Is This A Good Community Tank?

[kuzyaburst]

I recently got a new tank. I am in the end process of cycling and am deciding which fish to get, I have composed a list of fish... also I am doing a planted tank. The tank size is 36 gallons and will soon have these
 
Plants: Hermianthus callitrichoides, banana plant, anubias nana, a couple water wisterias, rotala indica, giant hairgrass, java ferns, rotalla rotundifolia, and 2 blyxa japonicas.
 
Now for the fish, tell me if these fish are good to each other and won't eat my plants (well atleast a lot of it ).
 
Fish: 14 Neon tetras, 2 Cory Catfish, 4 guppies, 4 ghost shrimp (or cherry shrimp), 5 Khuli loaches, 3 red wag platies, and 1-2 Bristlenose catfish.
 
As far as I know these fish should be pretty peaceful to each other, but I wanted to know if I could add in either a Red Tailed Shark (1), or a Dwarf Gourami (1). I was nervous about adding these 2 to my list because I know the Shark is semi aggressive and the Gourami apparently eats plants. I hope my list is good enough to add that Red-Tailed Shark because it is one nice looking fish! I think that I would have to remove the shrimp to add the shark, but I'm worried about my tetras and other small fish. Also if there are any other appealing looking fish that I should I add can you please name it.
 
Here is a picture of my tank. It is a 36 gallon Aqueon Tank, inside I have a heater that keeps the water at around 75-80 degrees Fahrenheit, and it has a hang filter. I put in black gravel, a little waterfall thing, a cave, and a fake tree that is rather large. In the back there is also a small little barrel for fish to hide in and plants to grow out of. The live plants I will be adding in soon will be mostly in the middle-ground and back-ground except the banana plant which will be next to that fake tree or the cave (don't know yet). (THE PICTURE IS TAKEN FROM MY PHONE... PREPARE FOR BAD QUALITY!!!) 
Oh! Also it currently has Zebra Danios for the cycling process, I heard from a friend they were pretty hardy so I added them in to cycle my tank. (The picture doesn't have them in it because I added them in not too long ago). Thanks!

 

[lydah]

cory cats should be kept in groups of 6 or more, same with the khulis, so i'd choose one or the other rather than both. They'd both also really appreciate sand rather than gravel. Bristlenose plecos can be pretty messy (one is more than enough for my 50 gallon) and if you end up with two males, they will fight a lot. Keep that in mind. 
 
A dwarf gourami would be a fine choice, but red tail sharks can be nasty fish, and would not be a good match for the other fish you're planning. They'd pick on your other bottom dwellers incessantly, and depending on the individual might go for your other fish as well.
 
I don't have much input on the livebearers, I have no experience with them at all.  

 

[fluttermoth]

Before you decide on stocking, you should find out the hardness of your water.
 
You have both soft water (the neons, the kuhli loach) and hard water (the guppies and platies) fish on your list, and one or other of them wont be happy.
 
I agree 100% with lydah about the cories. These fish live in shoals of hundreds, or even thousands, in the wild and it's not right to keep them in groups of less than six (although I, like most experts, would recommend eight or ten as a minimum number).
 
I also don't like the look of that gravel for bottom dwellers; sand would be much, much better for them.
 
We don't really recommend fish in cycles on here either, although there are some threads we can direct you to, if can't return the fish and do a fishless one.
 
Sorry if I'm sounding a bit negative; fishkeeping is tricky at the start, but you'll soon get sorted

 

[kuzyaburst]

Ok thanks, my pH is 7.5 by the way, also are the plants an alright choice?

Before you decide on stocking, you should find out the hardness of your water.
 
You have both soft water (the neons, the kuhli loach) and hard water (the guppies and platies) fish on your list, and one or other of them wont be happy.
 
I agree 100% with lydah about the cories. These fish live in shoals of hundreds, or even thousands, in the wild and it's not right to keep them in groups of less than six (although I, like most experts, would recommend eight or ten as a minimum number).
 
I also don't like the look of that gravel for bottom dwellers; sand would be much, much better for them.
 
We don't really recommend fish in cycles on here either, although there are some threads we can direct you to, if can't return the fish and do a fishless one.
 
Sorry if I'm sounding a bit negative; fishkeeping is tricky at the start, but you'll soon get sorted

 
If I do get a Dwarf Gourami will it eat all of my plants? I heard live vegetation is part of their diet. And a Dwarf can't live with its own species, right? So I'd have to only get one of them.

 

[eaglesaquarium]

Dwarf gouramis are best singly, most of the time.
 
 
 
Also, I'd suggest to stick to 1 BN pleco, rather than 2.  That tank isn't really big enough for two.  They are massive poop machines, and males are extremely territorial with others of their own kind.   A larger tank would give them each sufficient area that they wouldn't have to compete, but the size of your tank would be best with just 1.  Also, they appreciate live algae, and they do a fantastic job keeping it clean, just on their own.
 
 
I had a few algae issues with my 55 gallon tank.  Not terrible by any means, but enough that I had to clean the algae off the glass with every water change... I added the BN, and the algae was gone and never turned... that was years ago.

 

[kuzyaburst]

Dwarf gouramis are best singly, most of the time.
 
 
 
Also, I'd suggest to stick to 1 BN pleco, rather than 2.  That tank isn't really big enough for two.  They are massive poop machines, and males are extremely territorial with others of their own kind.   A larger tank would give them each sufficient area that they wouldn't have to compete, but the size of your tank would be best with just 1.  Also, they appreciate live algae, and they do a fantastic job keeping it clean, just on their own.
 
