# Happy community?



## DeJay126 (Apr 22, 2013)

I am about to be stocking my 20 Gallon long tank and just went to the pet store to check out fish. This is what we are thinking.

4 glofish
4 neon tetras
4 fancy guppies
4 albino cories

We want 2 centerpiece fish but are unsure of what will be a happy edition to the community. We really like the small angelfish,and if those won't cohabitate then we were thinking about two clown loaches. What do you guys think?


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## Manafel (Sep 4, 2011)

Your list is already too much for a 10 Gallon tank. Angelfish and clown loaches all get too big for such a small tank. 
Go to this link(AqAdvisor - Intelligent Freshwater Tropical Fish Aquarium Stocking Calculator and Aquarium Tank/Filter Advisor) and when you put in your stocking level and this is assuming you are using a standard HoB filter for a 20 Gallon:

Warning: You should add more aquarium filtration capacity.

Your aquarium filtration capacity for above selected species is 92%.Help on Filtration capacity
Recommended water change schedule: 60% per week. (You might want to split this water change schedule to two separate 36% per week)
Your aquarium stocking level is 158%.
Your tank is overstocked. Unless you are an experienced aquarist who can meet the maintenance/biological needs of this aquarium, lower stocking levels are recommended.

Why don't you look into some small, and colorful fish that would be perfect for a 10 Gallon? or maybe a nice shrimp tank. Most people would say a Betta is about all else you could fit into a 10 gallon comfortably.


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## DeJay126 (Apr 22, 2013)

Its a 20 gallon, not 10!! Lol


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## CAM (Jan 27, 2013)

You twice typed "10" gallon tank but he has a 20. Typo, or did you check on aqadvisor using 10 gallon instead of 20 ?


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## jamnigh (Apr 24, 2013)

I believe he did it for a 10G. You would be fine with exactly what you have there. Here are the stats if you just have one 20G HOB filter


Suggestion: If you want to keep more than 1 Guppy, minimum recommend male to female ratio is 1:2 (M:F). You will be less likely to experience problem if you get even more females.
Warning: At least 5 x Zebra Danio are recommended in a group.

Warning: At least 5 x Neon Tetra are recommended in a group.


Recommended temperature range: 22 - 24 C. [Display in Farenheit]
Recommended pH range: 6 - 7.5.
Recommended hardness range: 5 - 15 dH.



Warning: You should add more aquarium filtration capacity.

Your aquarium filtration capacity for above selected species is 92%.
Recommended water change schedule: 33% per week.
Your aquarium stocking level is 80%.

You will want a bigger filter than just one rated for a 20g tank.


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## rtmaston (Jul 14, 2012)

I would leave the glofish out.


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## dalfed (Apr 8, 2012)

Angels and clown loaches are too big for a twenty.


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## Manafel (Sep 4, 2011)

*smacks self* silly me, I get rolling and forget something. Maybe I need to go get a new glasses prescription lol.
I would maybe get a bigger HoB for more Bio capacity. However, even with a 20 Gallon, I do stand firm on the clown loaches and anglefish >.< sorry for the misunderstanding.

If your looking for a decent colorful fish for a centerpiece, why not try a pair of German Blue rams? They are very colorful and have quite the personalities. You would be a little overstocked with them, but as long as you keep up on your maintenance, it should be fine...


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## DeJay126 (Apr 22, 2013)

So you guys think clowns and angels are too big for it?


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## Manafel (Sep 4, 2011)

Definatley. I would say the minimum for an anglefish is about 40G. and clown loaches can get massive (16+ Inches)


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## dalfed (Apr 8, 2012)

Angels need a 55 minimum, and clowns need 100 plus.


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## DeJay126 (Apr 22, 2013)

Keep in mind these are the small angelfish, not sure if that makes a difference.


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## DeJay126 (Apr 22, 2013)

Okay, so what are some suggestions on centerpiece fish for this tank. We want two.


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## jamnigh (Apr 24, 2013)

agreed here, angels wouldn't work at all. they also need a very tall tank as they will get big in height as well. I would go with Dalfed on this one, the German Blues would work wonderfully, just make sure you tank is set up and completely good to go with the other fish in it first before adding them, as they are a little more touchy.


