29 gallon tank questions

[Falconwithaboxon]

I am new to fish keeping and I just had some questions about my current tank. Right now I have a 29-gallon tank that is moderately planted (working on adding more plants, money lol) and I have two structures in it. In the tank currently I have three dwarf gouramis, four platies, three mollies, ten neon tetras, and four danios with 4 snails and some ghost shrimp. I was just wondering if that's too many fish, just enough, or if I can add more, I wanted to get a "centerpiece" fish, something elegant and bigger but not something that would pose a threat to my smaller fish. I was also wondering if it's worth setting up a second tank for pregnant fish or if they would stand a chance that surviving in my main tank, I own a 10-gallon tank I can set up pretty easily for that.
Thank you

 

[HoldenOn]

I am new to fish keeping and I just had some questions about my current tank. Right now I have a 29-gallon tank that is moderately planted (working on adding more plants, money lol) and I have two structures in it. In the tank currently I have three dwarf gouramis, four platies, three mollies, ten neon tetras, and four danios with 4 snails and some ghost shrimp. I was just wondering if that's too many fish, just enough, or if I can add more, I wanted to get a "centerpiece" fish, something elegant and bigger but not something that would pose a threat to my smaller fish. I was also wondering if it's worth setting up a second tank for pregnant fish or if they would stand a chance that surviving in my main tank, I own a 10-gallon tank I can set up pretty easily for that.
Thank you

I'm pretty sure you had a thread about your gourami. You should only have one dwarf in a tank that size. Do you know your water hardness? You can find it by looking up "City Name water parameters". This will help us identify some fish. With dwarf gourami you really cant keep any other big fish, they are super aggressive. Perhaps a nice shoal would work.

 

[PheonixKingZ]

I agree, the fish you have in your tank right now, do not match up with their suggested GH levels.

 

[Falconwithaboxon]

I'm pretty sure you had a thread about your gourami. You should only have one dwarf in a tank that size. Do you know your water hardness? You can find it by looking up "City Name water parameters". This will help us identify some fish. With dwarf gourami you really cant keep any other big fish, they are super aggressive. Perhaps a nice shoal would work.

I agree, the fish you have in your tank right now, do not match up with their suggested GH levels.

My water is softer. Thanks for informing that my fish might not be fully compatible but I wasn't really thinking when I got them, just getting fish that looked cool. What fish might not be compatible then? I really like the Gouramis.

 

[HoldenOn]

My water is softer. Thanks for informing that my fish might not be fully compatible but I wasn't really thinking when I got them, just getting fish that looked cool. What fish might not be compatible then? I really like the Gouramis.

The gourami are good with softer water. Livebearers are not. What kind of danio is it (most are fine with softer water)? The neon tetras are good with soft water as well. Stocking wise, if you want to keep the gourami, you have no room for another big fish. I would recommend 8 corydoras (not pandas, they are, sadly, very weak). Other than that, I would increase your neon and danio numbers to 10.
Edit: I'm not 100% sure, but you might be able to get another dwarf gourami to spread aggression if you really like them. @Colin_T?

 

[Falconwithaboxon]

The gourami are good with softer water. Livebearers are not. What kind of danio is it (most are fine with softer water)? The neon tetras are good with soft water as well. Stocking wise, if you want to keep the gourami, you have no room for another big fish. I would recommend 8 corydoras (not pandas, they are, sadly, very weak). Other than that, I would increase your neon and danio numbers to 10.
Edit: I'm not 100% sure, but you might be able to get another dwarf gourami to spread aggression if you really like them. @Colin_T?

I have Zebra Danio, I'll look into replacing the other fish when the old ones die, I'm not going to just get rid of them, just feels wrong to get rid of live fish.

 

[HoldenOn]

I have Zebra Danio, I'll look into replacing the other fish when the old ones die, I'm not going to just get rid of them, just feels wrong to get rid of live fish.

I would suggest trying to trade them in at your local fish store. Zebra danio definitely need some buddies, and they should be fine with your water.

 

[Falconwithaboxon]

I would suggest trying to trade them in at your local fish store. Zebra danio definitely need some buddies, and they should be fine with your water.

I'll call around about trading them in, the Gourami, Platies, and Mollies are 2 months old and the Tetras and Danions are about a week old.

 

[Falconwithaboxon]

I'll call around about trading them in, the Gourami, Platies, and Mollies are 2 months old and the Tetras and Danions are about a week old.

Don't know if age matters to trade them in

 

[PheonixKingZ]

Don't know if age matters to trade them in

Not really, it’s more the health they are concerned about.

 

[Falconwithaboxon]

Not really, it’s more the health they are concerned about.

Okay I'll look into it. I know a few places, I was going to get my fish from a fish store/breeder but I've just been going to PetSmart because money lol.

 

[WhistlingBadger]

Hi, Falcon. Interesting screen name; there must be a story behind that.

I would recommend 8 corydoras (not pandas, they are, sadly, very weak).

This is not universally true. I had a school of pandas in my Orinoco tank for several years and they were some of the most resilient, active, enjoyable fish I've kept. I've heard the same said about neons. I suppose it depends on one's supplier.

The only possible way to keep a group of dwarf gouramis in a tank this small would be one male to two females; they are usually either kept alone or in sexed pairs, as the males are ruthlessly territorial with each other. Dwarf gouramis tend to be very prone to disease and often don't live long, but if you are lucky and get a healthy one, they are among the most beautiful fresh-water fish.

Other than that, great advice all around.

 

[HoldenOn]

Hi, Falcon. Interesting screen name; there must be a story behind that.


This is not universally true. I had a school of pandas in my Orinoco tank for several years and they were some of the most resilient, active, enjoyable fish I've kept. I've heard the same said about neons. I suppose it depends on one's supplier.

The only possible way to keep a group of dwarf gouramis in a tank this small would be one male to two females; they are usually either kept alone or in sexed pairs, as the males are ruthlessly territorial with each other. Dwarf gouramis tend to be very prone to disease and often don't live long, but if you are lucky and get a healthy one, they are among the most beautiful fresh-water fish.

Other than that, great advice all around.

Thanks for the backup! I wish my LFS kept pandas. The guy who runs it stopped shipping them in because of the shortness of their lifespans. You're one lucky duck to have a successful shoal! Agree with the gourami statement, just thought an african cichlid approach might work, but probably not.

 

[Falconwithaboxon]

Hi, Falcon. Interesting screen name; there must be a story behind that.


This is not universally true. I had a school of pandas in my Orinoco tank for several years and they were some of the most resilient, active, enjoyable fish I've kept. I've heard the same said about neons. I suppose it depends on one's supplier.

The only possible way to keep a group of dwarf gouramis in a tank this small would be one male to two females; they are usually either kept alone or in sexed pairs, as the males are ruthlessly territorial with each other. Dwarf gouramis tend to be very prone to disease and often don't live long, but if you are lucky and get a healthy one, they are among the most beautiful fresh-water fish.

Other than that, great advice all around.

The name is just a card from Cards Against Humanity, "falcon with a box on its head", but the full name is too long for most things so I shorten it to "falconwithaboxon" most of the time

My Gourami have gotten very nice, bright color since I got them, so I think they're doing good. In fact, all my fish have better color since I got them. I did lose a few Mollies in the first week but I think I got unlucky, no real issues since then. I'm excited to see what happens with my fish!

 

[Essjay]

With dwarf gourami it is not recommended to keep more than one male in a tank. One male with several females is OK. Do you know what sex your gouramis are?

Mollies are a species of fish which must have hard water to do well, unfortunately.