10G Communitu Tank

[joe17]

So, I have a 10G community tank (yes I know, a little small.but living in a small apartment that's all the room I have).. I currently have 1 female red wag platy, 1 female golden twin bar platy, 2 male fancy guppies and 1 Serpae Tetra. Based on the info received at my LFS I only bought one Tetra but will sopn be going to get 2 more as that is all the room I have available.

There is one big rock and plenty of plastic plants that offer hiding places for my fish. I was thinkong of getting one or two shrimps to help with the cleanup and fill the bottom of my tank. Any opinion on whether shrimp would do good in my tank?

Thanks in advance!

 

[wrightt3]

I'd seriously look into rehoming the tetra before you do anything, they are shoaling fish and require groups of at least 5 which your tank isn't capable of sustaining. Serpae tetras are also notorious fin nippers (especially in small groups) and will likely destroy your guppies as they mature.
 
Once the tetra is gone you could probably get a group of about 5-6 small shrimp such as cherry shrimp. Just remember to keep up with weekly water changes.

 

[joe17]

So far I have not seen any problem with the Tetra, it doesn't seem to be paying attention to the guppies at all. I don't know if it is because it is still young or simply doesn't mind them. I will look into rehoming him though as I didn't realize they needed to be in such big group (the person at the store told me it would be fine with just the other fish in the tank)..

As for the shrimp, do they require live plants to thrive? I am new to the world of aquariums and don't feel ready to invest into.live plants yet. I'd rather concentrate on getting the fish well taken care of and learning as much as I can without harming the fish.

I would love to add a couple more fish to my tank but I am not sure what to get. I like the celestial pearl danios or some bottom dwellers but I am open to any suggestion that would add to my setup. Any suggestions?

 

[joe17]

I was just doing some reading and I am really interested in Endler livebearers. I am now thinking of getting 4 cherry shrimp and a couple of endlers to replace the tetra. Any opinions on this setup? This would be my final setup until I have the room to upsize.

 

[wrightt3]

The more fish you have, the harder it will be to maintain the tank so I would advise against adding too many fish.
2 guppies, 2 platies and about 6 shrimp is fully stocked IMO but I suppose you could go with 2 endlers but you would need to be doing very frequent water changes. 20% twice a week!
 
Celestial pearl danios are also shoaling fish and need large groups like the tetras.

 

[the_lock_man]

Wrightt3 is on the right track there, but I would say he's a little light on the water changes. 2 x 20% water changes per week is roughly the same as 1 x 35% change, which is a pretty standard thing, rather than the "very frequent" that he reckons. The platies really are a little big for a 10G tank (based upon their adult size). I would say if you were going to do as he suggests, then you need to be doing a 50% water change weekly.
 
Have you cycled the filter yet, ie grown the filter bacteria that eliminate the ammonia produced by the fish?

 

[joe17]

Yes the tank is cycled, I was only getting the shrimp because of their cleaning properties. Will it have a noticeable impact whether they are in the tank or not? I'd much rather add some fish then the shrimps.

 

[wrightt3]

Wrightt3 is on the right track there, but I would say he's a little light on the water changes. 2 x 20% water changes per week is roughly the same as 1 x 35% change, which is a pretty standard thing, rather than the "very frequent" that he reckons. The platies really are a little big for a 10G tank (based upon their adult size). I would say if you were going to do as he suggests, then you need to be doing a 50% water change weekly.

Yeah, I meant to say 25% twice per week not 20% and it was meant as a minimum requirement.
I wasn't really sure whether the standard 10 gallon was 20 or 24 inches long. 24inches would be okay but 20 would be a bit of a squeeze. Still, I'd say he should be okay seen as he is only keeping 2.

Yes the tank is cycled, I was only getting the shrimp because of their cleaning properties. Will it have a noticeable impact whether they are in the tank or not? I'd much rather add some fish then the shrimps.

At the end of the day, YOU should be cleaning the tank. Not the shrimp. If you keep up with maintenance then you shouldn't really need a clean-up crew
2 platies, 2 guppies and 2 endlers would fill out your tank nicely and would make for a good central american biotope aquarium. You could then decorate it with a CA themed hardscape.

 

[the_lock_man]

 

Wrightt3 is on the right track there, but I would say he's a little light on the water changes. 2 x 20% water changes per week is roughly the same as 1 x 35% change, which is a pretty standard thing, rather than the "very frequent" that he reckons. The platies really are a little big for a 10G tank (based upon their adult size). I would say if you were going to do as he suggests, then you need to be doing a 50% water change weekly.

Yeah, I meant to say 25% twice per week not 20% and it was meant as a minimum requirement.
I wasn't really sure whether the standard 10 gallon was 20 or 24 inches long. 24inches would be okay but 20 would be a bit of a squeeze. Still, I'd say he should be okay seen as he is only keeping 2.

Yes the tank is cycled, I was only getting the shrimp because of their cleaning properties. Will it have a noticeable impact whether they are in the tank or not? I'd much rather add some fish then the shrimps.

At the end of the day, YOU should be cleaning the tank. Not the shrimp. If you keep up with maintenance then you shouldn't really need a clean-up crew
2 platies, 2 guppies and 2 endlers would fill out your tank nicely and would make for a good central american biotope aquarium. You could then decorate it with a CA themed hardscape.
 

 

Yes the tank is cycled, I was only getting the shrimp because of their cleaning properties. Will it have a noticeable impact whether they are in the tank or not? I'd much rather add some fish then the shrimps.

 
In terms of bioload, shrimp add very little.

 

[joe17]

I am currently doing about 30-50% water change once a week depending on my readings and another smaller one if my readings are too high. I don't mind the frequent water change and have fallen into the routine of doing them (I first fell into the trap of adding my fish a little bit too early). I will keep thinking about the shrimp but will wait for now. Thanks for the awesome advice!!

 

[daizeUK]

I would agree with The Lock Man that platies grow a bit too large for a 10G tank.  I'd say your 2 guppies and a shoal of 6 male endlers would be the perfect combination!
 
Shrimp don't have a large bioload so you could add some small shrimp as well if you wanted and if you had some moss for them to hide in.

 

[joe17]

I am assuming you are talking about something like java moss or something similar. I don't know anything about.live plants. I have gravel.substrate right now. Would I have to change anything for the moss? Any special care needed?

 

[haleem8777]

Theres a few plants that a really easy to grow. one of easiest is java moss just tie it down to something and it should just grow.

 

[daizeUK]

Yes a small piece of wood, rock or pebble works well or perhaps a coconut cave.  The best way is to arrange the moss and then wrap some fine fishing line around to tie it down.  Alternatively you can use superglue but I find fishing line easier for moss.

 

[joe17]

thanks for the advice!! I will be heading to my lfs soon and will update you guys on yhe changes i've made