What can live in a standard 20 gallon?

[redtailshark34]

I have a 20 gallon (75 liters) that has been sitting empty for a while (cycled). There’s no real reason why it’s empty I just have no clue what to put in there. Please no fish that require hard water, as mine is soft.

 

[Byron]

Just to make sure on the water...if you could post the GH and pH while you're at it, it will help.

But moving ahead, your options are more than you might think. Nano fish are very popular these days, and you could have quite an active and thus interesting community in a 20g with the dwarf rasboras. Beyond those, thinking of more "standard" small fish like the tetras, rasboras, pencilfish, dwarf cichlids, most of the smaller gourami (the Honey Gourami is not the only one when you have soft water, there are several others even smaller), some of the small rainbowfish... .

Do you have or intend plants, even if just some good floating species? Floating plants make a big difference on all of these fish mentioned.

 

[redtailshark34]

Just to make sure on the water...if you could post the GH and pH while you're at it, it will help.

But moving ahead, your options are more than you might think. Nano fish are very popular these days, and you could have quite an active and thus interesting community in a 20g with the dwarf rasboras. Beyond those, thinking of more "standard" small fish like the tetras, rasboras, pencilfish, dwarf cichlids, most of the smaller gourami (the Honey Gourami is not the only one when you have soft water, there are several others even smaller), some of the small rainbowfish... .

Do you have or intend plants, even if just some good floating species? Floating plants make a big difference on all of these fish mentioned.

I have some frogbit, hornwort, amazon swords, java fern, annubius nana’s, and java moss for plants.

clay pots, normal colored sand, a large piece of driftwood, a black background on tank for decorations.

tank temp is about 78 degrees Fahrenheit.

pH: 6.8
dGH: 8

 

[Byron]

I have some frogbit, hornwort, amazon swords, java fern, annubius nana’s, and java moss for plants.

clay pots, normal colored sand, a large piece of driftwood, a black background on tank for decorations.

tank temp is about 78 degrees Fahrenheit.

pH: 6.8
dGH: 8

That all sounds very good. The temperature obviously could be easily lowered or raised depending upon the fish selected, but the GH and pH and aquascape are good. I listed groups of fish earlier, it really is up to you as to what intrigues you. You do want less active fish as opposed to fast swimmers, given the physical space, but this also means you can have more of them which adds interest.

 

[Sgooosh]

high or long?

 

[itiwhetu]

Clown killifish and Pygmy Cory's are a favorite combination of mine

 

[redtailshark34]

long

 

[redtailshark34]

high or long?

long

 

[Sunnyspots]

I have an 80l with similar parameters although my water is a little softer. I'm putting in 2 honey gourami and 3 peacock gudgeon gobies rather than little shoaling fish.