Pretty yet Hardy Freshwater Fish?

Sj45

Setting up 55 gallon, and Im looking for some nice yet hardy community fish...any suggestions?

Also, looking for suggested fish/animals such as algae eaters (plecos) to help keep tank cleaner.

Thanks, Sj

onefish2fish

i see where this is going, hardy fish, cleaning fish, your wanting to take the easy way out and do minimal water changes right?

Truth is there is no way out of having to change out the water and do alittle gravel vaccumming. A tank is a closed in area so nitrates are bound to build up regardless of fish selection. 10% tank volume weekly or 20% tank volume bi-weekly is a good number to follow to change. Plecos will graze algae but will not "clean" the tank, they like to nibble on driftwood and munch on occasional veggies. Good ol fashion maintnance is your best bet. If you do go the pleco route def. avoid the Common Pleco which grows to be about a foot and a half if not larger. A Bristlenose Pleco will grow to about 5-7 inches and prob. be a better choice. I would avoid ottocinclus atleast until your tank is stable and established with some algae to graze as these are sensitive. Corys always make a nice addition. They are shy and timid unless in a school of atleast 6.

BEFORE ADDING FISH, learn about cycling your fish tank. Google.com and type in "fishless cycle" to learn how the water chemistry works. To quickly sum it up, ammonia converts to nitrites which converts to nitrates which get removed by water changes. If you have trouble with the cycle please feel free to ask questions and im sure someone wont mind assisting.

After cycling a tank good starter fish would be, but certainly not limited to or all at once:
-A school of neon tetras
-Guppies, Mollies, or Swordtails
-A school of tiger barbs
-Danios

I recommend picking up a liquid test kit. API makes a decent one call the "master test kit" that sells for $25-35 in stores but about $20 online. Regardless of brand you want atleast an ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, pH and thermometer to keep close eye on your water conditions.

fishboy5000

pretty basic idea but you could get some Goldfish with cool colors

Twistersmom

Some people disagree about tiger barbs making great community fish, but they are one of my favorites! They need to be in a school of at least 6, the more the better. They are hardy, very active, and make a nice visual display when you mix the different color varietys available. They are said to be fin nippers, but keeping them in groups, I have not found them to be a problem. Also, they are fairly small, so that will leave some room open for some other interesting fish.

onefish2fish

correct on the hardy part but problem i see is that they will quickly out grow the 55 gallon as well as they are very messy fish

onefish2fish

you contradicted yourself. i personally feel they are community fish for the same reason youve stated. kept in a school/shoal of 6+ they will be more concerned about eachother rather then other fish

Sj45

So I'm looking at buying:

1 Redtail Shark
1 Angelfish
5-10 Neon Tetras
1 Pleco.
5 Tiger Barbs

I do understand water cycling, but to speed this up...I am going to use fish, which of these would be best? Looking for about 2 fish to put in until water cycling is finished.

onefish2fish

SJ i have responded to your other post.

Sj45

I saw that, thank you very much.

Twistersmom

If you are going to fish cycle with one of the fish listed above, I would go with the tiger barbs, and would get 6 instead of 5. The other fish are not recommended as starter fish. Make sure you buy a good water test kit, if you do not already have one. Good luck!