changing fish stocking plan

[reds_21]

after i viewed a thread by "gabbyguppy" in which she had pictures of her Blue Rams, i am totally in awe!!! she took some really good pictures that brought out the electric blues in her fish. :ssuprised:

although i have never even looked into the cichlid fish of the world i never knew what types of fish they had to offer.

although i have had my 55 gallon running for 10 months now i dont know if it would be wise to try and raise the blue rams. i did find that i could raise bolivian rams which are rather hearty and fit my water perameters.

if anyone could argue my point, please do so. here are my water perameters which have been this way for a solid 8-9 months now. they are as follows:

ph: 7.6
nitrates: 40 (i have live plants)
nitrites: 0
ammonia: 0
water temp: 75-78 degrees F

also, in my signature you will see the 55 gallon tank and what i have in there thus far. would you see any issues in putting these bolivian rams in there and if i can, how many? like i said, id love to get the blue rams but do you think my conditions would work?

[Northernguy]

I think they would be a nice addition to your tank.
It sounds like you have established a healthy cycle.
Ask Algenco if he has any available.He sure raises some beauties.

In the future try hitting New Posts in the task bar.You will see any threads started recently,including your thread to look at this one.lol
Its not a chat room but your questions do looked at fairly quickly.

[KingFisher]

If you want rams, you need to get your nitrates down below 20 and keep them there. I am surprised yours are that high with live plants in the tank, mine rarely get above 5. More frequent waterchanges are necessary.

What other fish are currently in the tank? What is your filtration? What is your waterchange schedule? These will all determine if you should add rams to your tank.

If you choose Blue Rams, the temperature should also be bumped up a few degrees, as they like very warm water. I keep mine at 80-82.

[reds_21]

well, as for the water changes, i do that every couple weeks but usually no more than 50% at one time. most of the times i do 25%. so if i were to do 25% weekly, would this bring those nitrates down?

right now i have 1 neon tetra, 2 danios, 2 rubber lipped plecos, 1 rainbow shark, 2 cory cats

i have two filters, 1 is an emperor 400 and a penguin 170.

i can bump up the heat to close to 80, its around 78 now.

either way, if i want to keep these rams, i can always increase this or that. as long as my other fish will not be harmed

[KingFisher]

Have you tested your tap water for nitrates? Here are a few reasons that yours could be that high:

1.) your tap water contains nitrates
2.) you have leftover food rotting in the substrate
3.) you are adding nitrates to the tank (fertilizer)

My ram tanks are planted and I change 25% weekly. This keeps my levels down very well. Once you get yours in check, I think rams would work fine, but be mindful of the rainbow shark, they can be aggressive depending on the individual fish. I would also bump up your other fish to at least six of each, as the are all schooling fish and do much better in groups. Again, watch out for the neons with the rainbow shark, they could possibly be eaten.

[Northernguy]

If you want rams then you should change up to 50% every week.
They need a pristine tank to do well.Large wtaer changes will not hurt your tank or your cycle.It only helps it.

[reds_21]

i am testing my water rightnow, i will get back to you in about 5 minutes on that.

i have small natural color gravel, no fertilizer at all. i will be changing out my gravel completely and replacing with white "play sand". but still, no fertilizer.

since i have small gravel, it is possible that there is left over food. i can tsee it though

[reds_21]

my tap water nitrates are close to 0 but could be 1.0-2.0. no more than that though

[KingFisher]

i am testing my water rightnow, i will get back to you in about 5 minutes on that.

i have small natural color gravel, no fertilizer at all. i will be changing out my gravel completely and replacing with white "play sand". but still, no fertilizer.

since i have small gravel, it is possible that there is left over food. i can tsee it though

Yes, very possible. That's why it is necessary to vacuum the gravel along with doing regular weekly water changes.

Left over fish food and fish wastes will accumulate in the gravel over time and act as a "nitrate factory" unless you regularly use a gravel vacuum.

[reds_21]

weekly it is then.........................thanks for your help