Tank stocking suggestions

[lexinicole]

Hey guys! I'm looking for some stocking suggestions for my tropical freshwater community tank. I am new to fishkeeping and have a 10 gallon tank. I've done a lot of research on cycling, and upkeep and the like but am finding a lot of conflicting advice on what fish go well together/how many.

I added a black Molly, a Dalmatian Molly, and a sunburst platy in there after cycling my tank for a bit, but I was just wondering what else would be a good addition to this group without overstocking. I'd really like some sort of bottom dweller that picks the leftovers up from the substrate. In addition to the fish I also have two live plants along with some small fake ones.

Any and all advice would be appreciated

 

[Sebby132]

Kuhli loaches will be very good in this tank! I'd say get 2-4!! Or you could get 2 corydoras! But Kuhli loaches are cooler, they look awesome and are always active unless they are hiding! Good luck!


Sebastian Blake

 

[dcutl002]

You are about 70% stocked for that tank. Try this link in the future: albeit not perfect, it is a good rule of thumb for stocking a tank. AqAdvisor - Intelligent Freshwater Tropical Fish Aquarium Stocking Calculator and Aquarium Tank/Filter Advisor

As far as Kuhli loaches, I wouldn't suggest them for anything smaller than a 20 long. Corydoras should be in groups of at least 4, some even recommend 6. I think i would just go with the three fish that you have now. A 10 gallon tank is basically good for shrimp tanks or a Betta tank. Pet stores push small tanks because they are inexpensive and people will buy them not knowing requirements of the fish. It's business and business = money! A good "starter" tank in my opinion is a 30 gallon tank, preferably planted. It is my opinion, and always will be that plants really increase the longevity of fish-life. According to Diana Walstad, they are like little micro filters that that take toxins out of the water.

 

[lexinicole]

Thanks for the advice guys. I think the kuhli loaches are super interesting, but there just isn't enough space for them in this 10 G tank (definitely on my list for my future, bigger tank). Plus I don't have sand in the bottom which really would be more ideal for them. I'm loving my plants so far (the tank has definitely been more stable with them included). In the future I definitely want to get a bigger tank since my options are so limited with the 10, but for now that's what I have the space and $ for in my tiny 1 bedroom apartment. Thinking about including 1 more platy and a mystery snail. What do you guys think? Have you had any experience with keeping snails? Are they more of a pain than they're worth?

 

[dcutl002]

Nerite Snails do a good job cleaning up. And yes, one more platy won't hurt.


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[Nortzy21]

I would definitely go with some Cory cats if you want bottom dwellers. I personally like peppered cories. I'd get a group of 3; no more than that since you only have a 10 gallon tank. Just keep up with water changes and make sure you have a solid filter


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[mxg5299]

The mystery snails are algae eaters and won't really eat scraps on the bottom like a Cory would. They say cories are schooling but they do perfectly fine in little groups in a small tank. It all depends if you want all individual fish or some small groups (which typically looks better).