20 gallon long compatability/stocking help

thenewguy

So now my tank has 3 additional members:2 Julii Corys and 1 Otocinclus. So the full stock so far is as follows: 3 bloodfin tetras 2 julii corys and 1 oto. In the future, i want to add at least 2 more corys. I also want some more bloodfins. Can i mix another tetra species with my 3 bloodfins or do they need members of their own species to be more "consent"? So pretty much i want a good combination of catfish and tetras and hopefully a more diverse tank if the bloodfins will enjoy the company of other species.

thekoimaiden

Any tetra you have in your tank needs at least 6 of the same species. You will need to increase the numbers of your bloodfin school before you add another school. Your cories also need a larger school. Four or five makes a small but nice cory school. So go ahead and add two or three more cories. Your oto also needs some company; like the cories, they need schools of four or more.

thenewguy

ty thekoimaiden. I never knew otos needed schools. everytime i see someone elses tank there oto looks fine on their own...i will be adding 2 or 3 more cories. would my tank be too overstocked with 6 bloodfins, 4 or 5 juliis and 1 oto? i dont plan on getting another oto until i see any "signs"
signs of the oto needing a friend that is.

thekoimaiden

A school of bloodfin and a school of cories won't overstock your tank. All of these fish have rather small bioloads.

One of the reasons you don't see more than one oto at a time is they are very secretive. Some people can add them to tanks and not see them for months. I opted out of getting them for just this reason.

jaysee

If you "notice" a problem with the oto, it's likely too late to do anything about it. Remember, just because a fish is off by itself doesn't mean that it doesn't take comfort in having numbers in the tank.

You have room for proper schools of all three, and maybe a Honey Gourami for a centerpiece fish.

newtchaplin

Rummy nose tetra's, Harlequin Rasbora's, Add a couple more Otto's, You can also get a pleco.

thenewguy

thx guys. i am sorry to inform that my oto died yesterday for unknown reasons. luckily i have the reciept for where i bought him and i can get a new fish. it is still very sad though... :( so if i had 6 bloodfins, 5 corys, and 4 otos my tank would be full? And like one of you said ( couldnt remember name :/) i might be able to get a Honey Gourami?

EDIT: instead of a school of otos, could i get a Bristlenose Pleco? my LFS has one left

newtchaplin

Bristlenose Pleco only grows 8", Honey Gourami 2", otto's 1", bloodfin 2", cory's depending on what kind 2-8".

you can have 4 Bloodfin Tetra's 8", 1 Bristlenose Pleco 8", up to 3 peppered cory's.

or 6 bloodfins, and 1 Bristlenose Pleco.

or 1 male Honey Gourami 2", 1 male Dwarf Gourami, 4 bloodfins, and 4 cory's.

or 1 Honey Gourami 2", 1 Bristlenose Pleco 8", 3 bloodfins, and 3 cory's.

thenewguy

ok. the kind of cory i have is julii which grow to 2" max. and on this site the profile for the Bristlenose Pleco says that it would be fine with other fish in a 20 gallon. plus with 3-4 otos instead of the pleco, the total inch value would be 6-8 sooo.... bristelnose pleco would be a fine substitute for otos IMO.

EDIT: newtchaplin, it says ur tank has only 2 otos, are they doing fine in a small group? maybe i could just put two of those in?

thekoimaiden

I would probably go for the otos over the pleco. Pleco tend to have a very large bioload and are basically poop machines. They also stray away from algae when they get older and need more meat in their diets. Otos are true algae eaters that will keep your tank clean for life.

If you went with those, a good stocking plan would be: 5 cories, 4 otos, 7 tetra, and 1 Honey Gourami. Putting two male gourami in a tank of this size is not a good idea as they will not have sufficient space to establish territories.