New guy with some freshwater questions.

[T1mb0]

I jut bought a "petco special" 29 gallon tank, light, filter and heater kit. I asked the guy if it would do for salt water and he said it would... I visited a local fish store and found that it takes quite a bit more than that, so I decided to go freshwater for now and possibly use this tank as part of a sump later. I'm interested In stocking it with lots of very colorful fish that do not get too big for this 29g tank, but I'm having a hard time finding what types go together, or even types at all... The freshwater fish in the stores in my area aren't super eye catching, save a few, but one says he can order whatever I decide I want. Any suggestions?

[spiketooth]

rainbow fish are full of colors, neon tetras are always fun to have as they always bounce all over the tank.

[redsea]

Welcome to Aquarium Advice!

I am also a fan of Neon Tetras. You may also be interested in Gold Neon Tetras. They are less colorful than the regular Neon Tetras, but they still look great.

Platies and Guppies have great color, but I believe they have a high bioload.

[Try-na]

Originally Posted by spiketooth

rainbow fish are full of colors, neon tetras are always fun to have as they always bounce all over the tank.

Yes rainbow fish are very colorful once they mature a bit but be aware that most will grow to 4-6" in size. The smaller pseudomungil or blue eyed are smaller they seem to be harder to get. Around here anyway!

[Convict2161]

Welcome to the forum!!!

[T1mb0]

Thanks for the suggestions, I really like Rainbow fish, Gourami's, and Angels. Is there any way I could eventually have a mix of those fish in my 29 gallon?

[Try-na]

Originally Posted by T1mb0

Thanks for the suggestions, I really like Rainbow fish, Gourami's, and Angels. Is there any way I could eventually have a mix of those fish in my 29 gallon?

I have praecox, Celebes, slender rainbows in my tank with honey, dwarf (wild caught, neon blue) powder blue dwarf gouramis. They are all fine together. They all tend to stay close to the top tho. Make sure you add something interesting on the bottom. I used corydoras for that.

[spiketooth]

Originally Posted by T1mb0

Thanks for the suggestions, I really like Rainbow fish, Gourami's, and Angels. Is there any way I could eventually have a mix of those fish in my 29 gallon?

i think a pair of angel would be a liitle too much for your tank. Could do 1

[Coryluv]

Welcome to the forum.

[T1mb0]

When I have 3 or so Gourami's in a tank they can't all be males, can they?

[spiketooth]

I had two females in one tank and they were aggressive to each other

[T1mb0]

I actually did 3 males 2 dwarf and a powder blue... At first it looked bad but I organized the tank to have 3 individual hiding spots they can claim and dropped the tank temp from like 78 or 79 to 76 ( I heard if you keep the tank a little cooler they'll chill out) Now they seem to be getting along. I'm going to fill it quite a bit more with plants and hiding spots, and I'm trying to figure out a schooling type fish, something unique and bright. I know Neon Tetra's do well in larger amounts, but I see em all the time... Something bright like that tho.

[Starfox64]

Welcome to the forum. I would choose some form of tetra because there energetic and are colourful

[Oohitsae]

What about killifish? They have tons of very cool varieties and they are generally pretty peaceful. Problem is that most don't live very long, maybe a year to 18 months max for most of them...but that'd be pretty good since you were thinking of switching to SW and using this as a sump eventually anyways.
You could also look into guppies or Endlers. They are small so you could have a pretty good amount and they are very colorful with long flowing fins, but they reproduce faster than rabbits so you'd want somewhere for the fry to go if the parents don't end up eating them all.
Neon or cardinal tetras are my favorite. Those with some German blue rams would look great, with maybe some kuhli loaches for the bottom...

There really are a ton of great choices!
Look online, see what you like best, then come back and ask if they'd work together. There are tons of experienced people here to help you in deciding!

Welcome!

[T1mb0]

Endlers seem awesome, a bit more unique to my area, and are a REALLY good looking fish. If I get a bunch in my 29 gallon should I go 2 or 3 females to each male? Or can I just go for the colorful man fest? Thank you so much for all of your greetings and advice, it's very helpful.

[Oohitsae]

Originally Posted by T1mb0

Endlers seem awesome, a bit more unique to my area, and are a REALLY good looking fish. If I get a bunch in my 29 gallon should I go 2 or 3 females to each male? Or can I just go for the colorful man fest? Thank you so much for all of your greetings and advice, it's very helpful.

There wouldn't be any issue with all males. You pretty much do whatever ration you would like. It's recommended to do 1 male to 2 females, but I keep mine in pairs, and most are sold as pairs rather than trios, I haven't noticed much of an issue, lots of chasing, but the females don't get stressed or anything by them.

[T1mb0]

Pretty sure I bought 3 fish with ich... What do I doo?!

[spiketooth]

Search ich in the fourms, you will prob find over 100 threds talking about ich. Three methods can be used which all involes raising temp. Simply raise the temp between 82-86 some people have raises it to 90. Then pwc every day with siphon hose. Another is with aquarium.salt, and third is meds. Do your research and pick what is best for you and your fish

[Coryluv]

I'd start a new thread in the "unhealthy" fish section. Read the "before posting" sticky and follow the instructions. You will get help there.