new aguarium questions

[Beta 93]

hi guys, got a few questions from a complete noobie

First of all, for a 20 gallon tank is it ok to have

1 pelco
1 long whiskered catfish
3 Tiger Bards
3 Bala Sharks
2 Kissing Gouree (spelling? the pink kissing fish)

also, i've had one tiger bard and one kissing fish die in the last week, doing a water change tonight, PH is fine, Nitraties are 0, think its just new tank Syndrome?

please forgive my weak spelling

 

[GSD]

tiger barB and kissing gourami!!!LOL
erm,i think you are overstocked!the plec will grow huge
tiger barbs like to be in bigger groups
and the sharks will get FAR too big

 

[Beta 93]

^^^yeah sorry about that, i'm the worst speller on the planet

 

[Ferris]

Check on which Pleco, a common or sailfin is definately no as they can grow to 18 inches. These are the 2 most commonly sold.

Not sure on the long whiskered catfish, do you have another name for it?

Tiger barbs should be OK but i would increase the number to 5, otherwise they may chase their tankmates

Bala sharks is a no i'm afraid, they get far too big and really need something like a 125 gal tank

Kissing Gourami's, 2 should be ok.

Have you checked all the water parameter's and is the tank cycled? If its a new tanks, a rise in Ammonia could be killing your fish. You need to check Ammonia, Nitrate and Nitrate.

Hope this helps!

 

[Beta 93]

chaning the water again tonight, had them 2 months, no problems until this week, this is the 4th water change, checking Ammonia, Nitrate and Nitrate when i get home, been steady last month though

it's a sailfin pelco, i got a friend with another tank, see if he wants it

Bala's really need a tank that big?

had 4 barbs till one died, planned on replacing it, 5 sounds good

will double check on the catfish, i got it written down at home

and thanks alot for the info

 

[Ferris]

No problem on the info, The Bala sharks will grow huge and definately can't stay in that tank. If there are no problems at the moment between the Barbs and the Gourami's then you may be OK.

I hope you don't lose any more fish, good luck!

 

[Beta 93]

just for cuirousity..how big we talking here?

oh and how much active carbon should i put in the filter?

 

[Ferris]

14 inches for the Bala's, trust me way too big and cruel to the fish.

Active carbon is optional not essential. The amount would depend on the filter and should be detailed in the instructions, sorry can't help more with that one. One thing to bear in mind is that if you have to medicate the tank for any reason, you must remove the carbon as it will filter the medication out of the water.

 

[Beta 93]

14 inches!! oh yeah, thats way to big for this small tank, thanks

 

[sylvia]

Kissing gouramies are also too big for a 20 gallon (8").

If nitrAtes are 0, BTW, your tank is probably not cycled. For a tank to be cycled ammonia and nitrIte have to be 0. NitrAtes are almost always present in established tanks and you do partial water changes with DE-CHLORINATED water weekly to keep them below 20-40 ppm.

Read through all the links in my signature and get rid of all those fish except the barbs. You should be able to give them away to an LFS or re-home them with friends who have BIG tanks (the pleco and balas need at least 100 gallons to be honest - the kissing gouramies would be ok in about 40-55 gallons).

Also, what is a long-whiskered catfish? Do you know the scientific name or can someone else tell me please? I'm guessing it's some kind of syno or chryichthis or something but it may also be too big for your tank.

Oh and don't get any more fish yet!

 

[MegTheFish]

I wouldn't add the kissing gouramis, the minimum is 20 gallons, I would think that would only suit 1 kissing gourami though. They can grow up to 12 inches
How about a dwarf gourami?:

Don't add a common pleco, they get HUGE. The sailfin pleco you have also gets quite big, 20 inches.

Is this the catfish your talking about?

Thats actually a shark, so maybe this one below?

Oops...do you mean you have all these fish already, or are you wanting to buy them? I know you have the sailfin pleco, but what about the rest?

 

[Beta 93]

well, this what i get for doing 0 research...sigh

lucky my roomates mom has a 100 gallon one at home, so looks like i'll be giving her some of mine

i have all the fish i listed (in my badly spelled list)

the catfish in the first pic, looks just like mine, sorry for my ignorance, like i said, i'm a noobie, and this was kinda of an unexpected gift..

so, my question is, what should i put in?

 

[MegTheFish]

Don't get discouraged, most people go into things without doing research (I did the excact same thing!).
After you get rid of the pleco, the bala sharks and the kissing gouramis...you could make a really big school of barbs (not too big though, LoL, don't want to overstock!) and have it like an all-barb tank...I don't know what can go with barbs, never kept them before, but I would defently get some bottom dwellers.

Edit:
Uh-oh...was doing some research on the shark you have, and it gets to 14"+, sorry to say, but it would be in yours and the fishies best interest to find him a bigger home, too.

 

[Beta 93]

how big a school, 7,10,15?

I know they will nip fins, so i dont think guppies or betas is a good idea

 

[MegTheFish]

Ummm...I really have no clue, so maybe a barb-expert could answer this? If you have the barbs and nothing else, I would say you could have 10. But if you have some kind of bottom feeder(s), maybe 8?