I would do firemouths, but I dont want just one pair of fish in there and it seems like firemouth communities pretty much end with two fish pairing up and killing the rest. plus my mom doesnt like the way they look, and I'm trying to please everyone in the family since they keep complaining that the tanks take up so much room.
ok, so I've been thinking, and I have a few ideas for how to stock the tank (not all these fish together, of course, these are just the species I like grouped together in generic groups):
semi-aggressive community (not sure how plants would work with these guys, or how this list would work, period; thinking it might just not work at all)
tiger barbs
red tailed shark
serpae tetras
maybe a krib?
would a gold gourami or two work with tiger barbs?
more peaceful Asiatic community
pair or trio of larger gouramis (golds, pearls, blues, or opalines)
harlequin rasboras
cherry barbs
bunch of kuhlis or maybe cories, or smaller groups of both maybe
puffer tank?
bunch of dwarf puffers (how many is acceptable? I've heard something like 5g/puffer?)
kuhli loaches (heard they're okay with puffers?)
some ottos if algae becomes a problem
betta sorority tank
10-15 female bettas
big school of dithers
bunch of kuhlis or cories
goldfish (some potted plants, light sand substrate)
3 fancy goldfish or 2-3 fancy goldfish and 2-3 dojo loaches (how good at escaping are dojos? like, would I need a top for them?)
loosely SA-themed tank (obviously need to cut this list down to size a bit)
4 angels
pair of german blue or bolivian rams
some harlquin rasboras
few cherry barbs
maybe a gourami (dwarf or pearl)
some cories
non-heated tank (would stay above 75 degrees most of the time)
white clouds
danios (zebra and leopard)
some cories
pair of gold gouramis or some paradise fish
any thoughts on those lists? or ideas for others? subtractions?