Detailed Fish Information

[littlefishie]

I'm looking for a website that will tell me a bit about each type of fish, such as their maximum size, preferred tank level [bottom, middle, or top], and their minimum tank size.
I currently have a 15 gallon I'm in the process of stocking. I have one otocinclus from my old 5 gallon that I sold, 6 neon tetras I picked up today [on sale for $0.99 each! I'm possibly getting 2 more tomorrow] and 4 juvie guppies with one older juvie guppy who has definitely been sexed and is colouring up nicely. I'm going to be getting rid of the guppies, though, as I'm not interested in having any livebearers anymore. They reproduce too quickly for me to keep up with!
I was considering trading in my otocinclus and getting a couple panda cories, but I've heard different opinions on their maximum size and how many to keep together. They seem to be the smallest at my LFS [they don't carry pygmies ] but they're relatively expensive.. $6.08.

Other than finding a good website, I had a couple questions for the geniuses on this forum. My tank is 2ftx1ftx1ft, with an Aquaclear 200, live plants [as of today, yay!], and nice black sand.

Would it be better to pick up two more neons? At $0.99 I can't go wrong with the price. I could live happily with the six, but I was thinking of getting 6 harlequin rasboras. However, they're nearly three bucks each, and since I didn't get as much money for my birthday as I was supposed to [Grandparents opted out of the "support the fish!" fund and bought me a gift certificate to a mall without a pet store. ], so it'd be roughly $16 for 6 harlequins. And $8 for my 8 neons if I get another 2. I'm not too concerned about the schooling factor, I just want nice, shiny and bright fish to watch.

I'm thinking harlequins are out now, so if I get two more otocinclus, what would go well in the tank? I'm going to the LFS tomorrow at 4pm, so I'd like to have an idea of what I want first. I'm definitely getting rid of the guppies once they're old enough for the store to buy them off of me or let me trade them in, so they'll only be in here another month or so. I want something that would stay relatively small.

I've calculated for a maximum of 28 inches of fish in my tank due to dimensions and the Aquaclear 200 [Yes, there's 'no such thing as overfiltering', but I count a filter rated for 40-50 gallons on a 15 gallon as overfiltering. ], so with ten neons at 1.5" max and 3 otos at 1.5" max [seems to be the general opinion of random websites], I'd have about 11 inches of fish left. Any suggestions?

 

[SirMinion]

It's a work in progess, but you won't go far wrong with...

This Place.

 

[littlefishie]

I've been through that a couple times actually. Hence conflicting size information.. I used to go to www.myfishtank.net before I came to this forum, and they have a Freshwater Fish Profile there. Some of the max sizes they have for their fish totally contradict the max sizes here. It's really only by 0.5" but when stocking, it can make a difference.

BTW, How's Cookie doing? I've been following the thread in the picture forum, and haven't seen any updates lately. He's so cute!

 

[SirMinion]

How's Cookie doing? I've been following the thread in the picture forum, and haven't seen any updates lately. He's so cute!

He's doing very well. We're going to have to move him to a bigger tank soon, he's added two inches since we got him and is now pretty fat.

He's a vicious little bugger too, sometimes jumps to get my fingers if I'm careless when feeding him.

He's still very darkly coloured though, not at all Like Martha when she was his size. You can just about see his red stripes forming under the dark main colour.

Thanks for asking, I'll update Cookie's thread soon!

 

[yvez9]

Max size vary by fish and it's hard to say what s the actual max size. Some places will use the largest ever, some will just put what most fish grow to, some will put the max size in the wild....

When stocking, forget about that 1 inch per gallon rule anyway as you ahve a filter for a 40 gallon tank in your 15.

You can't put fish much larger than 2 inches. You have to get the feel of your tank and your ammonia, nitrites and nitrates levels. That will tell you if you can have more or less fish in there. Some fish can live in "crowds" if they are not territorial, like guppies, while some will need a whole tank to themselves, like convicts.

