15 Gallon Stock, Sand?

[surfingfishyxo]

So I am planning on getting a 15 gallon tank. I want to put sand for the bottom of the tank but I am wondering if sand effects any type of live plants or fish in a negative way?

Also I want to know how I can stock my tank. I know I really want cories and was thinking of getting guppies. I am more partial to male guppies because of the colors. I want to know if you can house all or more males than females in a tank that is heavily planted with hiding spots. I also want to know about some other stock options. I dont want neons because they seem to be very fragile fish from over breeding. Same as cardinals.

Some other fish/tankmates I was thinking about (if you suggest fish please give me how many i can keep in the tank):

Platy
Giant Danio
Zebra Danio
Bloodfin Tetra
glowlight tetra
cherry barb

possibily a dwarf gourami but im not sure what tank mates they can have and how many. Also are dwarf gouramis fine with a filter with a semi strong current?

I know I have asked a lot but i want to make sure I have a healthy tank and I dont mix the wrong fish together or over stock. Thanks!

 

[eaglesaquarium]

Welcome to the forum!


Great decision on getting sand for the cories. It isn't necessary, but it is much better, IMHO.


First, the tank you have is a little limited in stocking options. If I were you, I would start the stocking plan based on the cories since that is what you mentioned first. If you stick to a smaller variety, you can have a few more individuals, and smaller fish do best in smaller aquariums than smaller fish. So, I would stick with one of the dwarf corys or pandas. Corydoras habrosus or C. pandas would be my first pick.


Second, guppies. Yes you can keep all male guppies. I think that as long as you have them in a group 4 or more you should be fine. I have 4 guppies in my tank and they are fine together. They do a lot of posturing with each other and swimming together, but never any nipping or anything. IMO, that is far better than having any females at all, because then you don't have to worry about fry, AND you have the more colorful and active fish. To be honest, I love watching my males square off and flare their fins at each other. Its cool to see. They do this for a few seconds, then they lose interest and swim away.


Third, the rest of the stocking list:
**Platies are somewhat stocky, so they are a large fish for this size tank. They are also livebearers, so if you go with them, I would recommend getting only males as well.
**Zebra danios are VERY active swimmers and the standard recommendation is that despite their size they are best kept in long tanks (4 feet is the number thrown around).
**Giant danios, same as above only MORESO.
**Bloodfin tetras are shoaling fish and at 2 inches are probably a bit big given your preference for cories and guppies. You would need 6 of these and that would push your stocking limit pretty hard.
**Glowlight tetra are nice small fish (<1.5") and shoaling. You could get a shoal of these, at least 6.
**Cherry barbs are also very peaceful fish. The males are bright red, while the females are a paler orange color. While they like to be in groups, they don't actually shoal together too much, they will spread out. They get 1.5"-2".
**Dwarf gourami are actually fairly peaceful towards other fish, but might be an issue with similar fish. Honey gouramis (a different species, but similar size) are more tolerant of other gouramis.




If this was my tank, based on your preferences, I'd stock it like this:

6-8 C. habrosus or panda
4 male guppies
AND
6 glowlight tetra OR 3 sparkling gouramis.


Be sure to have some hiding spots for the corys. And some heavily planted sections for the tetra/gouramis. Generally, fish are more brave if there are more hiding spots. They will be MORE visible if they feel secure that they CAN hide if they feel threatened.

 

[Neomeris]

Welcome to the forum. Have you cycled your tank yet? Male guppies may be pretty, but I find female guppies are more amiable, IMO. If you get dwarf gouramis, just so you know the males will fight to the death if kept together. Also, if you happen to live in California, be warned tat danios and genetically engineered fish (such as Glofish, which are injected with jellyfish DNA to make them glow, no they don't sting) are illegal. Sorry, can;'t type more. Feel free to Pm me, I like to be bothered. I just may not get back to you for a day.

 

[surfingfishyxo]

If this was my tank, based on your preferences, I'd stock it like this:

6-8 C. habrosus or panda
4 male guppies
AND
6 glowlight tetra OR 3 sparkling gouramis.


