20 Gallon Tank Stocking ideas for 20 gallon? beginner

[flopperfrog]

I have a 20 gallon high that is slightly planted, any suggestions for stocking ideas? currently i have nothing expect for pond snails, but would really like to add some cherry shrimp! (i am a beginner)
water parameters:
temp-72F
ph-7.3
nitrate-~30
general hardness-120ppm
kh-120ppm
extra info: 1 sponge filter with an airstone, fluval aquaclear 50,

 

[ahouseofscales]

So if you want cherries you'll want something that won't go after them and isn't too aggressive. Do you have any fish families that you like, i.e gouramis, cichlids, etc.? Are you looking for a community tank or more of a species tank? What's your experience level?

 

[flopperfrog]

So if you want cherries you'll want something that won't go after them and isn't too aggressive. Do you have any fish families that you like, i.e gouramis, cichlids, etc.? Are you looking for a community tank or more of a species tank? What's your experience level?

im looking for a community tank but not too many fish, and im a beginner beginner. this is my first fish tank
there arent really any fish families that I particularly like, I like all of them

 

[KayBee3]

Livebearing fish are typically recommended for beginners because they're fairly hardy. In a 20 gallon you could have a couple guppies, platies or mollies! They're super cute, active, and colorful little fish.

 

[WRWAquarium]

A group of tetras such as neons are a good bread and butter choice for a 20 gal. There are tons of species to choose from.. . Get 6 minimum, as they are social fishes. You could even do 2 groups of separate species. Other nice shoaling fish are rasboras.

Corydoras catfish are fun bottom dwellers, ideal for a 20 gal. Otocinclus are good algae eaters and a smaller pleco suxh as a bristlenose could work too.

Some of the smaller gouramis such as honey ones are a popular choice.

There are literally tons of choices for stocking fish just do research

 

[LaniKai]

What I'm currently doing with my 20 gallon High is 15-20 chili rasbora (should be shrimp safe) and 6 sparkling gourami (Some people have no problem with shrimp, others the gourami will eat all the shrimp). The shrimp can make it a little difficult for stocking options though. Also the length of the tank isn't ideal for a lot of the popular schooling fish. I would probably avoid livebearing fish with shrimp though unless you have a lot of hiding spots for the shrimp. Some other fish I think would work with shrimp would be Ember Tetra and Harlequin Rasbora.

A group of tetras such as neons are a good bread and butter choice for a 20 gal. There are tons of species to choose from.. . Get 6 minimum, as they are social fishes. You could even do 2 groups of separate species. Other nice shoaling fish are rasboras.

Corydoras catfish are fun bottom dwellers, ideal for a 20 gal. Otocinclus are good algae eaters and a smaller pleco suxh as a bristlenose could work too.

Some of the smaller gouramis such as honey ones are a popular choice.

There are literally tons of choices for stocking fish just do research

The problem with neon tetras though is the neon tetra disease. Sometimes you can get lucky but last time I got neons they all died out pretty fast. Just a little warning.

 

[KngVanhorn]

Thai Micro Crabs, Black Devil/Cappuccino Snails

 

[flopperfrog]

What I'm currently doing with my 20 gallon High is 15-20 chili rasbora (should be shrimp safe) and 6 sparkling gourami (Some people have no problem with shrimp, others the gourami will eat all the shrimp). The shrimp can make it a little difficult for stocking options though. Also the length of the tank isn't ideal for a lot of the popular schooling fish. I would probably avoid livebearing fish with shrimp though unless you have a lot of hiding spots for the shrimp. Some other fish I think would work with shrimp would be Ember Tetra and Harlequin Rasbora.

The problem with neon tetras though is the neon tetra disease. Sometimes you can get lucky but last time I got neons they all died out pretty fast. Just a little warning.

how many ember tetras would you recommend? would you be able to keep them with corydoras?

 

[LaniKai]

how many ember tetras would you recommend? would you be able to keep them with corydoras?

If you want corydoras instead of the shrimp make sure to get pygmy corydoras. The "normal" ones should have a longer tank then a 20 high. You might want to get another opinion on the exact numbers because I'm still kinda a beginner with stocking. I would think 8 pygmy corydoras, 12 ember tetras, and maybe a 1M 2F trio of honey gourami would look really nice. You could also get some amano shrimp. They get bigger then cherry shrimp so most fish don't bother them as much. You could still try to do cherry shrimp but there is a chance they will get eaten.

I know some people might recommend dwarf gourami and while they are very pretty just keep in mind a lot of them have something called dwarf gourami disease. If you wanted to take the chance then instead of the trio of honey gourami just get 1 dwarf gourami.

