Populating 12g NanoCube

nremondelli

I just received a 12g NanoCube and want to start populating it. I want to put some nice plants and rocks/caves in the tanks and was wondering what a nice mix of interesting fish would do well. I am also interested in shrimp or crabs that would work in the small tank.

Finally, does anyone know of a good online retailer for fish?

Thanks!

crazie.eddie

For a nano, any dwarf shrimps would be small enough to fit in a nano. I would suggest something that is difficult to breed, so that it does not overpopulate the tank, such as CRS (Crystal Red Shrimp).

As far as fish, most fish that will fit are shoaling type fish, and a nano doesn't really give them room to shoal. I could suggest Endler's livebearers (males) or even larger, a male fancy Guppy. A Guppy would probably help reduce the shrimp population, but eating the baby shrimp, if you have any.

bettababy

There are quite a few fish options for a nano if it's done right. Most of these fish will be sensitive to water quality, so I'd suggest taking your time and doing it slowly and cycling the tank as easy as possible.
white clouds
glowlight tetras
neon tetras
zebra danios
sphenops mollys
gold dust mollys
coral platys
fancy guppys
Badis badis or Scarlet Badis
killiefish
furcata rainbows
threadfin rainbows
just to name a few... obviously they can't all be mixed together, but these are all fish that would fit well into a 12 gallon nano. If you go through the list, find out what your LFS has in stock, and bring us some names, we can help you sort out what is compatible and how many will fit, the safest way to cycle the tank, etc...
In the meantime, set up the tank and let it run for 3 - 5 days without fish first. Are you planning to put a heater in the tank? If so, then all of the above fish will work... if not... then other than danios and white clouds, your choices would be nil. Ideally for the list above, 76 - 78 F will be a good temp. Get the tank ready for them while we help you sort it out and it will all go much faster for you.
We'll help you all we can.