Fish Compatibility and Suggestions

[SeannyBoy84]

How's it going? I currently have a healthy established tank with several Cichlids, and I am starting new 30 gallon tank this week with some smaller fish with sand as the substrate and no live plants. I did a quick run through my LFS and am thinking about the usual danios, tetras, guppies, platies, gouramis, mollies, tiger barbs, snails, frogs, shrimp, crabs, and well that's it I think.

Obviously, I'm not going to put all of them in my tank, lol. I just wanted to know which ones should definately not be in the same tank, as far as aggresion, pH, etc. is involved. I've heard that the Tiger Barbs can be a bit aggressive sometimes. Would they be alright with a school of Tetras/smaller fish? Which types would be good to get rid of some minimal algae? I think I read one or two gouramis and a couple snails? I know Plecos will eventually get too big for the tank so that's not an option. What should I know about possibly adding frogs, crabs, and shrimp?

Basically looking for a few schools of the smaller fish, a couple bigger fish like some dwarf gouramis, a couple snails, and maybe the crabs, etc. if it's allowed. I want lots of color. Will be buying BioSpira and some fish towards the end of the week. Any advice would be great. Thanks.

 

[Guest]

in a 30, with the list you provided, i would do a pair od dwarf gouris, some snails (2 maybe) a frog and a school of rasboras =)

 

[evercl92]

Tiger barbs prob aren't the best option. Doesnt sound like you'll have enough tank space for a school big enough not to pick on other fish. Plus, barbs tend to eat/ kill shrimp. All the other fish should get along, whatever combination you decide to get.

 

[JustOneMore20]

I'd go with a school of tetras (6-8), another school of tetras or a school of harlequin rasboras (6-8), a dwarf gourami, and some snails. I wouldn't do a pair of gouramis. Most of the time you can only find males in the LFS and they will fight....which you don't want because you could end up with one or both of them dead. Just go with one gourami. If you want some cories for the bottom, they would work as well (and they love sand).

 

[SeannyBoy84]

Great suggestions. I forgot about cories, hehe. I'm going to head to my LFS tonight and zero in on more specific fish and get a better idea of what and how many I'm going to buy. If, for example, I wanted to do 1 gourami, a school of rasboras, a school of tetras, 2 snails, and a cory or 2, what would be the maximum number of fish for each of the schools? Is it better to get just 1 cory or a couple? I'll post again once I get back. Thanks.

 

[JustOneMore20]

Cories are shoaling (kind of like schooling, but it means they like the company of their own kind, but don't necessarily swim around together), so you want to get a bare minimum of 4. I usually say 6 in minimum.

I think you could go with:
1 gourami
8 rasboras
6-8 tetras (8 if they are a smaller type, 6 if they are a little bigger
8 cories

I would go to the LFS and see whats available and what you like. Then come back and either post the ones you like on this post or go to fishprofiles.com and check out how big the get. There are some tetras that get near 3 inches and a 29g isn't great for them.

 

[WaterPond]

i like kristin's idea. Morethan one gourami will fight(if you cant find a female[very rare]) Cories are very fun to watch, and would be much happier in a group. Tetras are also fun to watch, and since they school they are even more fun to watch. I would go with some neon, or cardinal tetras.

 

[SeannyBoy84]

Alright so I took about about 15 mins taking time with each of the tanks at the store and have narrowed the fish somewhat.

-Cardinal Tetras
-Various Guppies
-Bamboo Shrimp
-Ghost Shrimp
-Harlequin Rasboras
-Dwarf Gourami
-Sunbursty Platies
-Spotted Cory Cat
-African Dwarf Frog
-Red Minor Tetras
-Mystery Snails

Hmmmm, maybe 1 dwarf gourami, school of cardinal tetras, school of various fancy guppies or harlequin rasboras, small school of spotted cory cats or similar, a few various mystery snails, a few shrimp, a frog, and a couple platys if there's room for it. That should be a good mix.

Is it alright to mix different types of fancy guppies? I read on one of the charts that they "require salt, up to a teaspoon per gallon, and some vegetable diet (condition food)." How necessary is this? I'm heading to the store again and I'll have a more definite plan once I get back. Thanks.

 

[JustOneMore20]

Guppies and platies will produce alot of fry. Some may be eaten by the gourami and maybe the tetras, but any that survive will add to the bioload and possible overstock the tank (when they grow of course).

