Langy

i have a 39L (10gallon) tank which is planted and has a couple of large rocks in it. wondering what sort of fish combo's would work. i was thinking of 6 tetras' and 2 angel fish and maybe another 2 fish, but im unsure about the last 2? what would work and is this going to be over crowded?
any help appreciated.
cheers

capekate

Hello Langy
Im afraid your tank is overstocked with that list. You are right in assuming the Angel fish would not fit in your tank,its too large for the 10g and would be very unhappy. Sure they are tiny when you buy them but they do grow fast and they need a tall tank that is suitable for the shape of their bodies. I would think that the only tetras in the numbers you are looking at that would fit your tank would be neons or cardinal tetras. 10g tanks are just too small for a lot of types of fish. You can try glo light tetras too or a betta fish. Dont forget to cycle your tank first so as not to add stress and illness due to toxic water conditions. Do you know about the nitrogen cycle? If not you can read up on it in the freshwater beginners section.
Good luck with your new tank.

Langy

ouch! really?

it is quite a tall tank. but your sure thats overstocked? the angel fish at the store looked quite tiny, and yer they grow but hmmm. so you say just stick to the tetras? any other good combos i could have to suit my tank. yer i've heard about cycling the tank. starting that very soon. thanks

Beanz1927

Check ot this link...http://www.fishlore.com/Profiles-Angelfish.htm
You see that the minimum for 1 angel is 20G (75L)

Nick G

Maybe some Tetras and Corydora Catfish? Or Guppies and Platys?

Langy

yer but i find 20g for 1 angel on the extreme side of things. the pet shop has a couple in a tank similar to mine and they are both quite large and doing just fine. well it looks like im stuck with tetras and a couple of guppies. yay! angel fish would've been really nice. hmm my friend has 11 fish in a tank a tiny bit smaller than mine i think its 2 goldfish, 8 tetras and 2 other small fish. they are looking really healthy and she hasn't had any die yet. so are you sure thats really over crowding in my tank how long does it take an angel fish to fully grow because i might be able to get a bigger tank once there all grown up. thanks heaps guys even if its not exactly what i wanna hear.
cheers

Langy

i have a 39L tank (10 g) its planted and has a couple ornaments. it has 2 airstones and good filter etc. i need some suggestions on fish combos to fit my tank size. definatly some tetras but i would like some kind of larger fish aswell. what are some goodies that will work well.
thanks!!

capekate

Fish that are kept in tanks at the fish store are only there for a short time and can tolerate the small tanks for just so long. Store owners get away with a lot of fish in a tank because they do not plan on keeping them long.
Angelfish grow fast and their body shape with the long fins reaching up and down will scrape against the gravel in a small tank and will lead to fin rot, damaged fins, stress and disease. I have an angelfish that is almost two years old in a 29g tank with one other small fish. I would not even add another angel fish in that tank.
If you planned on getting a tall tank of at least 29g within three to four months you would be able to get away with keeping a baby angelfish but be aware that many small angel fish get along but once they mature it often leads to aggression between the two and you would have to end up separating them. Plus angel fish are very sensitive to new tank conditions and will not tolerate a uncycled tank.
I wonder how long your friend has had her tank set up with that many fish in it. Gold fish are cold water fish and produce a lot of waste, and do not require heaters, but the other fish in her tank are tropicals that do require higher temps than the goldfish can tolerate. The fish may be doing ok now, but can you imagine being cramped in an elevator with a bunch of people for a long period of time? Would you be very happy? You will survive but you would not thrive. Same thing with the fish. Stress leads to disease.
They may be ok for the short term but in the long run I see many problems with that many fish in a tank even smaller than the ten gallon.

Langy

true true. point taken. i'll lose the angels. i have a feeling they'd die on me anyway because of the water conditions. but what can i replace them with?? as you can probably see im no good with this fish thing just yet. another kind of small - medium fish thats easy to look after to go with some tetras' of course. thanks

capekate

I have merged your two thread together as they are both related to the same question and it is much easier for others to respond to one thread rather than duplicating posts in two different places.

capekate

If you like the look of a 'center piece' fish, why not try one dwarf gourami? they are a beautiful and colorful fish. You can also go with the neon tetras and get about six of them. They school around together and their neon colors really shine in a tank with a group of them.This way you would have some nice colorful and active swimming fish in your tank.

Langy

one dwarf gourami? what about 2? can't just have 1 center fish, even if it is a little overcrowded. i'll have to look into them. i take it there hardy and easy to maintain? thanks for all your help. you've probably saved me a bit of money and a bin full of dead fish. yer its a pity about my tank size. i got given it for a present so it wasn't my choice. i'll just work with what i've got.
cheers

capekate

Well, if you are seriously going to consider a larger tank within the next six months, it may not be so bad to start off with two gouramis. Its not so much a issue of whether or not the tank will be over crowded, as it is a territory issue. These fish need to feel that they own their own space somewhere in the tank. If there is no room in the tank to do this, then there is a constant aggression issue.A larger tank gives them more of an area to claim as their own without worrying about another swimming into their space. So a larger tank of course would give them the room to swim around without feeling threatened. I cannot say that I would advise two d.gourami in a ten gal tank because I want my fish to be happy no matter where they are. But if you went with two, and 6 neons then it is do-able til you think about upgrading your tank size.

Langy

yer i just read about their territory issues. would two females work or would they still have territories? i've been thinking and i believe i might go with the zebra danios's instead of the tetras. they look pretty cool and people seem to talk them up. instead of the gouramis what about platys or swordtails? two of them with 5/6 zebra's
cheers

capekate

Both platy and swords are schooling fish and get large so they really would not fit. The zebra's which I had once are nice little fish, but do not have much color and are not very 'showy'.. The brightness of the neons would make them very easy to spot, but I guess I am partial to the neons and it will come down to personal choices.

Langy

yer i guess. but they still look alright. is it true that fish will only grow to the size of their tank? or is that just a myth? thanks for the suggestions i shall be looking around for more possibilities. thanks for your help!!
cheers

eaglescout316

It's a myth. If a fish doesn't grow close to its full size, it means it's stunted due to poor conditions, and stunted growth in anything is bad.

angelfish220

I really like capekate's idea of gourami and neon tetra. It would be a very pretty tank and lots of color. I have zebra danios and they are very nice fish, but the really love to swim FAST. They dart from one side of my 55 gallon to the other in like 1/2 a second. I can't see them enjoy a smaller 10 gallon. Neons swim around and everything but not to the point were they need more room.