What should i stock?

kalae

hi all

i am re-starting my established 20g. it is heavily planted with a mixture of live and silk plants, and a fairly good built-in filter. i would love a betta (male or female) or an angelfish, or basicly any form or chilid (spelt wrong?) suggestions for a stocking set-up?

thankyou xx

sik80

Do you know the pH and hardness of your water supply? This will affect the fish that are best suited

re: angels - they are social fish and are best kept in groups of 5+ individuals (or a mated pair). There is therefore not enough room in your tank for a group of them

Byron

I agree on the angels. And knowing the water. And as for Betta, I consider this a stand-alone fish, males particularly are not "community" fish so while very beautiful, I wold not use the space of a 20g for a single Betta.

When it comes to cichlids, in a 20g you will be confined to a pair of dwarfs from South America (if you have soft water, although a few will manage in slightly basic), or if hard water the shell dwelling dwarfs from the rift lakes. Knowing your water params out of the tap will help us narrow this down. And there are many smaller fish that can be combined with some of these.

Byron.

kalae

thanks for the opinion on the angels and bettas. i have seen so many different opinions on various sights, its quite confusing!!

my water source is naturally about 8, though i get it to about 6.5 (for my current fish) with Ph down. im not sure of the hardness, its soft i think.

thanks x

Byron

We have fish (and plant) profiles here where you can find info on each species including numbers to have, minimum tank size (for that fish only), compatibility, water parameters, etc. Second tab from the left in the blue bar across the top of the page. Species are arranged in their families.

Using chemicals to adjust pH in a tank with fish is highly dangerous. The pH is determined by several factors, notably the hardness of the source (tap) water. Without knowing this, it is not possible to determine how much buffering may be present. Fluctuating pH is very stressful to most fish, far worse than a steady pH even if not within the fish's preferred range. Aside from this, any chemical going into the tank will have some effect on the fish, and this is best avoided.

Provide us with the hardness and pH of your tap water. This yo can ascertain from the water supply folks, many have a website with water data posted. If they do and you don't understand it, post the link and I'll have a look. Once we know this, we can assess the sort of fish that will best suit your water, and it is always easier and safer to select fish suited to the water than trying to adjust the water to suit the fish. However, adjusting pH and hardness naturally is not difficult if that is needed, and I can explain safe natural methods once I know the hardness and pH of your tap water.

Byron.

kalae

ohkay...my god m such a novice!! haha

ok, so my water is:
KH: 53.7 ppm
GH: 71.6 ppm
Ph: 7

ammonia, nitrites, ect has always been 0, nitrates usually around 20 ppm

that helpful?

thanks! :)

Byron

I assume the hardness (GH and KH) is your tap water? That is soft as you earlier surmised, so good on that as these numbers indicate some mineral but not too much for soft water fish which you seem to be considering. Once the tank is running, the ph will naturally lower. Previously you said pH 8 for tap, here you have 7, is this tap or tank? This should lower below 7, usually within a few weeks, provided there is nothing to counter it in the tank like calcareous rock or calcarious gravel/sand, both of which will raise hardness and thus pH.

kalae

the hardness is tap water; as with the Ph. previously i had been told the ph of the tap was 8, according to my test i was told wrong! the Ph of my tank is about 6.5

Byron

That sounds what I would expect from the hardness if the tap is pH 7. This is fine on both hardness and pH for soft water fish, ideal in fact.

Christople

I might try apistos or killies.