Help me choose Fish!

[Future_herp.]

I am looking into getting a 29-55 gal. aquarium soon and i don't know what to put in it. I am a beginner so I need animals that are relatively hardy. I was thinking 1-3 species and keeping them peaceful and non-territorial.

Some species I have taken into consideration:
Angelfish (not as the first thing in there, of course)
Blue gourami
some kind of large/active tetra
leopard danios

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[Alika]

Gouramis are great, but they will beat up on your tetras if the tetras don't have lots of places to hide and if the gouramis don't have other gouramis to beat up on.

Consider getting the 55 and adding different types of gouramis. I love goldens, too, and pearl gouramis are my favorite. The dwarfs aren't quite as aggressive as their larger counter parts, and will get along better with the tetras.

I'd stay away from an angel as a starter fish. They are not hardy at all... far to easy to kill them.

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[Future_herp.]

Thanks for the reply.

I wasn't gonna get the angel(s) for a couple of months at very least, thats what i meant above.
Are there any Tetras that can be in a tank with the Gouramis? I read on several sites that select species were compatible with blue gouramis but they didn't name them. I would get 4 or 5 Blues Gs is that enough for them to not pick on the little guys?

What makes the Angels so delicate? I (hopefully) will be able to create a stable environment, especially with a 55. There is an aquarium specialty shop about 2 mins from my house, and I will be getting all my supplies from there. They will probably give me help if something is wrong.

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[Alika]

Tetras... I don't know. I actually keep a few tetras with my gouramis, but you're not really supposed to. I get away with it by keeping large tetras, having lots of hiding places, and keeping them in schools (safety in numbers!)

The angel fish... when I say wait, I mean, like, a couple of years. I worked at a petstore back in the day, and I saw too many well-intentioned fish folk bring back dead angels. It got to the point where we refused to sell angels to people unless they had lots of experience in keeping them successfully.

I don't know what about them is so delicate. I know that part of it is those large fins... easy for other fish to nibble on. But I think they also like a certain amount of salt in their water, a certain kind of current (or lack of current), certain tank mates, certain space requirements, and if the chemical balance of your tank is off by even a little bit... they're goners.

[Future_herp.]

what would be a good tank mate for Blue Gouramis?

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[tmfleo1]

You can have several different species of Gouramis together kissing Gouramis, Three Spot Gouramis , Paradise fish , theres more also tiger barbs the larger tetras silver dollars, Platies which are live bearing fish

I agree with Alika about the Angel Fish get to time under your belt first if you were interested in Cicilids I'd would say then the Convicts and Jack Dempseys very easy to care for and very hardy Jack Dempseys get fairly large Aprox 10" inches where the Convicts are smaller

[Future_herp.]

Yes, I checked out an angelfish book about 1 hour ago and It says that they can take only 3-4 degrees of fluctuation and are very delicate so I am definitely gonna wait for those.

What are the specific species of tetras that are big enough?

[bleeding_sarcasm]

you should get a bunch of guppys. then get an leucistic axolotl. im about to get rid of the majority of my fish to do that. i miss having one.

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[Future_herp.]

Ha, arent those a bit difficult to care for?

Where would I get one?

How much would something THAT odd cost?

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[tmfleo1]

http://www.aqualandpetsplus.com/Tetr...r%20Tetras.htm

check out this link

[tmfleo1]

Originally Posted by bleeding_sarcasm

you should get a bunch of guppys. then get an leucistic axolotl. im about to get rid of the majority of my fish to do that. i miss having one.

I had one there very cool there are normal and albinos some tropical fish stores carry them price varies most under 20 bucks more like under 10 bucks

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[Future_herp.]

Thanks for the Tetra link Tmfleo

I wasnt serious about that. those things just dont pass the attractiveness test. Everything has to be a certain amount of "Pretty" before I get clearance for it.

[tmfleo1]

Originally Posted by Future_herp.

Thanks for the Tetra link Tmfleo
I wasnt serious about that. those things just dont pass the attractiveness test. Everything has to be a certain amount of "Pretty" before I get clearance for it.

