I LOVE Anubias!), crypts, and a very few stem plants. I love mosses, but I hate triming, them, especially in deep tanks. Start with a few tall branchy tangles of driftwood if possible. It takes time to find the perfect piece. Sometimes you can make your own using a base of slate or even plexiglass and using aquarium silicone or aquarium-safe epoxy putty to glue pieces where you want them. You can even make a bunch of straight pieces of wood into a branchy piece by gluing them together, and then tying moss or other plants like java fern or anubias to hide the joints. Crypts come in all sizes and varieties, from small little bushy plants that make excellent foreground plants, to tall thin-leaved plants that make excellent grassy backgrounds. Crypts are generally very versatile and easy to care for with good rich substrate, so I use them a lot. C. spiralis is my favorite for the tall grassy look, and the various types of c. wendtii are great at the bases of wood or rock or as a foreground plant in shallower substrates. If you do get a lot of them, I suggest a planted tank substrate like eco-complete, or use half pea-gravel and half laterite or something. With a tank this large and if you have at least 3-4 inches of substrate, you could even go with a large showy amazon sword. Just be aware that it will probably get big. Rotala indica is my favorite stem plant because it grows fast and easily, has a nice fine leaf shape, and if you have enough light, it gets pink at the tops. Other than that, I'm not really a big fan of stem plants, which is why I stick with rooted and rhizome-based plants. All of these will do fine in medium light of about 2wpg, and even better in 3wpg with minimal need for fertilization depending on your tap water and fish load.

Hoping that there must be a word for everything I mean...

Wow, you're setting up all kinds of tanks... And you like cichlids

haha, I just realized that too...And with my summer job(s) I may even get another one, who knows? lol

Yesh, I'm fascinated by Cichlids, don't know why I would love the have them but most won't go into a 10gal, if any at all.

And also, Cockatoos are Apistos, you're quite good with fish types

I think I will go for the EcoComplete substrate. I mean I have plants in my 10gal right now but I'm sometimes so busy I don't get to put fertilizer in for a little while, plus teh fertilizer I have is also water condition

Yeah, the silicone I'll probably do that...It's a pain in the arse to get out of the tube and to squeeze but hey, that's fine by me lol

thank you illustrae

10G- 6 Zebra Danios, 1 Upside Down Catfish
20G- 1 Goldfish
72G(maybe95)- Need Stock suggestions

African Cichlids called Mbuna are great when you are on a budget. a 72 gallon tank could hold 14 Mbuna fishes (such as Zebras) all together, keeping a 1 Male/4 Female ratio (or so) The tank would need few plants (actually they arnt nessessary for this setup) and plenty of rockwork (not very expensive) You would also have room for some bottom feeders ^^

If you want to go with angels, my personal favorite is the Koi/Marble veil angelfish. You could do 4 in that tank and easily build your stocking around them. Before I got my ciclids, I wanted to stock my tank like this:

4x Angels
10x Black Phantom Tetras
10x Other tetra, or perhaps 5x Cherry barbs
10x Panda Cories

^^

Inky

hmm, Great suggestion

10G- 6 Zebra Danios, 1 Upside Down Catfish
20G- 1 Goldfish
72G(maybe95)- Need Stock suggestions

For the 10 check out multis .
I wanted some for my ten since I first saw them. You'll likely have to go through a LFS rather than a chain though as they're a bit more specialized.

^_^

Thank you Babel ^_^ Wow, they stay REALLY small!! lol

10G- 6 Zebra Danios, 1 Upside Down Catfish
20G- 1 Goldfish
72G(maybe95)- Need Stock suggestions

hm no more? And I figured I'd get more considering it's a 72 gal..oh well

10G- 6 Zebra Danios, 1 Upside Down Catfish
20G- 1 Goldfish
72G(maybe95)- Need Stock suggestions

If you decide to go with the community for the 72g, then I suggest:

2 angels
12 tetras/rasboras of your choice
12 tetras/rasboras of your choice
2-4 Rams/Apistos
10 cories of your choice
10 cories of your choice



Would make for a beautiful tank!

*Kristin*

Yeah, It'll be a community well, either the 72 or 95. I'll probably do the 72 a Comm. tank and then the 95 a Mbuana tank or maybe I'll put in a more aggressive cichlid or something. Not sure yet. If I have enough money after the $800 and my summer time job(s) then I might get 3 tanks. Who knows? lol

10G- 6 Zebra Danios, 1 Upside Down Catfish
20G- 1 Goldfish
72G(maybe95)- Need Stock suggestions

Any more suggestions?

10G- 6 Zebra Danios, 1 Upside Down Catfish
20G- 1 Goldfish
72G(maybe95)- Need Stock suggestions