16 Litre Tank

[saviour]

I have a very small 16 litre tank, yes I know it is small, and I had a small goldfish in it which died this morning. I rescued this goldfish from a junkies house last year, it had been in a very very small glass tank in filthy conditions and had not been fed for two months. Anyway I bought this 16 litre tank and everything was fine until today. I now want to put some small tropical fish in it like tetras or something else, please advise, how many can I have, I know I can't have very many but am asking advice because I know nothing about tropical fish. I know I will have to buy a heater. This tank sits on my kitchen worktop. Have cleaned out the tank, pump etc very thoroughly so what do I do next? Thanks in advance. I was really upset this morning when I found the poor thing.

 

[newtotropical]

Hi,
You will need a filter (you dont mention one in your post) When the tank has cycled you could have a Beta or a dwarf puffer.

 

[saviour]

Hi,
You will need a filter (you dont mention one in your post) When the tank has cycled you could have a Beta or a dwarf puffer.

I have a flter

 

[*Fishkies*]

Hmm you could have 1 betta or 3 guppies (but they'll multiply), or 4 Endler Livebearer (very small and colorful), or some catfish for the bottom. You could also have 3 or 4 African Dwarf Frogs.

 

[newtotropical]

Hi,
You will need a filter (you dont mention one in your post) When the tank has cycled you could have a Beta or a dwarf puffer.

I have a flter

Ok if you havnt washed in tap water when you cleaned out the tank you need to feed the bacteria. You need to add fish food daily or ammonia to keep the bacteria alive till you put your fish in......

 

[saviour]

Hmm you could have 1 betta or 3 guppies (but they'll multiply), or 4 Endler Livebearer (very small and colorful), or some catfish for the bottom. You could also have 3 or 4 African Dwarf Frogs.

I am really new to this and really do not know anything. Would it be okay to have maybe 5 lemon tetras, the reason I ask is because I have been googling and they seem to be hardy, small and easy to keep. Any other suggestions would be welcome. I do know that I can't have a large amount because of the size of the tank.

 

[dixaisy930]

Nope, no lemon tetras. They need more room for swimming.

You really don't have too many more options. You might want to look into some killifish. I'm not sure if this is too small for them, but a pair might work.

 

[Arimus]

I'd go with the betta - they're the perfect lone fish and look stunning...

 

[saviour]

Oh dear, I am so disappointed, I thought I would be able to put maybe at least three tiny fish in this tank. I have had a look at pictures of the beta and am not too impressed, each to their own I suppose. I will maybe have a look at my LFS tomorrow, meanwhile keep the suggestions coming.

 

[doresy]

Very basically you have room for three and a half inches total of fish based on the formula of 1" of fish to a gallon of water. Allowing for growing room don't forget!

Incidently, well done on the rescue even if the poor thing died If you really want to get into tropicals try to save for a bigger tank (doesn't have to be huge) There are bargins to be had as many people people give up after failing at the first hurdle. Ebay is sometimes good if you are lucky enough to be local to someone that is desperate to off load a complete setup. You could then maybe use your current tank as a hospital/breeding tank later on.
This forum is one of the best for all the help and advice you'll ever need.

 

[saviour]

Thanks for that. I thought I would maybe manage a couple of tiddlers but never mind, I maybe will have to get a betta after all. Don't know if I really like them but will have a look around and then decide. All this because I rescued a goldfish and enjoyed it so much. It is ironic that it survived in horrible conditions for weeks and then comes to live with me, new spotless tank, well fed and it dies. Although when I got it, everything was so hurried I did not know about this forum, cycling tanks etc, wish I had come across it earlier maybe the poor thing would still be alive.

 

[dixaisy930]

Bettas are great fish. They really do have personality to them. They associate you with food rather quickly, and will go to the front of the tank everytime the get a glimpse of you. There are also some very pretty bettas out there. This is one of my boys...

Take a look at aquabid.com They have some lovely bettas on there.

 

[saviour]

Oh you are getting me to change my mind about bettas, that is a beauty.