Could i add to my tank

[Jeff likes fish]

I have a 20 gallon tank with 2 mollies 2 platies 1 small angelfish 2" 1 pleco 3" and 1 Cory cat .8"
There seems to be plenty of room for my fish, they aren't very aggressive, and are all healthy, I'm willing to work a little harder, so should I add any fish? Would a opaline gourami be okay?

 

[freshwaterfan]

I really dont see a problem adding a few more, though I wouldnt add more than 2 or 3. Ive always played it safe and used a formula of "3 gallons of water per fish" (unless of course the fish is one that grows to be huge). Ive always stuck to the smaller fish like you in the 2-3" range and so far I havent had any problems with the formula. My 40 gallon tank has had 12 fish in it for awhile and until today I havent lost a single finned friend. As for a gourami it should be ok as long as its a community one. I put one of those semi aggressive pink kissing gouramis in my old tank and he just killed everything. I was not a happy camper =/.

 

[Morgie]

if you add to your tank get some more cories of the same species. They need at least 3 buddies, but would be happier with 6+ in a school.
And plecos do get 18"+ so you'll eventually need to re-home him, just a heads up. :>

 

[siva]

I think an opaline gourami is going to get a bit too big for 20 gals..plus he may pick on such smaller tank mates. Maybe a neon blue or sunset dwarf gourami would be a better fit and add a nice splash of color. A common pleco is pretty big for your tank and has a big bio-load. I think a hillstream loach (commonly sold as a butterfly pleco) is a better algea eater for a smaller tank...so much more attractive and stays very small, only a couple inches, versus a common pleco that gets huuuuge. Just my opinion Cories are super social and their cute behaviors really don't come out unless they have a buddy. Personally I wouldn't keep less than 4 but depending on the adult size of the type of cory you have you may not be able to house that many so I think 2 at the absolute minimum of the same species if you can.

 

[jenatron]

Well considering angel's don't belong in a 20 anyway, no.

 

[BigJim]

An angelfish will get too big for a 20g as will most varieties of pleco. I would rehome the angel and the pleco if it's not a dwarf variety. Then you could add your gourami and 4-5 more cories.

 

[saltwatertogo]

Jeff i would agree on the angel and the opaline getting to big. The dwarf gourami would be a better choice take a look the neon, flame, and power blue. you might change your mind on the opaline. One of my favorite is the pigmy sparkling gourami. Happy fish keeping.

Fishman

 

[jasurf21]

I definitely think you could fit a bit more also...some other choices I would suggest checking out would be a kribensis cichlid, keyhole cichlid, blue ram cichlid, apisogramma, and as others have suggested dwarf gourami would be cool too.

Also, the cory cat will be fine by himself you don't need to add more as others may suggest...

 

[Jeff likes fish]

Well, I took your advice and I purchased a dwarf gourami! It seems very happy in it's new habitat. And don't worry, I am well aware about my angel and pleco. We will have a 60 gallon+ in the future