Your Favorite FW Fish - Aquarium Advice

Karegg · 04-16-2008, 06:01 PM

What kind of fish do you have in your FW setup(s)? How do they get along with each other (and you)? How hard are they to care for?

I'm trying to get some opinions on different fish to help me decide on what I'd like to get.

p3purr · 04-16-2008, 06:30 PM

Let us know what size tank you have since it may make a differance on what you can have and a general idea of what's important to you.
For example:
small, community, easy to care, lots of color
a few large fish that are different kinds, not real common
small fish that like real plants
sparse rocky tank, colorful fish

Karegg · 04-16-2008, 06:46 PM

Tank will be somewhere between a 29 and 55 gal freshwater, likely planted and with rocks. I prefer more active fish that like to school, and so I'm looking for smaller fish so I can keep them in groups. As far as appearance, I like the looks of the yoyo and clown loaches, otos (especially the zebra), rummy nose tetras, and the corydoras hastatus. These are just fish I think look cool, and I'm open to any and all suggestions

p3purr · 04-16-2008, 07:32 PM

Schools of tetra will look great and fill your needs. Some beckford pencilfish and rasbora will get along fine. Harlequin Rasbora are very pretty but there are other rasbora that will add color too. The pencilfish are so much fun to watch, they flare and interact with each other a lot differently than tetras. Throw in a bristlenose pleco with some driftwood or a group of cories (all the same, they like to be in schools). Otto's and Kuhli loaches are neat after the tank is VERY well established. Both of them like being in groups too.

Lets see, I love tetras and some of my favorite are: Glowlight, Columbian (a bit shy in smaller tanks) and gold. There are tons of great tetra that are readily available and add different colors and body shapes to a tank. They can all take a fairly wide range of water.

The cory's and kuli loaches like soft substate that doesn't have sharp edges.

Clown loaches get BIG, too big for a 29 and wouldn't do great in a planted 55. They'd look odd with a group of small fish. Loaches do better in groups, some of them will kill other fish if not in a group. I had a really bad experiance with a skunk loach.

**Fishyfanatic** · 04-16-2008, 07:37 PM

My favorite fish are ARLC (African Rift Lake Cichlids). Malawi Mbuna in particular. They have fascinating personalities and are full of color.

neilanh · 04-16-2008, 08:34 PM

Furcata rainbows are my most recent favorites. Very active little things.

SuCraM · 05-07-2008, 07:04 PM

I have a ten gallon that is finishing being cycled. I plan on putting tropicals in there. Any idea for me people. It will have a charcoal filter with gravel substrate and fake plants and air stones.

04-16-2008, 06:01 PM	#1 (permalink)
Karegg Aquarium Advice Activist Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: St. Louis Posts: 160	Your Favorite FW Fish What kind of fish do you have in your FW setup(s)? How do they get along with each other (and you)? How hard are they to care for? I'm trying to get some opinions on different fish to help me decide on what I'd like to get.

04-16-2008, 07:32 PM	#4 (permalink)
p3purr Aquarium Advice Activist Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: nc Posts: 102	Schools of tetra will look great and fill your needs. Some beckford pencilfish and rasbora will get along fine. Harlequin Rasbora are very pretty but there are other rasbora that will add color too. The pencilfish are so much fun to watch, they flare and interact with each other a lot differently than tetras. Throw in a bristlenose pleco with some driftwood or a group of cories (all the same, they like to be in schools). Otto's and Kuhli loaches are neat after the tank is VERY well established. Both of them like being in groups too. Lets see, I love tetras and some of my favorite are: Glowlight, Columbian (a bit shy in smaller tanks) and gold. There are tons of great tetra that are readily available and add different colors and body shapes to a tank. They can all take a fairly wide range of water. The cory's and kuli loaches like soft substate that doesn't have sharp edges. Clown loaches get BIG, too big for a 29 and wouldn't do great in a planted 55. They'd look odd with a group of small fish. Loaches do better in groups, some of them will kill other fish if not in a group. I had a really bad experiance with a skunk loach. Last edited by p3purr; 04-16-2008 at 10:13 PM.

04-16-2008, 07:37 PM	#5 (permalink)
Fishyfanatic Aquarium Advice Addict Community Moderator Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Illinois Posts: 10,005 Images: 15	My favorite fish are ARLC (African Rift Lake Cichlids). Malawi Mbuna in particular. They have fascinating personalities and are full of color. __________________ Vote for Aquarium Advice 10 Gallon Lake Malawi Cichlid Fry 29 Gallon Community 55 Gallon Community Planted 55 Gallon Lake Malawi Cichlid Fry 150 Gallon Lake Malawi Cichlid

04-16-2008, 08:34 PM	#6 (permalink)
neilanh MTS Advocate Community Mentor Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Northern Virginia Posts: 2,501 Images: 15	Furcata rainbows are my most recent favorites. Very active little things. __________________ ~Neilan In the DC Metro Area? Check out GWAPA Look, I have a My Info Page! Where's yours? Useful Links: Vote for AA, Nitrogen Cycle, Fishless Cycling, Articles, Acronym List

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04-16-2008, 06:30 PM	#2 (permalink)
p3purr Aquarium Advice Activist Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: nc Posts: 102	Let us know what size tank you have since it may make a differance on what you can have and a general idea of what's important to you. For example: small, community, easy to care, lots of color a few large fish that are different kinds, not real common small fish that like real plants sparse rocky tank, colorful fish

04-16-2008, 06:46 PM	#3 (permalink)
Karegg Aquarium Advice Activist Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: St. Louis Posts: 160	Tank will be somewhere between a 29 and 55 gal freshwater, likely planted and with rocks. I prefer more active fish that like to school, and so I'm looking for smaller fish so I can keep them in groups. As far as appearance, I like the looks of the yoyo and clown loaches, otos (especially the zebra), rummy nose tetras, and the corydoras hastatus. These are just fish I think look cool, and I'm open to any and all suggestions

05-07-2008, 07:04 PM	#7 (permalink)
SuCraM Aquarium Advice Apprentice Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Calgary, Alberta, Canada Posts: 29	I have a ten gallon that is finishing being cycled. I plan on putting tropicals in there. Any idea for me people. It will have a charcoal filter with gravel substrate and fake plants and air stones.