Help with GT/JD

[Vaskov]

Hello all first post here sorry if its a bad one!

I have just purchased a 240l tank which is 120cm x 40cm x 55cm L x D x H. The tank will filtered using a fluval 306. I read on a couple of forums this would be big enough to house a Jack Dempsey or a Green Terror.

Im still undecided on which of the two to get as I love the looks of JD much more than a GT but I hear GTs are more personable I would love to hear from you guys who have kept them as to what to expect from either of the above?

My area has soft water too at around 75ppm/4.2dh is this OK for the above? Is the filter OK for the above? If I did get a JD or GT I hear dither fish can help bring the fish out and hide less, is this tank big enough to house some other fish with 1 JD or GT and if so what would make good dither fish? I have an inch deep layer of sand at the minute is this deep enough? I was also planning a mix of driftwood and rocks as I hear they destroy plants for fun, how about floating plants?

Sorry for stupid questions I want to be 100% prepared to house them before buying. The tank will also be fishless cycled with help from filter sponges from my other tank and adding ammonia.

 

[Backfromthedead]

in my experience, jd and gt are both finicky eaters. theyre about on par as far as aggression goes. and theyre about the same size. they both like to hide in caves or under logs and are somewhat territorial.

the gt likes softer water and the jd slightly hard. buts its easy enough to harden your tank water.

i would say the gt is more suited to a community type tank and the jd more to a one or pair of fish exhibit.

honestly it just comes down to the looks. thats the most striking difference between them. they dont really look alike at all.

 

[Vaskov]

in my experience, jd and gt are both finicky eaters. theyre about on par as far as aggression goes. and theyre about the same size. they both like to hide in caves or under logs and are somewhat territorial.

the gt likes softer water and the jd slightly hard. buts its easy enough to harden your tank water.

i would say the gt is more suited to a community type tank and the jd more to a one or pair of fish exhibit.

honestly it just comes down to the looks. thats the most striking difference between them. they dont really look alike at all.

Yeah I think the JD looks alot nicer IMO. Would the addition of dither fish to make it less shy be a bad idea then? Im hoping to get one as young as i can rather than a half grown one.

Would they need deeper than an inch substrate?

Thanks for the reply!

 

[Backfromthedead]

no not a bad idea. i would pair rainbowfish with a jd. in fact, thats what i plan to do with mine whenever i get her tank set up. rainbows dont school as tightly as tetras or danios though, if thats what youre looking for. blackskirt tetras and giant danios are my go to options for dithers.

 

[duanes]

I consider your size tank a little small for a pair of "normal" JDs, mostly because of their territorial needs.
At full adult size (males) 10", the tank leaves very little space for a female to escape the attentions of a rutting male. A mated pair will often guard an area of 4ft X 4ft X 4 ft (250 gallons) from all other cichlids
And offers little space for the dithers JDs normally watch in nature to assess the threat of danger. They are usually surrounded by shoals of live bearers, and without them, tend to stay hidden most of the time..
Although soft water is OK, the waters they live in nature are more alkaline and even a bit salty in the Cenotes of the Yucatan (pH near or above 8).
With your soft water and tank size, IMO you'd be better off with Rams of some other S American dwarf cichlids.
3 videos below of JDs in nature
027 zps4b102ffd
Eden2
Cristalino

 

[Gourami Swami]

With the soft water, a GT would make more sense (although most cichlids you buy at an LFS are captive bred and adaptable to a wide range).
I also think a GT will be more personable. All the JD's I have kept, mostly just hang out near their piece of claimed territory. GT's seem to be more active swimmers and probably more entertaining to keep as a solo fish. You could keep some dithers with it, tall bodied tetras like skirts or Colombian tetras would work fine.

 

[Vaskov]

no not a bad idea. i would pair rainbowfish with a jd. in fact, thats what i plan to do with mine whenever i get her tank set up. rainbows dont school as tightly as tetras or danios though, if thats what youre looking for. blackskirt tetras and giant danios are my go to options for dithers.

Nice thanks for the info! What tank size are you looking for your JD?