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## Manafel (Sep 4, 2011)

if You don't like the german blue rams, you could try one gourami as a centerpiece fish.


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## DeJay126 (Apr 22, 2013)

Ill check both of those out...I saw black tetras too, they were a little bigger but not as fancy ad we were looking for.


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## Manafel (Sep 4, 2011)

Heres a pic of a German Blue ram:









And here is a regular Dwarf Gourami:


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## DeJay126 (Apr 22, 2013)

Will two dwarf gouramis fit in the tank? If like for him to have a companion lol


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## jamnigh (Apr 24, 2013)

If you are going to have multiple gouramis you need to have a well planted and larger tank since they are the same species as a betta, they will be aggressive towards each other


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## coralbandit (Jul 29, 2012)

99.9% of dwarf gouramis sold are males.You REALLY shouldn't have 2 males in same tank.They will beat each other silly once one assumes dominance.


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## DeJay126 (Apr 22, 2013)

Okay, then one will work fine. Also, is there a smaller breed of angels because the ones at the lfs said small angelfish


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## coralbandit (Jul 29, 2012)

They all grow large,small means young!


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## DeJay126 (Apr 22, 2013)

Lol okay  thanks


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## DeJay126 (Apr 22, 2013)

I have decided on German Blue Rams to go with the rest of my community. I have three questions now. 

1) I have a self adjusting heater and cant set my own temp. It stays at 80 degrees. Will 80 be enough to keep the GBR's happy?

2) For the GBRs to be happy, should I get two males or a male and a female. I don't want to breed, but if two males won't work in the same tank then I really have no choice.

3) If GBR's wont be suitable in a 80 degree tank, would bolivian rams work better?

I just want to make sure I have them in a good environment.


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## DeJay126 (Apr 22, 2013)

I am not sure if this is acceptable, but I am going to bump this to hopefully get a few responses on the 3 questions that I had for the GBR's instead of opening a new thread. Please read the post prior to this one and let me know what you guys think. Thanks a ton, and if this is inappropriate (bumping) then please remove this as I do not want to upset anybody, just looking for answers  Thanks!


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## coralbandit (Jul 29, 2012)

80 should be fine for the GBR.I would go with male female and if you have other community fish do not worry about the fry(if you even get any).You'll know they are trying though if they become more territorial or aggressive towards others in tank.IMO the bolivians don't compare to GBRs and do get larger.


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## DeJay126 (Apr 22, 2013)

I know that one store doesn't carry females, only males. Ill call my lfs and see if they have male and female. If not, would two males be okay? I think I would prefer male and female, as long as I don't get overran with fry! Lol


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## coralbandit (Jul 29, 2012)

a 20 long might be tight for 2 males but if (I know you do) you have other fish already then they may stay distracted from each other for a while.I have 6 in a 20 Tall just waiting to see a true pair and they really haven't been giving each other a hard time (yet).
I don't think you would get overrun with fry(sounds like one of my dreams).


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## DeJay126 (Apr 22, 2013)

So, aim for a male/female pair if possible. If not, then a male pair SHOULD be fine... should being the key word! LOL They're such beautiful fish, I just hope that if I have to get 2 males they don't fight to the death.


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## coralbandit (Jul 29, 2012)

With decent other fish activity they MAY do fine.Sometimes we never know till we try.They are beautiful fish so might as well try.
I'll add that not all sexing is always accurate so if you can veiw the GBR at LFs while they're happy(and no children are tapping on the tank) a female is most easily recognised by having red on her belly,so look for one who has red if possible or "different looking fiins" as females don't develope quite the same flare as males.


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## DeJay126 (Apr 22, 2013)

I just spoke with the LFS, they said they have a male and female Longfin... is this different than a normal GBR and will it work in my 20 long with 18 other fish?


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## coralbandit (Jul 29, 2012)

Not exactly sure how they make any fish a long fin,but some are noticeably more attractive and I noted no health issues with any other longfins I've owned(white clouds,cherry barbs).Sounds very interesting?


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## DeJay126 (Apr 22, 2013)

I've looked them up online, and they are very beautiful. I actually like them more than regular GBR's and from what I'm reading they are no different (or harder) to acclimate than a regular GBR! I'll most likely be picking up a pair on Sunday, along with 2-3 guppies and another albino cory. I'll post some pictures once I get them!


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