Stocking A 16 Gall!

[AngelOfDeath]

I have a (currently cycling) 16 gallon rectangular tank, which i plan to make a community tank out of.

I have plastic plants and drift wood, (plenty of hiding places) as well as small smooth gravel as a substrate

What fish can I stock it with? I was thinking I want a fish that will eat the waste created, maybe a pleco? or do these grow too big

Btw I have a 650l/h filter, proper lighting and heated to 79F (can change)

I also want some kind of shrimp for the hell of it

 

[ollyhtafc]

http/www.fishforums.net/content/New-to-t...or-A-10-Gallon/

All of those are certainly suitable.It's not a comprehensive list but still..might help!

I don't think pleco's would eat the 'waste' created, more like the algae in the tank.But still i see where you're coming from. I know you can just about get away with a bristlenose in a 20gallon. But a 15 i'm not sure of.

shrimps:
Cherry
Amano
Ghost shrimps

They're the most common ones you'll find in shops, depending on your stocking obviously then all will be viable for your tank.

 

[Davo86]

Hi
As stated no fish will eat waste, plecos may eat some of the algae and clean up any leftover food, but they need specialist foods, i.e. wafers, tablet, veggies etc and will themselves add a lot to the bioload of your tank. If you are wanting a pleco then try to find a pitbull pleco (not bulldog) these stay at a comfortable size for your tank.

my suggestion would be to have the tank moderately planted and to go with a stocking similar to this shown below.

1 shoal of around 6 tetras or rasboras
2 centerpiece fish e.g honey gouramis
1 pitbull pleco
10 smaller shrimp

 

[AngelOfDeath]

yeah i realised it sounded silly when i was typing but couldnt be bothered to change it as my point was clear lol

i know no fish eat waste, as its of course highly toxic

thanks for the links and replies

 

[stang1]

Pitbull Plecos are best kept in groups rather than on their own.

 

[AngelOfDeath]

[URL="http/www.fishforums.net/content/New-to-t...or-A-10-Gallon/"]http/www.fishforums.net/content/New-to-t...or-A-10-Gallon/[/URL]

All of those are certainly suitable.It's not a comprehensive list but still..might help!

I don't think pleco's would eat the 'waste' created, more like the algae in the tank.But still i see where you're coming from. I know you can just about get away with a bristlenose in a 20gallon. But a 15 i'm not sure of.

shrimps:
Cherry
Amano
Ghost shrimps

They're the most common ones you'll find in shops, depending on your stocking obviously then all will be viable for your tank.

Can i get 3-4 shrimp, bearing in mind i will have around 12-16 guppies

 

[ollyhtafc]

You could fit more than that if you want. Shrimps are considered to add very little to the bioload. I have 10 cherry shrimp in a 10 gallon and i hardly ever see them.So that's not even overstocked.

 

[AngelOfDeath]

You could fit more than that if you want. Shrimps are considered to add very little to the bioload. I have 10 cherry shrimp in a 10 gallon and i hardly ever see them.So that's not even overstocked.

what else did you keep in the 10gall?

 

[ollyhtafc]

7 White cloud mountain minnows and an apple snail.

 

[AngelOfDeath]

7 White cloud mountain minnows and an apple snail.

awesome, i'll go for 5 shrimp and the gups