Hi everyone, new here thanks for letting me join. Does anyone have experience with red phantom tetras? I have a bit of disaster with my 10 gal half moon tank. I am new to the fish world, always heard "get a fish" if you want something easy. Far from truth! I have a beta in a 5 gal that i adore, but my childs father was out with my girl one day and brought home 2 fish for my 5 gal beta! I had to rush out and set up a 5 gal tank for those 2, luckily the white skirt is doimg great but i lost the red eye tetra. I didnt really want tetras, but since i had one i decided to set up a 10 gal so he could have some tank mates. Not knowing these were schooling fish, i went out to get guppies once my 10 gal was cycled. The salesman told me i would need 6 or more guppies, and since i had a tetra it would be best to get more tetras. He didnt tell me they needed to be the same! So i now have 4 completely different tetras.. a white skirt, a red phantom, a blk skirt, and a glowfish tetra my daughter insisted on in a 10 gal. So..i have yet another tank i havent set up yet, so i can add more. But i cant have 24 fish, 6 of each. It seems the red phantom really is the one that needs the larger group, and seems quite shy so i would like to have 6 alone in a tank. And their needs seem to be a little different, heavy planted tank with more acidic water. Would the others be ok in groups of 3? 3. White skirts, 3 black skirts, and 3 glowfish tetras? If not i will have to return the blk fin tetra, as he is the most aggressive of the group. The new tank i have is 15 gal, so i dont want to put more than 9, and have my 10 gal just for the red. TIA, i know i made poor decisions and im just trying to do the best for these guys i have! I dont have space for a large aquarium and hate to return to fish store and cause so much stress for them.
Red phantom
- Thread starter BobbieD
- Start date
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Ideally 6 to 8 of each. But, tetras will make the best of what they have and will school with other similar sized tetras if they dont have their own. I have the remnants of a school of black phantom tetras, down to 3 now, and they are fine. There are red phantoms (8), silver tips (10 to 12 idk they are too active to count), and cardinals (20) in there and the black phantoms do just fine. If you dont want to return fish, and cant manage 6 of each, then 3 of each mixed together is better than individual fish. You wont get to see them at their best, but you should be able to keep them healthy and happy.
On a personal note, i don't like my red phantom tetras. They don't really do very much, arent very active. I was expecting them to be more like the black phantoms in nature but with a bit of colour. The black phantom males used to have mating "fights" which are cool to watch and not harmful. I get none of that from the red phantom variety. I will restock with black phantoms in due course.
On a personal note, i don't like my red phantom tetras. They don't really do very much, arent very active. I was expecting them to be more like the black phantoms in nature but with a bit of colour. The black phantom males used to have mating "fights" which are cool to watch and not harmful. I get none of that from the red phantom variety. I will restock with black phantoms in due course.
Thanks so much. I feel better, have been overwhelmed at the thought of 24 fish. I am actually thinking of returning the red phantom and the blk tail tetra now. I want them to have a better home, and it would take too long to cycle another tank to meet the needs. Maybe a platy instead 
as i understand it, they dont really need to be in groups. And i can have more white skirts and glo, because right now all 4 seem to be on the outs with one another, not pals. Thanks again.
as i understand it, they dont really need to be in groups. And i can have more white skirts and glo, because right now all 4 seem to be on the outs with one another, not pals. Thanks again.
