20 Gallon, What Fish?

[Mc-B]

Okay hi there. So im thinking of maybe putting together a 20 gallon fresh water tank. I was wondering what fish i should start with. And what sort of stuff i will need to include such as filters etc.

Im interested in neon tetras, platys, and angle fish.

Any suggestions would be really helpful.

Thanks

 

[ox5477]

Well it all depends on what you like. Look through the Fish Species Index here on TFF and then members might be able to advise you on if it may be possible to stock that species of fish in your tank.

 

[waterdrop]

Hi there Mc-B, You don't say whether you are a rank beginner or have had past experience. If you plan to have the betta you list then that will have to be taken into account in your other fish choices. Usually bettas are kept in tanks by themselves but not always and there are plenty of people and threads here to help with that.

Again if no experience, I've always found that a few zebra danios (not the big ones) are a super-hardy fish to spearhead a tank that still might have some water chemistry issues come up.

It is certainly possible to enjoy this hobby without a lot of technical worry but personally I think you will enjoy it a whole lot more if you DO get into all the tech details and if you do it before you have actual fish to worry about. There are a ton of great articles pinned at the top of these forum groups. It takes great patience to absorb all the info but that turns out to be great training for maintaining a good tank I think.

Good luck and hope you have fun and tell us about it!

 

[Mc-B]

Hi there Mc-B, You don't say whether you are a rank beginner or have had past experience. If you plan to have the betta you list then that will have to be taken into account in your other fish choices. Usually bettas are kept in tanks by themselves but not always and there are plenty of people and threads here to help with that.

Again if no experience, I've always found that a few zebra danios (not the big ones) are a super-hardy fish to spearhead a tank that still might have some water chemistry issues come up.

It is certainly possible to enjoy this hobby without a lot of technical worry but personally I think you will enjoy it a whole lot more if you DO get into all the tech details and if you do it before you have actual fish to worry about. There are a ton of great articles pinned at the top of these forum groups. It takes great patience to absorb all the info but that turns out to be great training for maintaining a good tank I think.

Good luck and hope you have fun and tell us about it!

Well i dont plan on putting the betta in the 20 gallon freshwater aquarium.

I searched the zebra danios and im kinda interested in them. The other kinds of fish im interested in are the neon tetras, platys, and angle fish. By any chance could these fish be kept together?

Any comments and information would be really helpful and appreciated

 

[littlest]

angels with neons are generally a no-no as neon tetras are natural food for angels in the wild.
The other thing with angels is they need a tall tank. Not kept them personally, so I don't know the exact requirements but I have a feeling a standard size 20G isn't tall enough.

I think neons, platys and danios should be OK together, though you might want to seek confirmation on that from a more experienced member.
If you are looking for a centre-piece-type fish, you could consider German Rams. You wouldn't want to add these for a while though as they are sensitive to water conditions and need a mature tank.
Some of the smaller gouramis could be good as a centre-piece fish too. maybe have a look and see what you like (check out the gourami forum).

like someone else mentioned, you don't say if you have any experience or not. If you're a beginner I#d recommend you check out the sticky about fishless cycling (even if you have experience it may be worth a look, might learn something new)

 

[chicklette]

Welcome! I recommend reading on the nitrogen cycle first. After your tank is cycled then you can add fish. So you really need to do some research on the cycling process and you need a test kits, liquid, the dip sticks are not very accurate. You need ammonia, nitrite, nitrate (the main ones) and ph. Other recomendations to have on hand is phosphhate (if you keep plants), calcium, iron, total hardness, general hardness, total hardness, chlorine & chloramines

Be sure to add a water conditoner if you don't. Everyone here suggests prime.

Some suggestions on fish are;

The neons will not be compatible with the angels as they can be quite nasty and eat your neons. I have a 75 gallon angelfish and they are stunning and I keep them only with other angels. So it’s a community angel fish tank, just gorgeous.

You can add one angel (because they get big) and add just a other medium sized fish. Fish that MAY work plays, gouramies, tetras, scissortail, giant danios, cherry barbs and a very mild-mannered cichlid like rams, kribs –only get one of each as if you have a male and female they may start breeding and the crap will hit the fan.

The main problem with mixing fish with goldies is the temperature. Goldies are coldwater fish where as oter fish need heat to thrive.

Personally I would stick to just a goldie tank with a few cherry barbs. You could add another fancy goldie in there and absolutely nothing else. Stay away from the bigger goldies like shubbies, telescopes (they could handle a 20 gallon with out anything in it) and comets.