Fish suggestions for new set-up - HELP MUCH APPRECIATED

Ryan,

Well if you want a Betta, why not go with an Asian theme tank. A pretty schoolar would be the Harlequin Rasbora and some Kuhli Loaches.

No you don't NEED to have live plants if you have a good filter, but plants add a lot to the tank in terms of oxygen & giving the fish a sense of security & place to sleep/hide (plus they look awesome). With a 10 gallon tank, you will need at least 15 watts of fluorescent light (6500 K colour) to grow the low-light plants successfully.

On to stocking, I've got a VERY happy betta in a 10 gallon palace with plants & driftwood. He's one of the (many) bettas that don't really get along with other fish, so if you go with bettas, be prepared that he may have to live alone in that 10 g of yours, although he may tolerate a few peaceful fish or a few small catfish. Also, bettas don't like a lot of current in their tank, so if you have a really big filter it might be too much.

Ryan32185 said:

What about tetras? I like the neon and black tetra and I assume they will live well together? What other smaller fish will live well with them? My goal is to make a small community of a couple different kinds of fish.

Thanks

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Ryan, if you are going to create a school, its best to keep 6 fish of the same species. A 10 gallon will fill up really fast after that.
Most small tetras will get along but I would do that when you get a larger tank. I would start off with a tetra, rasbora, or danio of your choice, about 6. A few either Cories or Kuhli Loaches for a bottom feeder if you want some and a Betta. You really can not add to much more. As for plants? I recommend Java moss, hardy plant, Java Fern and wysteria. All pretty hardy fish.

Ryan32185 said:

Thanks tricksterpup for the help. OK, well after taking all your advice into account I came up with the following:

6 - Bleeding Heart Tetra OR Black Widow Tetra

4 - Clown Loach

1 - Betta

Plants - Wysteria, Amazon Swords

Filtration - Emperor 280

Decor - Rock with hole in the middle so fish can hide, other stuff not sure yet

Lighting - What do you recommend? The hood I have has a standard flurosent bulb.

Any special preparations for the tank like certain gravel, etc.

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Ryan, Clown Loaches will out grow that tank, they will get big, about 12 inches. I would suggest a smaller species of loach. Kuhli stay small, about 3.5 inches max.

here is a size comparison of the clown.


For more info on loaches check out this site. http://www.loaches.com/species_index.html

the reason I recommend Kuhli loaches, they are a good beginner fish.

As for plants, those are fine, but I do want to warn you, Amazon Swords do get big as well. I have one that takes up a third of my 55 gallon tank. Its HUGE. I prefer grass plants in my tanks. Take a look at my tank blog, not updated for awhile but it does have a picture of my current 20 gallon tank.

Ryan32185 said:

Oh ok, I did not realize that. I will stick with the Kuhli loaches. Any gravel or decor recommendations that would fit the environment im trying to create well?

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Ok, what I do when I buy gravel, i buy the local stuff at my LFS. It tends to be cheaper and look more natural, about 40 cents a pound. I recently picked up some large grain sand for my 75 Goldfish tank. I mixed it with some of the larger stuff I had and looks pretty nice. This stuff will work nice for live plants. If you are going to with normal output bulbs, I would go with a regular plant bulb at your lfs. If you can get a higher output bulb then go for it.

If you are into different types of filters. I own a Waterwonders filter and it looks nice. Check out my blog to see the wood one in action.


Now if you go with Kuhli, they will like to hide but with four of them, they will play nice together, they are schoolers.



for info on the waterwonders filter
http://www.tetra-fish.com/catalog/category.aspx?id=835

tonight I will take pictures and add it to my blog and post here of the sand setup and of the current 20 gallon live plant setup with a Betta and Danios.