A New Tank For A Newbie!

[ss53]

Hi,

I have been saving up for a while with the intention of setting up my own tropical tank. My family already has a 125L tank set-up, however I want one of my own and I am truly a beginner at this so I'm looking for advice!

I am intending on purchasing a 64 Litres / 14 Gallons with plenty of live plants & bog wood (hiding places).

I'm hoping to have a tank mostly dedicated to barbs - here's what I hope to eventually have...

2 Tiger Barbs
2 Green Tiger Barbs
2 Cherry Barbs
2 Gold Barbs

2 Corydoras (preferably Bandit or Panda... are they the same thing?)
& maybe a Red Tailed Shark

My questions are:

1) Will this amount of fish be ok in a 64 L tank?
2) Can different types of Barbs be mixed and still shoal/get on?
3) Corydoras ok with Barbs?
4) I hear mixed views on the Shark - would one be ok in here?
5) Should I have gravel or sand at the base?
6) Advice on which fish to buy first?

Thanks!

 

[K_Hedin]

I can answer 1 of your questions and offer a suggestion that I hope you follow.

If you plan on having cories then sand would be the best substrate for them. Please get at least 6 cories as they feel more comfortable in groups.

 

[ss53]

Great thanks - would 64 L be too small for that many Corys?

 

[fluttermoth]

If you have pandas or bandits (they're not the same species) you'll have room for a group of 6, yes.

I wouldn't put gold or tiger barbs in a tank that size (out of interest, the different colour morphs of tigers; 'normal' green and albino will shoal together, but not with other species); they can both grow to getting on three inches, and are quite 'chunky'.

I'd decide on one other species, apart from your cories and have six of those if I was you. You want something that will get to two inches or less, adult size.

Oh, and definitely no RTBS; they can get to six inches in length easily.

 

[ss53]

Awesome. Which barbs would you suggest I have - and how many? Any suggestion for what other type of fish ideally to have in there?

 

[fluttermoth]

I'd have the six cories (one of the small ones) and six cherry barbs; I wouldn't put anything else in; I don't find that tanks with lots of different species in look good; one or two larger shoals is much more pleasing to the eye, IMO.

 

[laura120381]

hi there,

all types of barbs prefer to live in shoals. tigers can be quite aggressive (so i have been told - i am researching them just now as i intend to include them in my new set up.) but apparently they are much calmer when kept in groups. i have read that they are better in groups of at least 5...more if possible. cherry barbs look great in a shoal of about 8-10. i think that your tank may be too small for tigers as a few people on here have told me that they actually grow quite large. corys, as mentioned above, should be kept in groups (they are sociable little guys) and do better with a sand substrate. if i were u, i would go for the corys and a nice shoal of cherry barbs and leave out the greens and tigers altogether. maybe you could add something else if you keep the shoal number to about 8. with regards the shark, they do well with similarly aggressive tank mates and would have been fine with tigers etc. hope that helps. am sure some of the others on here could give you some more/better advice!! good luck.

L

what about a pair of rams? they are quite hardy and can hold their own! just an idea....!! i agree with fluttermoth...stick to a few species rather than loads of different ones. imo it looks much more attractive.

 

[ss53]

Thanks for the advice. I never thought about Rams, sounds like a good idea. Perhaps Cherry Barbs, Corys and a few Rams would work.

What about any type of tetras? Can they hold their own? (!)

 

[Tizer]

too small for rams, they need a decent amount of space, pushing it with corys too really, deffinately want smaller ones.

 

[ss53]

.

 

[laura120381]

sorry..tizer is completely correct..way 2 small for rams!! by the time i had waffled on a bit about barbs, i had forgotten the size of your tank!! scrap that!! as far as the tetras go, i am a great fan of cardinals and i believe they are pretty hardy. however i have also been advised neons would be ok so its really up to you!! i think your tank would look stunning with the corys and a largeish shoal of cherry barbs (size permitting!!)

L

 

[XeroTolerance]

If you have pandas or bandits (they're not the same species) you'll have room for a group of 6, yes.

I wouldn't put gold or tiger barbs in a tank that size (out of interest, the different colour morphs of tigers; 'normal' green and albino will shoal together, but not with other species); they can both grow to getting on three inches, and are quite 'chunky'.

I'd decide on one other species, apart from your cories and have six of those if I was you. You want something that will get to two inches or less, adult size.

Oh, and definitely no RTBS; they can get to six inches in length easily.

+1