[Andy88]

Can I get some opinions on this-

I have:

125g long tank (72"x21"x18") running a 525gph canister filter

and a

125g tall tank (48"x24"x24") running a wet dry filter and 1190 gph pump

In 6 weeks or so (when new tank cycling is complete), where should each group go? Groups are as follows:

Group 1: 4 green terrors, 2 Oscars, 2 common plecos, 1 BNP

Group 2: 2 paired jaguars (maybe one common Pleco until spawning)

Original plan was to move jaguars over to the new (tall) tank, but thinking of bioload and current filtration, I'm leaning the other way.

 

[Auballagh]

You probably know what I'm gonnna recommend to you Andy. But, I'll post it up for everyone else to consider as well....
- Group One stays in the 125 gallon 'long' tank. Put an HOB Aquaclear 110 on that tank - your bioload filtration concerns will be covered just fine.
- Group 2 goes into your converted reef tank, the 125 gallon 'high'. And no worries, there's plenty of bio-filter for that tank!
-
Reason is: Group 2 will eventually be moved over into a 180 gallon (plus) sized tank for final keeping and spawning purposes (I doubt that female Jag will allow the Pleco to survive in there with it - but you never know...).
-
And, a compatible pair of Oscars could be eventually placed together in the 125 gallon 'high' tank. I believe that the 48 inch by 24 inch footprint will actually be better for keeping them in, than the narrow 72 inch by 18 inch footprint of the 125 gallon 'long'. :thumb:

 

[Andy88]

Thanks as always for your input!

That is what I originally planned on doing, the super filtration in the tall tank is the only thing that made me consider putting my messy Oscars over there!

 

[Auballagh]

Just checking in on this Andy. Spawning Jaguars tend to get things moving, y'know? :wink:
So, you got bio-balls going in the sump for the converted 125G reef tank.... question is, have you been prepping those bio-balls to support this 'new' freshwater tank? If not, some ways to do that is to,

- Fill the sump up with treated tap water, and place a bubbling air stone under the bio-balls. Add a very small dose of clear ammonia to the sump and start growing the beneficial bacteria for your filtration media.
- or -
- Fill the sump up with treated tap water, and place a submersible pump down in the discharge side (Where the big pump is gonna go). Run a discharge hose from the small pump over to the intake side of the sump and you've got a recirculating flow thing going. Treat with the very small amount of ammonia as above with the air stone to grow out the bacteria you need on your filtration media.
-or -
- Fill a plastic bucket (or two) , with those bio-balls (a tub will do, as well), fill with treated tap water and fire up that air stone. Add a tiny bit of ammonia and start growing bacteria!

The idea is to get a head start on getting established filtration for the tank, before you actually stock it with your pair of Jaguars. I' recommend going with the sump option and a recirculating pump. You'll be able to grow bacteria in all of the sump filtration media that way.
-
NOTE: Strongly Recommend you get some of the established filtration media from the canister filter and rub down at least some of your new sump filtration media with it. This will help get some of that bacteria placed on the new filtration media and growing right away, accelerating the cycling process a bit. (filter inoculation).

 

[Andy88]

I have the whole tank cycling at this point, using the Ammonia.

I may try to use some old established filter media per your advice!

If things get out of hand, I'll pull the fry out and stick them with my red devil... or a bucket with heater and aerator until I can give them away. I'm not prepared to grow out the fry just yet! I at least need my jags in their own tank... from what I've read, their spawning cycle is about 6 weeks, which is fortunate with the amount of time it takes for the tank to cycle.