I think I'd go with either the guppies or the platies....or replace the gourami with a few platies (1m/2f). If you go with just guppies, do a 1m/2f ratio or get all males. Having all males will assure you that you won't have any fry.

I think you will have to do either 2 schools (cardinals and harlies from your post) or do 1 school of one type and then either 4-5 guppies or 3-4 platies.

So, I think you could go with:
1 gourami
8 tetras
8 tetras/rasboras
6 cories
3 shrimp (maybe?)
couple snails

or

1 gourami
8 tetras/rasboras (whichever you choose)
6 cories
5 guppies or 3-4 platies
3 shrimp
snails

or

8 tetras/rasboras
6 cories
3 platies
5 guppies
3 shrimp
snails

I've never kept shrimp. I think the bamboo shrimp get kind of big for shrimp (3-4in), so I wouldn't get more then 3. I'm not sure about the guppy/platy combo either, as I've never kept livebearers. I'm sure if there is a problem with those stocking lists, someone will help out. Platies get about 2 inches and they will produce alot of fry, so that's why I replaced the gourami in one stocking and the 2nd school in the other. Platies and guppies don't school, but it is good to have them some friends of their own type.

What do you think?

Oh, and the ADF (frogs). I'd skip them. They really should go in a species tank. They can be hard to feed and will usually only eat what you put right in front of their faces. If you try to feed them in a tank with a gourami and tetras, they may starve to death because they won't get any food. Also, I think they will only take live or frozen food, so they are a little harder to keep....especially in a community tank. But, I've never kept them either...just heard other people's experiences with them.

I'm glad you actually went to the pet store to see what you liked and didn't just buy the first fish that you loved. Great job...you are actually planning your tank.

 

[SeannyBoy84]

Wow, great stuff justonemore. I think I'll skip the platies, and I might get some danios instead of the guppies. My buddy has a small school of guppies with some tetras and he hasn't had any problems though.

Anyway I went to the fish store today and bought:
-BioSpira ($10)
-Harlequin Rasboras ($3.50 x 5)
-Cardinal Tetras ($4 x 5)
-Spotted Cories ($3 x 3)

My favorite are definitely the rasboras, which are awesome. The cardinals are colorful, but 2 of them are hiding away from the other 3, which seem to just be hanging out in the middle right now. The cories haven't really moved, but look nice on the white sand.

Going to add more of each in a couple days. The store did not have any snails, so I'm going to have to go to their other location. I'll also grab 1 of the neon dwarf gouramis, add a few male guppies and see how they do, and some ghost shrimp.

Any suggestions on what to feed these guys? Brand? Pellet or flake? Frozen? Thanks.

 

[JustOneMore20]

I feed my tetras and rasboras flakes...I use OSI brand (ordered it from big al's online) but any brand flake should do. I feed my cories sinking shrimp pellets, Wardley brand. They also eat algae wafers (which are intended for my otos), but not necessary to feed them. I'd go with a sinking pellet type food.

If you want to go frozen, go with some bloodworms or brine shrimp. My fish eat both of those and love them! I only feed mine frozen food like once a week. It shouldn't be their main food...more like a treat.


Before you add more fish, check your water. You can still have some ammonia show up after Bio-Spira (or so I've heard). I would wait a week to add more fish. Maybe by then the LFS will have some snails for ya.

 

[Mosaic]

Yes, definately test your water. If the bio-spira ever got too warm on its journey from the manufacturer to your tank, it'll be useless. If you do see an ammonia spike, do a PWC and throw in some fast growing plants.

 

[SeannyBoy84]

I brought a mini cooler with me full of ice when I bought to BioSpira, because I knew it would easily be ruined in Vegas heat. It's been about a week and here are the results of my tests:

pH: 8.0
Ammonia: .25
Nitrite: 0
Nitrate: 5.0

Water is crystal clear. Should I bring the pH down to around 7.0, and how would I go about doing this? I have a bottle of pH Decrease made by PetsMart. Do I just use this, and must I use this with every PWC?

I bought a small pack of TetraMin Tropical Crisps which they seem to like, and some Tetra Bloodworms to give them once in a while. Are any of those color-enhancing supplements any good?

I also brought home 3 more Rasboras. Almost grabbed my gourami, but I'll get it next time. Still no snails. I'll keep you updated.

 

[joannde]

Don't adjust the pH. Using chemicals to do so could result in swings. A stable pH is more important. You could add some driftwood to help lower the pH if you really wanted to, but it's really not necessary.

 

[SeannyBoy84]

Oh alright, thanks.