This might be dumb but hear me out.

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NathanJo

Aquarium Advice Newbie
Joined
Jul 25, 2024
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I'm a semi beginner but I still need guidance. I have a 6.5 gal with 2 dwarf frogs and a nerite in it. I'm planning on moving, so when I move I want to reset my tank. If I have a heavily planted tank with a rockscape with a Fluval c3 will I be able to house 1 honey gourami, a school of 5-6 tetras, and 1m + 3f guppies, plus a couple of ghost shrimp, and 1 golden clam?
 
I'm a semi beginner but I still need guidance. I have a 6.5 gal with 2 dwarf frogs and a nerite in it. I'm planning on moving, so when I move I want to reset my tank. If I have a heavily planted tank with a rockscape with a Fluval c3 will I be able to house 1 honey gourami, a school of 5-6 tetras, and 1m + 3f guppies, plus a couple of ghost shrimp, and 1 golden clam?
In a word, No. ;) That is way too many fish for a 6 1/2 gallon tank. If you went with just the Guppies, the females will overpopulate the tank within a few months. If you went with all male Guppies or Endlers, you can put 3 or 4 males together with a couple of shrimp or the clam. The tank could hold a small school of chili rasboras or Celestial pearl danios better than a school of Tetras. I would not do the Gourami at all. Or you could go all shrimps or shrimp and clams. Another option if you like the heavily planted look, a male OR female Betta would do nicely in that kind of set up. (y)
 
If you went with all male Guppies or Endlers, you can put 3 or 4 males together with a couple of shrimp or the clam. The tank could hold a small school of chili rasboras or Celestial pearl danios better than a school of Tetras. I
Could i do 3 male guppies/endlers, 5 celestials, the 2 frogs, snail, shrimp and clam? I want a tank with a decent amount of fish without stressing the bioload.
 
Could i do 3 male guppies/endlers, 5 celestials, the 2 frogs, snail, shrimp and clam? I want a tank with a decent amount of fish without stressing the bioload.
Then you are going to need to get a larger tank. Consider this: a 6.5 gallon tank probably only holds at best 5 3/4 gallons of water when empty. Then deduct water for displacement from substrate and decorations and you are talking about only 4 to 4 1/2 gallons of actual water in the tank. That's not a lot of water which means you can't hold a lot of fish.
Fish just don't do well when cramped into small spaces with the exception of some species of Bettas.
 
6 or 7 male guppies would be heavily stocked.

And FYI, the Fluval C3 is rated for 20 to 50 gallons. Its probably more suited to the 20 gallon end of that range, but its going to be massively over sized for 6.5g. While the flow rate can be adjusted down, its still too big for your size aquarium.
 
what would you put in? (I cant get a larger one)
You could put more shrimp than fish in that sized tank OR go with the frogs ( not together with the shrimp) OR go with a male Betta OR 2 female bettas OR 3-4 male Guppies or Endlers if it were me. Your tastes may vary. ;) There are also the Celestial Pearl Danios or Chile Rasboras that would be in a small school ( 6-8) but if you go with these, they are not going to be larger fish or flashier fish color wise. There are a number of "Nano" fish but just make sure when you research them, you check the minimum tank size and how many you need to have a successful school. Depending on who you ask, any tank under 20 gallons can be considered a " Nano" tank so just because it's a "Nano" does not mean it will fit in a 6.5 gallon tank.

On a side note, what Aiken said about your filter is important. Overfiltering a small tank does not make it capable of holding more fish. It's very easy to have too much current in a small tank and most smaller fish come from more low flow/ stagnant water. For the Shrimps and Frogs, a sponge filter is a better filter for them.

Hope this helps. (y)
 
6 or 7 male guppies would be heavily stocked.

And FYI, the Fluval C3 is rated for 20 to 50 gallons. Its probably more suited to the 20 gallon end of that range, but its going to be massively over sized for 6.5g. While the flow rate can be adjusted down, its still too big for your size aquarium.
This is something I never knew. Thank you.
 
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