Changing my Stock

[Bettafanatic]

Hello! I just have a quick question. My original stock for a 38 gallon was this:

6 platies
7 cory cats
9 neon tetras
1 betta fish

But I feel like the middle of the tank would be a bit empty with only one school, so can I make the neon tetra school smaller, to six or something, and then add another school of different fish like more tetras? Like rummy nose tetras or gold neon tetras? Could I do that to make the tank a little more full, or would I then be overstocked?

 

[librarygirl]

Actually I'd reduce the platy number if anything; they are rather messy fish and will contribute to your bioload more than the tetras would. I'd go down to 4 platy and add 6 of another school, rummynose or gold neons. Also bettas are hit and miss with community fish; it may go after the other fish, particularly the platys which have some large fins. Add the betta last but have a back-up plan for it if it doesn't work out.

 

[Bettafanatic]

That's too bad about the platies. I have four and a lot of fry, so I was hoping to keep some of the babies from my first ever batch of fry. It's okay, I can just sell them all.

I've got a backup plan for the betta fish as well. It's hard to not when everyone reminds me lol.

So I'll start planning out what fish I want for the second school. How much should I reduce the original neon tetra school?