15 Gallon Stocking Ideas

[dawi03]

Hey guys I have a 15 gallon 50 x35x35cm tank I’ve just set up.

The scape will be different I’ve got a heap of anubias coming this was just to get it cycled.

I’m looking for some stocking suggestions if anyone has a tank similar at all?

I was thinking an apisto pair and some dither pencilfish or something but I’m not completely sold on this. Id like the tank to have some life in it

Any suggestions are welcome!!

Thanks!!

 

[Andy Sager]

If you go Apisto and dithers, you can try some Tetras as the dithers which will add more movement than the pencilfish would as well as some shimmer. I've also kept and bred Microgeophagus ramerizi in 10s and 15 gals so that's another choice instead of Apistos. There are also some micro rasboras or Lambchop rasbora (Trigonostigma espei) or other small Tetra species like Glo-lites, Embers, green neons ( regular neons like cooler water than most Apistos or Rams) or flame tetras.
Hope this helps.

 

[dawi03]

If you go Apisto and dithers, you can try some Gold Tetras as the dithers which will add more movement than the pencilfish would as well as some shimmer. I've also kept and bred Microgeophagus ramerizi in 10s and 15 gals so that's another choice instead of Apistos. There are also some micro rasboras or Lambchop rasbora (Trigonostigma espei) or other small Tetra species like Glo-lites, Embers, green neons ( regular neons like cooler water than most Apistos or Rams) or flame tetras.
Hope this helps.

oh thankyou!! id love to try rams! i didnt think the tank would of been big enough though. i have had ember tetras before but they are a bit boring imo, ill look at the other options for sure!

 

[Andy Sager]

oh thankyou!! id love to try rams! i didnt think the tank would of been big enough though. i have had ember tetras before but they are a bit boring imo, ill look at the other options for sure!

Most groups that I've read say that Apistos should be in a 20 long for the 30" length so that there can be more than one female to keep the males from getting too aggressive courting the one female. Often times, if given multiple hiding spots, the male will spawn with all the females in the tank. The problem is there really shouldn't be other fish in the tank because the male will be defending a larger area. With Rams, both parents usually guard the eggs and they will spawn out in the open. ( I use small clay pot saucers for them to spawn on. ) The only issue that comes with rams is if the dither fish try to eat the eggs. This is where the pair could get aggressive. Personally, I never used dithers with rams, just multiple hiding spots for the fish to hide if they were " not in the mood" .
Something you should know with cichlid pairs of any size, they will defend their nests from any other fish and if they successfully spawn, the brood will quickly outgrow the smaller tank. If you are not interested in having multiple tanks, I strongly suggest against getting pairs but getting a single fish of a specie then build around it.

 

[dawi03]

Most groups that I've read say that Apistos should be in a 20 long for the 30" length so that there can be more than one female to keep the males from getting too aggressive courting the one female. Often times, if given multiple hiding spots, the male will spawn with all the females in the tank. The problem is there really shouldn't be other fish in the tank because the male will be defending a larger area. With Rams, both parents usually guard the eggs and they will spawn out in the open. ( I use small clay pot saucers for them to spawn on. ) The only issue that comes with rams is if the dither fish try to eat the eggs. This is where the pair could get aggressive. Personally, I never used dithers with rams, just multiple hiding spots for the fish to hide if they were " not in the mood" .
Something you should know with cichlid pairs of any size, they will defend their nests from any other fish and if they successfully spawn, the brood will quickly outgrow the smaller tank. If you are not interested in having multiple tanks, I strongly suggest against getting pairs but getting a single fish of a specie then build around it.

Ive got a waterbox peninsula mini 25 im thinking of transferring everything to as it will give me an extra 20l of water.

its going to be a semi community tank so id like to have some other fish in the tank instead of just bottom dwellers

 

[Andy Sager]

Ive got a waterbox peninsula mini 25 im thinking of transferring everything to as it will give me an extra 20l of water.

its going to be a semi community tank so id like to have some other fish in the tank instead of just bottom dwellers

It's not about water volume. It's about floor space. For example: a 1000L tall tank can not hold the same amount or types of fish that a 1000L long tank can even tho they are the same volume of water. Schooling fish need space to swim and they swim left to right or right to left. They don't usually swim up and down. Territorial fish need spaces for territories or else they can take over an entire bottom level of a tank. So keep all this in mind when choosing your stock.

 

[Colin_T]

What is the GH (general hardness), KH (carbonate hardness) and pH of your water supply?
This information can usually be obtained from your water supply company's website (Water Analysis Report) or by telephoning them. If they can't help you, take a glass full of tap water to the local pet shop and get them to test it for you. Write the results down (in numbers) when they do the tests. And ask them what the results are in (eg: ppm, dGH, or something else).

Depending on what the GH of your water is, will determine what fish you should keep.

Angelfish, discus, most tetras, most barbs, Bettas, gouramis, rasbora, Corydoras and small species of suckermouth catfish all occur in soft water (GH below 150ppm) and a pH below 7.0.

Livebearers (guppies, platies, swordtails, mollies), rainbowfish and goldfish occur in medium hard water with a GH around 200-250ppm and a pH above 7.0.

If you have very hard water (GH above 300ppm) then look at African Rift Lake cichlids, or use distilled or reverse osmosis water to reduce the GH and keep fishes from softer water.