# Am I choosing the fishes correctly ?



## aryan (Sep 7, 2012)

Hi, tomorrow I am going get a new aquarium (18X18X12) & I have decided to buy the following fishes :

2 Red Molly
2 Black Molly
2 Angel 
2 Gold fish

Is that okay ?

Feel free to add or remove fishes form the list. Please dont recommend uncommon fishes coz those are not available where I live.


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## navigator black (Jan 3, 2012)

You have a couple of problems in your choices.
First. never mix goldfish and tropicals, and second, always look up the full adult size of a fish before you buy it, even if it looks small now. 
Goldfish get very large, and each alone would need a 30 gallon tank. Even short term, they pollute the water with their heavy wastes and will kill the other fish.

The angels are small and cute, no doubt, but they grow into territorial fish. If you buy two and are extremely lucky to get two sexes, and two fish that like each other, you are okay. More likely one will kill the other. It is not fun to watch angels destroy each other.

Don't add all your fish at once or they will die - I would read up on the 'cycle' elsewhere on this forum for an idea of how to manage the dangerous (to the fish) first couple of weeks of a new aquarium. You are ahead in the game, since you asked before you got fish - that's a good move. It's pretty easy if you get info in advance.


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## aryan (Sep 7, 2012)

navigator black said:


> You have a couple of problems in your choices.
> First. never mix goldfish and tropicals, and second, always look up the full adult size of a fish before you buy it, even if it looks small now.
> Goldfish get very large, and each alone would need a 30 gallon tank. Even short term, they pollute the water with their heavy wastes and will kill the other fish.
> 
> ...


Then please suggest some other common fish in place of Goldfish. 

How many fishes should I add at a time ?


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## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

That tank size (16g US) is not suited for any Angels, meaning not even 1. 1 Angel needs at least a 20g, but IMO I think a 30g or higher is better suited and a pair should have at least 40g. 

I personally think when you add in you've added fish that have fry frequently, your 4 Mollies should be fine for that tank for at least a little while.

Goldies and Angels need to be taken from your list and replaced with nothing if you plan to stay with 4 Mollies.


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## crazycrab28 (Sep 7, 2012)

aryan said:


> Hi, tomorrow I am going get a new aquarium (18X18X12) & I have decided to buy the following fishes :
> 
> 2 Red Molly
> 2 Black Molly
> ...


\

Hi, I origanlly had in my tank months ago, 1 male betta and 8 goldfish, all got along, water was never a problem. But I did partial water changes and did not clean entire tank all the time, and, goldfish are big eaters (like my beagle) they eat everything! My betta got tropical flakes, betta food, and dried bloodworms. Now, my tank is tropical, goldfish were moved and some donated, and I've added 4 red claw crabs. Later found out they needed salt in their water. So, now they have salt and all are okay: I have 1 male betta, 2 corys, 3 platys, 4 mollies, 2 small female bettas, and 1 fish I can't identify but he's fine, too. My tank is small so I would not get an angel or bala shark. Thought this might help. But, always check on size of a fish when its fully grown, I did that to keep peace in my tank, it worked fine.


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## Crazy (Mar 1, 2012)

crazycrab28 said:


> \
> 
> Hi, I origanlly had in my tank months ago, 1 male betta and 8 goldfish, all got along, water was never a problem. But I did partial water changes and did not clean entire tank all the time, and, goldfish are big eaters (like my beagle) they eat everything! My betta got tropical flakes, betta food, and dried bloodworms. Now, my tank is tropical, goldfish were moved and some donated, and I've added 4 red claw crabs. Later found out they needed salt in their water. So, now they have salt and all are okay: I have 1 male betta, 2 corys, 3 platys, 4 mollies, 2 small female bettas, and 1 fish I can't identify but he's fine, too. My tank is small so I would not get an angel or bala shark. Thought this might help. But, always check on size of a fish when its fully grown, I did that to keep peace in my tank, it worked fine.


Well to each his own, but I don't recommend any of this.

-Goldfish need cold water (less than 76F) while bettas need fairly high heat (more around 80) and yes it does make a difference.
-Also in a 'small' tank I wouldn't put nearly this many fish together
-You have a male betta with 2 females which means he is going to try to breed hisself to death or stress the females to death eventually
- Male bettas are very territorial and will eventually end up fighting the mollys/platys
-Also it is a very bad practice to come home with a fish you can't ID much less learn about, this is how Oscars end up in 20g tanks and nightmares end up being created. 

Just because things look fine now doesn't mean that they are or that they will be. Extensive research is a fishkeepers most valuable tool, when I go into a LFS I keep my smartphone on me in case I see a new fish. Then I do a quick bit of research and it helps me to explore possible options without comprimising the fish's quality of life or health. This isn't a chew out session this is simply stating I strongly recommend research and highlighting my reasons for saying so.