 

[littlefishie]

He's doing very well. We're going to have to move him to a bigger tank soon, he's added two inches since we got him and is now pretty fat.

He's a vicious little bugger too, sometimes jumps to get my fingers if I'm careless when feeding him.

He's still very darkly coloured though, not at all Like Martha when she was his size. You can just about see his red stripes forming under the dark main colour.

Thanks for asking, I'll update Cookie's thread soon!

It amazes me how you just took him in like that, especially with the size of tank and everything he needs. I may be wrong on this, but I think I read somewhere that you gave up a holiday trip to get all of his equipment? My parents thought I was crazy spending all of my birthday and Christmas money on fish.. I don't think any of us are crazy at all, but if I'd given up a holiday for fish I think they'd have me comitted! Honestly, I can't think of anyone who would give Cookie a better home than you and LadyMinion. My boyfriend is obsessed with puffers [I was considering getting three DPs for this 15g, but I don't trust PetSmart, and they're the only store here that carries them.] and when I showed him Cookie's thread, he sat there and read it from beginning to end, constantly saying things like "Why does he look so skinny? Puffers are supposed to be fatter, aren't they?" "Look how much he's grown! He's so cute! I want one. Little puffer.. So cute!" and finally, my favourite... "Hey, the puffer's finally puffy! Look at his widdle face!" ..You should've heard him when I showed him Martha..
[/end off topic]

 

[SirMinion]

The gallons per inches is a very loose guideline indeed as some fish have more bulk than length, some produce more waste per inch, some need more oxygen and some need more 'elbow room'

The one inch per gallon 'rule' should mean I can keep 20 dwarf puffers in a 20 gallon tank, but that would be a really bad idea.

 

[littlefishie]

Max size vary by fish and it's hard to say what s the actual max size. Some places will use the largest ever, some will just put what most fish grow to, some will put the max size in the wild....

When stocking, forget about that 1 inch per gallon rule anyway as you ahve a filter for a 40 gallon tank in your 15.

You can't put fish much larger than 2 inches. You have to get the feel of your tank and your ammonia, nitrites and nitrates levels. That will tell you if you can have more or less fish in there. Some fish can live in "crowds" if they are not territorial, like guppies, while some will need a whole tank to themselves, like convicts.

Every time I go to the LFS I have them test my water. ..I'm actually getting a job again [not a good idea while in first year university, but I need money for the next six years.. and some more fish money couldn't hurt ] and starting next week, so my first purchase will be a master test kit I spotted on sale at Petsmart for $25. The same one sells for $38 at my usual LFS.. But anyway, last I had it tested [this afternoon] my tank was pretty good. No ammonia or nitrites, and I think it was something like 10-15ppm of nitrates. When I had my 5 gallon I did water changes more frequently and my only level spikes were during cycling. So far my water seems to be doing really well, which I'm pleased with.

I'm mainly just aiming for nice, shiny fish. [Not to sound like a n00b or anything lol] Since this is my dorm tank, conveniently located next to computer for stress relief, I wanted something nice and attractive. I figured any sort of tetra or rasbora that schooled or shoaled to begin with would be comfortable in a crowd, so that's basically what I'm looking for. As much as convicts [and cichlids as well] are gorgeous, I don't think I'll be attempting to care for those any time soon. Dorm = small amount of space.

 

[littlefishie]

The gallons per inches is a very loose guideline indeed as some fish have more bulk than length, some produce more waste per inch, some need more oxygen and some need more 'elbow room'

The one inch per gallon 'rule' should mean I can keep 20 dwarf puffers in a 20 gallon tank, but that would be a really bad idea.

Very true. I used the aquarium calculators in the pinned topic and it gave me a calculation of 24" of fish with surface area. After checking through this forum and talking with the employees at the LFS [who are VERY knowledgable, btw] they said that my overfiltering could add an extra 4 inches of fish, especially if I add a BioMax filter cartrige.

I can only imagine 20 DPs in a 20g! Cute smiling faces everywhere, but so much aggression! Poor puffers.. 5 gallons each at least, IMO.