55 Gallon Stocking Help

[YewBush]

My parents are going to let me upgrade from a 20 gallon to a 55 gallon. However, I am required to get at least 10 more animals for the tank. I can't put in any more gastropods because somebody in my family is scared of them. In my 20 gallon, I currently have:

1 female bristlenose pleco
1 female betta
1 (old) nerite snail

My betta is weird because she tends to stay near the bottom of the tank and eat algae. Also, the snail is nearing 2 years of age. I don't want any animals that are too difficult because for the most part, I have only ever taken care of bettas. The bristlenose pleco is the only fish I have ever taken care of which is not a betta. I was thinking about getting some dwarf crayfish and rasboras. Does anybody have any ideas? Thank you!

 

[HoldenOn]

Do you know your water hardness?

 

[YewBush]

Do you know your water hardness?

No. I did not get the tank yet. I'm going to get it soon, though.

 

[Seb2502]

If you have a lower ph. I suggest a school of cardinal tetras. I have them with a male betta which isn’t advised but seems to work for me. Let me know what you decide!

 

[YewBush]

If you have a lower ph. I suggest a school of cardinal tetras. I have them with a male betta which isn’t advised but seems to work for me. Let me know what you decide!

I will consider that. Thank you for replying! I will check the pH after the tank is cycled.

 

[Ellie Potts]

A school of cardinal tetra is a great idea. I've read good things about dwarf crayfish with bettas. I wouldn't be too concerned about branching out into these new fish species - they're pretty easy to take care of.

 

[YewBush]

I ended up getting 6 silver tip tetras and 3 pearl gouramis. I will most likely get another pearl gourami soon. The gouramis occasionally feel my betta with their fins, but other than that they ignore each other. I also got some unexpected mystery snails and water lily aphids when I added some frog weed to the aquarium. I'm pretty sure there are 4 snails. One snail already found a home in my mom's aquarium and another will move to my brother's tank when they are large enough to not get eaten by his Mexican dwarf crayfish. Some of the aphids are probably getting eaten when the gouramis eat the frog weed. Most of the guides for getting rid of them that I see are for ponds. I may try the tomato leaf water, but I'll have to do research to make sure it's safe for the other animals first. Thank you for suggesting tetras! Overall, things are going well.