Stocking Advice! Newbie

[amzykitten]

Hi im a newbie here and glad to find a good site for some advice!

started out a month ago and I have a 90L tank
currently home to:

3 guppies
3 penguin tetras
1 brittle nose plec
2 dwarf african congo frogs
3 clown loaches
2 lace gouramis
1 siamese fighting fish

my question is have i over-stocked? i have heard different from numerous people so im not sure? i know i will probably have to get a larger tank when they are all fully grown, also i would like to get 2 or 3 more clown loaches? do i have room?! all the fish seem happy although the siamese fighting fish seems a bit temperamental... i find him sitting at the bottom of the tank sometimes not moving so im not sure about him. any advice much appreciated, thanks!

 

[KittyKat]

* 3 guppies - ok
* 3 penguin tetras - should be kept in groups of 6+
* 1 brittle nose plec - ok
* 2 dwarf african congo frogs - I don't know much about frogs
* 3 clown loaches - ouch. should be kept in groups of 6+ in a 6+*2*2 ft fish tank.. please replace them with 6 dwarf chain loaches, if you like loaches.
* 2 lace gouramis - not compatible with Betta, two males will eventually kill each other in a tank that size or male will harass female to death (probably), may be ok in a planted 4ft tank
* 1 siamese fighting fish - not compatible with gouramis

So, for a 90 litre tank, this is what I would do with your stocking:
* 3 guppies
* 15 penguin tetras
* 1 brittle nose plec
(* 2 dwarf african congo frogs?)
* 6-8 dwarf chain loaches
* 1 lace gourami or 1 Betta
* pair of Apisto. cacatuoides or similar

It's fair that you want to get your fish a bigger tank.. but exactly what size? ..when? It sounds like your fish are still young.. so things can go wrong at any moment, basically.

 

[amzykitten]

thanks well the tank is 2ft by 1.5 ft and if were to upgrade i would like it to be to double the size but not for a while. the lace gouramis were sold as a pair male and female, they were recommended to me to keep as a pair and i was told they are the most passive of gouramis so should be fine with the betta and no problems so far..they just ignore each other, obviously things could change as they get older so i will keep an eye on it, thanks for your advice.

 

[KittyKat]

Well, now you know of potential problems.. but if you're still willing to try them..
* 3 guppies
* 10-15 penguin tetras
* 1 brittle nose plec
(* 2 dwarf african congo frogs?)
* 6 dwarf chain loaches
* 2 lace gourami
* 1 Betta

You should really not have the clown loaches though: by the time they reach 2", they would need a new home already, and a tank which is twice as big would still not be big enough for them..