Blood Tetra + ??

[hockeyhead019]

hey everybody,

i'm just starting my tank back up (20 gallon) and i always like the tetra and i thought the bala shark looked great too, just curious as to if these two would go together well and if not what would go well with the tetra, i'm thinking about having like 4 tetra.

so my question is can i do the bala sharks? and how many? if not what else would be good and how many?

thanks

[Jacko]

Welcome to the AC!!!

No bala sharks, they get 16 inches and need to be kept in schools, they really need a tank upwards of 150 gallons to be happy. You could do the tetras along with a few other fish, but tetras should be kept in schools of more than 6 of the same kind, so I'd get at least 6 of the blood tetras. You should look at otocinclus, bristlenose plecos, dwarf gourami, rams and other dwarf cichlisd for a centerpeice... maybe another school of 6 or so tetras.

[hockeyhead019]

damn i didn't think the bala needed that much space... how are they kept in the stores then? cuz there's like 8 in a ten gallon tank? but thanks for the fast answer

[Jacko]

Not a problem, they're kept in stores that way because most fish stores do not see it as their responsibility to make sure the fish they get in are in proper sized tanks. The way fish stores get away with it is that those tanks aren't they're permanent homes, they're little more than holding tanks and chances are a batch of bala sharks (since they're so popular) will be gone in a couple weeks. The ones they sell are usually juveniles and in a healthy tank will double or triple the size you bought them at in a years time.

[hockeyhead019]

ok that makes sense because the ones in the store were tiny compared to the size you said they can be... like they had three sizes small medium and large and the large ones were only 3 inches at max in that tank so thanks for that heads up...

and another quick question... how many fish can i healthily keep in a 20 gallon tank, the 5 or 6 tetra, a common pleco and what else?

thanks again... it's always nice to have good quick responding help

[Jacko]

lol, I'd skip the common pleco, they get huge too (up to 2 feet) and are major poop machines, if you can find them, get a bristlenose pleco, they stay around 5 inches and can live out their life in that tank.thumbs2:

There isn't really a set amount you can fit in a tank, it depends on filtration and what fish you look at getting. Is this tank a 20 gallon long or high or regular? dimensions of the tank also change how many fish you can fit in it.

Along with teh tetras, I'd get a centerpiece fish or two of either dwarf cichlid pair or dwarf gourami (only get one gourami unless you can find a couple females, then you could do a trio).

[coralreef234]

mate please don't keep a bala shark in a 20 g....this accommodation is too small for a bala...but in a bigger tank you can keep both


you can keep other tetras like widow tetra/sarpe tetra/cardinal tetra/neon tetra,or zebra danios or some barbs maybe

[iZinedane]

i would go at least for a 50g tank for that common pleco

[hockeyhead019]

ok so ax the common pleco and look for the one you said... and the tank is a long i assume as it's 12x12x28 this i just a rough estimate as i'm too lazy to find a measuring tape haha also i have a 30 gallon filter because it was a good buy at the time it's just one of them that sits on the side of the tank and does it's thing haha not a floor filter... and just for my own information, when you say centerpiece fish i assume you mean like the best/coolest fish in your tank? sorry i'm a noob to most of this haha

[iZinedane]

ok so ax the common pleco and look for the one you said... and the tank is a long i assume as it's 12x12x28 this i just a rough estimate as i'm too lazy to find a measuring tape haha also i have a 30 gallon filter because it was a good buy at the time it's just one of them that sits on the side of the tank and does it's thing haha not a floor filter... and just for my own information, when you say centerpiece fish i assume you mean like the best/coolest fish in your tank? sorry i'm a noob to most of this haha

yes by center piece fish we mean that :hmm3grin2orange:

[hockeyhead019]

ok haha...

and what about silver dollars? its says they can be kept in a 20 gallon and i could just grab like 4 of them right? do u guys think they're hard to take care of? like any advice on them?

EDIT: nevermind it's says that they're herbivores so they would just eat all my plants :(

[mac]

ok haha...

and what about silver dollars? its says they can be kept in a 20 gallon and i could just grab like 4 of them right? do u guys think they're hard to take care of? like any advice on them?

EDIT: nevermind it's says that they're herbivores so they would just eat all my plants :(

NO these fish would be better in a 50 + gallon tank.

Fish that would suit would bet fish like.

Corys. Smaller types of Tetras. Rasboras. Dwarf Gouramis or Honey Gouramis. Small Barbs. Bristle Nose. Some of the Small South American Cichlids. Platies. Mollies. Guppies.

Hope that helps,

mac

[Needi]

If your looking for a cleaning crew, instead of pleco, be sure to check out shrimp species and corys. There are enough shrimp species to keep your eye glittered and corys in a proper school (6+) can be very pleasing to watch. (go for small fish for set up) MTS will strike soon enough. Good-luck and happy Fish Keeping!

[hockeyhead019]

well if i get corys or shrimp won't that mean that i'll have less room for other fish, like i was thinking, if you haven't read the above posts, that i could have serpae tetra (about 5) a pleco and then 4-5 of a south american chiclid...

will the shrimp or corys do a better job of cleaning?

[Jacko]

Don't get 4-5 cichlids, a 20 gallon isn't big enough to hold all their territories and they'd end up fighting and if any paired off... they could harm or even kill the other cichlids, I'd go with 2-3 max on the cichlids.

Shrimp are great, barely affect the bioload, they have one of the lightest bioloads out there, I'd say you could get a dozen shrimp and they'd have the bioload of about 1 of the cichlids you had planned.

[hockeyhead019]

ok and i've heard that the plecos have a higher bio load so then i guess i should stay away from getting one of them and just get a bunch of shrimp... will anything try to eat the shrimp?

[Jacko]

Those on your list shouldn't eat any adult shrimp, they'll go for babies and possibly juvinile shrimp, but if you get them as adults you should be fine. Just don't expect alot of baby shrimp.

[hockeyhead019]

ok that's fine... but i assume shrimp try to reproduce pretty often? cuz the way you say it i would think that they reproduce but the fish will keep that in check... which is actually a good thing because i don't want a shrimp tank i want a fish tank haha

[hockeyhead019]

ok i apologize for the double post but here is what i've decided to have in case anybody was curious...

3 ottos
8 serpae tetra
1 golden gourami