Whats Your Ideal Stock In A Small Tank?

[KrystaK]

So I'm going to be moving off to Uni at the some point in the future, and I cant bring my nice big tank with me, but I'm going to try and bring my 20 gal with me.
It's current stock is 5 Rosy barbs, who are going to be re homed. I bought them on total impulse (it was 4 for 5$, can you blame me?)

Anyways, I want some ideas for what I could put in my tank, I want it to be unique looking. I have a wide array of plants I already have in the tank, and that I can introduce into the tank: Java fern, Amazon Swords, Java Moss, Vallisneria, (And two I don't know, one I think is Red Ludwigia) and the other is Dwarf.... and the rest of the name is sort of spelled like spaghetti, among others

So I was wondering, what would you put in a 20 gal?

 

[bmonki]

diamond neons. lots and lots of them

 

[cambojnr]

30 neons

 

[Crossfire]

14 Kuhli Loaches and a pair of Sparkling Gouramis

 

[Blitz]

....14 khulis?? Aren't those like 4 inches big (each)???
30 neon tetras= overstocking. I'd just do like 10.


~Maybe a few german rams? I read that rams were fine with plants, but I'm not completely sure.
http/www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=830+889+1084&pcatid=1084

Perhaps some hatchet fish? I'm not so sure on my hatchet fish either. xD
A school of 6 juli cories along with a couple of platies?
You can do a school of like 10-12 harlequin rasboras.

 

[mislisa]

Kuhlis get to be between 3 - 4 inches long, but they are slim with a low bio load. You could probably get away with ~8 of them and some mid or top dwellers

 

[Crossfire]

That's true, they do have a remarkably low bioload for being such big fish. I have 4, planning on getting 2 more and making it 6. But then my tanks is at the limit
My 20gal is currently overstocked, but that's because I rescued 5 Harlequin Rasboras from a dirty fluval chi, and as soon as the rest of those evil Pink Jewel Tetras die, I will get maybe 3 or 4 more.

 

[bmonki]

That's true, they do have a remarkably low bioload for being such big fish. I have 4, planning on getting 2 more and making it 6. But then my tanks is at the limit
My 20gal is currently overstocked, but that's because I rescued 5 Harlequin Rasboras from a dirty fluval chi, and as soon as the rest of those evil Pink Jewel Tetras die, I will get maybe 3 or 4 more.

curiosity getting better of me here... why are they evil?

 

[Crossfire]

That's true, they do have a remarkably low bioload for being such big fish. I have 4, planning on getting 2 more and making it 6. But then my tanks is at the limit
My 20gal is currently overstocked, but that's because I rescued 5 Harlequin Rasboras from a dirty fluval chi, and as soon as the rest of those evil Pink Jewel Tetras die, I will get maybe 3 or 4 more.

curiosity getting better of me here... why are they evil?

They're aggressive little suckers...always going after each other and sometimes other fish. They beat each other up. One has permanent black eye, the other has swim bladder, and one is the meanest.
IMO, only good for large groups. Even when I had 9 tetras, they were always going after each other. And they're supposedly "shrimp safe" Saw a tetra with a cherry shrimp sticking out of his mouth one day

 

[bmonki]

That's true, they do have a remarkably low bioload for being such big fish. I have 4, planning on getting 2 more and making it 6. But then my tanks is at the limit
My 20gal is currently overstocked, but that's because I rescued 5 Harlequin Rasboras from a dirty fluval chi, and as soon as the rest of those evil Pink Jewel Tetras die, I will get maybe 3 or 4 more.

curiosity getting better of me here... why are they evil?

They're aggressive little suckers...always going after each other and sometimes other fish. They beat each other up. One has permanent black eye, the other has swim bladder, and one is the meanest.
IMO, only good for large groups. Even when I had 9 tetras, they were always going after each other. And they're supposedly "shrimp safe" Saw a tetra with a cherry shrimp sticking out of his mouth one day

yep, evil sounds right lol - shame, they are pretty

 

[Crossfire]

That they are, very beautiful, that's why I got them Looks can be decieving

 

[crazyforcordoras]

Trio of Apistogramma Cockatoos
12 Glowlight tetras

 

[Baccus]

Just curious as to which 20 gallon you have English or American? Also what are the dimensions? A long tank rectangular tank will have a better foot print for Khuli loaches and the like while a taller squarer tank will seriously limit the foot print as well as length ways swimming room.

But off the top of my head I would go for Sparkling gouramis, pygmy corydoras or Pafiic Blue Eyes, shrimp are always a good option provided you go for the hardy neocaridina types over the way too fussy Crystal Red and Crystal Black shrimp. A small soriety of female fighters would also work (small of say four) and then you could still have khuli loaches. Endlers (pure not guppy hybrids) are a lovely small fish, the females are dull but the males are WOW, they are live bearers but the females tend to have small broods of babies, they are an amazing flash of intense colour zooming about the tank. Or you could get non-annual Killifish such as Cyprinodon, Fundulus, Rivulus, Aphysosemion, Apolocheilus, Epiplatys, Fundulophanhax, or Lacuistricola, but if you go for any of these species of Killifish only keep the one species, to keep the strain pure.

 

[ScholasticSpastic]

I recently got a 20 long myself. Before I decided to try my hand at breeding shrimp, I was thinking a school of 8-10 Pseudomugil gertrudae, a couple of nerite snails, a few scarlet badis, and a few amano shrimp might be fun.

But now I'm just going with plants and shrimp.... as soon as I'm done cycling with cherry barbs.

 

[Crossfire]

I recently got a 20 long myself. Before I decided to try my hand at breeding shrimp, I was thinking a school of 8-10 Pseudomugil gertrudae, a couple of nerite snails, a few scarlet badis, and a few amano shrimp might be fun.

But now I'm just going with plants and shrimp.... as soon as I'm done cycling with cherry barbs.

Sounds like a cool tank, we will need pictures!