10 Gallon Stocking Ideas List - suggestions, ideas, opinions wanted!!!

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BioHazard

Here and There
Mar 15, 2009
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Hey all! I'm working on this little list project of 10 gallon stocking ideas. Although 10 gals may not be the ideal starting tank for people, they often are the first tank people own. However, they can be used by more advanced aquarists too!
So, I've been coming up with a variety of ways to stock a 10 gal, and rating them by difficulty. I also put additional notes on some of them.
I am looking for help now! I'd like this to be a community effort, as I have not directly owned many of these or other species.
I am looking for additional stock suggestions, creative ideas for tank stock names (you can see I still have a lot of blank ones), opinions on the difficulty rating of tanks, opinions on how well the tanks are stocked, and anything else you can think of.
I know you guys are a creative bunch! Tell me what you think!

Tank Level – 1 – 5
1= Easy, low maintenance, hardy fish, beginner tank
5=Difficult, advanced or high maintenance, possible delicate species, advanced tank


1. Splendid splendens – Level 1
1 male Betta splendens (Siamese fighting fish) + 6 small corydoras (Corydoras pygmaeus or C. hastatus) + 2 bridgesii snails

2. Sorority Girls – Level 2
3 female Betta splendens (Siamese fighting fish) + 6 small corydoras (Corydoras pygmaeus or C. hastatus) + 2 bridgesii snails

3. You’ve Got Male Guppies – Level 2
6 male guppies + 1 moth catfish (Hara sp.) + 1 bridgesii snail OR 3 ghost shrimp

4. Please Pass the Platies – Level 2
4 male platies + 6 small corydoras (Corydoras pygmaeus or C. hastatus) + 1 bridgesii snail OR 3 ghost shrimp

5. – Level 1
8 – 10 small tetras (Neons, glowlights, embers, coffeebeans, etc) + 2 bridgesii snails OR 5 ghost shrimp

6. On Cloud Nine – Level 2
8 white cloud minnows + 1 moth catfish (Hara sp.) + 2 bridgessi snails

7. Sparkling Water – Level 3
Trio (1 male, 2 females) sparkling gouramis + 6 small corydoras (Corydoras pygmaeus or C. hastatus)

8. In the Endler Zone – Level 1
10 – 12 male Endler’s livebearers + 2 bridgesii snails OR 5 ghost shrimp

9. – Level 2
10 micro-danios (Danio margaritatus (Celestial pearl danio), D. choprai (Glowlight danio), D. erythromicron (Zebra rasbora)) + 2 bridgesii snails OR 5 ghost shrimp
-Tank must be planted
- Micro-danios need fine food



10. – Level 2
10 dwarf rasboras (Boraras brigittae (Chili or mosquito rasbora), B. maculates (Dwarf or spotted rasbora), B. merah (Phoenix rasbora), B. micros (Micro rasbora) or B. uropthalmoides (Sparrow, least or exclamation point rasbora)) + 1 bridgesii snail OR 3 ghost shrimp
-Tank must be planted
- Micro-danios need fine food

11. Clowning Around – Level 3
6 clown killifish + 6 small corydoras (Corydoras pygmaeus or C. hastatus) + 2 bridgesii snails OR 5 ghost shrimp
-Clown killifish may require live food

12. – Level 3
Pair ( 1 male, 1 female) shell dwelling cichlids (Neolamprologus brevis (Brevis shell dweller), N. multifaciatus (Multibar shell dweller), N. similis (Big eye shell dweller) or Lamprologus ocellatus (Ocellated shell dweller)) + 2 bridgesii snails
-Shell dwellers require sand substrate
-Shell dwellers require shells in the tank

13. Shrimp Cocktail – Level 2
15 dwarf shrimp (Caridina or Neocaridina sp.) + 2 bridgesii snails
-Tank must be planted

14. Cajun Crawdad Boil – Level 1
2 dwarf crayfish (Cambarellus schufeldti or C. patzcuarensis)
-Tank must have many hiding places

15. – Level 4
6 bumblebee gobies + 2 nerite snails
-Brackish tank

16. – Level 3
3 peacock gudgeons + 3 male guppies + 1 bridgesii snail OR 3 ghost shrimp
-Peacock gudgeons may be picky eaters

17. Underwater Desert Oasis – Level 3
Trio (1 male, 2 females) Desert gobies + 2 bridgesii snails

18. – Level 2
Pair (1 male, 1 female) Badis badis (Dwarf chameleon fish) + 1 bridgesii snail


19. – Level 2
Harem (1 male, 6 female) Dario dario (Scarlet badis) + 2 bridgesii snails OR 5 ghost shrimp

20. – Level 5
Trio (1 male, 2 females) dwarf puffers
-Brackish tank
-Puffers require live snails and frozen food
21. Go Figure – Level 5
1 figure eight puffer
-Brackish tank
-Puffers require live snails and frozen food

