our first south american need help

[nounourse]

we just buy a 85 gallon tank, we want start a biotop, it will be our first south american style tank so we don't know with what to start , we want to put into 1-2 type of aspistogramma and/or 2 type of ramirezi, tetras, shrimps, snails,scalares, some bottom cleaning fishes, we don't know how many to put in the tank, and maybe put some guppie for the kids.

we bought special sand (sold to help the plants to grow more ??) do we need to wash it before starting the tank? and bought some wood branches?

any recommendation maybe if all the fish we want to put in can live well together?
and any recommendation about what would be the ph, water hardness, temperature....

thanks for your help

 

[slimbolen99]

I'll tell you what I would stock with, and you can form an opinion based on that...

4 scalares (be prepared to get rid of two if they pair off)
1-2 pair of apistos, SAME SPECIES PLEASE
24 cardinal tetras or other type of small tetra, either one dozen of two species each, or all one species
12 marbled hatchetfish
6 corydoras

Nix the guppies and the ramirezi; guppies aren't native to South America, and they require harder, higher pH.
Nix the ramarezi because they require warmer temps, as do the guppies.
Shrimp won't last long in a community tank.
Snails -- you'll probably get plenty from the plants you buy.


As for the sand for the plants -- couldn't tell you. Normally sold in bags with instructions. I would go back to the shop owner and ask.