Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Ok, I'm fairly new to aquariums, though I've been taking care of my moms fish for the past 3 months so I know the basics. Now, I'm going to be getting my own tank soon enough, and I wanted to make sure my stock choices are compatable with each other. The tank is 120 gallons, 48Lx24Wx25H (inches). Also, any filter suggestions for the tank are welcome, I don't know which brands are good and which ones suck...(my moms tank is 50 Gallons and has an AquaClear 200).

So here is my list:

1 Bristlenose Pleco.
8 Mollies - 3 Males, 5 Females, assorted types (lyretail, pot-belly, sailfin).
6 Tiger Barbs.
5 Gouramis - 1 Gold, 1 Blue, 1 Opaline, 2 Pearl.
4 Gold Fiddler Crabs.
1 Bala Shark.

So any info is appreciated, and if you feel like my tank could fit more, feel free to suggest more or alternate compatable choices.

No tiger barbs in the tank.... you will find if you add them they are QUITE agressive. I had them in a semi-aggressive tank, and they even picked on my red tailed shark, and he was the most aggressive one before the tiger barbs.
I feel that cory cats do a better job at bottom tank clean up, and you could probably have 4-6, but I would add them a good bit after your tank has been set up so they have something to eat.
Mollies are fine. The gouramis - the opaline gouramis are semi-aggressive so the temperament is BAD for your tank which is a community tank. That goes for the gold too.
Fiddler crabs cannot live only in water... they need to be able to crawl around on land as well. I would not recommend them being a part of your tank.
Also, the bala shark is semi-aggressive. I wouldn't put it in your tank either. There are a couple peaceful sharks: columbian shark and chinese hi banded shark.

Now that I've almost fully torn down your options, I'd like to give you some suggestions.

You can have any of the following (and if you wanted to run some more choices by me, I'd be glad to look them all over):
- guppies
- tetras
- rasboras
- platies
- hatchets
- some killifish (some are also semi-aggressive so you can't have those ones in your tank)
- swordtails
- some loaches (again, some are semi-aggressive)
- peaceful rainbow fishes (some are aggressive so beware)

I'm not sure what all you have available to you at your pet store. A good starting point for all the details about the above listed fish is the link below. Check that out for compatibility charts, pictures, and information. It also gives you ball park price ranges for certain fish.

Please let me know if you want any more help with your tank and choosing the fish to put in it. I'd be more than happy to look things over again for you.
Live Aquaria

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Phishie

"An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure."

Thanks for the quick reply Phishie ^^

It has, however, confused me a little. I don't know how truely reputable it is (though it does seem like an excellent site)but before posting here I had done some "research" on http://www.aquariumfish.net, and I made this list after sifting through the information there. I knew about the Fiddler crabs, they will have out-of-water access. You say that both Opaline/Gold Gouramis and Bala Sharks are not really suitable, but we've previously kept a Bala Shark with a group of platies and guppies, and until it died of Ick (new guppy brought it in) it was very peaceful around the other fish. Likewise, we recently added a group of Gouramis (2 Opaline, 2 Blue) and besides some mild chasing here and there amongst themselves they seem pretty passive towards the other fish.

Live aquaria is a site put together by 2 veterinarians, so it is actually a pretty good site. I haven't come across anything misleading yet. Although, most information on the net is the same, so I guess it doesn't matter where you get your information as long as you check a few places to make sure everything is similar.

As for your statement about you keeping the opaline/gold gouramis and bala sharks with community fish... that depends on the individuals in the tank. Some people put bettas in their community tank, and they do fine, but most of the time the betta quickly becomes the only fish in the tank. Some people also put tiger barbs in their community tank, but I have had the tiger barbs. They quickly got their own tank even though their temperament is semi-aggressive... I would list them as aggressive. The temperaments are given to prevent losing fish. I never mix temperaments because I don't want anything to happen to my fish.

That being said, if you want them in your tank and think nothing will happen, they should be fine in your tank otherwise (as far as tank size goes). You asked for others opinions. My feelings won't be hurt if you want to put them in your tank. I just give people all the information I can so they are educated about their choices. Some people don't do the research like you did.

It really does sound like a beautiful tank.
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Phishie

"An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure."

Yeah, some of the pet shops in my town keep 1 male Betta in a tank, regardless of the tankmates, and they don't seem very agressive towards other fish.

But yeah, the gouramis are getting along better then I had thought, so that's really nice. I think I may add in a 3rd Pearl to my list, since I read they actually enjoy each others company, whereas the Opalines/Gold are more agressive.

I actually came across a post of yours where you mentioned the tank that you added barbs to, most sites are saying that if you keep a large group (6 ) that they'll keep to themselves more.

Like I said, it's your tank. I hope all your fish are happy together.
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Phishie

"An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure."