Getting a 90 gallon.. Any Suggestions????

[tediumsdream]

Hello Fellow Cichlid Lovers,

I've finally talked my parents into getting me a 90 gallon tank! I'm utterly confused about what to put in it though. I was thinking a GT and a Texas but I don't know how compatible they are. If I put a Jag in could I put anything else in with it? How about a Flowerhorn? Are they compatible with GT's or Texas? Any suggestions or preferences would be great.

John

[WorldNation]

my personal favorites for S. Americans: Texas. i just love'em.

but u mention flower horns, those are i believe from taiwan if i'm not mistaken. i dunno if u cna mixed with S.Americans. but i'm pretty sure you can. they are awesome fish.

another suggestion: Severums. great fish. not too compatible with texas though, their not as agressive as other large s. americna cichlids.

[Rex Karr]

Welcome to the board tediumsdream (John). All of your choices are good. A Texas and a Green Terror could most likely live together in a 90g as adults. Your best bet with that combo is to buy both at a very small size and raise them together with several other non-cichlids such as large, hardy Catfish, Characins, Polypterus, and Cyprinids.

The Jaguar and the Flower horn (which is a hybrid of several American cichlids), are a few steps above the Texas and Green terror in aggression. I think you would be lucky to be able to keep either one with even just a few catfish. Some of these large territorial cichlids can go nuts and not accept any tank mates.

Where are you buying your fish from? If you are buying them from Pet Shop with a large selection that will special order, or from a mail-order company (highly recommended because you choices will greatly widen, although shipping is expensive) then we can recommend some other fish that you may like. The Trimac would be a great choice, but is hard to find unless you mail-order. They are a bright green with bright pink and red throat, red eyes, and black blotches outlined in white along the sides. Sound familiar? This is one of the main fish in the Flower horn hybrid. But this fish is much more attractive in my opinion.

Good luck
Rex

[tediumsdream]

Thanks for replying Rex and WorldNation. Rex, there's actually a lps near me that has a large selection of fish, interesting though that I've never seen them carry things like umbriferum, dovii, or trimac for that matter. I noticed they did have a really nice looking baby red admiral flowerhorn, so that's why I brought them up, I understand they grow to be beautiful fish. I'd like pretty smart fish, I'm aware of the intelligence of a Dovii, oscar, etc. and I had a dovii for some time but he died of unknown causes. Do you happen to know if Texas are reasonably smart fish? Or if not that do they have pretty colorful personalities? I'd like a good mix of size, aggression (not Dovii aggressive), personality, and looks. If I did wind up going with a managuense, is a 90 gallon enough for just him? There's managuense in my lfs about 10-12 inches long who follows me down the length of the tank as I walk by ready to attack. I'd love to have this kind of personality in a fish, where it seems their territory stretches beyond their tank. What's your best experience of a fish like this?

Thanks again guys,

John

[Rex Karr]

Cool, it sounds like you know quite a bit about American cichlids already.

Really, all of the large Americans are very smart and have lots of Character. But certain ones are very shy when kept in smaller tanks (55-125g) and with few tankmates. Fish like Urophthalmus and Salvinni often fit this description. But the magority of the large Americans are very personable fish. All of the fish you mentioned are. In my experiance, the true Guapotes (Jaguars, Dovii, Freddies, etc.), the Vieja's, and the Amphilophus have been the most outgoing and the showed their intellegence the most. Probably the 2 smartest acting fish I've ever kept were a giant male Striped Midas (RIP), and a young male Amphilophus sagittae that I have.

A 90g should be fine for a Jag. Males can possibly reach over 18", but in captivity 14" and under is more common. Your tank should be a nice home for him IMO.

Good Luck,
Rex

[tediumsdream]

Thanks for the help Rex, sorry to keep bothering you. What do you think might be the best decor for a tank with a GT and a Texas? Or for a Jag? I was also looking at filters today and I was looking and the Fluval series. They seem to be the most expensive. I had a TetraTec filter for my old 29 gallon and was happy with it. Would a 100 TetraTec suffice for the 90 gallon tank with messy cichlids in it? Is an undergravel filter necessary?
By the way, at my lfs today I saw a tank of small texas cichlids and they looked great with such aggressive personalities, I think they are the leading candidates. I also saw what I Think was baby White-Tailed GT's, these seem harder to find than the red-orange tailed ones. Is there any truth to that?
I can already sense that in a typical situation a Texas would be more aggressive than a GT but I'm hoping the tank space will diffuse the tension. Do these guys dig up gravel like the Dovii and jack dempsey?

