Established Aquarium

[dariusdman11]

I am wanting to stock some very colorful and bright fish in my aquarium its a 10 gallon wiht a couple of fake coral in it to make it look really nice.I am goin for the ocean feel with my tank.So i will need alot of brightly colored fish......I guess its time to ask the question as in wat type of fish i should get.........................


The things that i am looking for i my fish tank is



Color-My fish must be very colorful:help:
Liveliness lol-My fish must be very active
I would like to have some activty on the floor bootom so if any of u have any suggestions on that please help
I dont really kno how this fits in but i was hopin to put some pvc pipes uner the gravel to create more hiding spots and jus have the wholes pop out above the grave u think that would be very nice
And color is the most importan thing in my fish tank so please help me :help: :help: :help: :help: :help: :help:
Please exucse my terrible typin i am kind of in a rush cuz im bout to go .........................i am also new to this site so if i broke any rules please let me know lol thanks for all the hlp:help:

[ThePBM]

goldfish

[Slappy*McFish]

In a 10g, I would avoid goldfish, personally. Very messy fish and grow quite large.
You said you wanted a lot of fish, but this will not be possible in a 10g either.
If you want color and activity, then get a few guppies(3-5) and/or neon tetras(5-8). Don't cheap out on filtration either. Buy a filter big enough to filter a tank 3-4 times the size of that one.

[Malbri]

goldfish
not in a 10 gallon..

[kimmisc]

Activity on the bottom - shrimp

Colorful fish - in FW fish varieties, I have been a bit disappointed in colors available. As someone completely new to fishkeeping, I expected my FW tropical tank to look the way SW tanks look, which was an unrealistic expectation.

For the kind of vibrant color you seem to want, a betta is always an option. Some tetras look quite colorful and flashy. Harlequin rasboras are pretty flashy, and pictures don't do them justice. Cichlids and discus are about the most colorful FW fish I've seen, but discus can't go in a 10g, and I don't know if any cichlids can (not a cichlid expert).

Not to be contradictive, but I would advise against goldfish in a 10g. I've read many places you should have 20g for the first goldfish, and 10g more for each additional goldfish. They produce heavy waste loads, and they grow to be too large for a 10g when kept in adequate tank sizes. When in a tank that's too small, their growth will be stunted, and you can find some articles on stunting I'm sure. The internal organs keep growing while the fish's body stops growing, and the fish dies young. <----- see my av picture. A good example of a stunted goldfish, about to pop. :P

[ThePBM]

i was just kidding about goldfish. goldfish and coral? lol.

seriously though, the most colorful fish you will find for a 10 gal will be ones like bright yellow guppies, and you might be able to do white/silver mollies.
i'm a little bit curious though (as i'm sure a few of you are) what the op means by "established aquarium". it sounds like it could just mean that there's water in it and the fake coral is in it. and when someone tells me they want 'a lot of bright colorful fish' in a 10 gal, i'm a little curious as to how far they've looked into things.

[Broham]

Dont forget that goldfish like coolwater/colder and do not do well with tropical fish. also, 10 gallon is rather small. A betta would be cool but is not for a pure novice when mixing in other fish. Guppies and neon tetras would be a great way. A small shrimp/ bronze corys are cool bottom feeders as well. i myself am pushing a 30 gallon and don't plan on overstocking or getting large fish. healthy fish that live in a mansion is my idea. lots of room to chill and relax. I'd personally step it up with really colorful fish and unique fish when you have experience and can push a large tank at least 75 gallon and experience. Surely sw is an ideal setup to allow the various fish available. until then enjoy the fw and get exp under your belt

[kimmisc]

i was just kidding about goldfish. goldfish and coral? lol.

seriously though, the most colorful fish you will find for a 10 gal will be ones like bright yellow guppies, and you might be able to do white/silver mollies.
i'm a little bit curious though (as i'm sure a few of you are) what the op means by "established aquarium". it sounds like it could just mean that there's water in it and the fake coral is in it. and when someone tells me they want 'a lot of bright colorful fish' in a 10 gal, i'm a little curious as to how far they've looked into things.

Now lets hope he didn't see your post before running out the door, then stop by the LFS to buy 10 goldfish. :P

[nickmcmechan]

wont the coral raise the alkalinity of the water

how about dumping the coral (or get plastic) and go for caves, bogwood, good filtration

start off with something interesting for the bottom - have you seen the cories

after about a month or two add apistogramma - they have character and plenty of bright colour, but need an established tank

if was you i would

- cycle the tank on a fishless cycle exactly as they sticky states at the top of the forum
- add some plants, caves and any other decs you want
- once fully cycle add 3 cories or 6 pygmy cories
- wait at least 6 weeks while the tank settles down
- add a pair of apistos

you wont be dissapointed

[jm1212]

wont the coral raise the alkalinity of the water

how about dumping the coral (or get plastic) and go for caves, bogwood, good filtration

start off with something interesting for the bottom - have you seen the cories

after about a month or two add apistogramma - they have character and plenty of bright colour, but need an established tank

if was you i would

- cycle the tank on a fishless cycle exactly as they sticky states at the top of the forum
- add some plants, caves and any other decs you want
- once fully cycle add 3 cories or 6 pygmy cories
- wait at least 6 weeks while the tank settles down
- add a pair of apistos

you wont be dissapointed he already has fake coral.

apistos have been known to peck the eyes out of corydoras when they are breeding.

6 neons and 2 female platies along with a dozen cherry shrimp will make an interesting display.

[dariusdman11]

hi wat i meant by established fish tank is that my fish tank has already cycled and i have live plants in their along with fake coral and african cichilds 3 of them to be exact

[ThePBM]

well then even if those were the smallest cichlids known, your tank would be slightly overstocked as is.

[Marinemom]

African cichlids need a much bigger aquarium. They will grow too large for a ten gallon and you are apt to have aggression problems down the line. I would rehome the cichlids and if you want a lot of color go with a few platys instead with a trio of say panda corys for the bottom to scavange and eat up any left over food.

Marinemom

[silentskream]

a couple of fake coral in it

he doesn't have real coral in this tank. you guys should pay better attention. lol!

[nickmcmechan]

i agree, get the africans out of there, its just plain wrong

[Rbishop]

With the three "Africans", I don't think you can support anything additional. In fact, you probably should look to house them some place else then choose a new mix.

[ThePBM]

he doesn't have real coral in this tank. you guys should pay better attention. lol!
hey, that was one dude with the reading comprehension deficit. the rest of us knew better.

[Final Eclipse]

hi wat i meant by established fish tank is that my fish tank has already cycled and i have live plants in their along with fake coral and african cichilds 3 of them to be exact

10 gal is too small for africans. if you have a bigger tank move them to it. what cichlids would they be anyway?

and should you get rid of the africans how about neons/cardinals?
or perhaps a betta?