20 gallon Long Stocking Idea

[osmiumtet]

Hi All,

I'm thinking of setting up a Central/South American tank in a 20 gallon long and I want to include a live bearer like Swordtails, Platys, Guppies or Mollies but don't want a population explosion so I'm thinking of the following stocking ideas to keep the one live bearer species(1 male, 2 female) under control.
Here it goes.

A. 1 male, 2 female (Swordtail, Guppy, Platy, or Mollie).
B. 6 Black Phantom Tetras
C. 1 German Blue Ram or Bolivian Ram
D. 1 Clown Pleco
E. 2 Cory Cat's or another suggestion (don't really know if I'm going to have Catfish but figured a couple might be a good idea).

I'm open to people's thoughts (Am I being too ambitous? ). Also any suggestions on the catfish would be welcome.

Before I forget. I will be using live plants in the aquarium. Thanks for any responses.

Cheers,
Roland

 

[AilyNC]

I think it's safer to get a group of male guppies or Endlers. I tried that ratio and now have 9 surging fry of about 20. And she's been holding and dropping new fry

 

[squidneh]

If you decide on corys, you'll need a group of at least 6. The 20g long is a great sized tank with lots of floor space for it's size. However I would still be cautious about mixing the corys and a ram as they will inhabit the same space. I'm not a live bearer person whatsoever but iirc mollies can get kind of big, so I may cross them off. Personally in a relatively small tank like a 20g long, I'd go for one species of schooling/mid level fish and have as many as I could comfortably fit.

Make sure you know your water hardness and compare it to the acceptable ranges of your intended fish, and that their preferred temperature ranges also line up.

 

[Essjay]

You have a mix of hard and soft water fish in the list. The livebearers are hard water and everything else is soft water.
You need to find out the hardness of your tap water to decide which fish you can keep. look on your water provider's website first to see if they give it - you need a number and the unit of measurement (there are several they could use).

Rams need warmer water than most fish can cope with; if you have soft water, Bolivian rams would be a better choice, just one.

 

[osmiumtet]

You have a mix of hard and soft water fish in the list. The livebearers are hard water and everything else is soft water.
You need to find out the hardness of your tap water to decide which fish you can keep. look on your water provider's website first to see if they give it - you need a number and the unit of measurement (there are several they could use).

Rams need warmer water than most fish can cope with; if you have soft water, Bolivian rams would be a better choice, just one.

Got it. Still have a lot to learn.

 

[Retired Viking]

Hi All,

I'm thinking of setting up a Central/South American tank in a 20 gallon long and I want to include a live bearer like Swordtails, Platys, Guppies or Mollies but don't want a population explosion so I'm thinking of the following stocking ideas to keep the one live bearer species(1 male, 2 female) under control.
Here it goes.

A. 1 male, 2 female (Swordtail, Guppy, Platy, or Mollie).
B. 6 Black Phantom Tetras
C. 1 German Blue Ram or Bolivian Ram
D. 1 Clown Pleco
E. 2 Cory Cat's or another suggestion (don't really know if I'm going to have Catfish but figured a couple might be a good idea).

I'm open to people's thoughts (Am I being too ambitous? ). Also any suggestions on the catfish would be welcome.

Before I forget. I will be using live plants in the aquarium. Thanks for any responses.

Cheers,
Roland

If you are thinking South American you will need soft water. I have a South American tetra tank and mix RO water in with my local hard tap water to reduce the hardness. You probably have hard water to moderately hard water living in Michigan.

 

[osmiumtet]

Revising the list based on the fact that I do live in Michigan and the water will be hard.

Here it goes:

A. 1 male guppy/ 2 female guppies
B. 1 male swordtail/ 2 female swordtails.
C. 6 Corydoras
D. 1 female Beta fish ( fry eater).

Planted aquarium. What do you guys think. I'm trying to keep it simple.

Cheers,
Roland

 

[Byron]

Revising the list based on the fact that I do live in Michigan and the water will be hard.

Here it goes:

A. 1 male guppy/ 2 female guppies
B. 1 male swordtail/ 2 female swordtails.
C. 6 Corydoras
D. 1 female Beta fish ( fry eater).

Planted aquarium. What do you guys think. I'm trying to keep it simple.

Cheers,
Roland

Do you know the actual GH? "Hard" can refer to a wide range. Also, the pH will help.

This tank is not large enough for swordtails of both sexes. This fish will reach 4-5 inches (some 6 inches), and they are active. And do not mix male/female of any livebearer unless you have plans for the fry. Not all will get eaten, as every female can drop a batch roughly monthly, and in time involve dozens. And no female betta, it is soft water but never acquire a fish just to solve a potential problem, this usually creates even more problems.

Cories depend upon the GH, but they also need a soft sand substrate.

 

[osmiumtet]

Got it. I've been trying to find water hardness information, but haven't located it yet. I get a lot of lime deposits due calcium in the water. Thanks for the information. I will rethink my plans. I haven't done anything yet. Just thinking of ideas since it's been awhile since I had fish. (Approximately 30 years). I'm much more familiar with snakes.

 

[AilyNC]

Got it. I've been trying to find water hardness information, but haven't located it yet. I get a lot of lime deposits due calcium in the water. Thanks for the information. I will rethink my plans.

Simplyfish.com is great for fish suitable hardness info.

 

[WhistlingBadger]

I advise a bunch of male guppies. Even feeder guppies can become surprisingly beautiful if given a chance to grow up and color up. And if you stick with males, no fry!