Recommended Fish

[OAFC21]

Hey there, this is my first post here and I'm looking for a bit of help regarding the choices of fish I should have.

Recently me and my cousin (who lives with us) have bought a 14 gallon tank each and we're wondering what kinds of fish would be recommended for a beginner.

We've got my dad to help us set up the tank and make sure that the conditions are suitable, they've both been on a fishless cycle (is that the right term?) for a few weeks and it's now come around to what kinds of fish and plants we should get to start.

We could ask my dad for help but he went working away yesterday morning so we won't see him for another 22 days, and when we do get the time to talk it won't really be about fish with so much else going on, so we came here for help. My older brother had a tank a few years back but I can't really remember what kinds of fish he stared with, but we do know the basics of tropical fishkeeping, just nothing extremely in depth, but everyone has to start somewhere!

We have a budget of about £30 - £40 each at the moment to start with, and currently the tank includes the filter, heater etc etc, and plenty of gravel.

So, basically, what kinds of fish and plants would you recommend for us to start our tanks with? And are there any other accessories that the fish you recommend might require? If so please state that too.

Many thanks in advance guys.

P.S at no point recommend pleco's, at least to me, I have an irrational fear of them haha.

Thanks again

 

[nmonks]

Stocking small tanks (anything under 20 gallons) is tricky. Adding "one of everything" often works poorly because so many fish want to be kept in groups. Things like Corydoras work best in groups of 5 or more, tetras and danios need to be in groups of six, and so on.

So, with that being said, how about choosing 5 of the smaller Corydoras species for the bottom of the tank. Corydoras range in size from 2.5 to over 8 cm. The standard species are Corydoras paleatus and Corydoras aeneus, both of which are excellent but might get a little too big at about 7-8 cm in length. That said, the farmed specimens rarely get that size, so if you wanted to try them, but all means do so. Alternatively, if your tank is cycled and water quality is good, then Corydoras elegans, Corydoras julii, or Corydoras panda might be an option.

If you were feeling adventurous, particularly if you could use a sandy substrate instead of gravel, skip Corydoras in favour of whiptails. Three or four would be fine in a 15 gallon tank, and they make excellent bottom feeders. They are hardy, despite their delicate appearance. While they don't eat algae, they readily consume bloodworms and catfish pellets. They are great fun to watch! They don't swim, but walk about on their fins, and if there's sand in the tank, sometimes dig right in.

For midwater fish, I'd suggest relatively inactive species because of the lack of space. Danios would be a poor choice, as would swordtails. But Limia, Endler guppies, Neons, Cardinals, Glowlights and the pencilfish Nannostomus beckfordi could all be used depending on your water chemistry. Keep all these fish in groups, and you'd have better results with one large group than trying to keep two groups of different species. Trust me on this. A big school of fish is always more impressive than two clumps of fish that neither mix nor school properly.

Don't waste your time buying algae-eating fish. Your tank is too small to need then, and an algae scraper or sponge will do a better job anyway. But you could add nerite snails and cherry shrimps, if you wishes. These will keep the glass clean and peck away at algae on the plants.

Cheers, Neale