Krib Fry: Zebras OK? and oh yeah...

[waterlynch]

Hi there. I was just wondering if two zebra fish (max 1 inch) would be ok in my nursery tank with my fry, which are about 1.5 weeks old. the parents are with them, till next tuesday, in a planted ten gallon. I want to move the zebras over since my twenty gallon will be fairly crowded when i move the parents back to the twenty. (I've got an eheim on the way to up my filtration) Also, will my angelfish (2, about 3 months old, I'm told, max 2 inches long) be ok with my Kribs (3, 2 inches) till i can save enough money for a 55 gallon? I guess I don't have much of a choice for now, but I do have an extra twenty tall, which i'm trying hard to avoid setting up because of my strict budget. I've already gotten myself in way past my gills. I'm quite attached to all of them, so everyone's safety is ultimately the most important to me. And one more question (trust me, this is nothing. You should talk to the poor people at my lfs); Can you suggest a good CO2 system for my twenty gallon? I just got my fins on some very healthy glossi, and I'd like to keep it that way. I have a 65 watt coralife 50/50, and currently i have the Hagen natural plant "ladder" system, which while I'm sure helps, i think would be more effective in my ten gallon. I'd like to upgrade the twenty, and would love to do a homemade system if it's efficient and cheap. Can you point me to any designs, or toss me any hints? Thanks for having such a great website, it's already been a great help (flattery will get you everywhere, especially when you mean it!) Have a great day. Tanks!

[Pam Chin]

Hey Waterlynch,

Okay, I got lost on how many tanks you have?? But it certainly sounds like you need to get the 20 tall up and running as soon as possible. It would be perfect for your angels. I would not risk puting 1" zebras in with any fry, they will think it is some kind of food, and you are bound to loose some. Instead maybe you can put some kind of a partition in your tank, or put the zebras in a basket that hangs on the side of your tank or floats.

You shouldn't mix fish from different areas, it is just asking for trouble in the long run. Mixing rift lake africans with kribs is not good, mixing kribs with angel fish is not good. If you want your fish to look their best then you need to make sure the water conditions and diet are correct. Sure they maybe surviving, but one or the other is not in the ideal conditions. This will effect how they look, breed and how long they live. So try to do biotope type tanks, where all the fish are from the same area, and I think you will be surprised at how much better your fish will look and how much more you will enjoy them.

Thanks for the kind words!
Cichlid Power!
Pam