 

[flopperfrog]

s instead of the shrimp make sure to get pygmy corydoras. The "normal" ones should have a longer tank then a 20 high. You might want to get another opinion on the exact numbers because I'm still kinda a beginner with stocking. I would think 8 pygmy corydoras, 12 ember tetras, and maybe a 1M 2F trio of honey gourami would look really nice. You could also get some amano shrimp. They get bigger then cherry shrimp so most fish don't bother them as

why would the shrimp get eaten? i mean most of those fish are pretty small right?

 

[LaniKai]

why would the shrimp get eaten? i mean most of those fish are pretty small right?

When the cherry shrimp breed the babies are super small so almost any fish would eat them. If you have a lot of plants and hiding spots it would probably be fine. If you do get shrimp I would try to add them first so they can get settled and find hiding spots. Also another thing to be aware of with the shrimp is you might want to put a filter sponge on the intake of your filter so they dont get sucked in.

 

[kansas]

Shrimp do best if the tank has been running several months so there's algae for them to graze on.

 

[flopperfrog]

When the cherry shrimp breed the babies are super small so almost any fish would eat them. If you have a lot of plants and hiding spots it would probably be fine. If you do get shrimp I would try to add them first so they can get settled and find hiding spots. Also another thing to be aware of with the shrimp is you might want to put a filter sponge on the intake of your filter so they dont get sucked in.

yeah, i already have a sponge over the intake
what are some plants you recommend that could give a lot of hiding spots?

 

[LaniKai]

Shrimp do best if the tank has been running several months so there's algae for them to graze on.

I did forget about that. If the tank is fairly new I would add the 6 ember tetras > 6 ember tetras > shrimp > pygmy corys > honey gourami. I think that should be fine. Correct me if I'm wrong though. It would also give the plant's some more time to grow in a bit more.

yeah, i already have a sponge over the intake
what are some plants you recommend that could give a lot of hiding spots?

I know a lot of people recommend java moss. I think any type of moss would work best. Water wisteria is really nice and it gets tall pretty fast. Some crypts would also probably be good. Hornwort is pretty bushy so they would probably enjoy that. Oh and anubis on some wood is good. My amano shrimp love to hang out in that. I'm not super knowledgeable about plants but these are the ones that I can think of.

 

[kansas]

Piles of small rocks also make good hiding places for baby shrimp.

 

[Gudgie]

Since you mentioned being a beginner, just wanted to check whether you've read about the nitrogen cycle? Seems like there's a good chance your tank is cycled or at least partially cycled since there are nitrates, but wanted to make sure you've been testing ammonia and nitrites too.
Aquarium Nitrogen Cycle

Ember tetras, small cories like pygmy or habrosus, and shrimp could make for a lovely aquarium!

 

[flopperfrog]

Since you mentioned being a beginner, just wanted to check whether you've read about the nitrogen cycle? Seems like there's a good chance your tank is cycled or at least partially cycled since there are nitrates, but wanted to make sure you've been testing ammonia and nitrites too.
Aquarium Nitrogen Cycle

Ember tetras, small cories like pygmy or habrosus, and shrimp could make for a lovely aquarium!

yeah i know about the nitrogen cycle, ive been cycling my tank with nothing in it for about 2 months now and im pretty sure its fully cycled ammonia and nitries are both zero
thanks for the suggestions!

I did forget about that. If the tank is fairly new I would add the 6 ember tetras > 6 ember tetras > shrimp > pygmy corys > honey gourami. I think that should be fine. Correct me if I'm wrong though. It would also give the plant's some more time to grow in a bit more.


I know a lot of people recommend java moss. I think any type of moss would work best. Water wisteria is really nice and it gets tall pretty fast. Some crypts would also probably be good. Hornwort is pretty bushy so they would probably enjoy that. Oh and anubis on some wood is good. My amano shrimp love to hang out in that. I'm not super knowledgeable about plants but these are the ones that I can think of.

thanks for the suggestions! do you think red tiger lotus will be able to grow well? ive been thinking of getting one bc i love the colors and volume

 

[LaniKai]

thanks for the suggestions! do you think red tiger lotus will be able to grow well? ive been thinking of getting one bc i love the colors and volume

I just wanted to let you know about marcusfishtanks.com I hear it's recommended on here for plants and I recently placed a order with them. I haven't recieved it yet but if you want I can let you know if they arrived well when I get them. They have a sale going on right now so it might be good to check them out.

I haven't tried the red tiger lotus yet. I think once it starts growing it's easy but I'm not very sure. It never hurts to try it out.

I would look into some plant fertilizer to really help your plants grow well. Just make sure if you get shrimp to get shrimp safe fertilizer.

Also I think you should bump up your heater to 75F I think 72F is a bit cold for these fish.