neupane00

i have a new 20 gallon bare bottom tank setup. running established filter of course. now the question is how many GBR can i put there? i heard that 2 males cant live in that small tank? i wanted that to be long term QT tank/ grow out tank. I was planning to put in like 4-5 gbr and see which one does best for about 2-3 months. how many males/females can i have there? can i have more than 1 male? no other fish there.. just some ottos i am quarantining now. and one betta. (will gbr bother betta?)

(actually if only 1 male then how come local fish stores have multiple gbr in same tank and multiple males in one tank too?)

ATKINSON

I have never kept GBR before but I think it would be best to just keep 1 as you dont know whether it will be a male or a female until later,, or you could get two if they are a proven breeding pair( expensive and you will be over stocked with lots of fry soon.) Im not sure about the betta. I think they might fight depending on the betta's personality and the GBR's personality.

Petshops keep multiple males in 1 tank because they will be sold . The male rams are not kept together permanently, just until they are sold. Also lots of LFS dont care about the conditions the fish are kept in, as long as they make money.

Also, You might want to change your title. Did you mean GBR instead of discus?

neupane00

lol.. thanks. changed the title.

ATKINSON

Ok, cool.
Any comments on my suggestions?

neupane00

i agree. and i am just planning put one pair.. or max 2 pairs (if any problem put in tank divider ?)
betta seems to be fine for now. i dont see them bother each other. thanks for the advise.

ATKINSON

Ok, glad to help! As long as you have a back up plan... If the two apirs fight you might want to return 1 pair as 10gal is not enough space for a pair of rams.

mathas

I'd be quite surprised if two pairs in a 20g tank worked out, long-term. One pair (and by pair, I mean a M/F mated pair, not just two fish) would be fine, but the footprint of a 20g tank does offer enough space for two territories of sufficient size.

ATKINSON

I agree fully with that statement!!