10 Gallon Query

[RexDarr]

Hello everyone!
I purchased a 10 gallon tank about a month ago (it was a house warming present to myself), and I've run in to a couple issues:
1). I have a few live plants (I'm not sure on the names but I'll attach a photo as soon as I can), and most of them are doing well aside from a carpeting Monte Carlo I purchased about a week ago. It's slowly spreading but the leaves are dying as it spreads. Is that normal? I purchased the best lights I could get to aide plant growth but it seems to be doing more harm than good.
I have a timer for my tank that keeps the lights on 9 hours a day.
2). I added an apple snail about 2 weeks after I got the tank going. She's doing really well and zooms around the tank all day. I'm starting to get some algae build up but she isn't really eating it but rather avoiding it completely. I would like to add some Otocinclus' to the tank but I fear I may be overstocking the tank. Currently I have:
- apple snail
- 2 brilliant rasboras
- 3 neon tetras
I would like to add my betta in there too but that may be too crammed.
3). The gentleman at the fish store I bought my rasboras and tetras from said that they will school together because they're around the same size. Can anyone confirm? When I put them in the tank they stayed together but now they're all doing their own thing. The neon tetras stay together but the rasboras swim around by themselves. Will this cause issues down the road?

Thank you in advance for your help. This is the first time I've done a fully planted aquarium. I'm hoping to make a majestic paradise for my fishies without cramming them or making them uncomfortable

 

[Masha]

I can't answer all your questions, but let's see if I can help with some of them.

Skipping the plant question

2) Apple snails don't usually do much to reduce algae. Mine eat veggies and the algae prospers If you have an algae problem, most creature-based solutions don't really work. Especially in a small tank like yours. If you have an algae problem, start with the basics - e.g. reduce the length of time your lights are on, introduce fast growing floating plants to compete for nutrients, and possibly feed less. In other words, get the creatures you want for other reasons than algae reduction

I would not add any more fish at present. Your brilliant rasboras might be small the moment but they are very active fish and ideally need a bigger tank. Some fish get aggressive if you put them in too small a tank (that happened to me with some harlequin rasboras in a 10 gallon) so maybe first see how things settle in.

I would not add a betta to that tank. While it can depend on the betta personality, most don't like sharing with other fish (mine even hassles my apples snail!) and you might end up with a tank full of nipped, stressed fish.

3)I don't think you are going to see schooling behaviour in your small tank. The numbers are too low and anyway, from what I've seen most fish don't really school unless they are scared. They'll just spread out and do their own thing around the tank. I wouldn't worry about it.

 

[Laeris]

Hello everyone!

Currently I have:

- apple snail

- 2 brilliant rasboras

- 3 neon tetras

I would like to add my betta in there too but that may be too crammed.

3). The gentleman at the fish store I bought my rasboras and tetras from said that they will school together because they're around the same size. Can anyone confirm? When I put them in the tank they stayed together but now they're all doing their own thing. The neon tetras stay together but the rasboras swim around by themselves. Will this cause issues down the road?



Thank you in advance for your help. This is the first time I've done a fully planted aquarium. I'm hoping to make a majestic paradise for my fishies without cramming them or making them uncomfortable

You're good, Rex! Get your three ottos! Go ahead and see if your betta can get along with everyone else. If not, take him back out. Bettas with community fish is on a case by case basis. Some bettas can play well with others, others are reclusive and yell at the kids to get off their lawn.

As for the tetras and rasboras, I've just added 2 galaxy rasboras and 4 (fire? flame? red line?) tetras to my 5g today. They're split as well, for all they stuck together in the aquarium at the shop. I'm going to wind up getting more because I want them to feel secure, happy and healthy.

What kind of filtration are you running, carbon filled floss, sponge, something else? The exact brand and model will help figure out how far you can stretch before the elasticity of the bio-ecosystem breaks and flips you the bird. http://aqadvisor.com is a handy little tool that gives a decent estimate based on tank size, gph of your filter and what you put in your tank. I recommend using exact tank measurements vs the programmed models. It does not take the filtration effect of plants or different types of media into account, per se, so it really is a simple general guide to help you make decisions.

There are people who'd yank my responsible aquarist card for stocking any more than a handful of fish in my nano tank. But I've gutted my 30gph filter, after my tank cycled replaced carbon with a Purigen 100ml, ceramic bio rings (present during cycle, below Purigen pouch) and topped the whole mess with two sections of floss (currently both present during cycle--they ugly!) so when I replace one, there's plenty bacteria present to prevent a disaster. I also have a cycled, low pop backup tank in case I'm horribly wrong XD Maybe I'll keep tetra in one and gr in the other, who knows!

The point is, if your tank has a healthy bacteria colony, experiment away. Don't neglect your chemistry and adjust as needed. Everyone has their own comfort levels, their own pet theories. What is boils down to is chemistry, the health of your charges and your own sense of what you'd like to build.


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[RexDarr]

Sorry for the delay! Here is a picture of my tank (before I added the fish)

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