22. – Level 2
1 dwarf gourami + 6 small corydoras (Corydoras pygmaeus or C. hastatus) + 1 bridgesii snail

23. Honey Pot – Level 2
Trio (1 male, 2 females) honey gourami + 3 otocinclus + 2 bridgesii snails OR 5 ghost shrimp

24. – Level 2
5 African dwarf frogs + 3 male guppies OR 5 male Endler’s livebearers + 2 bridegsii snails OR 5 ghost shrimp

25. Behind Blue Eyes – Level 2
6 blue-eyes (Pseudomugil furcatus (Forktail blue-eye), P. gertrudae (Gertrude’s or spotted blue-eye), P. mellis (Honey blue-eye), P. signifier (Pacific blue-eye) or P. tenellus (Delicate blue-eye)) + 1 bridgesii snail OR 3 ghost shrimp

26. – Level 2
Pair Freshwater Gobies Rhinogobius wui (White cheeked goby), R. candidianus (Candidius goby) + 5 white cloud minnows + 1 bridgesii snail

27. – Level 1
1 male paradise fish + 2 bridgesii snails

28. Chain Gang – Level 2
6 dwarf chain loaches + 6 male endlers

29. – Level 3
Pair (1 male, 1 female) killifish (Aphyosemion australe (Lyretail killifish), Jordanella floridae (American flagfish) or Fundulopanchax gardneri (Gardneri killifish)) + 2 bridgesii snails


30. – Level 2
6 harlequin rasboras + 3 otocinclus + 2 bridgesii snails OR 5 ghost shrimp

31. Livebearer Lover – Level 2
2 male guppies + 2 male platies + 1 male molly + 4 male Endler’s livebearers

32. Over the Rainbow – Level 2
6 Melanotaenia praecox (Dwarf neon rainbowfish) OR 6 Iriatherina werneri (Threadfin Rainbowfish) + 2 bridgesii snails OR 5 ghost shrimp
-Rainbowfish have narrow throats and require fine food

33. Knights in Shining Armor – Level 4
2 knight gobies + 2 nerite snails
-Brackish tank

34. – Level 2
6 kuhli loaches + 3 male guppies + 1 bridgesii snail OR 3 ghost shrimp

35. – Level 4
3 Indian glassfish + 3 bumblebee gobies + 1 nerite snail
-Brackish tank

36. – Level 1
2 male mollies + 2 bridgesii snails

37. – Level 2
6 small hatchetfish (Carnegiella marthae (Black-winged hatchetfish) or C. myersi (Pygmy hatchetfish)) + 6 small corydoras (Corydoras pygmaeus or C. hastatus)

38. – Level 3
Pair Stiphodon gobies (Stiphodon atropurpureus (Neon goby), S. elegans (Green riffle goby) + 3 male guppies
-Allow algal growth for Stiphodon grazing

39. Fish n’ Shrimp – Level 2
[FONT=&quot] 6 male Endler’s livebearers + 10 dwarf shrimp (Caridina or Neocaridina sp.) + [/FONT] [FONT=&quot]1 bridgesii snail[/FONT]
 
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blue2fyre

Blue Fish
Oct 7, 2008
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Ok this is going to take a minute:p

1) I love this combination. Classic and beautiful.

2) I think you would need more girls to spread out aggression. Might be a little cramped for a 10 gallon.

3)Could be a really nice set up if you got a lot of different colored guppies. It's not for me because I don't like guppies.

4)Yet again if you got some nice colored platies it could be ok. Might be a little cramped though

5)I really find tetras boring without a centerpiece fish.
6)same as above

7)Could be neat but I don't think sparkling gouramis live very long. I could be wrong.

8)Eh still too much like guppies. Could work if there was more variety.

9)Nano fish always look great in a small aqaurium. This is a great idea

10)I think this might be a little busy for a small tank.

11)I'm never owned killis but this sounds like an awesome set up. Could be really interesting and quite different. This also looks like a good plan

12)From what I understand shellies have a lot of facinating behaviors. You could only keep one species and it might be a little boring since they would only stick to the bottom of the tank.

13)Shrimp are always great in a small tank!

14)dwarf crays are my new favorite invert. You could do a combo of this one and the one above. The shrimp would add a little variety.

15)I like how the gobies and nerites both have stripes. I think this tank would be a lot of fun but would require a little more work since it is brackish. SO far I vote for this one.

16)I love peacocks but they may be a bit shy. I've heard lately about ones not eating and not liking their tankmates.

17)Not feeling this one.

18) I think you could do better

19) For the win! These guys are suppose to have tons of personailty and add a lot to a tank.

20)I don't really care for puffers

21)same

22)I think with a betta instead this would be better, oh wait that's #1 :)

23)I just realized I don't really like gouramis.

24)This would be a nice simple tank. Just make sure the frogs are getting enough food.

25)This would make a beautiful small tank.

