Fire mouths with matured oscar?

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
I

Infernal

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Oct 7, 2006
30
0
0
england
I maybe updating my 30 gal tank with 1 tiger oscar , 1 common pleco to a new 70-75 gal not sure what size yet but around that region. And i was owndering wether i would be able to put a few fire mouths or any other suitable cichlid in with him? My oscar is about 6-7inches, . Also would make a differnce if added the fire mouths to the new tank before my oscar so the O would not see tham as a threat.

any help would be great thx :)

MFK!!!!!!!!!:headbang2
 
first off you pretty much have to uprgrade to a 75 to keep an Oscar. Otherwise it wouldn't last very much longer in the 30. As for putting more fish in there I don't know. You already have 2 fish that are EXTREMELY messy. Putting more fish in there would definatley put a strain on your biofilter. Depending on the attitude of your Oscar Firemouths might work but considering they only get 6 inches probably won;t last for to long. The larger the Oscare gets generally the more aggressive he will get. In a tank that size theres really not a lot of room to spare with a 13"O cruising around.

Bottom line is I wouldn't recommend it.

I'm sure somebody will come along and tell you to put 8 firemouths and 2 RD's and a couple of convicts in there:ROFL: :ROFL:
 
Yeh i know that my O wouldnt last any longer in there but for da moment hes ok and i have homes lined up for him i was just curious. thx
 
I have to agree with ammerman19, your pleco is one messy fish and the O is a poop factory also, a 75 gal will be enough for your oscar to live it's entire life, but your pleco will get huge, to keep them both in a 75 you'll need plenty of filtration and religious water changes.

About the firemouths, if you really want them you might be thinking 100g or bigger tank, and the O might or not see them as the enemy and wipe them out

So the best for your current fish is to leave them alone in that 75 or maybe a bit bigger tank, with nice filtration, a canister (xp3, fluval 405 or similar) and a big power filter (ac-110 or similar) and keep a constant checking of your amonia, nitrite and nitrate levels.
 
Thanks, i was looking into gettin a fluval 405 , but didnt think i would also need a power filter , i was going to have a strong air pump on the tank also.

:)
 
Well, you don't really need the power filter, is just a good way to keep mechanical filtering up to bar, because they move more water than most canisters, but you can live with out one.

Sure, 4 fm and 2" O will do fine in a 75, but the O will get pretty big in about 6 to 8 months, and he's going to want bigger and bigger territory to call home, the bio-load gets harder to manage by the filters, as more amonia get's in the water, more bacteria grows, so you get more nitrite, so more bacteria grows, so more nitrates you get, so more water changes you need.

It's not that can't be done, I'm sure some has kept even bigger Os with even more FMs in their 75s, is just about starting right for the ammount of work the tank is going to give you and the peace of mind for your fish, knowing that your set up is good for 10 or more years from the very start is a great feelling.
 
the 30 is too small get a 75. If the firemouths are big enough then yes they would work. Just add them to the new tank first! It also may depend on the temperment of your oscar is he mean. or passive


Oscarboyz
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
MonsterFishKeepers.com
Top Bottom