# Stocking a new 75 gallon



## jon_the_newb (Dec 30, 2006)

Hi everyone,
I'm setting up a new 75 gallon, planted, tank and I'd like opinions on this stocking list. 

Zebra Danios - 12, maybe 6 normal and 6 Glofish (wife loves those colors)
Glass Catfish - 5 or 6
Yo-Yo Loach - 3 or 4
Siamese Algae Eaters - 2 to 5? We have 2 of these now, about 2.5 to 3 inches in size, in our 29 gallon, they would move over and we thought they might like some new friends.
Harlequin Rasbora - 6 (we have 3 now in our 29, they might move over with some new friends)
Red-Tail Shark - 1 (one of my sons reaaaally wants a shark)
1 or 2 Gourami? Pearl? Fire Red Gourami?? (my other son wants a Gourami or two, though he's not sure what kind, he's 6)

Later on I thought we might add some Singapore Flower Shrimp, 2 or 3.

My original idea on the tank was to aim for an asian biotope kinda feel. Asian plants and asian fish, which I think most, if not all, of those fish are.

Understocked, overstocked? Any constructive thoughts or opinions are welcome.

Thanks,
Jon


----------



## Cassie (May 27, 2006)

yoyos are fantistic fish with great personalities. I had 4 in my 29g, I'd up it to at least 6-8 and they will really shine. 

my personal opinion on the danios is to pass them over. They are very active, constantly chasing each other as well as other fish in the tank. I'd up the glass cats and/or rasboras and eliminate the danios, but that's just a personal preference. 

a general tip: having tons of different species isn't really visually appealing. It's better to have more of a few species than a few of more species


----------



## JanS (Apr 14, 2004)

Your plan doesn't sound like too much, but I have to agree that perhaps you want to eliminate a few of them and up the numbers on others. I don't mind the danio's myself, but they are active, so if you want a more serene tank, they may not be the best choice, but that part is all about personal preference.

As for the Red tail, they do get large, boisterous, and would probably upset the balance in your tank, so I don't think I'd go with that. I'm trying to think of a more appropriate "shark looking" substitute for your son, but nothing is coming to mind at the moment. Maybe someone else will have an idea there. 

As for the Gourami's, I personally like to stick with the dwarf varieties since the others can get pretty big, and if you start going too big with any of them, you'll soon be over stocked.

I also don't think I'd go with any sort of shrimp with the loaches in there, since they'd probably become an expensive meal in no time.

Keep us posted on what you decide.


----------



## jon_the_newb (Dec 30, 2006)

Cassie: I was looking at Danios for a nice schooling fish. They always seem to be going somewhere, not content to sit still. The Glass Catfish and Rasboras never seem that interested in going anywhere. Whenever I see them, they're just kind of hovering in place. Maybe the Rasboras can stay in the 29, with a couple extras to get the number back up (we had 6, but lost 2 for unknown reasons (and I just double checked, we have 4, not 3)). Then again, maybe thats just because they're in a 29 gallon.

JanS: I'll have to double check the sizes on the Gourami's. If I recall correctly, the couple of web sites I checked said the ones I was looking at were about max 1.5" to 3" in size. One of the reasons I was looking at the Singapore shrimp is because it's suppose to be about two inches when it ships, with a maximum size of 4 inches. I was thinking the yo-yo's wouldn't bother anything that big.

Jon
Thanks for the replies thus far.


----------



## bigtroutz (Nov 17, 2006)

I love my YoYos - they have quickly grown from about 1" to almost 3" now in about 3-4 months. They are constantly active and you should be aware that they like to drill into the substrate (turn vertical and 'swim' down into the gravel) and sometimes uproot newly planted stems. It doesn;t happen all that often, so its not a big deal to me.

The big plus in my opinion is they control the inevitable snail introductions into the tank.

I inherited a 2.5" red-tail shark from a friend who was moving and added it into one of my tanks. All was fine for several month aside from some occasional 'all this food is MINE' attacks, until it decided to terrorize EVERY fish in the tank including a 5" blue spotted gourami, Tiger barbs etc. After 3 days of all the fish cowering in the corners and repeated attacks on all the terrorized fish, I decided the shark had to go, even though it didn't actually cause any physical damage.

I also find the larger Danios disruptive, always swimming back and forth 24/7 and disturbing the fish that sleep at night.

The yoyo's should be active enough to make the tank fun viewing and they haven't yet bothered any of the other fish.


----------



## bijoon (Nov 20, 2006)

I have 15 rasboras. They can be very active, and very timid at times. I like the fish a lot now that I have some. I like how they swim through my swords. Be advised SAE are incredibly hard to catch. There fast, can hide really easily and I've heard they can bury themselves. You might want some type of cleaner fish like otos or a pleco in there. Harlequins school real well in groups, but can separate and just spread out. Thats my 2 cents


----------



## jon_the_newb (Dec 30, 2006)

Bigtroutz: Perhaps I will drop the Danios and increase the yo-yo population, they are one I've wanted for awhile.

Bijoon: The activity and speed of the two SAE's we have is one of the reasons we love them. They aren't, IMO, very good for a cleanup crew, but they're fun to watch when they play, racing across the tank (which is a quick trip in a 29 gallon). And they're not timid about feeding time either.

Jon


----------



## bijoon (Nov 20, 2006)

I laso heard when they get big they stop eating algae and focus more on the flake food. I remeber trying to catch SAEs and it took me forever. We had zebra danios for a while and they seemed a little agressive to other fish.


----------

