Can't Decide On Fish Combo

[Gir]

I'll be setting up my 20 gallon soon but can't decide on which of the following fish would look best together. I've narrowed it down to silver hatchets, leopard & zebra danio mix (half and half), neon tetras, lemon tetras and a dwarf gourami (either powder blue or flame). After having read the "don't stock these" thread, I'm hesitant to get the hatchet though I like how different they are from the rest and that it's a surface swimmer. I'm pretty set on getting a gourami. The lfs I'll be going to is highly reputable so I wonder whether their neons will be the less hardy ones that everyone speaks of now. I'd love some help in figuring out which combo would look great or your opinions in general. Also, since all of these guys except the gourami are peaceful schoolers, is it so necessary to get 6 for each type, or can I just get 3 or 4 thus giving me more room to get more variety? Thanks!

 

[DiscusKeeper403]

silver dollars are cool and would probly fit in your 20 gallon tank

 

[FBF]

silver dollars are cool and would probly fit in your 20 gallon tank

WTF!!! silver dollars get 8 inches fully grown! ignore that advice

 

[severum boy]

Yeah ignore that advice please.

 

[Tokis-Phoenix]

I'll be setting up my 20 gallon soon but can't decide on which of the following fish would look best together. I've narrowed it down to silver hatchets, leopard & zebra danio mix (half and half), neon tetras, lemon tetras and a dwarf gourami (either powder blue or flame). After having read the "don't stock these" thread, I'm hesitant to get the hatchet though I like how different they are from the rest and that it's a surface swimmer. I'm pretty set on getting a gourami. The lfs I'll be going to is highly reputable so I wonder whether their neons will be the less hardy ones that everyone speaks of now. I'd love some help in figuring out which combo would look great or your opinions in general. Also, since all of these guys except the gourami are peaceful schoolers, is it so necessary to get 6 for each type, or can I just get 3 or 4 thus giving me more room to get more variety? Thanks!

Silver hatchets apparently need to be in groups, but they are quite specialised fish (need live food a lot of the time, need floating plants and strong current for ideal set up etc);

http/badmanstropicalfish.com/profiles/profile89.html

http/www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?cl...&articleid=2507

They are sensitive to water quality so would not be the best fish for a newly set up tank (this goes for neons as well, they are quite fragile fish and are not really advised for tansk under 6months mature).

Danio's can be kept with gourami's as long as each is given suitable habitat in the tank- danio's like big open spaces to shoal in with sparse planting, while gourami's prefer heavily planted tanks (particually with floating plants or plants that grow the height of the tank).
There are many types of gourami's, some can be particually agressive (male gourami's in general are a lot mroe agressive than females, although there are some very peaceful gourami's out there, it depends on the species/type) and some types will get too large for a 20gal.

 

[SamUK]

silver dollars are cool and would probly fit in your 20 gallon tank

ive never done this before but would you leave please?


i dont have any mod power or anything but i had to ask. geez.



EDIT - actually, thinking about it. stay. for your fishes sake.

 

[DiscusKeeper403]

srry SamUK im not going to leave this fourm. and did you see how i said "probly" i wasn't quite sure on how big they grew but i have seen em and they look damn cool

 

[SamUK]

well if you dont kno how big they get (or anything about them), should you suggest them?

 

[Karybou]

Even though I<m also a newbie I can recommend you the danios in group of 6 minimum ( and same type even better) it looks beautiful in the tank when they are moving as a pack and they can be pretty fast too ( even though my platties are way faster than them now)
As for neon, I<ve been told they were temp. sensitive so I will not risk myself into that kind of adventure for the time being ....please keep me posted if you decide to go with neon s and Danios because I m very interested in this combo too for a lter / bigger tank.
Also platies can look nice in the combo you are planning and are very newbie friendly

 

[Tetras]

SAM UK and FBF !!!

I've been laughing for 30 min over your comments, not sure if it was meant to be funny, but very well put.

Some people have a talent for putting words down that can make the rest of us crack up.

So Thanks!!

I'm not trying to change the thread so please carry on.

