Help with 5 empty tanks that need filled

[Davisfamily2018]

Hello all,

I've been on this site years ago when I was in college, but it has changed a lot in a few years. I just started my career of teaching Biology to high school students and was looking for some advice on stocking. In the past I have experience keeping CA/SA cichlids, Malawi Cichlids, Reef Tanks, FOWLR Tanks, and some brackish, but have been out of the hobby for a few years. I don't think I want to do saltwater for my first year teaching unless you guys have some really outstanding ideas

Currently in the classroom there is an empty 55 gallon, 40 gallon, 29 gallon, 10 gallon and a 5 gallon that is meant for reptiles (does not hold water, meant for hermit crabs).

Any opinions for these tanks that is relatively low maintenance, not terrifically sensitive, or in other words, good for a classroom? It would be cool to have some sort of biological significance as well!

Thank you guys and gals in advance!

 

[Gourami Swami]

Here's what I would do:
55: Low tech planted. Cheap LED light setup from ebay, tons of valisneria, java fern, and anubias, etc. DIY C02 setup. Look it up on youtube, it's just a plastic bottle with yeast and baking soda. Lots of stuff going on you could teach about. Fish could be whatever you wanted that stays small, I'd recommend tetras and peaceful community fish.

40: Breeding pair of convicts. They will breed with 0 extra effort, just make sure you have a male and a female, and give the female a cave with an entrance too small for the male to get into. You can teach about reproduction, etc.

29: Green terror (just kidding), I would do Tanganyikan cichlids. A colony of shell dweller cichlids like multis would be interesting.

10: dwarf puffers. They eat snails, and are cute.

 

[Fish Tank Travis]

I would start with water. The fish won't last very long if there's no water...Lol

In all seriousness, I like Gourami Swami's ideas, except I would try to turn the 40B into a reef tank with some hardy corals. You can teach about how the corals are actually animals and such. Plus, I have heard from others that have experience with both fresh and salt and they say that salt ends up much easier on maintenance in the long run.

 

[jaws7777]

Polypterus would be interesting. Prehistoric fish should give you lots to talk about. I think its cool you have tanks in the class room.

I like the convict idea too.

 

[J. H.]

I would stick an aquaponics bed on at least the big tank. You can talk about the complete nitrogen cycle, farming, the importance of plants, grow veggies in the classroom and never do water changes.

 

[jaws7777]

I could imagine a planted tank in a classroom setting would be very interesting and have many talking points

 

[duanes]

I go by the 1" of adult fish (cichlids or other largish species) to 10 gallons of water rule. (not numbers of fish, just size)
I believe putting a GT in a 29 gal is sending a message that it is OK to cram a too large a fish, in too small a tank to students. A juvie cichlid temporarily, yes, but not long term.
A couple 3" dwarf cichlids in 29. fine, not not something that easily reaches 5-7".
I also agree that a heavily planted tank, with few fish that fit, and doing water testing, and how at different stages of "natural aquatic systems" work is very valuable.

 

[Hendre]

I go by the 1" of adult fish (cichlids or other largish species) to 10 gallons of water rule. (not numbers of fish, just size)
I believe putting a GT in a 29 gal is sending a message that it is OK to cram a too large a fish, in too small a tank to students. A juvie cichlid temporarily, yes, but not long term.
A couple 3" dwarf cichlids in 29. fine, not not something that easily reaches 5-7".
I also agree that a heavily planted tank, with few fish that fit, and doing water testing, and how at different stages of "natural aquatic systems" work is very valuable.

Let's not start that again lol.

These are good suggestions guys! Being a high school student myself, polypterus really get people talking when they see my tank with the polys. Great science topic too

Depending on the temperature axolotls would be grand in the 40, and for the 10 shrimps would be cool as well. Axos are very big in the biology scene

I would stick an aquaponics bed on at least the big tank. You can talk about the complete nitrogen cycle, farming, the importance of plants, grow veggies in the classroom and never do water changes.

This. Okay still do some water changes for hormomes but the needs will be reduced

 

[duanes]

People may not like my minimum tank size attitude, but I see that about 90% of all fish question/complaints/and or problems on MFK should be avoided by 3 simple answers.
Tank size, water quality, and quarantine.
And tank size and water quality go hand in hand.
If a tank is stocked too heavily, with the wrong size fish for the small space, it creates stress, which leads to stress related disease, and also degraded water quality, and of course aggression..
A small tank is much harder to keep stable water condition in, and is exacerbated when a too large fish produces overwhelming metabolism by products.
I swim with cichlids, and see very little of the aggression most people complain about. That is because cichlids are generally not found in puddles or ruts in the road, which easily hold 50 to 100 gallons of water, they live in areas of thousands of gallons, where biological processes and flow create 100% water changes every minute.
Where nitrate levels are often less than 1ppm.
followed a 12" cichlid patrol an area of at least 100 yards in Mexico, and watched a pair of 6" JDs defend a spawning site of at least 250 gallons
Water quality also means one does not keep hard water fish in soft water conditions or vice versa. Although a fish might "survive" for a time, water unlike water it have evolved to live in over millennia, can cause a host chronic problems.
And tossing a new fish in an established tank, without quarantine is to me asking for the tank to be totally wiped out by disease. Maybe not the 1st time, but if the gamble is taken often enough, the result is inevitable.
Compare the amount of space these cichlids live in in nature, and tell me a tiny tank should be adequate.
Azul imovie edit

 

[Gourami Swami]

I go by the 1" of adult fish (cichlids or other largish species) to 10 gallons of water rule. (not numbers of fish, just size)
I believe putting a GT in a 29 gal is sending a message that it is OK to cram a too large a fish, in too small a tank to students. A juvie cichlid temporarily, yes, but not long term.
A couple 3" dwarf cichlids in 29. fine, not not something that easily reaches 5-7".
I also agree that a heavily planted tank, with few fish that fit, and doing water testing, and how at different stages of "natural aquatic systems" work is very valuable.

I agree with what you said here, I was just making a joke about the green terror in reference to the other 25 page thread.