Hi everyone, I'm new on here. I'm after some advice. This week I'm picking up a used set up, there are fish already in it. Now I know it's overstocked already, but I don't know what to keep out of what's already in there. This is where you guys and gals come in. In the tank at the moment there are 4 Severum, 2 Firemouths, 2 Jewels, 2 Angels, 2 Victorians and a striped catfish. This is all I know. The tank dimensions are 39l x 16w x 26h. I like all of these types of fish, but realise the vics are out of place here! What would you recommend I do? I realise I may have to study the tank for a bit and see how they all get on.
New 55 gallon
- Thread starter Hooper
- Start date
If it were me, I would probably donate all those fish to a fish store and do some thinking about what you want to keep, then start fresh. The tank is too small for severums for sure. Firemouth- you could keep one, or a pair, but then wouldn't be able to keep much else in there. Same goes for jewels. Angels are not well suited for living with other cichlids. If you got rid of the other cichlids (severum, firemouth, jewel, victorians) you could keep the angels, they would do okay in that tank. The Victorians are not a good match for any of the other fish.
I agree with what was suggested above. If you do decide to donate the fish and start fresh just do research on what specie that you want and if still not certain please list what you like and members will happily help .
2 jewels and the 2 thoricthys or 2 jewels and 2 smaller vics with maybe a catfish thrown in sounds like a good 55g setup to me, as long as you put caves on either end with a sight barrier in the middle. Might even be able to out some swordtails or rainbows or barbs in too.
Thanks for the replies so far everyone. I definitely want to keep cichlids and I like the idea of a medium sized pair and some cats and dither fish. This is what I have in my mind. I like the idea of keeping the firemouths and going for a breeding pair. I realise I may have to add more firemouths to get the pair though. I believe the two already in there are the same sex. I like jewels, but I know they can be very aggressive. What do you guys think?
A pair of firemouths with dithers (livebearers or tetras) and some catfish would work fine for this tank. I think 2 pairs would be too much due to the length and width not being very large for a 55. You could donate the rest of the fish, buy a few more firemouths, wait for a pair to form, then re-home the rest. As for dithers, swordtails work well with firemouths and would keep it CA-themed. Tetras like Colombians would work well too. As for the catfish, if you want to actually raise the pair's babies I would advise against them as they eat eggs and fry. If you don't care about raising the babies, any smaller catfish like cories or raphaels would be fine.