I am putting together an aquarium for my children. They want to get Angel fish for it. What other fish can I put with the Angels that will be OK together??
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New Fish Tank Help Please
- Thread starter drgnkritter
- Start date
ok ...well what size tank is the first and foremost question ...usually angels get pretty large and can be somewhat aggressive ..maybe you could do a search in our database on angels and be sure this would be the fish you can house ...there are many beautiful options ...lol but i nkow childrens minds can be hard to change ...and to save you the trouble have you kept fish before cause maybe we ought to tell you about cycling ...this will help prevent fish lose and broken hearts ...although it will take more time ...
We have a 20 gallon tank. If you have any suggestions to better fish to get insted of the Angels, Dad can usualy change their minds. LOL :devil:
ok well thats a great starter size ...and convincing dads are always a good thing ...i am partial to fresh water community because you can get a variety of fish that occupy all different levels of the tank ..my two smaller childern love this idea because it makes for much more excitement when they watch ..i have a tertra ..which come in a variety of clors breeds ..and danio tank ...with cory catfish as well ..the daniosswim at the top ..the other tetras usually are mid line and the corries are really entertaining to watch dart up from the bottom of the tank ...these fish all come in a variety ...of shapes sizes and colors .....in a twnty gallon high you could put a pair imho of angels but i wouldnt add any more ...and a shorter tank, height wise, i wouldnt recomend, angels actually can get quite large...but there are also some great threads on here about cycling in the newbie forum ...if you get a chance ..read them ....they helped me through a sticky situation or two and i find i still have to read them everynow and then ... :thm:
As far as I know, angel fish, certainly more than one, would grow too large live in a twenty gallon.
You can check fish profiles to see tank size recomendations.
I was thinking a dwarf gourami might be a good "large" fish for a twenty gallon, and could have lots of tank mates, but you cant have two males. do the kids each want their own fish?
Do learn about cycling the tank. it will save you a LOT of headaches.( not to mention what it will save the fish)
One thing I'd recomend is Cory fish. They dwell in the bottom of the tank and are pretty cool and sort of 'personable' fish. they are also reasonably hardy, IMO 'beginner fish'. they like to live in schools. Three would be a good number for that sized tank, I think, and leave you room for other fish. You can get them small and they grow ,which is fun to watch as well.
Common goldfish wouldnt thrive in a tank that size, tear up plants and require a lot of water changes.
Possibly two fancy GF, but it would be pushing it, and you couldnt have any other fish. also would require a lot of awater changes. IMO, stay away from the goldfish.
You have Lots of choices with a twenty gallon. I'd say look around and see what interests you and check back, like you did with the goldfish.
You can check fish profiles to see tank size recomendations.
I was thinking a dwarf gourami might be a good "large" fish for a twenty gallon, and could have lots of tank mates, but you cant have two males. do the kids each want their own fish?
Do learn about cycling the tank. it will save you a LOT of headaches.( not to mention what it will save the fish)
One thing I'd recomend is Cory fish. They dwell in the bottom of the tank and are pretty cool and sort of 'personable' fish. they are also reasonably hardy, IMO 'beginner fish'. they like to live in schools. Three would be a good number for that sized tank, I think, and leave you room for other fish. You can get them small and they grow ,which is fun to watch as well.
Common goldfish wouldnt thrive in a tank that size, tear up plants and require a lot of water changes.
Possibly two fancy GF, but it would be pushing it, and you couldnt have any other fish. also would require a lot of awater changes. IMO, stay away from the goldfish.
You have Lots of choices with a twenty gallon. I'd say look around and see what interests you and check back, like you did with the goldfish.
If your kids really, really like the look of angels, you could instead put some long-finned black or gold skirt tetras in there. They will not outgrow a 20 long and look sort of like angels. Stay away from the ones that are all different bright colors, though. Those are injected with dye and it is not permanent, plus it shortens their lives. For a good list of commonly dyed fish with pics go to: www.deathbydyeing.org
good idea sky eyes ..i have several longfinned blackskirts and i have to say they are beautiful fish ...
My two cents-
My kids, 3 and 8, really like our platties and amano (or algae-eating) shrimp. Its a good combo for a twenty gallon. The nice thing about platties is that you can get a few different color strains so the kids can name them and tell them apart. The kids aren't much interested in our schooling fish, who are more anonymous. Platties are also very resilient and active fish. (Get all female platties for the most peaceful tank.) The shrimp are just cool to watch and they will do a good a job of scavenging and algae control.
And by the way, if fishless cycling seems too daunting, Bio-Spira is a better bet than fishy cycling- it will save you a ton of work on the water changes.
My kids, 3 and 8, really like our platties and amano (or algae-eating) shrimp. Its a good combo for a twenty gallon. The nice thing about platties is that you can get a few different color strains so the kids can name them and tell them apart. The kids aren't much interested in our schooling fish, who are more anonymous. Platties are also very resilient and active fish. (Get all female platties for the most peaceful tank.) The shrimp are just cool to watch and they will do a good a job of scavenging and algae control.
And by the way, if fishless cycling seems too daunting, Bio-Spira is a better bet than fishy cycling- it will save you a ton of work on the water changes.
I will have to look in to the tetra's. We only have one place to buy fish here so we don't have the best selection. And once again thank you all for your input on ideas for my tank.