Most peaceful fish for 10 gallon?

[Cobaltskyy]

True I guess my panda cory is a runt....she's only about an inch and i've had her for 2 yrs....my green cats have doubled in the year I've had them...maybe she was stunted? I did inherit her in a 10 gal hex along with way too many other fish crammed in a dirty tank. At least they have a proper home now in my 30 gal!

 

[Bettababe1011]

Panda cories do stay small. Around an inch is the norm for them. But I wouldn't put any cories in less than twenty gallons because of their activity levels. Cories are spazzes.

 

[severum mama]

IMO panda's get too big for a 10 gal. The only cory I would put in a tank that size is corydoras hasbrosus or one of the other dwarfs that is less than 1". Boraras Brigittae aka mosquito rasbora would be a nice choice as well because they are so tiny you can actually fit a proper school size in a 10 gal.

LOL they are freaking TINY. I've been stocking those and the Boraras merah (phoenix rasbora) lately, although I am sold out of brigittae at the moment... anyway, I wouldn't hesitate to put 15-20 of either species in a 10 gallon.

 

[siva]

LOL they are freaking TINY. I've been stocking those and the Boraras merah (phoenix rasbora) lately, although I am sold out of brigittae at the moment... anyway, I wouldn't hesitate to put 15-20 of either species in a 10 gallon.

That's what I've heard! I'm about to order 12 of them as part of a mini community for a 14 gal

 

[siva]

Panda cories do stay small. Around an inch is the norm for them. But I wouldn't put any cories in less than twenty gallons because of their activity levels. Cories are spazzes.

I'd have to disagree. I see pandas on a regular basis that are easily 2". I do think all the cories over an inch should be in 20+ gals, but I think the teeny guys that come in at less than inch still have room to spazz properly in 10+ gals. JMO.

 

[rebekahbirch]

i think you should get neon tetras! they're a bit sensitive tho- need a lot of them ('bout 7) and they need an established tank- but they're very peaceful, so any thing can be put wth them really!

 

[siva]

Neon's aren't my personal fav for a 10 gal. Really because I think if you add 7 neons you shouldn't add much else...they do need a little room to do their thing so to speak and although they are very small a group of 7 can occupy some space.

 

[rebekahbirch]

fair point siva- i'd forgotten the size of her tank - i have a 30 gallon myself!

 

[mommytron]

ember tetras are a great option for a 10g. they would look AWESOME with black sand, and they are tiny, you could easily get away with 15 of them (as long as they were the only stock). i kept 10 of them in my 10g with a flamingo gourami.

 

[siva]

fair point siva- i'd forgotten the size of her tank - i have a 30 gallon myself!

Well they are a popular choice for 10 gal, just not my personal fav

 

[James_in_MN]

I, too, am finally looking to stock my 10g tank (cycle finished yesterday). Besides shrimp (probably RCS and amano), I was going to add cardinal tetras. If I do end up with a proper school of cardinal tetras (6-8), should I not add any other fish?

I saw someone suggest sparking gouramis; don't they get aggressive when mating?

How about dwarf pencilfish as an option for a 10g?

 

[siva]

Maybe some nano fish? I wouldn't put anything substantial in size in. I know people would disagree with me and say a betta or a dwarf gourami, but I just don't feel like that gives them enough room.

I don't know about the breeding gouramis..I haven't experienced that.

From what I've read about dwarf pencil fish, they seem to be ideal for a 10 gal in both their size and activity level, but I've never seen them in person so I don't know for sure.

 

[Josh]

Cardinal tetras are very pretty. Maybe six cardinals, 3 cories(personally think orange lasers or albinos would look good on black sand), and a centerpiece fish.

As for the center piece possibly a dwarf gourami or male betta. I think 3 cories would do just fine in a 10g so long as you keep just a few cardinals and one center piece.

This is my stock list for my 10g. I overstocked it quite a while ago when I was first getting back into the hobby but with diligence and ample filtration/aeration I have only lost 2 fish in the whole process. Lost my dwarf gourami when my heater malfunctioned and my temp dropped to 67F. They're not the most hardy fish. Lost a cory to swim bladder disease.

