PBass grow out tank.

[tunerX]

I am currently working on getting 4 Orinos, hopefully in about a week. They are supposed to be between 4-5"

Since the tank will only be a grow out, I want to go without substrate. I figure that these guys will want to eat alot and make alot of mess, so no need on vacuuming gravel or sand, but just doing water changes and working doo-doo patrol with a aquarium vacuum. I was thinking of running with just a piece of driftwood.

I am also contemplating running some peat in the filter. Is the Peat necessary (my water comes out of a well at about 8.0PH with low/mild hardness).

Any suggestions will be appreciated. I want to make my first PBass experience good for the fish and I.

 

[Tongue33]

Are they wild stock??

Questions to ask seller before you get them

What is are the parameters of water they are currently in??

What pH have they been in part of parameters.. But still i ask every time to be sure the Seller understands .

What are they eating , have been eating, and what current seller is feeding that they are eating

Peat may not be necassary And Cichla are like O's in that matter they adapt quickly.. 4-5" is a good size.. I would add vitamins to your diet at least for the first couple weeks to help their immune system fight off any stress related issues..

Cichla look good in any tank setting , except when there is no space to swim in my opinion

 

[tunerX]

I was planning on doing drip acclimation, with an airstone, for a day. I figured any differences would maybe have them flashing for a couple days after introduction. It has worked with past corals, inverts, SW and FW fish, but I heard young PBass can be weak and prone to infections until they get older.

I sent the questions to the seller.

Thanks a bunch for the tips.

 

[Tongue33]

The reason for saying that is young pbass are fragile and contract ich rather easily...which for young pbass can be fatal. Once they are past the 5" mark they get pretty tuff. One key is keeping youngins at a temp of 82-84*F and I have even kept them around a steady 86*-remember that in the wild youngin pbass stay to the shallows which in south american waters is quite warm in temperature. If you nip the ich issues and keep them unstressed and well fed you should have no problems with them....but alot of people have problems and give up on them altogether before they can really experience cichla in full force....once you keep them and witness the lightning fast water blowing eating machines....you'll never turn back
Keep the temp up and keep em growing fast untill they are putting good size on and you'll be fine........good luck and let me know how it goes....cant get enough pbass pics ya know

 

[tunerX]

Since ich is common for fingerlings, should I add salt. I have done a copper QT in the past but don't know how truly weak a Pbass juvenile can be. For some reason I can't get over an image of a tiny tim fish.

I'll also keep the water at 84 and run a UV sterilizer on the tank. Do the younger ones prefer a ton of water movement. I am thinking of an AC110 on the tank with AC70 powerhead for underwater current.

This is only a 55 for growout. If anything I can break the fish up into two 55s with the same setup on each. These guys are gonna be with a full grown docile Oscar, so they definitely need some size.

At what size could they be moved out of the grow out tank and into the main display without too much worries. I was thinking about 9". I am planning on 30% WCs every two days with HI-S RO/DI water, and manual poop removal once a night.

 

[Tongue33]

What size is the tank?

And if you are using a UV strilizer you shouldn't have any ich issues.. but that is just what I've heard..

Salt really can't hurt.. But Diet and Water are the main ingredients for success along with temprature.

@4-5" just keep their bellies full Like this

At very least see this site everyother day.. Daily is nice.. you will be surprised how fast they digest that size of stomach in my pics.. Hours and it's gone

My first grow out was an 18 g tall... I had a smalle filter..

 

[tunerX]

Its a standard 55, I have two if necessary. I listed filtration and waterflow a little higher up.

You JD doesn't bother them? My two JDs will attack anything that is smaller or just a little bit bigger than them. If they are breeding then they will even attack me.

 

[Tongue33]

My Jd's left them alone.. But I no longer have them.. And if I did the female would be food

One 55 will work as they do better as a group I just upgraded mine so fast as I was still attempting to keep the Total tank number down in my house YA RIGHT!!!

 

[tunerX]

Ok so the final answer is that they are WC and feeding on live. I guess I will feed european night crawlers, seined minnows, and may start breeding shrimp again. I'll follow the above sticky for getting them onto frozen foods once they exceed 6". I won't do the pellets since I can beef up the frozen with vitamins and it is easier to feed.

The PH of the water is 7.6. I'll be able to buffer my RO/DI to 7.6 no problem, but it will take a bit of work to keep it there. I have two mixes of buffer/substrate mixtures that I currently use that keep a solid 8.0 or 8.4 when I mix with RO/DI. I may have to work with the setup a bit to keep it at 7.6.

I may just slowly acclimate them to 8.0 water. Are there any problems with this?

 

[tunerX]

Update. The Orinos will be arriving at the airport this saturday. I have the 55 setup and have 1 cycled filter on it right now. Once I get the fish, I will add a second cycled filter. Currently the only thing in there are 40 of my rosy reds. After talking with the seller he said that P's are over 6". They will be stressed from the shipping so should I leave the rosies in there to provide them with some comfort food. How long should I wait before I try to get them on a frozen staple?

I figure at about 9" they will be large enough to go in the bigger tank so hopefully I can break down the 55 in a couple months.