Ok....Moose, it is then....otherwise we will have to start calling ColinB something different....like Shirley or Arbuthnot maybe? Nah...that won't work, he's definitely a Col
Sue will guide you through your cycling....you will need to get some ammonia though. If you are going to use some 'starter' or other, you need to get 'Tetra Safe Start', although it's not a guarantee to work, but the only one that might (it has the right bugglies in it
) I used it and it helped my tank to cycle a little quicker. If you go down this route, then try to buy it from a busy LFS, where their stock turnover is good and pick the bottle with the longest use by date on.
As for how many otos, they are better in a gang of 6, but I'm not sure if your tank is big enough for all the fishies you wanted...I haven't run it through the CC. They are lovely little fish, but you probably won't see much of them...I can go days without seeing mine. Then just when I think something must have happened to them, one will go scudding by!
Still, it won't be long before you succumb to a nasty condition known as MTS...or Multiple Tank Syndrome
Don't fear it, it happens to us all. You will suddenly realise that you need a MUCH bigger tank, then maybe a quarantine tank, then a species tank, then.....oh well, you get the picture
Well, happy fishing