# Red Devil Pair or Midas Pair 75g Setup Help



## FireHorn123 (Apr 16, 2017)

Hi I'm going to be setting up a red devil tank. I'm going to have a breeding pair of Red Devils if they are not available I will get a Midas pair. (Don't tell me that a 75 is too small that is all I can afford right now). Also there will be a divider in the tank 85% of the time. Anyway my questions are:
1. What would be better for a 75g a Midas or a red devil pair
2. Can I put plants in the tank with them?
3. If I can't put plants in what structure do you guys reccomend?
4. What dithers if any do you think I should get?


----------



## JRW81 (Mar 14, 2017)

Think you should consider a different pair for a 75gal.

Most of the fish you find are going to be a red devil/ Midas cross. If you can get pure ones I prefer the red devil.

Plants probably won't last. Rocks and driftwood would be best. Plus that is their natural habitat.

I would skip the dithers. Since you will have a divider and there will only be 2ft for each fish.


----------



## FireHorn123 (Apr 16, 2017)

What other fish might you suggest for a 75 bc a 75 is all I can afford and I want somewhat larger fish.


----------



## JRW81 (Mar 14, 2017)

Does it have to be a pair?


----------



## FireHorn123 (Apr 16, 2017)

JRW81 said:


> Does it have to be a pair?


Yes I would like for it to be a pair


----------



## JRW81 (Mar 14, 2017)

I've had good experiences with severums and jack dempseys as far as pairs. The problem with large more aggressive species is that the males will kill the females if they are not wanting to breed. Can always try to make a cave that only the female can fit in to get away from the male. 
A single red devil would be good in a 75 with some ditheres. Had one for years and plan on getting another whenever I get my other fish moved. Really cool fish


----------



## Sinister-Kisses (Jul 19, 2013)

FireHorn123 said:


> (Don't tell me that a 75 is too small that is all I can afford right now)


This is a ridiculously irresponsible statement. Everyone has constraints on what they can afford, of course. But people need to "live within their means" and work with what they have, not force a situation that is NEVER going to work simply because they want it.

If you have a 75gal tank, that's great - you need to stock it with what is appropriate for it's size. A 75gal, IMO, is smaller than I'm comfortable with for just one male devil or midas on it's own, but you can get away with it. These fish get large - 12" or more (my large male is actually 14"). They are big and aggressive and need space. I refuse to keep a male in anything less than a 90gal on it's own, depending on it's size - and as it is, my two males are in 120gal tanks. Even those really do fall under the "bare minimum" category for them once you see the adult fish in the tank. A 75gal for a female on it's own would be sufficient.

Keeping a pair in a 75gal tank will lead to two extremely unhappy, unhealthy fish, and most likely a dead female. Now, you mention using a divider 85% of the time. A 75gal tank is 4ft long. Divide that in half and each fish gets 2ft of space. For a male, that's barely twice his own length. They will barely be able to move.

If you are really interested in keeping a devil or a midas, keep ONE ONLY in your tank. They are still going to exist later in life after you're able to save up and get a tank large enough to house a pair if you want to in the future. What's wrong with keeping a solo fish in your tank, why does it have to be a pair? A solo fish can be just as interesting, these are very personable fish and really are like wet pets.

If you are set on keeping a pair in your tank, then as already mentioned you can look at Jack Dempseys, severums, Texas cichlids, etc. Something that doesn't get larger than about 9" as an adult, and not so hyper aggressive as a devil/midas can be. They are still very personable, fun fish to keep!


----------



## FireHorn123 (Apr 16, 2017)

Because I wanna have a pair you gotta problem with that? Anyway I wanna fish that will grow over 10in what about a green terror pair? Would that work and are they fast or slow growers?


----------



## FireHorn123 (Apr 16, 2017)

Update: After receiving some good information on another forum I've decided to give up the idea of a red devil pair and just go with a rivulatus pair instead.Just because I didn't realize that pure Red Devils and Midas cichlids are so hard to come by and I don't keep hybrids.
AND TO CLARIFY: I did not mean I was going to keep the red devil pair permantly in the 75 if I was going to get these fish I would be getting them at about an inch which would give me plenty of time to save up for a 120 because of Christmas and my birthday. Sorry that I didn't clarify that good enough


----------



## JRW81 (Mar 14, 2017)

Should buy fish for the tank size you have now not what you plan on getting but it's your decision. A 75 is still small for a pair of green terrors but they grow slow and if you get a larger thank they'll be fine. GTs over 10 inches is not common. They usually get 6-8 for a female and maybe 8-10 for a male. The monster ones you see are usually kept as solo fish with great genetics, pristine water and good food. They are really rare


----------



## FireHorn123 (Apr 16, 2017)

JRW81 said:


> Should buy fish for the tank size you have now not what you plan on getting but it's your decision. A 75 is still small for a pair of green terrors but they grow slow and if you get a larger thank they'll be fine. GTs over 10 inches is not common. They usually get 6-8 for a female and maybe 8-10 for a male. The monster ones you see are usually kept as solo fish with great genetics, pristine water and good food. They are really rare


Wtf! Every tank is small these days and I heard that you can keep a lone green terror in a 55 and if you want a pair a 75 will work permanently anybody else gonna chime in here and educate me if this is incorrect?


----------



## Granamyr (Dec 16, 2015)

I'm not sure what you're expecting to hear FireHorn. You're trying to cram large fish into 4 foot long tanks and expecting people to give you their blessing? While it may work out feel free to give it a try. Many people here though have a lot of experience with larger fish and are not going to agree with what you're trying to do.

while 75 gallons sounds like a huge tank and it is for tetras and guppies. It just isn't all that big for the large central/south american cichlids.


----------



## Granamyr (Dec 16, 2015)

Also as far as a divider goes, I wouldn't just put a divider down the middle of the tank if you're going to try and do this. Andy Woods has some amazing pairs of American cichlids and here is a link to one of his videos. If you fast forward to the 1:14 minute mark you can see a divider that has holes in it big enough for the female to pass through but the male can't. That way she can get away if she wants to but they still have most of the tank


----------



## FireHorn123 (Apr 16, 2017)

Granamyr said:


> I'm not sure what you're expecting to hear FireHorn. You're trying to cram large fish into 4 foot long tanks and expecting people to give you their blessing? While it may work out feel free to give it a try. Many people here though have a lot of experience with larger fish and are not going to agree with what you're trying to do.
> Read the rest of the thread before replying... I was gonna upgrade to a 120 a 75 was only temporary.


----------



## Granamyr (Dec 16, 2015)

I did read the whole thread and like I said clearly you want to do it so why are you worrying about getting approval from people you don't know? Feel free and I hope it goes well for you


----------

