75 Gallon Tank Trying to build a freshwater aquarium for my toddler

I wish there was a kudos button for threads. It's so refreshing to see someone actually doing their research before getting any fish and properly setting up an aquarium for them. When you do stock the tank we would love to see!

I agree. formyprincess , props to you, a lot of times people will know nothing and have already bought 6-inch fish for their 10g tank without cycling. Or be like "They're just fish, who cares if a few die, they don't need a filter or heater."

 

just gonna say, whatever you do, start at beginner level, easy species to keep, work your way into the more difficult species.

We all can give a ton of advice, but many times don't realize we are advising a novice that hasn't bween through the wringer to get to where we have been. it's very easy for us to advise well ahead of your ability and set you up for failures instead of success.

It is a learning process, and I'll be honest 30 years later, I'm still learning things about the fish I keep, nevermind the species I've never kept.

 

As for plants for your tank, if you don't want to buy ferts, maybe try these:

Vallisneria (Will grow a jungle out of your tank, the picture is of mine with my vals)

Amazon swords (Will need root tabs for these; I use, as a cheap alternative, Jobe's houseplant spikes, cheap and many people have had success with them, haven't lost a fish because of them, get at lowe's)

Pogostemon stellatus octopus (Grow massive; make a jungle)

Java fern

Water wisteria

Dwarf aquarium lilly



Here's my tank with the vals, ignore the water bottle filter, it was a temporary filter when my filter broke:

just gonna say, whatever you do, start at beginner level, easy species to keep, work your way into the more difficult species.

We all can give a ton of advice, but many times don't realize we are advising a novice that hasn't bween through the wringer to get to where we have been. it's very easy for us to advise well ahead of your ability and set you up for failures instead of success.

It is a learning process, and I'll be honest 30 years later, I'm still learning things about the fish I keep, nevermind the species I've never kept.

Agree, you can study endlessly but when you get a tank, it can still go terribly wrong. There are little things someone does, that no article could explain. And just an eye for a disease or something wrong.

 

Blue Gularis are NOT surface-dwelling Killifish, they tend to stay near the bottom, where they can breed in the substrate. They will go up long enough to eat the Danios. Not a good fish for anyone who has not kept killifish before. They are large for Killies, over 6 inches. They are also quite predatory and territorial. I do not consider them to be community fish.

 

That’s the kind of advise you needed !!

Okay so a middle dwelling, slightly cooler water fish is still an option. I’d still leave your heater in set to the desired temp, I have a heater in with my shrimps just set lower. To be honest though , I’m saying a middle dweller, You might find when stocked you don’t care either way and don’t want something else. I find black skirt tetras / black widow tetras to stick to middle ground but they aren’t super active. That might provide good contrast with the faster fish like danios / corys. But again it’s not an absolute must to have something to “fill” the middle.

with any new tank stocking is best done slowly so your bacteria colony can keep up to process the ammonia levels. You have options and time on your side !

 

Blue Gularis are NOT surface-dwelling Killifish, they tend to stay near the bottom, where they can breed in the substrate. They will go up long enough to eat the Danios. Not a good fish for anyone who has not kept killifish before. They are large for Killies, over 6 inches. They are also quite predatory and territorial. I do not consider them to be community fish.

Thank you.

Yeah, I've never kept them before, just throwing stuff out.

So maybe the striped panchax as an alternative. I haven't really kept or heard about many cool-water aquarium fish.

 

I love that you're involving your daughter at such a young age. I'm slowly transitioning one of my tanks for my granddaughter that will be two in June. Right now she seems to like the larger fish that interact with people like the goldfish in one tank and the rainbow cichlid in the other. If you wind up with fish that are compatible, mystery snails are a lot of fun to watch too. For a snail, they move pretty quickly and you never know when they will decide to just "fall" to the bottom of the tank.

 

For a child maybe A red tail shark right? I think those would work but without the other bottom dwellers. I don’t know just that a kid might like watching a little torpedo dart around the tank. Someone please correct me If I’m wrong. (I probably am)

 

So this is it! My baby's 75 gallon! Wife and I were super excited setting it up. I'm still waiting for a second filter to come for the second half (left side).

