First Fish

[Beemeeup]

i know this is a wide question but what fish would be best in a newbie 38.5 gln tank which will be well planted. its my first tank, but have read lots on forum so hope to have and keep right conditions. any advice would help. the tank will be in the living room so will receive some window light.

 

[catxx]

is that 38.5 US gallons?

thats a good size to start with, well done!

are you planting with real plants? do you want a colourful community or something a bit more unusual like a species tank? have you seen any pictures of fish that have caught your eye?

the obvious beginner community fish are livebearers such as platys and guppies. but theres a lot more out there.

what kind of water do you have PH wise? if it's super-hard or super-soft it will effect the fish you can keep.

 

[Beemeeup]

thanks for reply
the tank is 175 litres

i have odered plants as follows
glossostigma elatinoides
new indian fern
vallis straight
vallis corkscrew
hygrophilia polysperma
bacopa monnieri
amazon sword
aponogeton crispus

the fish i have considered are - 6 or 8 red platy - 1 siamese algae eater - 4 dwarf gourami - 4 blue rainbow - 6 or more rosy barbs - 5 botia sidthimunki - 2 female bristlenose - 4 or more cherry barbs

i might be more adventrous as I have seen a video today which shows cichlids and tetras which i like. Max fish I will put in tank over a period of time will be about 40.

Water is 7 ph

 

[timmystood]

They would have to be 40 small fish, only reaching 1" each if you follow the inch-per-gallon rule (which I don't).

It's a good size tank! However, cichlids and tetras WILL NOT mix, like you want.

How about the following as a stocking plan:
1 Simease Fighter (Male)
10 Neon Tetra
3 Albino Cory Catfish
3 Peppered Cory Catfish

That is a fantastic selection of fish in a planted tank. If you go onto Google Images and type in the fish name, you will be able to see a picture of them.
That would be a very good community, planted tank.

 

[Beemeeup]

i agree about the numbers - at this stage looking at a shortlist.

will look at the pictures. i need some algae eaters - does that apply to your selections - i'll look them up anyway - thanks for advice

 

[catxx]

for an algae eater i would go for otocinclus, a trio or more of them will clean up your tank of algae nicely and they only grow to 1", they're senstive though, so add them to the tank when it's aged a bit (at least 3 months) and got lots of algae for them to eat.

don't go with a betta splenden (siamese fighting fish), they're not community fish at all. they're either the bully or the victim. tetras would rip their long fins to shreds, and i had one that would have great fun trying to pick off my corys eyeballs (they were seperated pretty sharpish)

a group of corys is a nice option if you have a soft substrate, sand is best for them, they like to snuffle. panda corys are very senstive little souls, but bronze corys tend to be tougher. trillinatus (spotty) are cute too.

remember to consider the area of the tank a fish occupies when picking fish. corys are essentially bottom dwellers (but when babies they'll go ALL over). otos tend to stick to the sides of the tank all over.

gouramis are mid-top dwellers as are tetra species. a PH of 7 would suit tetra species well and there are DOZENS of different species of tetra to choose from.

 

[Beemeeup]

thanks for reply.

i have looked up otos and the info. suggests that they need to be acclimatised carefully once you have got them home from the shop. They can be a little frail to start with and can frequently die for no reason - still i am prepared to try - i would need at least 6 in my size tank - 2 to 10 gallons.

would the cory julii be ok.

im still looking for a nice colourful fish but hardy - blue rainbow? cherry barb or rosy barb? its difficult to find a balance between hardy and colorful fish - ive already changed my list twice today. I have 8 weeks to establish the tank so no hurry. Any other suggestions welcome.

 

[catxx]

cory julii in fish stores tend to actually be trillinatus, they look very similar, but julii are actually very rare fish not seen in aquaria very often, you'd know if it was the real thing as the price would be extortionate!

 

[timmystood]

don't go with a betta splenden (siamese fighting fish), they're not community fish at all. they're either the bully or the victim. tetras would rip their long fins to shreds, and i had one that would have great fun trying to pick off my corys eyeballs (they were seperated pretty sharpish)

I completely disagree. Betta's are community fish! From my own personal experience (look at my profile) I keep my betta with barbs, tetras, cories etc. and he's fine! I agree, each betta is different but I think a betta with neons/cories is fine and I would quite happily take full responsibilty if it went wrong.

 

[Rediahs]

don't go with a betta splenden (siamese fighting fish), they're not community fish at all. they're either the bully or the victim. tetras would rip their long fins to shreds, and i had one that would have great fun trying to pick off my corys eyeballs (they were seperated pretty sharpish)

I completely disagree. Betta's are community fish! From my own personal experience (look at my profile) I keep my betta with barbs, tetras, cories etc. and he's fine! I agree, each betta is different but I think a betta with neons/cories is fine and I would quite happily take full responsibilty if it went wrong.

Bettas are not the best community fish.

Sure, you can put them with other fish, often with no problems, but other times....

I say why chance it? Bettas always seem happier on their own, and it's not hard. Also, filters usually bother bettas with the current, so if you keep the betta in his own tank, you can skip on the filter. Standing water's best for a betta.

 

[halfbloodprincess]

For a alage eater I would get a clown pleco. They are great fish. They stay small unlike other plecos and are very pretty. I have one and he is great! Good luck!!!

 

[Beemeeup]

don't go with a betta splenden (siamese fighting fish), they're not community fish at all. they're either the bully or the victim. tetras would rip their long fins to shreds, and i had one that would have great fun trying to pick off my corys eyeballs (they were seperated pretty sharpish)

I completely disagree. Betta's are community fish! From my own personal experience (look at my profile) I keep my betta with barbs, tetras, cories etc. and he's fine! I agree, each betta is different but I think a betta with neons/cories is fine and I would quite happily take full responsibilty if it went wrong.

Bettas are not the best community fish.

Sure, you can put them with other fish, often with no problems, but other times....

I say why chance it? Bettas always seem happier on their own, and it's not hard. Also, filters usually bother bettas with the current, so if you keep the betta in his own tank, you can skip on the filter. Standing water's best for a betta.

Thanks for the advice


read elsewhere that plecos are definetly not algae eaters - bit confused now but take your advice as it must be happening in your tank

 

[catxx]

don't go with a betta splenden (siamese fighting fish), they're not community fish at all. they're either the bully or the victim. tetras would rip their long fins to shreds, and i had one that would have great fun trying to pick off my corys eyeballs (they were seperated pretty sharpish)

I completely disagree. Betta's are community fish! From my own personal experience (look at my profile) I keep my betta with barbs, tetras, cories etc. and he's fine! I agree, each betta is different but I think a betta with neons/cories is fine and I would quite happily take full responsibilty if it went wrong.

Bettas are not the best community fish.

Sure, you can put them with other fish, often with no problems, but other times....

I say why chance it? Bettas always seem happier on their own, and it's not hard. Also, filters usually bother bettas with the current, so if you keep the betta in his own tank, you can skip on the filter. Standing water's best for a betta.

i agree with Chrissi. you've just got lucky with chilled fish! i've had neons nip tails, bettas nip corys, corys eat fin rot straight off a betta, his tail was too long and he was feeling too sick to get away. i've seen in my LFS the horrific state of some of their bettas after being in with barbs for 2 days. it's not a pretty sight.