-3 Cardinal Tetras
-3 Black Neon Tetras
-2 Sunburst Platys
-1 Balloon Belly Molly
-2 GloFish
-1 Emerald Cory Cat
-1 Leopard Cory Cat

 

[mommytron]

Cardinal tetras are very pretty. Maybe six cardinals, 3 cories(personally think orange lasers or albinos would look good on black sand), and a centerpiece fish.

As for the center piece possibly a dwarf gourami or male betta. I think 3 cories would do just fine in a 10g so long as you keep just a few cardinals and one center piece.

i'd have to agree with previous posters and say that cories (other than pygmy or hasbrosus) will get too large for a 10g. IMO it's not their bio-load but their physical size. from my understanding they are quite active as well.

cardinals are gorgeous, but i would personally go with a smaller tetra or rasbora. chili rasboras (if you can find them) are awesome. ember tetras are gorgeous, and perfect for a 10g.

 

[siva]

i'd have to agree with previous posters and say that cories (other than pygmy or hasbrosus) will get too large for a 10g. IMO it's not their bio-load but their physical size. from my understanding they are quite active as well.

cardinals are gorgeous, but i would personally go with a smaller tetra or rasbora. chili rasboras (if you can find them) are awesome. ember tetras are gorgeous, and perfect for a 10g.

^^ what she said

 

[Josh]

Cardinals will do just fine in a 10 gal. I see you have them in your 20 tall and it has an almost identical footprint to a standard 10gal. As for cories, if you don't have a cluttered tank they can thrive in a 10 gal with 2-3 IME.

 

[mommytron]

Cardinals will do just fine in a 10 gal. I see you have them in your 20 tall and it has an almost identical footprint to a standard 10gal. As for cories, if you don't have a cluttered tank they can thrive in a 10 gal with 2-3 IME.

um no, it's not. it's actually 6 inches longer and 2 inches deeper. and my cardinals use every bit of that space. i think if they are in a proper schooling number (7+) they would feel cramped in a 10g. 20g is the MINIMUM i would keep them in. that is IMO. i know there are others on the forum with cardinals in tanks as small as 8g. i'm not saying you can't do it, i'm just saying i wouldn't.

 

[Josh]

um no, it's not. it's actually 6 inches longer and 2 inches deeper. and my cardinals use every bit of that space. i think if they are in a proper schooling number (7+) they would feel cramped in a 10g. 20g is the MINIMUM i would keep them in. that is IMO. i know there are others on the forum with cardinals in tanks as small as 8g. i'm not saying you can't do it, i'm just saying i wouldn't.

Dimensions for a 10gal = [FONT=Arial, Verdana, sans-serif]24 x 9 x 13

Dimensions for a 20gal tall= [/FONT][FONT=Arial, Verdana, sans-serif]24 x 13 x 17

Its about 4 inches wider. Height has nothing to do with its footprint. As for the "magic schooling number"[/FONT][FONT=Arial, Verdana, sans-serif](and I use the phrase lightly) [/FONT][FONT=Arial, Verdana, sans-serif] for cardinals the widely accepted number for them is 6, so not off by much. Not that they will actually be schooling unless you intentionally introduce an aggressive fish, which I doubt OP intends to with the topic of this thread.
[/FONT]

 

[mommytron]

my cardinals school together often. they are housed only with black neon tetras and a pitbull pleco.

EITHER WAY that is still my opinion. i would not put a school of cardinals in a 10g.

and you may want to do your measurements again. standard 10gals are not 24 inches long.

 

[severum mama]

um no, it's not. it's actually 6 inches longer and 2 inches deeper. and my cardinals use every bit of that space. i think if they are in a proper schooling number (7+) they would feel cramped in a 10g. 20g is the MINIMUM i would keep them in. that is IMO. i know there are others on the forum with cardinals in tanks as small as 8g. i'm not saying you can't do it, i'm just saying i wouldn't.

I would agree on 20 gallons minimum for cardinals, just my personal opinion. I kept mine in a 45 and a 55 for years and they really seemed to enjoy the space.

20 XH has the same footprint as a 10, but mommytron's tank is a 20H and as she mentioned, is considerably different in terms of dimensions. 20L (30"x12"x12") would be preferable for cardinals IMO, but 20H is definitely doable.