20 gallons

[wrs]

my brother minght be getting a 20 gallon tank, as it would be free from our lfs because he sold them alot of starfish. he likes cichlids, africans and oscars, but scence they cant go in a 20 i though id ask here.

what kinds of cichlids can go in a 20 gallon. it would also be best if they could go with his gouramis.

 

[Ben]

okay im just gonna pretend i didnt hear about the gold fishwith gouramis in a tropical tank........

But the best you could do in a 20 gal is a pair or 2 of dwarf cichlids such as rams

 

[wrs]

goldfish can handel warmer waters. theyre very hardy fish, hardier than you think. the fish store said that the fish was in warmwater all his life. and 74 degress really isnt that bad. But he doesnt want it in the tank anymore, nor the gouramis, so just without them.

 

[parker313]

Rams

 

[wrs]

dd said that. i was thinking, more on the agressive side..

 

[parker313]

dd said that. i was thinking, more on the agressive side..

Spawning rams can be REALLY aggressive

 

[impur]

goldfish can handel warmer waters. theyre very hardy fish, hardier than you think. the fish store said that the fish was in warmwater all his life. and 74 degress really isnt that bad. But he doesnt want it in the tank anymore, nor the gouramis, so just without them.

The problem here is that goldfish give off an above normal amount of ammonia. Notice when you go to the LFS, all the goldfish tanks have that mesh bag with little white pebbles in it? That is an ammonia absorber. I don't feel for the goldfish, i feel bad for the gouramis and the ammonia burns they must suffer through. I can't imagine how much pain that ammonia burning your gills would provide.


That said, kribs, rams, shell-dwellers would all be a nice selection for a 20 gal tank.

 

[wrs]

there is no ammonia in the tank with the goldfish. the ammonia is 0, and there is also a pleco in there.

i like kribs, not sure about the brother, lol. um i herd that firemouths can live in a 10, would it be okay in the 20

2 firemouths
2 bolivian rams
2 gouramis
1 pleco

would any other fish be okay in there as well? Or is that overstocked?

 

[impur]

there is no ammonia in the tank with the goldfish. the ammonia is 0

How many goldfish in there? If more than 1 or 2 i find this hard to believe




The firemouths will get too big.

 

[wrs]

just 1 goldfish.

i also herd the convicts, but i just dont see how they would fit into a 20 gallon tank. its a 20 long btw.

 

[Ben]

well with no other fish you could try out a small pair of convicts and you'll have fry in no time

and dont believe anything the lfs tells you

or you could get a pair of shell dwellers with no other fish and you'll see some agressivness action.

 

[wrs]

the convicts are only $.99, so i minght get some, as thyre babies and let them pair off. i do want shell dwelers, but they cost alot, and after the tank, wont have much money left. i mean unless my brother pays for it all, as it will be his tank. though it was my idea to sell them starfish the starfish.and i have no idea how to set a shell dweler tank up, and all the shells around me are polished ones. i havent even seen a shell dwlere set up, though i was going to buy my brother one, but i dont have to now, lol. but id love to see how one is set up.

and my lfs is very good with info, etc.

but they have no return policy on cichlids!

 

[mwm]

1 pair of cons

 

[semper fi]

i wouldn't recommend the cons unless you definitely have a way to get rid of the cons. cons are prolific breeders. can spawn every three weeks or so with each spawn about 150-200. since they are so prolific, most lfs will not buy them. they are too common. hence, the .99 price tag. a pair of cons would quickly overrun your 20 in a very short amount of time.

 

[JeremyD]

goldfish can handel warmer waters. theyre very hardy fish, hardier than you think. the fish store said that the fish was in warmwater all his life. and 74 degress really isnt that bad. But he doesnt want it in the tank anymore, nor the gouramis, so just without them.

The problem here is that goldfish give off an above normal amount of ammonia. Notice when you go to the LFS, all the goldfish tanks have that mesh bag with little white pebbles in it? That is an ammonia absorber. I don't feel for the goldfish, i feel bad for the gouramis and the ammonia burns they must suffer through. I can't imagine how much pain that ammonia burning your gills would provide.


That said, kribs, rams, shell-dwellers would all be a nice selection for a 20 gal tank.

I hate to but in, but provided there is sufficient biological filtration, ammonia levels should be at zero.

I have kept goldfish since I was old enough to keep a tank. Being a chemist at heart, testing these old myths was always exciting to me. I found no detectable levels of ammonia in ANY of my goldfish tanks I've kept over the years (from a 10g with a single black moor to a 500g with a group of my breeder size ranchus; once fully cycled of course). Filtration filtration filtration