No problem you can also do a search in yahoo or any search engine type in TETRA or you can also type in CHARACINS there is alot of info out there

[Future_herp.]

I think I will go with the Congo tetras and The Blue Gouramis.

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[tmfleo1]

OK cool might want to get a algae eater or a small plecostomus after the tank is seasoned aged lite film of algae

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[iLLwiLL]

in a 55, i would go with a solitary jack dempsy cichlid. they stay small enough to live in a 55 for life, and are one beautifull and intense cichlid. you can add in schools of the fastest teteras or silverdollars and a pleco or 2 along with a river-like theme and it would be one sweet tank.

~Will.

[Future_herp.]

Hah, remember this is my first tank.

I looked at plecos and a person on a fish forum got one and it grew to like 15" or something and it outgrew it's tank. It wont be in sun because it is going to be in a basement. I was probably going to use fake plants because of the ease, then maybe replace them with real ones as I get the whole consistency thing down.
Do I really need a uv bulb?
if not, will algae even grow?

Has anyone kept flag tail tetras or congo tetras or bengal danios or giant danios?

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[Lfsabch]

hello, my 2 cents
For sure id go with the 55gal- reason: more water to work with and will be easier to keep stable. believe it or not the 55 will be easier then a smaller tank.

if your looking for a nice community set up then id suggest a nice school of congo tetras, at the store i work at our community fish display tank has them and they are such an eye catcher when done right(male/female ratio),

Gouramis
not a bad fish when theres enough tank space(hence the 55) and also if you get females.(smaller,rounded top fin) Males are the aggressors usually. if you do Dwarf Gouramis you should be fine(dwarf, powder blue, emerald)
watch out for Pink kissers(get big and eat fish) and paradise (bite fins)

DANIOS
these little guys are just crazy fish on speed- they tend to stay near the surface and just zip around all day. not much colour but a good hardy fish though.

ANGELS
seems that if you sneeze by the tank they get sick LOL is one of the harder fish to keep so id stay away- plus they get aggressive towards newer fish u add later

ALGAE EATER
IMO the plecos are the best algae eaters for the price and size and looks, dont get the ones that get big though get:
smaller/dwarf plecos- clown pleco, ancistrus pleco, gold ancistrus pleco, royal pleco, rubber pleco,
You can also do ones like Otocinclus cats and algae eating shrimp but they will be slower and need more of them.

BARBS
most will harass fish- tiger barbs tend to chase and bite other fishes tails
good ones are the cherry barbs, redline torpedo barbs, glowlite barbs

hope this helps

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	In My Opinon IMO = In My Opinion and IMHO = In My Honest Opinion

[Future_herp.]

Thanks for the Info but just a few more q's

what if i get like 6 giant danios then 4 blue gouramis after 2 weeks?

will they get along?

is this the right number to get of each species?

Then when do I add the octolinicus (sp?)

Do I do it when algae starts to grow or 2 weeks after i get the gouramis or what

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[Alika]

That's too many fish, too fast.

If you add your fish too fast, before the biological filter in your aquarium has a chance to catch up (that's the nitrogen cycle), you will get some new tank syndrome and risk a die-off from too much ammonia. In a 55, you have a little more leeway, but I wouldn't push it.

I would start with three danios, then the next week add three more. Week three, you can add your four gouramis if everything is going well.

In week four, you might start getting some algae and that Otocinclus might make an appearance. Otos are a good choice for algae eaters, but make sure it has a good hiding place... again, to fend for itself against the gouramis.

I didn't do the math, because I don't know off the top of my head what the maximum size of those fish is, but you don't want more than one inch of fish per gallon, so make sure when you're researching this to look at the adult size of the fish and add all the inches together. You need to stay at or under 55 inches.

You only need a UV light if you are going to have live plants. Since you are just starting and plants can be difficult, I would highly recommend starting with plastic and then, if you really want plants, considering adding some slowly as you have luck with your fish.

Your fish would very much like a regular lamp during the day, and no light at night.

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