Brand New Here

[shutson06]

Hi

New member here, seems like a good place with a lot of friendly people and valuable knowledge. Just got a 55g tank from a friend already cycled, added some plants(14), white sand (new sand with some that was already in tank now has atleast 2in across bottom), came with some zebra and tiger nerita snails (5 total) and some left over ghost shrimp he used to feed his fish.

So now on to my question(s).

I like Dwarf Gourami and Flame Dwarf Gourami and would like them to be my centerpieces. 1 of each if possible I have another tank to put one in if they don't get along. Anyways other stocking ideas for my tank include:

5 Cherry Barbs
5-10 cardinal or neon tetras
5 harlequin or axelrod rasboras
5 x-ray pristella tetras

Is this too much? I know not to introduce them all at once but over the course of weeks/months. I also know that I need some bottom feeders/algae eaters besides just snails but I'm not a big fan of Plecos. Any suggestions for that as well as any input about my selection of fish or some that might go good with the ones I have is greatly appreciated.

 

[Chiroptera]

I know a lot of gouramis don't get along with eachother, but you can always try, just make sure that you have a separate tank or a receipt to return them if they start having issues with eachother. Since there's only five fish and some shrimp in the tank now, you should have room for at least two out of the four on the list, but I'm not great with tetras so I'll leave that to someone else to answer.

Also, with the sand, be careful. I don't know if you know already, but you have to run your fingers through it every now and then to release harmful gas and bacteria that build up under the top layer, so it doesn't get to bad levels.

There are some nice catfish species that aren't corys or plecos that work as a cleanup crew, but I'm not a fan of having algae eaters in my tank right now, so I couldn't name them. There are some plecos, though, that have beautiful patterns, not just the dull brown ones. It could be something worth looking into?

 

[mr.waffles1842]

Hi

New member here, seems like a good place with a lot of friendly people and valuable knowledge. Just got a 55g tank from a friend already cycled, added some plants(14), white sand (new sand with some that was already in tank now has atleast 2in across bottom), came with some zebra and tiger nerita snails (5 total) and some left over ghost shrimp he used to feed his fish.

So now on to my question(s).

I like Dwarf Gourami and Flame Dwarf Gourami and would like them to be my centerpieces. 1 of each if possible I have another tank to put one in if they don't get along. Anyways other stocking ideas for my tank include:

5 Cherry Barbs
5-10 cardinal or neon tetras
5 harlequin or axelrod rasboras
5 x-ray pristella tetras

Is this too much? I know not to introduce them all at once but over the course of weeks/months. I also know that I need some bottom feeders/algae eaters besides just snails but I'm not a big fan of Plecos. Any suggestions for that as well as any input about my selection of fish or some that might go good with the ones I have is greatly appreciated.

First off, WELCOME TO AA!!! We are all happy to have you here! 55 gallon? Good for you! I cant get anything past a 30, so i have like 8 tanks. Anyway, i know you're gonna have a great ride keeping fish.

As for your questions, heres what i have to offer.
it is possible to house 2 gouramis if you have a big enough tank. 40 or more should be safe for them to stake out territory, and a 55 gallon is perfect. However, i advise against DG. These gouramis are very susceptible to dwarf gourami disease. VERY suscpetible. They die pretty quickle unless housed with proper care and nursing. YOu could try bettas, of honey dwarf gouramis.
theyre great centerpiece fish.

AS for the schoolers, keep away from the neon tetras. Cardinals are far more attractive and twice as resistant to disease. I have a school of 6 in one of my tanks and they are beautiful fish. Also for a second choice, ive never kept xray pristellas. Id advise the cherry barbs. Cute, hardy little guys. Or the harlequins. Always a favorite.

finally, you should never "need" any type of fish. If you want some bottom feeders, then thats great! if they eat some leftover food, thats a bonus. If you get them for the sole reason of cleaning up leftovers, whats the point of keeping fish right? That speaks as a lazy aquarist. And the snails will eat any algae that appears just fine.

Assuming you follow our advice and get 2 schools, stick with what u already have, and get 2 anas (gouramis or bettas), you have a little more wiggle room. Im not sure, cuz ive never kept fish in such a large aquarium. Hoping someone with more EXP will come along in that department.

