needing info

Question
hey ron,you stated that i may need lots of wood and rock.  how much wood and rock would you reccomend? also, i want my pleco and oscars to get big.  could too much wood and rock in the tank take away from their growth? thank u.
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-----Question-----
my wife recently bought me a 125 gallon fish tank.  i have a 30 gallon tank w/ an Oscar and Pleco.  i want to move the fish after i set up my new tank. how long should i wait to move the fish after my 125 is up and running? i also want to purchase another Oscar and two African cichlids.  would that be considerd an "overcrowded" tank? thanks for your info and time.
-----Answer-----
Hi Carlos,
  Your oscar will be very happy in the 125 gallon tank. You can probably move the fish after the tank has been up and running for a few days.  Feed lightly at first.  Ideally, take about 10 gallons of water from the old tank and put it in the new tank to help start up the bacteria cultures.

 As far as adding fish, another oscar will probably be fine, assuming you have lots of wood or rock in the tank. Adding African cichlids probably won't be a good idea. My guess is that the oscar(s) will eat them.  Maybe not today or tommorrow but one day you will look in the tank and just not see one of the African cichlids.  Then the other one will mysteriously disappear.  An oscar can eat something almost as large as itself -- it's pretty remarkable.  They are stealthy predators and VERY good at what they do.  

-- Ron
  rcoleman@cichlidresearch.com
  Cichlid Research Home Page <http://cichlidresearch.com>


Answer
Hi Carlos,
 Structure will definitely not stunt their growth.  You can add pretty much as much structure as you want and they will appreciate it.

-- Ron
  rcoleman@cichlidresearch.com
  Cichlid Research Home Page <http://cichlidresearch.com>