10 gallon stocking question
- Thread starter benny25
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maxpayne_lhp
New Member
Some will find 10 gal is too small for anything. I'd suggest a betta only.
alabaster
Fish Crazy
Schooling fish need more room. Period.
_FresHSquad_
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dwarfgourami
Fish Connoisseur
With small tanks there are basically 4 issues:
1) bioload. If you put too many fish or highly waste-producing fish in your filter media+bacteria will not be able to handle their waste, which results in poisoning. From that point of view you may want to work with the 1 inch of fish/gallon rule. A pair of dwarf gouramis are c. 5 inches together, so that wouldn't leave you with a lot of room for a school. High waste producers are e.g. plecos, bristlenoses; these can't go in a small tank at all.
2) territoriality. Some fish are highly territorial and can only be kept together in very large tanks or not at all. A pair of male dwarf gouramis might well give trouble.
3) swimming needs. A lot of schooling fish, like danios, are fast swimmers, so they need a long tank to be able to express themselves; otherwise they won't have a good life.
4) sensitivity to water quality. A small tank is a more fragile ecosystem and more likely to suffer from sudden fluctuations of water quality. Dwarf gouramis are often quite sensitive to water quality, and neon and cardinal tetras are definitely fish to be careful with.
I would not say you can only keep a betta in a 10 gallon, though it is definitely an option. Personally I would favour a small group of platies, which happen to be one of my favourite fish. They are friendly and inquisitive, come in all colours of the rainbow, like a bit of space to explore but do not swim very fast, so don't need a racecourse, they are not territorial (you can keep males only if you want to avoid babies) and they are hardy so can go in a new tank. You could also add a couple of male guppies. (But remember the one inch rule- platies grow to 2 inches, male guppies to at least 1 inch). Once your tank is mature, as long as it is not overstocked, you might then add an oto for the bottom.
Some people say they want something more interesting than livebearers; I don't know if it is because they are cheap and have been around a long time that people look down their nose at them; but I have to say out of the dozen or so species I have kept, they have been my favourites; they have very engaging personalities.
Am not an expert on tetras (except for neons dying on me), but if you want more information about them, post in the Characins forum. You would need ot be looking for small, not-too-sensitive tetras who are not fast swimmers.
1) bioload. If you put too many fish or highly waste-producing fish in your filter media+bacteria will not be able to handle their waste, which results in poisoning. From that point of view you may want to work with the 1 inch of fish/gallon rule. A pair of dwarf gouramis are c. 5 inches together, so that wouldn't leave you with a lot of room for a school. High waste producers are e.g. plecos, bristlenoses; these can't go in a small tank at all.
2) territoriality. Some fish are highly territorial and can only be kept together in very large tanks or not at all. A pair of male dwarf gouramis might well give trouble.
3) swimming needs. A lot of schooling fish, like danios, are fast swimmers, so they need a long tank to be able to express themselves; otherwise they won't have a good life.
4) sensitivity to water quality. A small tank is a more fragile ecosystem and more likely to suffer from sudden fluctuations of water quality. Dwarf gouramis are often quite sensitive to water quality, and neon and cardinal tetras are definitely fish to be careful with.
I would not say you can only keep a betta in a 10 gallon, though it is definitely an option. Personally I would favour a small group of platies, which happen to be one of my favourite fish. They are friendly and inquisitive, come in all colours of the rainbow, like a bit of space to explore but do not swim very fast, so don't need a racecourse, they are not territorial (you can keep males only if you want to avoid babies) and they are hardy so can go in a new tank. You could also add a couple of male guppies. (But remember the one inch rule- platies grow to 2 inches, male guppies to at least 1 inch). Once your tank is mature, as long as it is not overstocked, you might then add an oto for the bottom.
Some people say they want something more interesting than livebearers; I don't know if it is because they are cheap and have been around a long time that people look down their nose at them; but I have to say out of the dozen or so species I have kept, they have been my favourites; they have very engaging personalities.
Am not an expert on tetras (except for neons dying on me), but if you want more information about them, post in the Characins forum. You would need ot be looking for small, not-too-sensitive tetras who are not fast swimmers.
Griz
Fish Herder
deleted after some research (shoulda done that first )
)
I have a few 10G's, and I say ok.maxpayne_lhp said:Some will find 10 gal is too small for anything. I'd suggest a betta only.
I'd have 2 Dwarf Gouamis, and say 5 neon tetras. 10Gs is bigger than most people think. I use to think I could only house one gourami in a 10G. I eventually added 4. Well, it was a bit over crowded, and I put one gourami in another 10G, but my 10G still houses 3 gouramis. But that is the only kind of fish in there, except the bronze cory.
dwarfgourami
Fish Connoisseur
Maybe honey gouramis would be another option. A little smaller and I believe hardier.
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