 

[Chiroptera]

First off, WELCOME TO AA!!! We are all happy to have you here! 55 gallon? Good for you! I cant get anything past a 30, so i have like 8 tanks. Anyway, i know you're gonna have a great ride keeping fish.

As for your questions, heres what i have to offer.
it is possible to house 2 gouramis if you have a big enough tank. 40 or more should be safe for them to stake out territory, and a 55 gallon is perfect. However, i advise against DG. These gouramis are very susceptible to dwarf gourami disease. VERY suscpetible. They die pretty quickle unless housed with proper care and nursing. YOu could try bettas, of honey dwarf gouramis.
theyre great centerpiece fish.

AS for the schoolers, keep away from the neon tetras. Cardinals are far more attractive and twice as resistant to disease. I have a school of 6 in one of my tanks and they are beautiful fish. Also for a second choice, ive never kept xray pristellas. Id advise the cherry barbs. Cute, hardy little guys. Or the harlequins. Always a favorite.

finally, you should never "need" any type of fish. If you want some bottom feeders, then thats great! if they eat some leftover food, thats a bonus. If you get them for the sole reason of cleaning up leftovers, whats the point of keeping fish right? That speaks as a lazy aquarist. And the snails will eat any algae that appears just fine.

Assuming you follow our advice and get 2 schools, stick with what u already have, and get 2 anas (gouramis or bettas), you have a little more wiggle room. Im not sure, cuz ive never kept fish in such a large aquarium. Hoping someone with more EXP will come along in that department.

Just make sure you don't get two male bettas.. Even with the space, if they wander and happen to find eachother.. Nasty buisiness. Two females may work with that much space, though, but sometimes they are a bit aggressive. Worth a try.

 

[shutson06]

Honey gouramis look good even though I like dwarfs better its prolly a good idea to go with 2 Honeys. Thanks for the tips on everything guys. I'll get the cardinals instead of the neons.

Not lazy i just thought that was a general rule of thumb...I think I'll try to bottoms and keep with my usual weekly maintenance. Maybe add some coreys.

So can i not have 4 schools? (cherry barbs, cardinal tetras, harlequin rasboras & x-ray pristella tetras) or should I stick with 2? Even though I'm sure they will school with each other somewhat.

Also should I introduce one of the schools or the pair of honeys first? Only other tank is a 20g and never even crossed my mind but one school/2 honeys will still look so small in the tank by themselves, but I know not to introduce a lot at once.

 

[Chiroptera]

Honey gouramis look good even though I like dwarfs better its prolly a good idea to go with 2 Honeys. Thanks for the tips on everything guys. I'll get the cardinals instead of the neons.

Not lazy i just thought that was a general rule of thumb...I think I'll try to bottoms and keep with my usual weekly maintenance. Maybe add some coreys.

So can i not have 4 schools? (cherry barbs, cardinal tetras, harlequin rasboras & x-ray pristella tetras) or should I stick with 2? Even though I'm sure they will school with each other somewhat.

Also should I introduce one of the schools or the pair of honeys first? Only other tank is a 20g and never even crossed my mind but one school/2 honeys will still look so small in the tank by themselves, but I know not to introduce a lot at once.

If the school is over 4, add 3 or 4 at a time, and wait a few days. Your tank will need to adjust to the added bioload. But I'd do the schools first, I'm not sure if the honeys will do well if they're introduced to a tank with less fish, only to have more added.

 

[jetajockey]

I'd just do each entire school at a time. A tank that size isn't going to be drastically impacted by a few more small fish each addition.

 

[emerald76]

If going with cories I reccomend peppered
I love mine! Or sterbai or three lined
All cories require a school of 5 or more

 

[Coursair]

Neons are usually easier to keep than Cardinals IME. They are tank bred and can handle a wide range of conditions. Cardinals can be very sensitive and sometimes are wild caught. YMMV
I love both.

Just find out where the fish come from and make sure all the fish in the tank look good before you buy.

I love Corydoras. Make sure you feed them their own diet. Meat based sinking foods and frozen foods. Planet Catfish has a ton of info.

 

[J-T-T]

Welcome!!!!!!
Cherry barbs are fun but watch out for male/female ratio. I started with 3 (1 male and 2 female) just to give my neons some buddy's in my 20g. Now I have 9 barb babies ( all different ages) and they just keep showing up.
I moved everyone into a 55g and left my babies in my 20g till they get bigger but just going two new babies in my 55g. Have fun!!