Finally took the leap...

[David underscore J underscore Griffiths at yahoo d]

So after months of sitting in the basement, my 75 gallon tank is
finally going to come to use. I've got all the equipment ordered and
should be setting everything up within a week or two. I only have a
few questions, as I've been lurking for some time and have picked up a
great deal of info thanks to all the great people here.

First off, on the area of equipment, for those of you who have used a
UV sterilizer....how effective is it and is it really neccesary? Any
particular brand that works better than others? I've got everything
else I need to get started, filters heaters, thermometer, test kits,
etc. But I've been reading up on UV sterilizers and they seem like a
good idea. Being an amatuer though, I'm not sure what I think is
right.

Second of all, as far as the fish go.....my dream list of tank mates
includes the following (although I'm sure there are reasons not to mix
some and that is why I'm writing this)....

Black Ghost Knife
Clown Loaches
A couple pair of Gourami
A nice sized school of smaller fish, not sure what type yet.


Any suggestions? Is this mix even possible?

The reason that I was considering the UV sterilzer was partly due to
the clown loaches, as I've kept them before but lost them to an Ich
infestation that I just couldn't kick. If anyone has any suggestions
please do let me know.

Thanks in advance,

David

[NetMax]

<David underscore J underscore Griffiths at yahoo dot com> wrote in
message news.com...
> So after months of sitting in the basement, my 75 gallon tank is
> finally going to come to use. I've got all the equipment ordered and
> should be setting everything up within a week or two. I only have a
> few questions, as I've been lurking for some time and have picked up a
> great deal of info thanks to all the great people here.
>
> First off, on the area of equipment, for those of you who have used a
> UV sterilizer....how effective is it and is it really neccesary? Any
> particular brand that works better than others? I've got everything
> else I need to get started, filters heaters, thermometer, test kits,
> etc. But I've been reading up on UV sterilizers and they seem like a
> good idea. Being an amatuer though, I'm not sure what I think is
> right.

I've been fish-keeping for a while *cough* and I've yet to use a UV
sterilizer in an aquarium application. That's not to say that they don't
have their applications, but perhaps they are not very essential,
especially for a new hobbyist.

> Second of all, as far as the fish go.....my dream list of tank mates
> includes the following (although I'm sure there are reasons not to mix
> some and that is why I'm writing this)....
>
> Black Ghost Knife
> Clown Loaches
> A couple pair of Gourami
> A nice sized school of smaller fish, not sure what type yet.

I don't see any particular issues. Your Black Ghost might become large
enough to become predatory on some of your smallest schooling fish, so
pick fast medium size schoolers (ie: Black Skirts, Pristellas, Rummy
nose, Congos etc) instead of Neons. I see one Ghost Knife (with his
special tube shelter somewhere), 6 Clown loaches (with their assorted
spots to sandwich under), 6 Lace (Pearl) gourami (they get large but not
particulary aggressive) and 2 or 3 schools of tetras/rasboras/barbs. In
hindsight, the Congo tetras might annoy your Lace gouramis, so drop the
Congos. Don't get any Tiger barbs for that mix.

> Any suggestions? Is this mix even possible?
>
> The reason that I was considering the UV sterilzer was partly due to
> the clown loaches, as I've kept them before but lost them to an Ich
> infestation that I just couldn't kick. If anyone has any suggestions
> please do let me know.

Yes, they are extremely suceptible to Ich, especially on their first
exposure IMO. Just deal with it as you would for any other outbreak.
Catch it early and follow the treatment regiment. Make sure there are no
other root causes stressing them. Practice proper quarantine/isolation
procedures and they should be fine. Once your tank is cycled, put the
Clowns into a quarantine tank with lots of their source water. Over the
next 2 weeks, do partial water changes using your main tank water to
acclimate them. If they get Ich, treat them in the quarantine tank (ie:
Nox-Ich has no formalyne, so is less toxic). In the main tank, if they
get Ich, Nox-Ich is relatively cheap to use on a large scale as well.
Getting the basics right will get you further than a UV light, but that's
JMO.

Other FYI stuff:
http://faq.thekrib.com/begin.html
http://www.tomgriffin.com/aquamag/cycle2.html

have fun :o)
NetMax

> Thanks in advance,
>
> David

[David underscore J underscore Griffiths at yahoo d]

Any thoughts on a school of Rainbows in the mix? They would be large
enough to not be threatened by the Pearls or the Knife and supposedly
are rather community friendly. A local store tends to stock pretty
well on the Rainbows and I do like the look of them.....




