stocking a 120 gallon tank please help

[nooshbag]

i recently bought a 120 gallon tank. here is what i am running:
4x55 hamilton PC light retrofit. 2x daylight 2x blue
2x aquaclear 110 filters
2x marineland 300w heaters
2x powerheads
80 pounds of crushed coral
40 pounds of lava rock ( will be adding more)
10 fake plants ( got a great deal $5 dollars a piece brand new even though they were marked for $11)

Now what I want is to base the tank around cichlids. I want to promote breeding in the tank so i would like more of a community tank feel. I would like to have cory catfish in the tank about 5-10, clown loach about 3-5 and for cichlids im open to anything but i would prefer smaller ones that are easier to breed i think having fry in the tank would be a nice touch. any suggestions or comments would be appreciated i'm open for all ideas on stocking.

 

[aclockworkorange]

Well, you realize crushed coral is going to raise your ph/kh? Probably something to consider when you think about stocking...

 

[nooshbag]

yes, cichlids like a higher ph level

 

[aclockworkorange]

Well, African cichlids do... South American cichlids prefer a low ph and very soft water. As do both corys and clown loaches.

 

[nooshbag]

the loaches and corys* will not be there to breed. they will be able to tolerate the p.h. from what i have read

 

[aclockworkorange]

I'd also worry about the roughness of the coral on sensitive scaleless bottom dwellers personally. I keep my big clowns on sand...

 

[nooshbag]

i was concidering placing a layer of #1 sand over the top of the CC. would this be advised?

 

[aclockworkorange]

IME when you place sand over a bigger, heavier substrate, the heavier stuff always ends up on top of the sand. Honestly, if you want to keep loaches and corys (corys also REALLY prefer sand) I'd take the crushed coral out and replace it with sand. I keep big clown loaches and breed corys, just for some "credentials" on my opinion.
You also wants to be careful with the aggression level of cichlids you house these species with. Corys have literally no way of defending themselves, loaches have the subocular spines but they really can get stressed with aggressive fish as well.

 

[nooshbag]

if i were to take a route away from corys and clown loaches, what would stocking suggestions be?

 

[aclockworkorange]

Sorry, this probably is frustrating, but I'd also remove the lava rock for the bottom dwellers... It's sharp and can damage sensitive barbels and scrapes can lead to bacterial infection.