Hello, I'm new around here and searching for some information on a new setup. I'll start off by saying that I currently have a new 90g tank and that's it at the moment. I want to do 1 Oscar a few angel fish, and maybe an Electric blue jack dempsey (going to raise him in another tank since he grows a lot slower to try and get some size on him.) I may have to also put a pleco in with them to help with the algae that's sure to arise. So if that is all I plan to put in there what canister filter should I use? I understand that the bigger the better but funds don't always agree with that (don't need a ferrari to go to work) since I'm only doing one Oscar, what filter would do just what I need? I will be using sand (so much easier to clean around) but other than that I'm pretty open to just about anything else. Is there any other good fish that will go uneaten with an oscar that can take care of algae?

Thanks, I've been keeping fish my whole life but this is the first time I've dived into something of this magnitude!

welcome to the site

A 90 gallon tank is big enough for one Oscar and a few tank mate. For starters, I would forget the Pleco altogether. If you want to reduce algea build up then there are a few simple steps to follow, don't leave the lights on for too long, don't put your tank in direct sunlight, don't overfeed and carry out regular water changes. The majority of plecos that are not going to make a tasty snack for an Oscar growth far too big and would certainly be totally unsuitable for your size tank, plus an Oscar.

We've had discussions about angelfish before, I'm not sure whether they would make good tank mates for Oscars. The Jack Dempsey would probably be a better bet in my opinion.

i agree with ofl forget the pleco and rest sounds alright. i would be a little apprehensive of an ebjd since they are so fragile and would instead go with a regular jack or a severum.

as for the filtration on a 90 2 fluval 405 would be more than adequate for your setup for life. if you get the fish at as juveniles you could get away with one fluval at first and add the second one about 2-3 months later.

I beginning to see you're right about the ebjd, seems like very few people have good luck with them even when keeping them on their own. I've heard that a regular JD could possibly be to aggressive for an Oscar, I've also heard that firemouths do very well.

Thanks for the filter advice, do any of you have an opinion on the Filstar xp3? My local shop sells them for a decent price and has all the accessories, but they're asking way too much for the fluval 405

jacks are a hit and miss thing when introduced into oscar tanks. some fishkeepers have no problem adding them then other have no success at all. i have a pair of jacks in with 2 of my oscars and things are fine but when i tried to do this in my other oscars tank well things were not quite the same to put i mildly. the only thing you can do is try and see what happens. also it tends to work out better if the oscars are bigger than the jack, from my own experience anyway.

as for the rena xp3 i have never used one so i cant give you an opinion based on experience but i know others who have and they havent said bad things about them. personnally i beleive that when it comes to filtration you get what you pay for. an inexpensive filter is just that. i pay a little more for a brand name but have yet to have any problems with them.

also you can check on ebay for your filters. since your in the us the shipping should be reasonable and the price are fair.

.) FilStar XP3.

Manufacturer – Rena & also Aquarium Pharmaceuticals site info. is unimpressive.

Dimensions - 9 1/2" Long x 8 1/4" Wide x 15" High.

Hoses & Connections – The hose connections to the canister body swivel freely but the hoses are a rather inflexible semi-soft tubing – these 2 ‘features’ basically cancel each other out relative to the 404’s hosing & connector system. The Xp3 uses the opaque heavy vinyl hoses. They allow light to pass through and the end result is this gray green slime throughout the hoses that are under the tank lights (Note: this is believed to be harmless). The portion of the hoses under the cabinet and in the dark have no growth in them. Wherever the hoses are attached to rigid tubing, the over joined area becomes filled with a black substance that you can't get to. Once you make the Xp3 hose/tube connections it’s very hard to dismantle them. Fluval gives you enough hosing to reach the bottom of a 24" tall tank with both the intake and outflow assemblies. Having lots of hose allows one to twist the outflow into a position to that will agitate the surface. But the Xp3 spray bar is still the better surface agitator while the Fluval is better suited to creating a circular underwater current.

Media Setup – Intake water enters top of canister, runs down side to ascend through 4 media baskets & on top of those a fine mechanical filtration pad. The XP3’s media baskets are a bit larger than the 404’s, but the 404 also has a pair of sponges to pre-filter the water, likely more than making up for the difference. The XP3 has four sponges of varying density (each about 1/2" thick) ranging from a large open pore to a super fine pore, stacked large (on the bottom) to small in the lowest basket.

Rated (by Manufacturer) for Fish Tank Size – Up to 175 gallons.

Pump Rating – 350 gallons per hour.

Circulation – I saw no listing for this.

Energy Use – UL Listed 30 watts (per ThatPetPlace.com).

Priming Difficulty – The XP3 has a rep. for fairly easy priming.

Noise Level – marketed as quiet but some members report varied noise levels, most often a humming sound, that’s usually muffled by being in a cabinet under the tank. Bob says his is louder than his Fluval 304, stating “The noise is a low tone consistent hum, not such that you would even notice it in a busy room with day to day things going on.”

Included Media – often sold without biomedia, in which case you must buy it separately (this is important).

Outflow – Versatile! You have the option for a spray bar; unfortunately, if it’s vertically-oriented the top part may spray above the water in a partially-filled turtle tank. If it’s horizontally-oriented it may be above water in a partially-filled tank, making splashing racket. Consider sawing the spray bar off just above the holes, & using a piece of flexible tubing spliced in so you can reposition the spray bar horizontally just below the water’s surface.

Special Notes – 1.) You may want to ditch the fine particulate filtration pad at the top of the media stack, if it clogs fast in your tank (more an issue in high particulate load tanks). This will cut down on servicing but also reduce fine mechanical filtration (Bob’s Note: Rena suggests replacing the pad every two months). The filtration baskets have handles. 2.) If you own a Glasscages tank - They are built with a 2.5" glass rim around the top. He builds the rim in to prevent escapes. Well....The rigid tubing of the Xp3 is only 2.25" wide, you have to either cut and re-attach the rigid tubing with soft hoseing like I did, or you can force it over the edge like some others have done. This rigid tubing is similar to model airplane plastic. If you stress it, you get that white coloring just beore it snaps. And you can't glue stressed plastic back together. The ‘feet’ are ~ 1/4" wide rubber buttons securely set in the base; Bob’s never had any fall off.

Warranty - 2 year warranty.

Cost: $95 – 115+ online.

Wow! thanks for all the info on the xp3, I'm going to give it a shot and see how it does. I'm going to go pick up some sand and start getting this thing ready. Thanks for all the info provided!

I hope i can return the favors!

just make your fish happy and share your experiences
in this forum, that would be good return already.

And remember to give your new tank a good cycle before even thinking about putting your fish into it.
i hope all goes well.

oh yeah, about that cycle, in the past i've always used little zebra danios to start it out, however that's always been with 10-30g tanks. what would be something good to help break a 90g in?

I always use black-skirt tetras, optionally you could use pure ammonia too.

You could also put the fish in right away and add a large dose of bio-spira if you don't want to wait, this is rather expensive though,