I can go on forever lol,
John

[surfdude660]

You will not be wanting an ugf. Cihlids produce too much waste to be handeled by one, and they end up trapping waste an making it harder to clean. You will want your tank water to filter 10- 12x per hour, so you will want 900 (i would prefer 1200 if i had a 90, lol) at least gallons per hour of filtration. I would buy three emperor 400 filters imo. You could also go with 2 emp. 400 and a fluval 400. Thes filters can all be found for reasonable prices online at bigalsonline.com (emp 400 $80-store, $36-big als). Good luck, and whatever you do, dont skimp on filtration.

By the way, if i were you i would get a breeding pair of jd's, texas, gt..etc. You will have more fun with your tank (watching babies grow and the mating rituals) and you will have less problems with compatibility. :D :lol:

[Chet]

If you are going to get a breeding pair, then go with the Texas. I would love to have a breeding pair of Texas cichlids. If you go with a single specimen, then the Jag is the way to go. That large jag at the LFS sounds like a good pickup. Why not get it and give it a good home? I would say an AC 500 and an Emperor 400 would be a good filter combo for a 90. You could always add another power filter or cannister filter down the road if you wanted. Don't use an undergravel filter for the reason mentioned previously. Good luck with you new tank and have fun with your fish. American cichlids are great!

[surfdude660]

For jus a little extra money i would get 2 emp 400. Do not an emp 400 and an ac500. The emp does a much beeter jod removing waste from the water and has excellent biological filtration to boot. Contrary to the ac 500's name, it only pumps 428 gallons/hr. and the emp does 400+, so they are almost the same. I would stay away from the aqua clear filters.

[tediumsdream]

Thanks for the info about UGF's guys, I wouldnt have known that and might have had a Big problem lol. Anyone have ideas for Decor? What do Texas Cichlids like?? GT's???

Surfdude, I'd love to have several Cichlids swimmin around my tank but I think 2 would be the most for full grown size in a 90 gallon. This is a big a tank as I'm getting until I own my own place down the road, so I'll have to make my choice of fish wisely.

Is it detrimental to have these fish grow up in such a large tank? For instance if i get a GT and a Texas that are only 1 1/2 long will they be OK in a 90 Gallon? I'd like to do this but I have a 20 and 15 gallon if absolutely necessary. Any advice would be great.

John

[Rex Karr]

Decoration is completely up to you. A lot of people (myself included) go for the natural look. I always start with the substrate (either a natural color gravel or black sand for me), then add some interesting driftwood (as much as you like, the more the better), then some small rocks around 8 lbs (maye not small by others standards LOL ), and last I add some plants. Usually fake plants from wal-mart. They have cloth plants in the section with craft supplies. The plants are large, realistic, and perfect for my tanks.

But hey, you might want want blue gravel, flower pots (actually really good caves), and some pvc pipes. The main thing is to provide a thin layer of substrate and some nice large hiding spots.


A pair is a good thing, but could prove to be problems. If you do get a pair, make sure you buy a large group of juvies and let them pair off naturally. And always make sure there are places for the (usually) smaller female to hide.


And its fine to raise them in a that size tank. Sometimes the tank size can be a little to big and if there are other larger cichlids, the small guys may have trouble getting enough food. But thats only with very large tanks.

[tediumsdream]

Thanks for the ideas Rex, I wasn't sure if there was anything that was essential for decor. I don't have a preference for natural gravel as much as I have a preference for a color gravel that will highlight the colors of the fish in my tank, so I will try to work off of what fish I decide to get.

I have heard from other forums and general fact sites that green terrors don't grow too fast. Is there any truth to this or is it subjective to your GT? MY concern is that a Texas will grow faster than a GT or vice versa and gain dominance of the tank. Anyone know?

[surfdude660]

I like the natural look for my aquariums. The only necessary decor is hiding spaces (flower pots, caves). When i said get a breeding pair, i meant one of those species by the way, and not keep the babies, sell them (which wouldnt be hard with doviis or texas). Some stores have breeding pairs of fish for sale, thats why i said that. Also, the better the water quality, the faster your fish will grow. Have fun!!!!!!!!!!!