Advice for first time fish keeping

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Stephen n

Aquarium Advice Newbie
Joined
Oct 6, 2016
Messages
1
Hi
I'm fairly new to fish keeping and just wanted to know if I'm stocking my tank OK.
It's an 80 litre/17.5 gallon planted tank, I know it's only fairly small but everyone has to start somewhere.
my water parameters are ph 7.0 ammonia 0 ppm nitrite 0 ppm nitrate 5.0 ppm

Currently I have it stocked with
5 guppies
8 neon tetras
2 peppered corys
1 small bristlenose pleco
2 african dwarf frogs
5 cherry shrimp
3 bumblebee snails
1 zebra snail

Is this a good stock? I would like to get another group of Sholing fish if possible , maybe rummy nose tetras or even a pair of dwarf gourami (1 male 1 female) or how about both options? Or am I being too optimistic?

Please let me know how you think I'm doing for my first time at fish keeping

Thanks stephen
 
Hi

I'm fairly new to fish keeping and just wanted to know if I'm stocking my tank OK.

It's an 80 litre/17.5 gallon planted tank, I know it's only fairly small but everyone has to start somewhere.

my water parameters are ph 7.0 ammonia 0 ppm nitrite 0 ppm nitrate 5.0 ppm



Currently I have it stocked with

5 guppies

8 neon tetras

2 peppered corys

1 small bristlenose pleco

2 african dwarf frogs

5 cherry shrimp

3 bumblebee snails

1 zebra snail



Is this a good stock? I would like to get another group of Sholing fish if possible , maybe rummy nose tetras or even a pair of dwarf gourami (1 male 1 female) or how about both options? Or am I being too optimistic?



Please let me know how you think I'm doing for my first time at fish keeping



Thanks stephen



Hi, welcome to your new addiction [emoji226]

My advice ? Rehome the Pleco. BN should be in at least 30g tanks. They are poop machines and get 4-5".

How long has tank been set up ? The biggest mistake I believe that new fish keepers make is to stock too many fish too fast.

Bumblebee Snails ? Are they Nerites ?
I'm assuming the zebra snail is also a Nerite.
4 Nerite Snails may quickly starve in that size tank. They are amazing little eaters.

Avoid Rummynose for now. They need pristine established tanks and I'd recommend at least a 20g Long for them.

Don't count on getting a pair of Gouramis, plus even a pair may fight. I'd suggest maybe a single honey Gourami once your tank is staying stable.

If you have male and female guppies, you may need to plan what to do with any offspring. Or your tank may get overcrowded quickly.

I think between the Neons and the Guppies you have quite a few fish in there.

Can you post a pic of the tank ?

You have good numbers for now, but planted tanks often run with Nitrates a bit higher.

What plants ?
What ferts ?

At this time I would say do not add any new fish.
Rehome the Pleco and then see where your tank is at. Keep testing water and doing pwc weekly.

Enjoy your tank [emoji1360]

Tina
Still not a dude
 
Sounds like you have been bitten by the tank bug!

Yes, get a nice large tank! One of the best all around community size fish tanks in my opinion is a 46G bowfront. Lots of room for a variety of peaceable community fish and a decent number of schooling fish as well as some others of different colors, shapes and sizes.

Research each fish size as an adult and what type of companions they need, as in a shoal or pair or individual. Also what type of conditions they need.

To be fair, most people want lots of kinds of fish, sometimes a couple separate tanks can be set up more towards specific needs/conditions for fish and be a better situation, keeping them better, than a wide variety in one tank.

Welcome!
 
Last edited:
Lose the pleco as stated.

Also, corys need school,so you might want to get a few more.
 
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