Stocking suggestions for nano fish 29G planted??

[Anchorman]

So I started a dirted 29G tank with the intention of
stocking it with nano/mirco type fish and inverts.
Looking for advice/suggestions on stocking?
Currently stock includes:

Fish
8 Galaxy Rasboras, CPDs, Danio Margaritavilles or whatever
9 Chili Rasboras
1 Sparkling Gourami
1 Scarlett Badis (one died before moving them)

Inverts
MTS and ramshorn snails
RCS culls from other tanks

I'd like to increase the number of CPDs, Chilis and Scarletts,
just not sure how many of each yet?
Maybe 10-15+ Chilis and CPDs/3 or 4 darios
I'd also like to add some other varieties.
The fish on my short list are:
Ember tetras
Dwarf Emerald Rasboras
Clown killies
Amano shrimp
I'm on the fence about pygmy cories(for now) simply because
I'd rather have more schooling fish and
there will be lots of snails and shrimp to tend the substrate.
Thai micro crabs would be cool but I've heard
they're pretty shy so not sure how much I'd see them in this tank.
I really like Cardinal tetras but they get a little
bigger than I'd like for this setup.

Right now I'm running a AC30 and whisper 10 (switching to a AC50 when I have the time)
6500k Cfls for lighting. (looking at LEDs, Leaning toward either current or finnex)

Tell me what you think?

 

[Anchorman]

The tank's been running for about 5-6 months now btw.

 

[eduguy]

Neon Tetras are similar to Cardinals, but they are not hardy and are susceptible to Neon Tetra Disease.

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[Anchorman]

I'm not against neons but I want to explore less common fish.

 

[Orlon11]

I got clown killies a week ago and they are very cute! They do stay very close to the surface almost 100% of the time.

Another neat small fish is threadfin rainbows. They are a little bigger than the other fish mentioned, but they have tiny mouths so pose very little danger to shrimp, if you're concerned about that. It's very cool to watch them display at each other.

I don't know too much about the other fish on your list as I haven't kept any of them.

 

[azmodan]

I have both clown killies and emerald rasboras and love them. The emerald rasboras are very similar to CPDs and I believe there are documented cases of them even breeding together. Their similar appearance might sway you from getting both species as perhaps you'd like to mix up the appearances a bit (like with chili rasboras instead). I'd recommend the clown killies because they're a top dwelling species, which is nice for a 29g because of the extra height. Another top dwelling nano fish I'd recommend is the spotted blue eyed rainbow (Gertrude's rainbow). Awesome little fish. Just remember to get some floating plants to give them (or the killies) some cover and to discourage any jumpers.

Your stocking numbers sound very reasonable too and I'd agree that cardinals would be a bad fit for this set up. Rivercats is a great person to PM regarding nano set ups if you feel inspired.

Good luck!

 

[Anchorman]

I got clown killies a week ago and they are very cute! They do stay very close to the surface almost 100% of the time.

Another neat small fish is threadfin rainbows. They are a little bigger than the other fish mentioned, but they have tiny mouths so pose very little danger to shrimp, if you're concerned about that. It's very cool to watch them display at each other.

I don't know too much about the other fish on your list as I haven't kept any of them.

I have both clown killies and emerald rasboras and love them. The emerald rasboras are very similar to CPDs and I believe there are documented cases of them even breeding together. Their similar appearance might sway you from getting both species as perhaps you'd like to mix up the appearances a bit (like with chili rasboras instead). I'd recommend the clown killies because they're a top dwelling species, which is nice for a 29g because of the extra height. Another top dwelling nano fish I'd recommend is the spotted blue eyed rainbow (Gertrude's rainbow). Awesome little fish. Just remember to get some floating plants to give them (or the killies) some cover and to discourage any jumpers.

Your stocking numbers sound very reasonable too and I'd agree that cardinals would be a bad fit for this set up. Rivercats is a great person to PM regarding nano set ups if you feel inspired.

Good luck!

The clown killies top dwelling tendencies are a big plus for me since most of the others stay closer to the bottom.
I just replanted the tank about three weeks ago so the tank hasn't "filled out" yet with the top third of the tank pretty empty.
I threw a large portion of guppy grass in for some floating cover and the chilis seem to love it. They spend a lot more time near the surface now.
Eventually I'll pull some floaters from some other tanks after the rest of the tank has had a chance to grow more.

