setting up a 33g brichardi and shell dweller tank

[florat]

Hey all, need some inspiration for my 33g tank with shellies and brichardis. I'm leaning towards a scape with white coral sand, shells, and rocks. What do you think I can get away with in terms of stocking? I'm thinking 4-6 shellies and maybe the same number of brichardis. Would love some input, thanks.

[fluxon4]

I'd be cautious about pairing brichardi with shellies, they're notorious for spawning and becoming aggressive towards tankmates. Coflake sand might not be the best choice either, play sand is a more affordable option, but personally, I think pool filter sand is the way to go - it's a bit pricier, but worth it. What are the tank's dimensions, by the way? There are better fish to pair with your shellies than brichardi, in my opinion. Which type of shellie are you thinking of keeping?

[florat]

Hey, tank's 70/60/30 and actually I've already got pool filter sand, used it in my old tropical setup. Coflake sand was just an idea to help with buffering the hardness. As for the shellies, I'm off to the lfs today to see what they've got and get the water params so I can match them up before buying. Will let you know how it goes.

[fluxon4]

"Coflake sand isn't ideal for hardness, I'd recommend getting some Epsom salts and bicarbonate of soda instead. I get mine from the local chemist and spar. Add some cichlid lake salts, I use seachem, to your tank water as per the dosage. Check your pH, KH, and GH, then add small doses of the other two until you reach the desired levels for your tangs - pH 8 plus, KH and GH around 16. When doing water changes, just add the required amount of salts to maintain those readings. Your LFS probably doesn't add salts to their tang tanks, the fish just adapt to the water, but for them to thrive and potentially breed, it's best to replicate their natural environment in your tank."

[fluxon4]

By the way, whereabouts in the UK are you based? I've got a mate who's looking to rehome some multis and I reckon he'd be willing to let them go for less than you'd pay at the LFS.

[florat]

Hi fluxon4, I'm based in Essex, thanks for the info, I'll check it out, cheers

[florat]

Just an update, been to the lfs and matched their water parameters, tank's all scaped now. Fingers crossed by next weekend, everything will be stable and I'll be fully cycled. Was thinking of stocking 12 shells to 6 shellies, does that sound about right to you guys?

[fluxon4]

Your tank is cycled, isn't it?

[florat]

Yeah, it seems to be. Three weeks in, I used some media from my daughter's tank to get it going, then added some ammonia to keep it ticking over. All the numbers look fine on my API test kits, so that's a plus. I've had a bit of a fiddle this weekend, so I'll be keeping an eye on things to make sure it doesn't kick off another cycle before I bring the fish home.

[fluxon4]

No worries about the question, I've seen it happen to plenty of people who think a tank is cycled after just a couple of weeks, 6 Shellie's should be a good starting point though. Which ones are you planning on getting, and will you be keeping them on their own or adding some other fish to the tank?