Trying to brainstorm a 20 gallon tank....

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo

cideon

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Dec 16, 2011
82
0
6
west texas
May have room for something slightly larger, but not as big as a 40 breeder for instance. If your suggestions require a long vs a high 20, please add that in :) These are species I'm interested in, and hoping a community can be made up of some of them. What combinations would work (obviously, not every fish on this list would fit with everything else, much less in a tank this size). If it's possible to keep a species tank with at least 2-3 of a type, I'd like to hear those options too, please! I would hope to hear some more suggestions on species if you think they could work in a niche of other suggestions, I mainly list these because I know they are locally available, heh.

-gouramis, any type
-german rams
-bristlenose pleco
-any small cory group?
-male or female betta
-ghost shrimp
-mollies
-platies
-male guppies
-neon tetras
-giant danios
-"glofish" danios
-killifish
-kuhli loaches


*IF* you can think of any combos including either of these, it would be awesome, just because these are fish I may have to rehome as their tankmates continue to grow and may develop aggression towards them:

-5 tiger barbs (there were 7 when I bought them, one died in quarantine, the other much later of unknown causes)
-convict (possibly male)

I have mostly only glanced at info about the listed fish, I haven't gotten to research them in-depth. So I was hoping to ask for any plausible ideas, so that I have a starting point on what to do eventually (in the space planned, I have a 10 gal divided for two bettas, so I won't be setting up anything until they pass on anyway. There's a big extra room on the sides between another tank and a bookshelf, which is how I'm estimating the future tank size.
 
You can keep a pair of rams in a 20 long. If you wanna add more try some glo danios. Observe the rams behavior. I've successfully kept a pair of cons(w/c are more aggressive than rams) in a 40g breeder community without any casualties. They just chase fish away from their territory.


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@slow302stang:
I had heard that those kinds of plecos only grow 3-4 inches, but diff suggestions on tank sizes from 20-30, so I wanted to see if I could combine them with any of my list. thanks for making sure I wasn't going to get a common pleco! :D

@japbart:
I like the idea of rams and danios, do the rams have to be a female/male pair to be successful? Would having the solitary convict instead of a pair of those be OK with something else?
 
the bristle nose plecos (ancistrus) do stay under 6". the ghost shrimp will end up being food for most other fish unless you get really small fish. Id do some small tetras and a few small cories and go from there. Rams take a little more care and like soft warm water, make sure to research them and let your tank mature before getting any if you choose them.
 
tiger barbs and cons will destroy almost anything you add... except maybe a bristle nose as suggested... also rubber lips are likely readily available and cheap. or possibly clown plecos. one of these smaller speces would be fine with your current stock.. to keep livebearers youll need to remove the con and the barbs imo. if your up for a challenge ide go with the rams and do a nice planted tank... if you want action and color go with a school of cories, and one type of live bearer ( ie guppies,platies,swords,mollies... but avoid mixing them keep only one type but maybe a few different color strains to keep it entertaining.)
 
It's up to you if u want a pair. I just enjoy watching them spawn and take care of the fry. Why don't u try kribs? I actually prefer kribs better but they grow a little bit bigger than rams. If you just want color you can keep a female krib with some livebearers. Female kribs only get aggressive when spawning and they stay small.

Try researching on apistogramma cacatuoides. They're very colorful and they stay really small too.


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