I really like a lot of the smaller rainbow breeds like the threadfins, celebes, blues eyes, furcatas, etc.
Thought about doing a rainbow specific tank at one time. Kind of on hold at this point.

How do these numbers sound?

12 CPDs
12 Chilis
3-4 dario dario
1-3 Sparkling Gouramis
Clown Killies(3-5?)

What would be a good number for the killies?
Are they better off with odd numbers?

Would there still be room for a school of embers, dwarf emeralds, or another type?

My biggest concern would be that the
embers(or another type) would be so
active that they scare some of the more passive fish.

 

[Orlon11]

I was told that the number of clown killies is not so important, but you should always have more females than males. So you could get 1 m 2 f or 2 m 4 f, depending on how many you want.

 

[Anchorman]

I was told that the number of clown killies is not so important, but you should always have more females than males. So you could get 1 m 2 f or 2 m 4 f, depending on how many you want.

Cool. That makes sense.

 

[azmodan]

Agreed. They have tiny bioloads too so I'd do like 8-10 easily.

 

[Anchorman]

Agreed. They have tiny bioloads too so I'd do like 8-10 easily.

8-10 would be sweet!

 

[bettaowner]

Indostomus paradoxus would be cool too.

 

[Anchorman]

Indostomus paradoxus would be cool too.

Had to look it up but those seem very unique/cool. Might be hard to find?

Went by the LFS last night and saw they had Bumble bee gobies.
I had forgot about those little guys.

Would the gobies work in this setup?
My understanding is they grow to about 2 inches.
Are they feisty or alternatively shy to the point they might be picked on?

I'm also thinking of breaking down a couple tanks and thought about putting my dwarf puffer in this tank.
I can make sure he gets fed and not out-competed for food.
My worry would be him nipping the other fish but they're so much quicker and the tank is pretty big for this size of fish.

Does this sound like a bad idea?

 

[azmodan]

My understanding of bb gobies is that they generally do best in species tanks, although I've never actually had them so I cannot say for certainty. Similar to the badis they're ambush predators that can sometimes be difficult to feed. The dp could potentially work in such a tank although it's not really something I'd go around recommending. They can be very nippy and I'd worry for slower fish like your scarlet badis, who really don't move around a ton.

 

[Coursair]

Avoid any of the larger Tetras. They could decimate your Shrimp. Puffers as well.

I love my Threadfin Rainbows, but they need very small food for tiny throats.
Furcatas are nice also.

Be careful with Embers...I love the look, but my club member added a group to a Shrimp Tank and they hunted them down.

Otos are fine. Cory hastatus or pygmaeus swim mid water. C habrosus is the only tiny bottom dwelling Cory.

I feed frozen and live baby brine shrimp for my Scarlet Badis.


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[Orlon11]

Those Indostomus look so cool! I had never heard of them. Are they hard to find/hard to take care of?

 

[Coursair]

Those Indostomus look so cool! I had never heard of them. Are they hard to find/hard to take care of?

http://www.seriouslyfish.com/species/indostomus-paradoxus/

Not a good competitor for food and needs slow flow or still water.


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[Anchorman]

Thanks for the replies!

I think i'll leave the BB gobies and the DP out of the equation.

I talked to the LFS and they're going to order some Scarlett badis for me.

Current plan is to acquire a few more CPDs, Chilis, and Scarletts so my numbers will be:

12 CPDs
10-12 Chili Rasboras
4 Scarlett Badis
1 Sparkling Gourami
Shrimp and snails

I'll keep looking out for (8-10)clown killies

I'll probably pick up some otos for the tank at some point but right now I don't think there enough algae to support them.

Still on the fence about cories.

Still looking for suggestions.

If I have time tonight I'll try to post a pic of the tank.

 

[Anchorman]

Would adding one or two more sparkling gourami's cause any conflict?

 

[Coursair]

If you want Shrimp, I'd get the colony established first. You are adding a lot of micro predators. Adult Shrimp should be ok , but babies will get munched.


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