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## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

crazycrab28 said:


> \
> 
> Hi, I origanlly had in my tank months ago, 1 male betta and 8 goldfish, all got along, water was never a problem. But I did partial water changes and did not clean entire tank all the time, and, goldfish are big eaters (like my beagle) they eat everything! My betta got tropical flakes, betta food, and dried bloodworms. Now, my tank is tropical, goldfish were moved and some donated, and I've added 4 red claw crabs. Later found out they needed salt in their water. So, now they have salt and all are okay: I have 1 male betta, 2 corys, 3 platys, 4 mollies, 2 small female bettas, and 1 fish I can't identify but he's fine, too. My tank is small so I would not get an angel or bala shark. Thought this might help. But, always check on size of a fish when its fully grown, I did that to keep peace in my tank, it worked fine.


What size is your tank and how long has it been running on its current stock level? I would not advise people based on what you have done if it is way outside what should be in a tank of its size and you have gotten away with it. If your tank is not very mature and only been running a short while, you're problems may be yet to come.


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## aryan (Sep 7, 2012)

Is a heater a must ? India is a hot country.


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## Crazy (Mar 1, 2012)

that tank will need to stay 78-80F year around, I would get one just to make sure.


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## chipmunk1210 (Jul 3, 2012)

crazycrab28 said:


> \
> 
> Hi, I origanlly had in my tank months ago, 1 male betta and 8 goldfish, all got along, water was never a problem. But I did partial water changes and did not clean entire tank all the time, and, goldfish are big eaters (like my beagle) they eat everything! My betta got tropical flakes, betta food, and dried bloodworms. Now, my tank is tropical, goldfish were moved and some donated, and I've added 4 red claw crabs. Later found out they needed salt in their water. So, now they have salt and all are okay: I have 1 male betta, 2 corys, 3 platys, 4 mollies, 2 small female bettas, and 1 fish I can't identify but he's fine, too. My tank is small so I would not get an angel or bala shark. Thought this might help. But, always check on size of a fish when its fully grown, I did that to keep peace in my tank, it worked fine.



I do not think with the way you have your tank stocked you need to advise other people on stocking their tanks. Your tank is overstocked and incompatible with each other. Bettas do not do well in community tanks on a normal basis. Male and female bettas should never be housed together unless being bred and that is only until spawning is complete and then the female needs to be removed. Either your male will kill the females or one of the females will kill the male and/or the other female. Either of the bettas will possibly kill the mollies,platys, or the unidentified fish since they are aggressive fish that do not like other fish. You need at least one more cory to really see them be happy. The mollies and platys might be ok with the salt that you added for your crabs but the bettas and corys are not going to appreciate it. Long story short--Your tank may SEEM fine but I bet it really isn't. Your fish are stressed and will easily fall into sickness if other measures are not put into effect. 


OP: 

Your tank is not big enough for angels or goldfish. I would just stick with the mollies. You could possibly add another color molly to the tank but I wouldn't add anything else. The mollies are a livebearer that will breed and produce lots of fry so before long your tank will have lots of little fish swimming around in it and won't look empty. I do believe the heater is absolutely neccesary. Water temp is a couple of degrees cooler than air temp and fluxuates just like air temp does. The fluxuation is what the heater protects against since fluxuating temperatures stress fish and that is what leads to some sicknesses.


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## gar1948 (Jan 25, 2012)

Angels and goldfish do not mix and both fish will get much, much to big for your tank!


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## navigator black (Jan 3, 2012)

Let's assume the estimate of 15 gallons is a good one. I'm sorry, but I was too lazy to calculate the size - I guessed.
A 15 is a good tank, but a molly is a 2-3 inch fish that is not the toughest on the planet - four would fill the tank. I keep mollies in 30 gallons plus for a group. I find they are too active for smaller tanks.
If you are in India, what region? You may well be surrounded by wonderful fishes.
If your ambient temperature stays above 22, you don't need a heater for most fish. I'm in Canada and I rarely use heaters (but I don't open the window when it's -40).

I respectfully disagree with crazycrab's stocking idea. It is very appealing because every fishkeeper wants more fish, but it is a seriously overstocked tank.


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## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

navigator black said:


> Let's assume the estimate of 15 gallons is a good one. I'm sorry, but I was too lazy to calculate the size - I guessed.


It is actually a 16.8g....I rounded down to 16g - mentioned above.


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## jbrown5217 (Nov 9, 2011)

Angels and goldfish need to go and imo the mollies, you won't be happy with just 4.

I'd recommend some sort of tetra (except neons/cardinals they are very sensitive) that way you can have a school (which is 6+ but in a 16 gallon tank you could go with a larger school of like 8 - 10) of them and then maybe a slightly larger fish such has a dwarf gourami. You could also get two schools of peaceful fish like a tetra type fish and cory cats (which are bottom dwellers) that way you have fish on both the mid- top level as well as the bottom of the tank.


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## clep.berry (Mar 4, 2012)

Congrats on asking before you're buying.

Have you cycled the tank - look up fishless cycle. No matter what the shop tells you, until you have nitrates in the water, your tank doesn't have the bacteria necessary to support fish successfully - even if they survive.

I'd start with cory pandas or cory julii once your tank is cycled. They are adorable and active and are a pleasure to watch. Start with 2 and add another 3 a week later.

Live plants are a great addition. Java fern and a bit of driftwood added straight away will certainly improve the environment and don't need a lot of light, CO2 and ferts to do well.
cb


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