Filter sizing

[Roxi25]

I'm going to be fish-less cycling a 20 gallon long tank. Stocking plans are Agassizii corydoras, Moenkhausia bonita, and Pseudomugil furcatas. I've decided on the Aqueous SmartClean. Would you recommend the 30-50 gallon rated or the 50-90? I'd like to have some nice sized shoals so would probably be "overstocked." I have no problem with extra maintenance. Was also thinking of adding a small sponge filter so it is seeded for quarantine tank. TIA.

 

[Aiken Drum]

I'd go with the 30 to 50 gallon size. The 50 to 90 is a bit overkill. The 20 to 30 gallon size will work as long you dont heavily stock the aquarium.

 

[Roxi25]

I'd go with the 30 to 50 gallon size. The 50 to 90 is a bit overkill. The 20 to 30 gallon size will work as long you dont heavily stock the aquarium.

Thanks. What I'd like to have is something like these numbers:
5 or 6 Corydoras agassizii
10 Moenkhausia bonita
9 (6F:3M) Pseudomugil furcata

 

[Aiken Drum]

That's a heavily stocked 20 gallon aquarium.

 

[Roxi25]

That's a heavily stocked 20 gallon aquarium.

Too much? Adult sizes are 1.5-2"

5
8
6
???

 

[Aiken Drum]

25 x 2" fish in 20 gallons is heavily stocked. If you wanted to look at what I would consider moderately or normally stocked i would look at 12 to 15 x 2" fish in 20 gallons.

The 30 to 50 gallon filter will work with the heavy stock, but its still a heavy stock and will probably require larger, more frequent water changes than normal.

 

[Roxi25]

25 x 2" fish in 20 gallons is heavily stocked. If you wanted to look at what I would consider moderately or normally stocked i would look at 12 to 15 x 2" fish in 20 gallons.

The 30 to 50 gallon filter will work with the heavy stock, but its still a heavy stock and will probably require larger, more frequent water changes than normal.

Thank you. Appreciate the input.

 

[Roxi25]

If I drop the furcatus, is there a non-schooling/shoaling pair that can go with the Cories and Bonita (or silver tip) tetras? Other than a gourami.

Tap water values:
PH = 7.4
GH = 15
KH = 13

 

[Andy Sager]

Too much? Adult sizes are 1.5-2"

5
8
6
???

The problem per say is not the number of fish as much as the location in the tank the fish will be inhabiting. Based on your numbers in post #3, you'll have 19 fish inhabiting the top water level with the cories on the bottom. That's too many fish in one level in such a small tank. To better balance the tank, choose a top swimmer, a mid level swimmer and a bottom swimmer if you want to have a higher volume of fish in the tank. Keep in mind that a 20 gallon tank can come in 20" length, 24" length and 30" length so you need to consider just how much swimming space the fish will actually have when choosing species. For example, there are some species that will do fine in a 20 gallon long tank while they will do poorly in a 20 gallon high even tho there is just a 6" difference in length between the 2 tanks.

 

[Roxi25]

The problem per say is not the number of fish as much as the location in the tank the fish will be inhabiting. Based on your numbers in post #3, you'll have 19 fish inhabiting the top water level with the cories on the bottom.

Based on stuff I found online I thought the Furcatus would be more near the top, and tetras the middle.

It's a 20 gallon long 30". But I'll drop the furtatus. Ideas for maybe a centerpiece fish?

Forgot to say I plan on having some live plants

 

[Roxi25]

To better balance the tank, choose a top swimmer, a mid level swimmer and a bottom swimmer if you want to have a higher volume of fish in the tank

Been trying to find that combo and having a difficult time with my water parameters. Suggestions are welcome for species compatible with the Cories.

 

[Andy Sager]

The M. bonita are a new Tetra to me so I did a little digging and in the wild, they are found closer to the surface because they eat terrestrial bugs so you have to assume that they will also be top level dwellers in a tank.
I'm not a fan of a single " centerpiece" fish but rather fish species that inhabit all the levels of the tank so the tank looks "full" but doesn't need a lot of fish in numbers to achieve this. You might want to look at the smaller Lambchop Rasboras ( Trigonostigma espei). These are just a smaller version of the Harlequin Rasboras. A nice sized school (6-10) of these fish can help fill out a tank. Other Tetras to consider would be Embers, Glo-lites, Black Neons and Penguins. Penguins are a " special" case in that they do get a little large for a 20 long if they were active swimmers but they basically stay in one area looking like hockey sticks ( ) so you trade fish size for tank space needed. The other Tetras mentioned are active swimmers so you need to be more careful on how many you put in.
Another suggestion would be to go to your local fish shop just to see what fish are swimming in the mid levels of their tanks then do some some research whether they would fit with your water. Observe the fish from a distance because many fish will come to the surface when they see a person because they think they are going to get fed. If they have some, study their display tanks to see what fish are hanging in the mid level of the tank.

Hope this helps.

 

[Roxi25]

Hope this helps.

I've been researching fish using Aquadiction and Fish-i-pedia. They always list the water parameters. When I see one that might work I google videos to see how they swim in aquariums. I wanted to keep the size of fish maxed at 2" so I could have schools or shoals. On "paper" some look good, but not in person. I was looking at Endlers as a top level swimmer, but finally saw some at my LFS and they are TINY! I doubt I'd see them in my tank from across the room.

I was waffling between Pristella maxillaries and Haasemania nana when I came across the Bonita. The site said they were more peaceful than the Silver Tip.

This video got me interested in the Bonita

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=329032795005399

Click on the Facebook link and it will play.

 

[Andy Sager]

Researching fish online can be a little tricky. Most of the information you read online is for wild caught fish but what you most likely get are farm bred fish so they are no longer coming from wild water parameters. Case in point, Florida fish farms, where many Tetras are bred and raised, do not have soft acidic water. So the fish have adjusted over the years to a different water parameter. Angelfish are another fine example. They come from soft acidic and even blackwater conditions and yet I bred and raised more than 1 million of them in Florida's hard alkaline water. So make sure you are comparing apples to apples and not apples to oranges.

 

[Roxi25]

I hear ya. Thanks.

 

[Roxi25]

Thinking Pristella maxillaris and Black Neons with the Cories