Can You Suggest A Bigger-Sized Fish For A 84L (22G) Tank?

[The Other Lebowski]

hey there. i have a 84L (22G) community tank with 3 minnows, 4 danios and 4 panda corries. all is well, still cycling. the tanks is 80 cm long x 35 cm high x 30 cm deep.

according to most formulas i should still be able to add a few more fish. i plan on adding a pair of guppies (the male with the fancy tail) and to top it of id like to add a pair of something larger and more colorful that the rest of the gang. but definitely something calm and peaceful. just want to add variety to the tank, size and color-wise.

i'm thinking small angelfish, or gourami, or perhaps some peaceful yellow cichlids? any suggestions or ideas?

a picture of my tank is here: http/img405.imageshack.us/img405/2986/akva2.jpg

thanks.

 

[Forestpisces]

An angel would be too big in your tank they need at least 100litres IMO and the tank needs to be at least 18inches tall, i'm also sorry to say that they could well eat your minnows and terrorize your guppies (if you are wanting a pair then get same sex guppies if you want mixed sexes get 1 male to at least 2 females remembering that they WILL breed) The only cichlids i would suggest would be dwarfs as others get far far too large and/ or aggressive or are not suitable for your set-up, you could try a male Dwarf cockatoo if you want something with more colour as they come in red, double red and even yellow.

 

[Curiosity101]

Forest pisces is correct, angels need a taller tank and will eat your current inhabitants.

Other options,
A pair of Honey gouramis (m/f)
A Single Dwarf Gourami
A group of apisto cichlids. Google: Apistogramma
You could just get away with a pair of Bolivian Rams

These are the only 'centerpiece' fish I can think of to be honest that are ok for your tank.

 

[The Other Lebowski]

THANK YOU both, very valuable advice. will stay clear of angelfish and will do as suggested with the guppies Forrest, and Curiosity, i've googled up all of your tips and they all look perfect. this is exactly what i was looking for. thanks again.

 

[Forestpisces]

Glad to help

 

[Biulu]

As you say that you are still cycling, I would not add other fish until you are sure your setup is stable. It is already hard enough for the existing fish to cope with such a stressing situation.

If you are thinking of adding any gourami, put either a single one or a trio (2 females, 1 male). Otherwise the female will be harrassed too much.

 

[Curiosity101]

That's not true about gouramis.

Honey gouramis are fine in a m/f pair. And if it were to be dwarf gourami as opposed to honey gourami then I would suggest keeping it as a single fish, because they are very agressive towards other gouramis.

 

[Biulu]

There are always exceptions to the rule. Maybe you have just been lucky.

 

[Curiosity101]

It is more likely that you had the exceptions to the rule. Ask enough people and you will see that honey gouramis co-exist in a male/female pair fine.

It is dwarf gouramis that are the agressive ones.

 

[The Other Lebowski]

interesting stuff, actually the gouramis are what i'mmost likely to get. and the single dwarf gurami theory is what i've heard from other sources too.

but how about this. ive also been suggested a male betta, or a male betta with two females. any downsides in your opinion?

 

[Curiosity101]

I wouldn't have a male betta with your minnows and danios. I especially wouldn't have them with male guppies.
The minnows and danios will nip at a males long fins, and generally harass him due to their speed.
Male guppies are often mistake for 'male bettas' and so you will find your male attacks them.
Also males and female bettas do not mix. They can only be put together shortly for the process of spawing.

In your set-up the only thing I could suggest betta wise is a group of females. You would need at least 4 to keep agression levels down. This is due to the fact they will form a hierachy, something you can't do with lower numbers of females.

 

[The Other Lebowski]

thanks curiosity, i guess no bettas for me. by the way i see you have an apple snail and shrimps? and downsides? i was considering both. would that be too much for my tank?

 

[Curiosity101]

Downsides...snails poop, ALOT. But other than that I love having both snails and shrimp.
Your tank (as it stands), could have an apple snail and some shrimp (5 ish)

 

[sami the cichlid]

im sorry if uve ruled these out already, but ive had bad experience keeping angels in a 22g, they just reach a certain size and die too early. as for cichlids, many cichlids get too big for that size tank. i have 5 cichlids taking up a 74 gallon (UK) 88 gallon (US)/ 337 litre tank!

 

[Darkerwhite2]

I would second the Honey gouramis idea, or the Rams. They are one of my favorite looking fish and are on my shopping list. Glad to see some good questions and answers here. I should also apologize for my previous post towards you.

Good luck on the research and shopping.