I am getting a 55 gallon tank soon and i am looking to get some help on the things i will need. i already have a 20 gallon thats doing fine but isn't really all that exciting. i'm trying to make the 55 my really good tank. the one i can sink some money into (no pun intended). i plan on getting the marineland c360 for my filter. i am thinking of getting a external inline heater but i'm not sure if i should just stick with the normal submersible heater. i haven't decided whether i am going to have plants or not so i was going to just put in a substrate that would let me grow them if i want to in the future. if i do i am going to get a co2 system but i don't know what i should get. my questions are: what else do i need?, where can i get the best deals online?, and what kind of lighting should i get? any help will be appreciated. thanks.
New tank
- Thread starter traedizzle
- Start date
traedizzle;1523797; said:
Alright, well with that filter, you will be looking at really good turnover rate.
So thats a good start. Second, you don't need an external filter, the tank isnt THAT big, on my 120G i have a submersible one, just stick with them.Third, as far as substrate, sand is generally nicer for fish and plants, but also is harder to clean, and shows dirt much quicker, so if your up to the work go for it. A c02 system isnt a necessity unless your going to flood your tank with plants. if you get all these, you should be set... just tell me what type of fish your planning on housing and i can help you further.I'm probably not going to flood the aquarium with plants so thats good to know that i won't need a co2 system because they can be pricey! my buddy is giving me 2 fish to start out with. one is a jack dempsey and the other is a green cevrum. i also plan on getting a couple of clown loaches and either an ornate bicher or a silver bicher. i don't mind cleaning the sand though. its worth it i think for the way it makes the tank look.
that ornate bichir will get big most likely too big for that tank and prolly outgrow and eat the clown loaches, senegal would be a good choice though
traedizzle;1527776; said:
Alright, well sounds good with the jack dempsey and severum, but be careful on how many loaches you have.. they get bigger than you think 11-12" and also, the bichirs get very large as well, i would highly suggest not getting more than one for that tank. And if you are getting bichirs you need sand, they have trouble in gravel.
yeah clown loaches get large but grow slow, my old bichir never had any issues with gravel but would do sand because of the loaches
And btw, if your getting a clown loach.. you need at least 2-3 they do terrible as a solo fish.
thanks for the advice. i plan on doing sand and i didn't know that clown loaches don't do well in solos. do the bichers grow fast? the jack dempsey and severum are already pretty big so i don't think they will get much bigger. would an oscar be too big for a 55?
traedizzle;1528131; said:
An oscar will be fine in a 55G for awile, but for life a 90-120G is needed