 
I had a few algae issues with my 55 gallon tank.  Not terrible by any means, but enough that I had to clean the algae off the glass with every water change... I added the BN, and the algae was gone and never turned... that was years ago.

Thanks! Will they live peacefully with the Cory cats though, since they're territorial against against their own. (By the their own kind do you mean catfish in general or just the type of species such as Bristlenose?) 

 

[eaglesaquarium]

Thanks! Will they live peacefully with the Cory cats though, since they're territorial against against their own. (By the their own kind do you mean catfish in general or just the type of species such as Bristlenose?) 
 

 
They are just fine with cories.  Just with other plecos would be an issue.  In my own case, I have panda cories with a male BN.  He has dug out his own caves for himself, but he doesn't bother with them.  As a youngster he would 'chase off' others from his food.  But, nothing violent.  He's the biggest fish I own, and he's perfectly docile, even skittish.  He comes out at night mostly.   But, he's in no way a threat to my cories.  In general, they are scavengers/carnivorous, and the pleco is primarily a vegetarian... so they have completely different niches in nature.  
 
 
So, they are great together... both are also soft water fish.

 

[kuzyaburst]

 

Thanks! Will they live peacefully with the Cory cats though, since they're territorial against against their own. (By the their own kind do you mean catfish in general or just the type of species such as Bristlenose?) 
 

 
They are just fine with cories.  Just with other plecos would be an issue.  In my own case, I have panda cories with a male BN.  He has dug out his own caves for himself, but he doesn't bother with them.  As a youngster he would 'chase off' others from his food.  But, nothing violent.  He's the biggest fish I own, and he's perfectly docile, even skittish.  He comes out at night mostly.   But, he's in no way a threat to my cories.  In general, they are scavengers/carnivorous, and the pleco is primarily a vegetarian... so they have completely different niches in nature.  
 
 
So, they are great together... both are also soft water fish.
 

Oh alright thanks for the info, definitely going to add one to my community tank!

 

[DerpPH]

will you inject Co2 into your system? HC is quite hard to grow without Co2 injections but Is a rewarding plant to have I also suggest you have only 2 species of bottom feeders( either corydoras and a BN or any mixture of the other)
 
Next is what species of cory cat do you want? I suggest dwarf corydoras like pygmy and panda so you can add more to your tank.
 
Good luck with setting your tank up.

 

[eaglesaquarium]

will you inject Co2 into your system? HC is quite hard to grow without Co2 injections but Is a rewarding plant to have I also suggest you have only 2 species of bottom feeders( either corydoras and a BN or any mixture of the other)
 
Next is what species of cory cat do you want? I suggest dwarf corydoras like pygmy and panda so you can add more to your tank.
 
Good luck with setting your tank up.

 
 
Just an FYI... pygmy cories are not actually 'bottom dwellers'.  Of the 'dwarf' varieties, C. habrosus are the only ones that actually bottomdwellers.  C. hastatus as with C. pygmaeus are as much midwater swimmers as they are bottom dwellers.

 

[kuzyaburst]

will you inject Co2 into your system? HC is quite hard to grow without Co2 injections but Is a rewarding plant to have I also suggest you have only 2 species of bottom feeders( either corydoras and a BN or any mixture of the other)
 
Next is what species of cory cat do you want? I suggest dwarf corydoras like pygmy and panda so you can add more to your tank.
 
Good luck with setting your tank up.

Yes, I am injecting Co2 to my tank and I don't know the name of the Cory but here is a link: http/www.petsmart.com/petsmart-north-america/live-fish/cory-catfish-zid36-23503/cat-36-catid-700002?var_id=36-23503&_t=pfm%3Dsearch 
and by only 2 species of bottom feeders you mean I should either get rid of one of these guys? loaches or the Cories or the BN, why? Does it make the tank more spacey or healthier? 

 

[DerpPH]

By having less bottomfeeders you have lesser territorial disputes over the bottom of your tank. this has happened to me between my plec and rams. the plec was lucky to escape with only minor injuries rehomed him immediately. That is not a true corydoras. they grow bigger than cories. Brochis splendens grow quite bigger than corydoras as they reach 5 inches at max
 
Oh didn't really know that eagles, my pandas back then preferred the bottom of my tank. maybe it was a tad shallow

 

[kuzyaburst]

By having less bottomfeeders you have lesser territorial disputes over the bottom of your tank. this has happened to me between my plec and rams. the plec was lucky to escape with only minor injuries rehomed him immediately. That is not a true corydoras. they grow bigger than cories. Brochis splendens grow quite bigger than corydoras as they reach 5 inches at max
 
Oh didn't really know that eagles, my pandas back then preferred the bottom of my tank. maybe it was a tad shallow

So I should remove the "Cories" if I want to have a BN and loaches?

 

[DerpPH]

what im trying to say that you should limit them based on your personal preferences. the species you want grows a lot bigger than most cories but since you have a bigger tank you can put them in but you can put in less fish in your tank. I was just suggesting you get a smaller cory but its just up to you.

 

[kuzyaburst]

what im trying to say that you should limit them based on your personal preferences. the species you want grows a lot bigger than most cories but since you have a bigger tank you can put them in but you can put in less fish in your tank. I was just suggesting you get a smaller cory but its just up to you.

ahh ok... I was also looking at different fish and found a peaceful community fish called an electric blue ram, I'm thinking of adding it to the tank. But should I get a pair or is a single ram ok?