What Fish Can I Have?

[steve_b21]

My tank is going in a wall, so not so deep.

Size is .... 47" width. 28" height 5.2" depth

I was thinkin of tetra's, but what other fish can i have? i like the look of Betta's !

I have worked out my tank works out to roughly 120 Litres ?

 

[-germ-]

It'd be quite a slow tank if you were looking at a male betta, this'd limit your other stocking options a fair bit, although an anabantoid'd be ideal due to the small surface area (low oxygen risk).
How about some gourami?
Honeys maybe.....
Edit; Oops or a betta sorority, Lynda B would kill me if i didn't mention that...

 

[RiiCKYOMD]

In UK galons its about 26. USA 30

You could keep a large shoal of tetras. Maybe 15 and some cory pandas and maybe some other fish

Bettas are best kpt on there own as males seem to be agreessive and chase the females alot however im no expert just giving you my previous expeirnece
I have a male betta with 5 silver tipped tetras
no problems YET

Forget tetras... I didnt reliase the dimensions...

 

[steve_b21]

Its my first tank so lot fully clued up about what fish i can have...

I know the tank is quite high, and apparently this is not ideal for betta's? am i correct?

Can i have a list of fish which would be ideal? Il take a look through which ones i like

 

[Aphotic Phoenix]

That tank is NOT going to be fun to clean.

The depth kinda makes things difficult...it doesn't really leave a whole lot of "turn around space", and I'm not sure how well gas exchange is going to occur. I know tanks like that look really cool, but I don't think they make good tanks for fish period, much less a good first tank.

I'd say forget the betta... maybe go for guppies or platies. You want small fish that aren't horribly active and will utilize the vertical space. IMO guppies and platies do that fairly well.

 

[steve_b21]

That tank is NOT going to be fun to clean.

Even thought its my first tank, i can sort of tell its going to be a pain to clean... ive gone for looks first... wanted it flush in the wall.... but have sacrficed making time for cleaning.

So tell me more about these guppies or platties?

 

[Aphotic Phoenix]

Well have you decided what kind of filtration system you are going to use? Heating? Sorry, I'm not trying to be a pain, I just don't want it to be more frustrating than it has to be...

Platies: http/badmanstropicalfish.com/profiles/profile4.html
Guppies: http/badmanstropicalfish.com/profiles/profile15.html

 

[steve_b21]

I am going to have to go for a internal filter something like click here

Also going to go for a water test kit like.... click here

Heater wise.... can i have some opinions? thanks

 

[BigC]

I feel that 28" of tank height is way too deep for a betta.

 

[steve_b21]

I feel that 28" of tank height is way too deep for a betta.

What would be the ideal height then?

 

[BigC]

for bettas, around 6-8 inches

 

[steve_b21]

for bettas, around 6-8 inches

aaaah right, after doing a bit more reading i understand why you are suggesting a small tank in height. The Betta's like to come to the top of the tank for air?

I Like the look of the following.... can you guys and girls let me know what you think? which ones wil be suitable for my tank taking into account the height and width of it.

Neon Blue Platy (Xiphophorus maculatus)

Black Platy (Xiphophorus maculatus)

Black Sailfin Molly (Poecilia sp.)

Silver Sailfin Molly (Poecilia velifera)

Threadfin Rainbow (Iriatherina werneri)

Dwarf Pufferfish (Carinotetraodon Travancor)

Indian Gourami (Colisa Fasciata)

Gray Cory Cat (Corydoras Griseus)

Green Tiger Barb (Puntius Tetrazona)

Kribensis Cichlid (Pelvicachromis pulcher Super Red)


Thank you

 

[-germ-]

Black Sailfin Molly (Poecilia sp.)
Silver Sailfin Molly (Poecilia velifera)
Mollies prefer slightly brackish water (from what i've read), so could limit other stocking...
Dwarf Pufferfish (Carinotetraodon Travancor)
Puffers would seriously limit your stocking as they can be very aggressive and aren't community suitable...
Indian Gourami (Colisa Fasciata)
Ideal IMHO, these are also anabanotids (like betta) so also come up for air, but bettas have been bred to the point where their fins can prove to be a hinderance when swimming. The labyrinth organ both species possess, i personally think would be an advantage for a tank with your measurments so i'd vote for the Banded Gourami. Or maybe due to their size Sparkling Gourami<--link

Not sure on cichlids, barbs or cories.
Cories may be good because they can also travel to the surface for air (small water surface area, as your tank will have, means less gaseous exchange so less oxygen in the water) but i'd prefer someone who knows more about them, to confirm their suitability...

 

[steve_b21]

Thanks for replies so far, need all the help i can get

Can any 1 help give me more info on the other fish i mentioned?

Im going to start the cycling off very soon, need to sort the background of the tank before i fix it in the wall. I was thinking of painting it Black using water based gloss paint. Will this be ok? Ive heard it peels off easily and aint too difficult to remove at a later date.

 

[Aphotic Phoenix]

As for the heater thing...the reason that I asked is because I'm worried you might have some problems with keeping a stable temp throughout the tank. Especially with such a large glass surface area in the front it might be a bit easier for heat to escape.

I'd recommend doing two lower watt heaters on opposite sides of the tank instead of one higher watt heater...that might help keep things a bit more even. ^^ Plus this helps prevent your fish from cooking or freezing if a heater fails.

As for the tiger barbs... May be a little active/big for the depth, but might be okay. If you want to go with tigers I'd suggest making it an all tiger tank with regulars, greens and albinos. They can be nippy fish, and if you don't keep them species only make sure you have at least 6 of one color variety so they are more like to go after each other.

Krib possibly a bad choice. Small but can be territorial....