On Fri, 7 Nov 2003 09:46:58 -0500, "NetMax"
> wrote:

>
><David underscore J underscore Griffiths at yahoo dot com> wrote in
>message news.com...
>> So after months of sitting in the basement, my 75 gallon tank is
>> finally going to come to use. I've got all the equipment ordered and
>> should be setting everything up within a week or two. I only have a
>> few questions, as I've been lurking for some time and have picked up a
>> great deal of info thanks to all the great people here.
>>
>> First off, on the area of equipment, for those of you who have used a
>> UV sterilizer....how effective is it and is it really neccesary? Any
>> particular brand that works better than others? I've got everything
>> else I need to get started, filters heaters, thermometer, test kits,
>> etc. But I've been reading up on UV sterilizers and they seem like a
>> good idea. Being an amatuer though, I'm not sure what I think is
>> right.
>
>I've been fish-keeping for a while *cough* and I've yet to use a UV
>sterilizer in an aquarium application. That's not to say that they don't
>have their applications, but perhaps they are not very essential,
>especially for a new hobbyist.
>
>> Second of all, as far as the fish go.....my dream list of tank mates
>> includes the following (although I'm sure there are reasons not to mix
>> some and that is why I'm writing this)....
>>
>> Black Ghost Knife
>> Clown Loaches
>> A couple pair of Gourami
>> A nice sized school of smaller fish, not sure what type yet.
>
>I don't see any particular issues. Your Black Ghost might become large
>enough to become predatory on some of your smallest schooling fish, so
>pick fast medium size schoolers (ie: Black Skirts, Pristellas, Rummy
>nose, Congos etc) instead of Neons. I see one Ghost Knife (with his
>special tube shelter somewhere), 6 Clown loaches (with their assorted
>spots to sandwich under), 6 Lace (Pearl) gourami (they get large but not
>particulary aggressive) and 2 or 3 schools of tetras/rasboras/barbs. In
>hindsight, the Congo tetras might annoy your Lace gouramis, so drop the
>Congos. Don't get any Tiger barbs for that mix.
>
>> Any suggestions? Is this mix even possible?
>>
>> The reason that I was considering the UV sterilzer was partly due to
>> the clown loaches, as I've kept them before but lost them to an Ich
>> infestation that I just couldn't kick. If anyone has any suggestions
>> please do let me know.
>
>Yes, they are extremely suceptible to Ich, especially on their first
>exposure IMO. Just deal with it as you would for any other outbreak.
>Catch it early and follow the treatment regiment. Make sure there are no
>other root causes stressing them. Practice proper quarantine/isolation
>procedures and they should be fine. Once your tank is cycled, put the
>Clowns into a quarantine tank with lots of their source water. Over the
>next 2 weeks, do partial water changes using your main tank water to
>acclimate them. If they get Ich, treat them in the quarantine tank (ie:
>Nox-Ich has no formalyne, so is less toxic). In the main tank, if they
>get Ich, Nox-Ich is relatively cheap to use on a large scale as well.
>Getting the basics right will get you further than a UV light, but that's
>JMO.
>
>Other FYI stuff:
>http://faq.thekrib.com/begin.html
>http://www.tomgriffin.com/aquamag/cycle2.html
>
>have fun :o)
>NetMax
>
>> Thanks in advance,
>>
>> David
>

[NetMax]

ok.. top-posting now ;o)

re: Rainbowfish, too many types exist to answer that question. Here is a
helpful site:
http://members.optushome.com.au/chelmon/Contents.htm

There are many which would fit your mix. Start by taking note of what
your LFS has in stock and research those.

NetMax

<David underscore J underscore Griffiths at yahoo dot com> wrote in
message news.com...
> Any thoughts on a school of Rainbows in the mix? They would be large
> enough to not be threatened by the Pearls or the Knife and supposedly
> are rather community friendly. A local store tends to stock pretty
> well on the Rainbows and I do like the look of them.....
>
> On Fri, 7 Nov 2003 09:46:58 -0500, "NetMax"
> > wrote:
>
> >
> ><David underscore J underscore Griffiths at yahoo dot com> wrote in
> >message news.com...
> >> So after months of sitting in the basement, my 75 gallon tank is
> >> finally going to come to use.
<snip>
> >> Second of all, as far as the fish go.....my dream list of tank mates
> >> includes the following (although I'm sure there are reasons not to
mix
> >> some and that is why I'm writing this)....
> >>
> >> Black Ghost Knife
> >> Clown Loaches
> >> A couple pair of Gourami
> >> A nice sized school of smaller fish, not sure what type yet.
> >
> >I don't see any particular issues. Your Black Ghost might become
large
> >enough to become predatory on some of your smallest schooling fish, so
> >pick fast medium size schoolers (ie: Black Skirts, Pristellas, Rummy
> >nose, Congos etc) instead of Neons. I see one Ghost Knife (with his
> >special tube shelter somewhere), 6 Clown loaches (with their assorted
> >spots to sandwich under), 6 Lace (Pearl) gourami (they get large but
not
> >particulary aggressive) and 2 or 3 schools of tetras/rasboras/barbs.
In
> >hindsight, the Congo tetras might annoy your Lace gouramis, so drop
the
> >Congos. Don't get any Tiger barbs for that mix.
<snip>