Which fish are good fish for cycling a tank

[Noggle]

Hi! This is my first post I'm so happy I found this site!

I have no idea where to get started, but I would like to know which fish I should get first.

I was thinking 4 zebra danios and 1 neon gourami, Can you guys tell me more good cycling fish?

 

[Autumnsky]

Here are a few articles and there are things to be aware of before you get started so you can get prepared!

Fish-in Cycling: Step over into the dark side - Aquarium Advice
I just learned about cycling but I already have fish. What now?! - Aquarium Advice

If you want to consider the other option - just so you are armed with as much info as you need!
http://www.aquariumadvice.com/the-almost-complete-guide-and-faq-to-fishless-cycling/

Welcome!

 

[4thgradescience]

We did fish in cycling with 5 zebra longfin danio, 1 guppy and 1 African Dwarf frog. The guppy and frog came home from school and we had nothing to house them in. I followed the advice from the article linked above about stepping over to the dark side. It is easy to get eager and add more fish to soon. Our cycling took longer because we were not patient and added too many fish before letting the cycle happen. Lucky my family made water changes a team project which made them go faster! We did not loose any fish thankfully. We have found a great fish store (not a Petco/Petsmart) and try to get there during the week when we usually can get the best advice. We are also switching over from plastic plants to real plants. Wish we would have done that from the beginning but I did not think I wanted the extra work of live plants. Not much extra work and they really look great. Good luck!

 

[BBradbury]

Fish In Tank Cycling

Hi! This is my first post I'm so happy I found this site!

I have no idea where to get started, but I would like to know which fish I should get first.

I was thinking 4 zebra danios and 1 neon gourami, Can you guys tell me more good cycling fish?

Hello Nog...

There are a good number of hardy fish you can use. Female Guppies, Platys and Sword tails if you like livebearing fish. Zebra Danios, Rasboras, and White cloud minnows are fine if you'd rather keep egg laying fish. Gouramis aren't so tolerant of traces of nitrogen in their tank water as the others I listed. As long as you carefully test the tank water daily and remove and replace water when needed, your fish will be fine.

It would be best to study up on cycling a tank with fish before beginning.

B

 

[altidude]

I cycled a 20 gallon tank with three cherry barbs. We still have them nearly a year later.

 

[rlederer]

I highly recommend two neon gourami; they are much happier in pairs than one alone. And they are peaceful.

 

[Autumnsky]

I highly recommend two neon gourami; they are much happier in pairs than one alone. And they are peaceful.

Especially not if they are 2 males, M/F pair perhaps. In my opinion, better for after the tank is cycled.