I need fish suggestions

coley

Hello all,

After searching through a bunch of posts, I'm more confused now.

My tank is cycled and I'm ready to add a couple more fish. Right now I have 5 platys in my 20 gallon with a single filter, pH is high (around 8 ) and the water is hard. I keep it at 78* with plastic plants.

I'd like to add 3 to 5 fish on Saturday and I'm not sure which ones. I was thinking 3 or 4 White Clouds and a Cory cat. How do Cory's do alone?

BTW: I'm very new at this, so I'm looking for hearty fish, but also colorful ones.

Thanks,

leifthebunny

Cories really do better in schools. 2 is ok, but the more the better.

Falina

I definitely agree! I kept 3 cories together, and sure, they seemed happy enough, now I keep 12 together and they're much happier. They're also more entertaining in groups.

A high Ph like that is good for livebearers and they come in many colours, if you take all the livebearers into account you have almost every colour in fact and they tend to be quite hardy. The only problem is that you will end up with a very overstacked tank if you have a mix of sexes and no fry control.

coley

Thanks for the info. I want to get a bottom feeder or two. Is there any that would be happy being alone or paired that wouldn't get too big?


I thought 20 gallons would be plenty big enough.....I think I see another tank in my future. I really have to choose my fish carefully.

leifthebunny

I don't think kuhli loaches have to be kept in a school. I've got just a pair in my tank.

Falina

Ancistrus or pitbull plecs will all stay pretty small, and the small plecs are better algae eaters than the bigger ones as well.

It's a bit dofferent but you could also have shrimp. If you went with cherry shrimp these would contribute very little bio-load so you could have a couple of shrimp instead of fish if you preferred.

I've heard stories both ways in terms of schooling kuhlies and I've never kept them so I can't say.

leifthebunny

I also like clown plecos. Avoid the larger plecos like Common Pleco, ... as they won't eat off the glass after a certain size.

Shrimp are a lot of fun, but the small shrimp should only stay in small school fish tanks. Cories and such are fine, they just need to be pretty small. Also, the Cardina and Neocardina family shrimps are recommended depending on what you have access to. I lucked out and just got a load of Zebra shrimp in today with two mothers carrying fry, so I had to isolate them. :) If the fish are real small, hiding areas aren't a must, but I would recommend having a Java Moss patch in your tank for your shrimp. :)

Lupin

Kuhlis are a lot less bolder when kept in lesser numbers.

coley

I think I'm going to go with the Corys. Probably 4 total. I need another female Platy, so I'll do 2 Corys and a Platy this weekend. Then 2 more after the tank settles.