26)Nah

27)I thought paradise fish needed a larger tank?

28)Could be interesting. Will dwarf loaches fit in a tank this small?

29)Could be interesting depending on what type of killis you got

30)Yet again with the schooling fish

31)I don't think the tank is big enough for this stocking

32)Could be nice even though they are schooling fish.

33)Knight gobies are pretty neat

34)Tank is too small for kuhlis

35)This could work but the stocking would be a bit tight.

36)I think mollies would like a bigger tank

37)I really don't know anything about this species

38)Could be neat but add the shrimp first and let them build up a colony before adding the endlers.


I did it! Basically I think the dario dario tank would be the coolest. Geeze who said you can't do much with a 10 gallon? :D
 

Lexi_D

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Nov 25, 2007
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watershedrussiantortoise.blogspot.com
I'm really liking #25 and #32 for my new 10g tank that I'm stocking :) I'll be keeping an eye on this thread to see where it goes. Sorry I'm not too good with stocking so I can't really help, but it looks good to me!
 

BioHazard

Here and There
Mar 15, 2009
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Thanks! I appreciate the opinions!

Ok this is going to take a minute:p

1) I love this combination. Classic and beautiful.

2) I think you would need more girls to spread out aggression. Might be a little cramped for a 10 gallon. I don't know much about female bettas, so I'd appreciate opinions on this one.

3)Could be a really nice set up if you got a lot of different colored guppies. It's not for me because I don't like guppies.

4)Yet again if you got some nice colored platies it could be ok. Might be a little cramped though

5)I really find tetras boring without a centerpiece fish.
6)same as above

7)Could be neat but I don't think sparkling gouramis live very long. I could be wrong. I don't know about lifespan either. I do know they are shy.

8)Eh still too much like guppies. Could work if there was more variety.

9)Nano fish always look great in a small aqaurium. This is a great idea

10)I think this might be a little busy for a small tank.

11)I'm never owned killis but this sounds like an awesome set up. Could be really interesting and quite different. This also looks like a good plan

12)From what I understand shellies have a lot of facinating behaviors. You could only keep one species and it might be a little boring since they would only stick to the bottom of the tank. It wouldn't be a very 'full' tank, but you could breed the shellies, which would be fun.

13)Shrimp are always great in a small tank!

14)dwarf crays are my new favorite invert. You could do a combo of this one and the one above. The shrimp would add a little variety. Crays won't just eat the shrimp?

15)I like how the gobies and nerites both have stripes. I think this tank would be a lot of fun but would require a little more work since it is brackish. SO far I vote for this one.

16)I love peacocks but they may be a bit shy. I've heard lately about ones not eating and not liking their tankmates. They are shy, and can be picky about food. Luckily, male guppies are slow enough that the gudgeons should be able to compete.

17)Not feeling this one. Really? These guys are cool, if somewhat short lived.

18) I think you could do better Pfff. :p

19) For the win! These guys are suppose to have tons of personailty and add a lot to a tank.

20)I don't really care for puffers

21)same

22)I think with a betta instead this would be better, oh wait that's #1 :)

23)I just realized I don't really like gouramis. Lol.

24)This would be a nice simple tank. Just make sure the frogs are getting enough food.

25)This would make a beautiful small tank.

26)Nah

27)I thought paradise fish needed a larger tank? Not sure. Any experts?

28)Could be interesting. Will dwarf loaches fit in a tank this small? I think so. They stay pretty small.

29)Could be interesting depending on what type of killis you got

30)Yet again with the schooling fish

31)I don't think the tank is big enough for this stocking Could be true. Other opinions?

32)Could be nice even though they are schooling fish.

33)Knight gobies are pretty neat

34)Tank is too small for kuhlis You think? They have a pretty low bioload. Any other opinions?

35)This could work but the stocking would be a bit tight. True.

36)I think mollies would like a bigger tank I've never had mollies. Molly folks?

37)I really don't know anything about this species

38)Could be neat but add the shrimp first and let them build up a colony before adding the endlers. Good point.


I did it! Basically I think the dario dario tank would be the coolest. Geeze who said you can't do much with a 10 gallon? :D
 

Wycco

Eat more pine trees
Apr 19, 2009
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Just a general comment... not sure why you are listing shrimp as "3" or "5"- shrimp add virtually nothing to the bioload of a tank. A score of Palaemonetes ghost shrimp probably produce less waste than one guppy.

Otherwise some good suggestions.
 

Wycco

Eat more pine trees
Apr 19, 2009
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Crays won't just eat the shrimp?
Dwarf Crays- such as those in the Cambarellus genus won't eat adult shrimp... now they might eat the occasional juvenile shrimp- but they don't eat adult shrimp.

They're fairly quarellsome and so you'll need to make sure you spread food out- or the crays would dominate the food... but no reason not to keep dwarf crays with dwarf shrimp.
 
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