Oscars+Silver Dollars+Severum in a 180G. it work?

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stymie

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Feb 5, 2011
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Philadelphia, PA
Hello All.
I've got 2 Oscars in a 180 Gallon tank with a sump filter. The Oscars are in the 13" range. I'd like to add a little more color and movement to the tank and I'm leaning towards adding a couple of Silver Dollars(3to5) and Gold Severum(2). My question is will the bio load be too great? And if it can work, any ideas on how large the Silver Dollars and Severum would need to be? My O's look like they could pick up a golf ball. Almost forgot, I've got a 14 inch Sailfin Pleco too.

PS - I screwed up the title. It was supposed to say: Oscars+Silver Dollars+
Severum in a 180G. Can it work? Sorry about that.
 
Id first be worried what the O's are going to do when you introduce a new tankmate(s)? Reguardless of size, SD and Sevs only get in the 6" range if im correct. And thats no match for an aggesive adult Oscar. Myself id leave well enough alone. Maybe start up another tank? Good luck!
 
Tworottz72 said:
Id first be worried what the O's are going to do when you introduce a new tankmate(s)? Reguardless of size, SD and Sevs only get in the 6" range if im correct. And thats no match for an aggesive adult Oscar. Myself id leave well enough alone. Maybe start up another tank? Good luck!
Click to expand...

Sevs can hit 10" an SDs get gig to, if you can find some larger ones you should be more then fine.

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Tworottz72 said:
Id first be worried what the O's are going to do when you introduce a new tankmate(s)? Reguardless of size, SD and Sevs only get in the 6" range if im correct. And thats no match for an aggesive adult Oscar. Myself id leave well enough alone. Maybe start up another tank? Good luck!
Click to expand...

You may be right, but they don't seem overly agressive towards new tankmates. When I added the Pleco, they did a couple of drive-bys on it. The Pleco stood it's ground and they left it alone after he pushed back a couple of times. From what I read, a larger Sev can handle itself and the SD's are fast enough to get by on their own. The O's are at a size now where they are more plodders, not a sprinters. I'm just not sure what size is satisfactory for new tankmates. Bye the way, I measured them earlier and they are a little smaller than estimated. The one is about 12 inches and the other is almost 13. I'm just not sure my tank can handle the extra bio load.

I've been kicking around the idea of adding an FX5. Maybe I should do that first before attempting to add new tank members. Or maybe I'll just add another tank for Sevs and SDs.

Thanks for your input.
 
Tayler said:
Sevs can hit 10" an SDs get gig to, if you can find some larger ones you should be more then fine.

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Click to expand...

I keep reading Sevs can get big, but so far I've never seen one larger than 5 or 6 inches. And as far as the SDs go, I've never seen them larger than 4 or 5 inches. I'm sure they're out there, but most LFS don't seem to have them at that size. I think I need to keep an eye on Craigslist or MFK for someone who may have larger specimens.

I appreciate your help. Thank you.
 
go with redhook silver dollars they definately will get larger. Seen many 12 inch severums so yeah they will get large. 180 should be able to handle few more residents.
 
Just add the FX-5 filled with bio-media and you should be "OK". As far as tankmates are concerned, just be ready to move any of them if it doesnt work out. Severums should be ok, but make sure it is nearly the same size as your O's. SDs get quite large but its hard to find many past 6" at least here. Right now Im growing out several different species to add to my 210g. I had to learn the hard way that the SDs were still too small at 5".
 
I have that mix in my 125, my O's didn't even notice my SD's although I would suggest getting them at around 3" if you can, my tiger gives my severum chase every once in a while but nothing serious.

I'd say go for it, but as with all cichlids it might be a good idea to have a back up tank ready incase the O's decide.they don't want the new tank mates around.
 
As far as the bio load goes, I think I may be ok. I generally drain off 50 gallons twice a week. I just checked my water parameters this morning and I'm at 0 for Ammonia, and less than 20 for Nitrates before a cleaning. Not sure about Nitrites because I damaged the test. I'll pick on up later today.

As long as I can find large enough fish, I should be able to make this work. Now the hunt begins.

Thanks for all the input.
 
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