 

[Gir]

Thanks for the input. I'm not much for silver dollars (even assuming I had room for them). They look too much like lunch. I have to say, I've been rather frustrated researching fish varieties because everyone says something different! So, it's been difficult for me to determine which fish would be best visually (swimming level in tank), how many fish each (3, 6, 10...) and even what size they grow to! Argh.

As for the silver hatchet, I have not read anywhere that they are sensitive (or hardy for that matter) so is this a feature of the Martha or hatchets in general? Perhaps I will add them later when the tank is settled...

With plantings and decor, I'm planning on having an 'S' shape running the length of the tank with larger/tall items at the ends (corners) while shorter/smaller items in the middle to give spots for hiding and open areas for zipping. I'm also planning on taking cuttings from my philodendron and strategically placing it in the tank as a floating plant of sorts. It's overtaking the house so I figured it could have some use.

I will be using a filter suitable for a 50gal on this 20 gal and plopping in an old filter (needs to be changed soon) from a smaller tank that's housing a paradise fish (had it 2 mo now) to help cycle the new tank. Can I just somehow hang the old filter media near the new filter or does it need to be enclosed or secured? I plan to give it a rinse to rid the floss of debris first.

I contemplated swordtails or platys but there was something (can't recall) that didn't match up well with the rest...I think maybe I read somewhere that they do best with a bit of salinity (but not quite brackish). I'd love to get dwarf puffers, but maybe later in my empty 10 gal.

Anyhow, one thing I'm hesitant about with a danio and neon mix is that shapewise, they are similar even though the danios are larger. The lemon tetra on the other hand is quite different. I'm aiming for as much diversity in the tank as possible or is this overkill? I'm worried that the lemon tetra's coloration will not be worth it and that I would be better off with the neon and danio mix.

What do you guys think? 1 dwarf gourami, 6 danios and 6 neons in the tank I describe? I could always add the neons later. Or 1 dwarf gourami, 6 danios and 6 lemon tetras? Or 1 dwarf gourami, 6 neons and 6 lemons? Would having 2 dwarf gouramis (one powder blue, one flame) in the tank variation with neons (because they're smaller) be too much? I need bigger tanks!!

Just watch...I'll come home with completely different fish after going to the lsf...

 

[morefishies]

if its a 20 gallon and ur doing sufficient water changes, you could probably bump up the schools a bit. I think two gouramis would be fine if they aren't both male.

 

[Miss Wiggle]

you could well be right about platy's and swordies needing a bit of salinity. Molly's certainly do and I think for the other's it's maybe not so nescessary but would help them out a bit.

i'd go for the lemon tetra's with the danio's. Think they're much nicer than neon's and just a little bit different.

If your prepared to overfilter and do a little bit extra tank maintenance then I would have

6x lemon tetra's
6x danio's... see if you can get hold of the long fin varieties, they're really cool
1x dwarf gourami
5x cory's

That is a little overstocked but not with any high waste producing fish and as they cory's pretty much stay on the ground and the other fish don't I don't think it would be compromising anyone's need for swimming space.

good luck

 

[SamUK]

SAM UK and FBF !!!

I've been laughing for 30 min over your comments, not sure if it was meant to be funny, but very well put.

Some people have a talent for putting words down that can make the rest of us crack up.

So Thanks!!

I'm not trying to change the thread so please carry on.

......and there was me thinking id get stick for asking someone to leave hehe.

 

[Tetras]

Normally I wouldn't agree with somebody telling a member to leave, and I don't think you meant it litterally. However for us that have read DiscusLovas replies, we know he gets into these situations some time.

And DiscusLova, please don't take it too serious either, I know you want to help people with your ideas, but you have to do more research or they will call you on it, I'm sure you would too if you came across a post where the wrong answers were given. I would expect nothing less from these guys.

So hopefully we are all still friends, and if I should ever post a reply that is less than favourable, feel free to point it out. We all live and learn.

Cheers for now

Gir, sorry for interupting your post again, I hope the members above answered your questions, and if not: Please somebody help this guy out.

And of course Welcome to the Forum, you will be an addict in no time, my life has basically stopped since joining this site.