What Kind Of Fish...

[fshinggrl]

...should I get? I know it is a VERY personal question and I could spend a LONG time at the fish/pet store just looking and picking. The staff is NOT going to be big help as many have found.

I have a -almost- cycled 13 gallon tank. I would like VERY non-aggressive fish. I have soft water at home. I do like some flash & glamour.

What would you suggest?

Oh, and how many would my tank hold. I'd hate to overload it. I assume that if it is a schooling fish, I have to add a minimum number at a time.

Thanks!

 

[GuppyGoddess]

Rule is 1" of fish per gallon. When applying this rule, you look at the *full grown* size of the fish, not the size it is in the store. Even little fish like neons become 2" long and that having the minimum of 6 in the school would max out your aquarium, IMO. Most fish stores have a tag labeling the fish and it's size. One by me even tells if it's agressive or not and if it needs aquarium salt added.

This is my thought: Go to the library and order/place holds/check out as many tropical fish books as you can and then read THOSE rather than seek out advice. Reason being is often you're getting anecdotal replies (here and on other forums) and just because one person had luck combining certain fish, doesn't mean you will. I think it's best to stick with what the books say and so you're more likely guaranteed to have a happy aquarium.

I just returned 5 rasboras after much thought. Many said they'd get along with my female betta, but in a book I checked out yesterday, it said that even females prefer a quiet setting and will be disturbed by fast-moving fish. I should have thought more before sticking fish in and risking contaminating my tank by tossing those in with my girly.

 

[kelly528]

Honestly, there are so many possibilities. A lot of it is just about seeing a fish you like, researching it and seeing if it will fit (tempermentally, envorinmentally, and don't forget physically lol!) you just need to go from there.

There are a couple notorious fish on the market that cause first-time buyers a load of problems. It is best to research these carefully before you buy

-Bala sharks (they grow up to and past 1 foot long. Must be kept in a group of no less than 3, in at LEAST a 100g tank)
-Common Plecos (again, grow up to 1 foot)
-Goldfish (can only be kept with other goldfish, get big, and need a very minimum of 30g for one fish, and 20 for each additional one)
-Pacus/Pihranas (grow up to a foot long)
-Chinese algae eaters (grow up to 6 inches, extremely territorial as adults)
-Clown Loaches (need to be kept in groups, can reach a foot long)
-Puffers (usually need brackish, must be fed live snails on a regular basis, aggressive)

Other than that, it may help you to structure your community using a common scheme:

-Centerpiece fish (Dwarf gouramis, betta, platies or guppies)
-Shoaling fish (Tetras, rasboras, danios. At least 6 of them)
-bottom feeders (Cories(at least 3), loaches)

With soft water, my only advice is to stay away from cichlids, most of which won't fit in your tank anyways. Good luck!

 

[fshinggrl]

Rule is 1" of fish per gallon. When applying this rule, you look at the *full grown* size of the fish, not the size it is in the store.

Thank you. Yes, the store has it... and then the store employees say something else that is contrary to what the sign says.

This is my thought: Go to the library and order/place holds/check out as many tropical fish books as you can and then read THOSE rather than seek out advice.

Great advice. I think I'll head up to the library today if I can after the youngest wakes up from nap and do some studying. Thank you.

 

[Gilli]

Best to start off with easy to look after fish and go for top swimmers mid swimmers and bottom dwellers for a good overall look to your tank. You can tell where the fish dwells by its mouth - if it has an upturned mouth it will be a top dweller - normal mouth mid dweller and downturned mouth bottom dweller.


Community fish for the top half of the tank are Danios - there are different varieties larger and smaller with or without flowing fins (no less than 6) which will add movement to your tank as they dash around

Mid dweller are guppies (if you are keeping both sexes 1 male to every 3 females), tetras (kept in schools of no less than 6) - there are many different sorts and colours, tiger barbs (no less than 6),Platties & swordtails (1 male to 3 females)

For bottom dweller Corydoras are great (kept in groups of 6 or more) and there are many different kinds and colours

 

[natalie265]

If flash and glamour is what you want, nothing beats a betta. You could split the tank in two and do 2 males, or 1 male and a small school of corys.

I think dwarf or honey gouramis make a great centerpiece for a smaller tank. I've got a pair of honeys in my 30 gallon and love them! I would suggest you post again once you have some ideas on what you want to get, then people can inform you about possible compatibilty issues and advise you on how many of each fish you should get.

Enjoy your new tank!

 

[waterdrop]

Agree with that. Honey's make a good pair of centerpiece fish in that tank size range. Perhaps that pair with a small group of one of the hardier cory types and then wait about 4 to 6 months and then add in a school of neon tetras in as big a shoal as you could until you max the stocking level.

~~waterdrop~~

 

[drobbyb]

I'm not sure on what type of fish you would like to keep, but many of the suggestions made are good choices. You may find yourself wanting another tank in the future as you grow into the hobby (I say hobby, but it's more of an addiction lol.) This is known as MTS or multiple tank syndrome. I'm an addict, and as we all know, admitting is the first step!

Actually I am down to 2 tanks at the moment and if my wife gets her way, I will only have one (well I say this but my daughter needs her own room but currently it has tanks in it.)

So my advice for stocking is to do your homework. Find out which fish suit your fancy, and when you have your list, post it on here. I'm sure the members will be more than happy to take a look.

 

[fshinggrl]

Would these fish work well together?

 

[NinjaSmurf]

Well, like they said in the thread, you really have to look at minimum school numbers and the adult fish size. That's the problem with stocking schooling fish in a small tank, by the time you have the numbers you need, you're out of room.

The way I was thinking, if you want flash, get some very colorful male guppies (no females though, because with non aggressive fish you'll be over run in no time) a lone Blue Ram and maybe some dwarf cories (they only get about an inch) or something that is very low bio load like khuli loaches, colorful and interesting, but won't knock you into overstocking.

 

[Gilli]

Agree with Ninja - you need to keep tetras in schools of at least 6 or more. the other thing is go to your local fish shop and see what they have - theres nothing worse than deciding what fish you want then you go to the fish shop and they dont have them! What I do is I take a pad and pen with me and write down the names of the ones I like the look of then go home google them for information as to if they would be suitable!

I wouldnt recommend gouramis - an extremely high percentage of them die from gourami disease -they die within a few months of being purchased. Symptoms are bloating, bloody sores on the body and a loss of appetite and its incurable. Dwarf gouramis appear to be among the fish most likely to contract bacterial infections if water quality or water chemistry isn’t exactly right, so not a good fish for a beginner.