I consider your size tank a little small for a pair of "normal" JDs, mostly because of their territorial needs.
At full adult size (males) 10", the tank leaves very little space for a female to escape the attentions of a rutting male. A mated pair will often guard an area of 4ft X 4ft X 4 ft (250 gallons) from all other cichlids
And offers little space for the dithers JDs normally watch in nature to assess the threat of danger. They are usually surrounded by shoals of live bearers, and without them, tend to stay hidden most of the time..
Although soft water is OK, the waters they live in nature are more alkaline and even a bit salty in the Cenotes of the Yucatan (pH near or above 8).
With your soft water and tank size, IMO you'd be better off with Rams of some other S American dwarf cichlids.
3 videos below of JDs in nature

Im looking for a solo JD/GT. Thanks for reply anyway.

With the soft water, a GT would make more sense (although most cichlids you buy at an LFS are captive bred and adaptable to a wide range).
I also think a GT will be more personable. All the JD's I have kept, mostly just hang out near their piece of claimed territory. GT's seem to be more active swimmers and probably more entertaining to keep as a solo fish. You could keep some dithers with it, tall bodied tetras like skirts or Colombian tetras would work fine.

Thanks for the info! Would the tank size suffice a GT with a few dithers? How many do you think realistically could go in?

 

[Gourami Swami]

Nice thanks for the info! What tank size are you looking for your JD?



Im looking for a solo JD/GT. Thanks for reply anyway.



Thanks for the info! Would the tank size suffice a GT with a few dithers? How many do you think realistically could go in?

The tank is on the small side for a full grown male GT, would be good for a couple years at least because they are slow growers. Could probably keep one in there for life without health issues, whether it's enough swimming room is at your discretion. people have differing opinions on minimum tank size. As far as the dithers, I'd say 6-7 is a good number of tetras

 

[neutrino]

GTs are reasonably adaptable, but you shouldn't think of them as soft water fish. They're not. If you look up references to their wild habitat, pH can be over 8 and hardness moderate to fairly high. In fact, while I never kept them in my softwater tank days, I've kept them comfortably in African cichlid conditions or more often in pH in mid 7s with some hardness. It's not difficult to buffer a tank up to such conditions. My well water typically comes out of the tap with pH in the mid 6s, it's a simple matter to raise it to the 7s with moderate hardness with a little baking soda (or in my Tanganyikan tanks I also add a bit of Epsom salt for the magnesium).

Ignore the 'mad scientist' comments you sometimes see about making such simple adjustments, the process is simple and the results are normally quite stable-- in fact the whole point of 'buffering' is to stabilize your water conditions.

On the other hand, if your water is stable at a pH of 7 or higher you're probably okay for green terrors. Also, while they're potential max size is similar to a JD, they're often a bit smaller.

 

[Vaskov]

The tank is on the small side for a full grown male GT, would be good for a couple years at least because they are slow growers. Could probably keep one in there for life without health issues, whether it's enough swimming room is at your discretion. people have differing opinions on minimum tank size. As far as the dithers, I'd say 6-7 is a good number of tetras

Ah thats not good. I had checked on other websites and they said it would be fine for a fish of that size. I have no intentions yet for an upgrade so it would have to be a tank for life. Thanks for the info and reply!

GTs are reasonably adaptable, but you shouldn't think of them as soft water fish. They're not. If you look up references to their wild habitat, pH can be over 8 and hardness moderate to fairly high. In fact, while I never kept them in my softwater tank days, I've kept them comfortably in African cichlid conditions or more often in pH in mid 7s with some hardness. It's not difficult to buffer a tank up to such conditions. My well water typically comes out of the tap with pH in the mid 6s, it's a simple matter to raise it to the 7s with moderate hardness with a little baking soda (or in my Tanganyikan tanks I add a bit of Epsom salt for the magnesium).

Ignore the 'mad scientist' comments you sometimes see about making such simple adjustments, the process is simple and the results are normally quite stable-- in fact the whole point of 'buffering' is to stabilize your water conditions.

On the other hand, if your water is stable at a pH of 7 or higher you're probably okay for green terrors. Also, while they're potential max size is similar to a JD, they're often a bit smaller.

How hard is buffered water to keep up with weekly water changes? Is it as simple as just finding the right amount of b.soda to add and adding it with water changes? Thanks for the reply