Be sure to have some hiding spots for the corys. And some heavily planted sections for the tetra/gouramis. Generally, fish are more brave if there are more hiding spots. They will be MORE visible if they feel secure that they CAN hide if they feel threatened.

Thank you very much! I actually like this stocking idea a lot. I have a few more questions if you dont mind...
Since I am very new to keeping fish and dont know many types, how would you stock a 15 gallon tank to YOUR preferences?
Second...I wanted to get the dwarf gourami Colisa lalia. Can I keep these in a tank with tank mates and how many?
Thanks for the help!

Welcome to the forum. Have you cycled your tank yet? Male guppies may be pretty, but I find female guppies are more amiable, IMO. If you get dwarf gouramis, just so you know the males will fight to the death if kept together. Also, if you happen to live in California, be warned tat danios and genetically engineered fish (such as Glofish, which are injected with jellyfish DNA to make them glow, no they don't sting) are illegal. Sorry, can;'t type more. Feel free to Pm me, I like to be bothered. I just may not get back to you for a day.

Thank you for the warning! I have cycled my tank yes. Everything is ready to go, just need the stocking ideas so i can starting adding fish by fish. : )

 

[eaglesaquarium]

Thank you very much! I actually like this stocking idea a lot. I have a few more questions if you dont mind...
Since I am very new to keeping fish and dont know many types, how would you stock a 15 gallon tank to YOUR preferences?
Second...I wanted to get the dwarf gourami Colisa lalia. Can I keep these in a tank with tank mates and how many?
Thanks for the help!

Thank you for the warning! I have cycled my tank yes. Everything is ready to go, just need the stocking ideas so i can starting adding fish by fish. : )

How did you cycle the tank?



Interesting question regarding how I would set up a 15 gallon tank. It took me roughly 4 months to figure out how to set up my 56 gallon tank!

Honestly, it wouldn't be much different from what I mentioned for you. If it were my tank, I'd probably go for all nano-species.

8 C. habrosus
8 Trigonostigma hengeli
3 sparkling gourami


As far as the dwarf gourami you want... I have that exact fish! It is a lovely fish and gets along fine with my fish. My only thought with not including it in the list I gave you was that the sparkling gouramis would offer you a bit more numbers. A 15 gallon tank isn't all that big, and to be honest, you want to be very careful with over crowding. Yes, the dwarf gourami would probably work fine in that tank, but it could get a bit more territorial in such a small tank. I don't know that for a fact, but that is my guy instinct. If you were to get it, it should be the last fish added to the tank. Also, there is a species specific disease for dwarf gouramis, for which there is no cure.


My list would be slightly "overstocked" according to the 1 inch of fish per gallon guideline, but I would know to overfilter the tank, do extra water changes and have heavy planting to help deal with the nitrates.

 

[surfingfishyxo]

How did you cycle the tank?



Interesting question regarding how I would set up a 15 gallon tank. It took me roughly 4 months to figure out how to set up my 56 gallon tank!

Honestly, it wouldn't be much different from what I mentioned for you. If it were my tank, I'd probably go for all nano-species.

8 C. habrosus
8 Trigonostigma hengeli
3 sparkling gourami

Thank you for the reply! I am thinking of sticking to the original stock you gave me but instead of the guppies, trading it with one male betta? The only thing i worry about with the betta is that I would have to some how make my filter flow less powerful and i wonder i they will effect the cleaning power of the filter at all? I also did a fish-less cycle.

 

[CezzaXV]

Some good advice so far.

Just wanted to say that I keep 7 male guppies together. Sometimes there is a bit of grandstanding and a few nipped fins, but no real damage done and as long as you keep the water quality top notch then they should heal quite quickly.

 

[eaglesaquarium]

If you are going to switch out the guppies for a betta, I would stick to glowlight tetra instead of sparkling gouramis. I don't know that they won't work together, but other gouramis don't work with bettas.


So, how long did the cycle take you?