Any suggestions for a type of plant I can get that will grow horizontally to go over the gravel, to give more cover etc. I don't think I'll be putting anymore toys, want to keep it as much open space as possible for them to swim (when they do come haha).

P.s mind the diy stand, I'm still going to buy a nice colored board and cover it all up at all 4 sides haha. Was surprised how cheap it was to make and how sturdy it came out to be.

 

What is the final stocking plan again? I understand the logic behind wanting there to be plenty of swimming room, but depending on the species you go with some don't like open tanks. Often times having a lot of cover (via tall plants or floating plants) and hiding spots helps fish feel safe in their environment which makes them more likely to be seen being active all around the tank.

 

3 blue gularis killifish

14 zebra danios

10 kuhlis

10 panda cories

3 reticulated hillstream loaches

Something like this, might change slightly .. and will add shrimp/snails later down the line.

 

View attachment 843857
So this is it! My baby's 75 gallon! Wife and I were super excited setting it up. I'm still waiting for a second filter to come for the second half (left side).

Any suggestions for a type of plant I can get that will grow horizontally to go over the gravel, to give more cover etc. I don't think I'll be putting anymore toys, want to keep it as much open space as possible for them to swim (when they do come haha).

P.s mind the diy stand, I'm still going to buy a nice colored board and cover it all up at all 4 sides haha. Was surprised how cheap it was to make and how sturdy it came out to be.

Also with a big tank I would consider dosing CO2. Just if the plants don’t grow enough or start to wilt.

3 blue gularis killifish

14 zebra danios

10 kuhlis

10 panda cories

3 reticulated hillstream loaches

Something like this, might change slightly .. and will add shrimp/snails later down the line.

For these I would definitely add many plants and even driftwood. They need to be able to feel safe and hide.

 

Sounds like a plan! I don't know much about the other stock/compatibility but the cories will need a sand substrate. They like to sift through sand and their barbells can get damaged on gravel.

 

Also with a big tank I would consider dosing CO2. Just if the plants don’t grow enough or start to wilt.

For these I would definitely add many plants and even driftwood. They need to be able to feel safe and hide.

I'll keep an eye out, but I'm hoping the fish will take care of that hopefully. And I bought this LED light with multicolor to allow for better plant growth. Was thinking of maybe adding an oxygen bubbler or w/e you call it (still a newbie).

I also originally wanted a canister filter outside but my two year old will literally knock that over instantly , so I ended up going with two marineland filters which actually creates a great amount of current surprisingly.

Sounds like a plan! I don't know much about the other stock/compatibility but the cories will need a sand substrate. They like to sift through sand and their barbells can get damaged on gravel.

Hm maybe I should look into a replacement for the 10 cories cause there is absolutely no way I'm emptying that again!!!

I built my stand and wasn't 100% about my build waking up the next morning lol so I had to take it allllll apart and rebuild , refill etc .. took me all day

Also with a big tank I would consider dosing CO2. Just if the plants don’t grow enough or start to wilt.

For these I would definitely add many plants and even driftwood. They need to be able to feel safe and hide.

Suggestions for plants? I honestly grabbed these from petco and feel like there's def more I can do in terms of plants.

 

I'll keep an eye out, but I'm hoping the fish will take care of that hopefully. And I bought this LED light with multicolor to allow for better plant growth. Was thinking of maybe adding an oxygen bubbler or w/e you call it (still a newbie).

I also originally wanted a canister filter outside but my two year old will literally knock that over instantly , so I ended up going with two marineland filters which actually creates a great amount of current surprisingly.

Hm maybe I should look into a replacement for the 10 cories cause there is absolutely no way I'm emptying that again!!!

I built my stand and wasn't 100% about my build waking up the next morning lol so I had to take it allllll apart and rebuild , refill etc .. took me all day

Suggestions for plants? I honestly grabbed these from petco and feel like there's def more I can do in terms of plants.

Yeah I would def recommend a bubbler because of the size of your tank. But just know that you also need a air stone to hook it up to.

A nice plant is java fern (and it’s “family”) which you do not bury into the substrate because it will kill them. Instead you tie them onto rocks or leave them floating in the tank for them to find a home.
Amazon sword you do bury and can get big and very green which looks nice.
Anubias is pretty good as well but you do not bury it.

