New Member, stocking assistance needed

[Animag771]

Well my tank is up and running now with a current stock of 5 Julii Cories and 8 Neon Tetras. For some reason I can't get Guppies to stay alive. I can't find anything wrong with the water conditions... I think I am going to switch top swimming fish from the Guppies to 8 Chili Rasboras. I'm still waiting for my Apistogramma Agassizii, a few pet stores attempting to get me one. I have an Aquaclear 50 and a pre-filter, along with some plants on their way as well.

Could I get away with bumping up the neons and chilis to 10 or 12 each since their bioload is so little? Here is what Aqadvisor says about 8 each...

 

[Khuligirl93]

Chilli rasboras are veeeery tiny (I think .75"-1"). They are usually kept in nano tanks with other nano fish, I would be worried the apisto might eat them, and you probably wouldn't even be able to see them unless you were up close to the glass. What about Harlequin rasboras? They get a bit larger, like the size of cardinals.
Also, you might look into hatchet fish if you're wanting some top swimmers. Although fish that swim in the upper levels really appreciate tall plants that reach the surface, and floating plants to make them feel more secure.
In my opinion, aquadvisor is pretty conservative. All my tanks are stocked to [what it says is] about 120%. So, I don't think you should be too concerned about bioload

 

[elephantnose]

Hatchet fish will jump out of the tank. I have lost two. They jumped right out of the slot for the heater in the lid. Hatchet fish get large reaching sizes of 3 inches and they need schools of about 6.

 

[Khuligirl93]

Marble hatchets stay smaller, and yes you'd have to cover the tank well.

 

[Animag771]

Chilli rasboras are veeeery tiny (I think .75"-1"). They are usually kept in nano tanks with other nano fish, I would be worried the apisto might eat them, and you probably wouldn't even be able to see them unless you were up close to the glass. What about Harlequin rasboras? They get a bit larger, like the size of cardinals.
Also, you might look into hatchet fish if you're wanting some top swimmers. Although fish that swim in the upper levels really appreciate tall plants that reach the surface, and floating plants to make them feel more secure.
In my opinion, aquadvisor is pretty conservative. All my tanks are stocked to [what it says is] about 120%. So, I don't think you should be too concerned about bioload

I am not 100% sure, but I don't think an Agassizii is aggressive enough to eat them., especially with them being in larger groups. I don't like the part about not being able to see them though..

I am not sold on Hatchets in this tank (maybe in a bigger tank) because I have seen them in stores and videos and they just don't seem very active.

I really like the idea of Harlequins, but I prefer larger groups. With the Harlequins being bigger I don't know if I will be able to get a decent school going with such a small space. I have heard they stay in somewhat tight groups. Maybe Espeis??? My dream tank is a 125g with lots of different schooling fish in it.

I will have some tall plants in the tank and a floating one as well, so that wont be an issue.

Good to know about Aqadvisor.. I did notice while using it, no matter what fish I put in first it bumped it >20%. Even with just 1 Chili Rasbora it went over 20%.

 

[Animag771]

Anybody? If the Agassizii really is going to be too aggressive for the chili rasboras, what would work? I want to fill the remaining space with 8-12 fish that will school/shoal so they take up more space than 1-2 larger fish with more impact on the bioload.

1: Can anybody verify that an Agassizii is too aggressive for chili's, with 100% certainty?

2: What are a couple of fish that I could fit 8-12 of without overstocking too much if at all. So far we have hatchets and harlequins anything else that might work?