 

Hm maybe I should look into a replacement for the 10 cories cause there is absolutely no way I'm emptying that again!!!

It's up to you! The hillstream loaches also appear to be a species that prefers sand. Luckily since the tank is empty if you wanted to switch to sand you wouldn't have to drain the entire thing (maybe half) and it wouldn't affect your cycle this early on.

Edit: I'm not sure what you use to drain it, but I highly recommend getting a good gravel vacuum. Will make emptying the tank into a large bucket so much easier.

 

3 blue gularis killifish

14 zebra danios

10 kuhlis

10 panda cories

3 reticulated hillstream loaches

Something like this, might change slightly .. and will add shrimp/snails later down the line.

For the blue gularis, I'd recommend reading this post from chromedome52, also he really knows his stuff, better than I do, and in a stocking thread, there are so many fish no one could make a stocking alone without others, because, simply put, no one has kept all fish:

Blue Gularis are NOT surface-dwelling Killifish, they tend to stay near the bottom, where they can breed in the substrate. They will go up long enough to eat the Danios. Not a good fish for anyone who has not kept killifish before. They are large for Killies, over 6 inches. They are also quite predatory and territorial. I do not consider them to be community fish.

Also this one by me:

Thank you.

Yeah, I've never kept them before, just throwing stuff out.

So maybe the striped panchax as an alternative. I haven't really kept or heard about many cool-water aquarium fish.

Yeah, the only ones I've kept on this list are the danios, tiger barbs, and reticulated hillstream loaches.

 

Java fern, anubias, subwassertang, and java moss are highly adaptable and would probably do just fine in your aquarium as-is.
If you want to fill in that empty space in the center, I suggest getting a large decoration or piece of driftwood, and covering it with anubias plants. Just superglue the plants on where you want them to stay, then drop the decoration in. The anubias will anchor themselves to the decoration naturally over time and draw nutrients from the water through their leaves.

I also want to add: aquariums rarely stay the same as when you start them. Even experienced aquarists often adjust or completely redo their tanks. You're new to all this, so trust me: start simple, and keep learning! This tank can evolve along with your growing knowledge and experience.

If you are really interested in more plants, I highly recommend doing a good bit of research. There are a multitude of youtube channels out there with advice on how to care for individual plants as well as how to have success with aquariums in general, long-term.
Something to keep in mind is that plants are not just pretty decor. They are living things, and in some cases, they require just as much attention, care, accommodations, and maintenance as an animal. While some are extremely hardy and adaptable, many require an environment designed for their needs to survive and thrive.

 

Stocking suggestions aside, I'm just glad to see you included a castle. Simply a must for all deserving little princesses!!!

 

In addition to the nitrogen cycle:

I'd start w/ a school of neon tetras. They are a 'beginner' fish, hardy, school together, are active, & colorful. After a few weeks & it appears they are thriving, you can build from there. Go slow. The tank won't be fully stocked the first time you add fish.

Hi formyprincess. What is your ammonia & Nitrates at?

 

haha for sure so this is the list :

What do you think of this maybe:

3 blue gularis killifish

14 zebra danios

10 kuhlis

10 panda cories

3 reticulated hillstream loaches

Plus some snails/shrimp later down the line as blacksheep1 advised.

Cold/hot , these fish can dictate.

Kuhli loaches barbels are just as pone to injury as cories; if not more due to their high activity level. Most prefer to keep them on sand how easily they can be injured. IME, even a slightly rough rock I had in the tank was enough to damage their barbels and cause rot. I've also heard of them digging in substrate (have not experienced it myself,) but gravel does not really allow that. They are also very shy fish, who prefer a lot of ground cover and hardscape to hide behind, which the current setup does not have.

Chromedome made a very good post addressing the blue gularis. Panchex killifish were also mentioned, but I would not go with them either. From my knowledge of them, they do best in species only tanks. They do not like high flow, prefer a lower ph, would likely be stressed due to the danios activity level, and are not fond of a lot of open swimming space. I have never personally kept them, but based off of what I've read, this is the conclusion I've come to.

Hillstream loaches can be tricky to keep. They need very well oxygenated water to survive. I'd wait a while till the tank is truly established before attempting any.

 

So here’s the tank about 8 weeks later! Anyone know what’s growing there? Very long thin with white bulb tip.