20 High Freshwater tank could use advice.....

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Discuss all topics related to freshwater and planted tanks.


JB20High9473
 
Posts: 58
Joined: Fri May 15, 2009 5:21 am

20 High Freshwater tank could use advice.....

by JB20High9473

Ok. I am new to the hobby and just got a 20 High to start. I have always wanted to start a tank but never had the time for upkeep, but with a wife and kids now is the time. I am pondering some additions to the tank. I currently house 2 angelfish, both under 2 to 2.5 inches, and 3 tiger barbs. I was told this was a bad combo, and that I needed more barbs so the angelfish would leave em be, but if anything the barbs tend to chase the angelfish and all seem happy. My tank is fresh off its first cycle, so some moderately hardy fish, preferably on the same diet as the above mentioned, are what I am looking for. I also am not sure how many I can safely hold. I have heard the 1 inch per gallon rule, and know the angelfish are likely to get large(was told up to 6 inches). So what would be a nice addition?

Some moderate restrictions would be that they have to catch the wife and kids eye a little. Can't be too, how do I say it, "ugly" to a little girl. Also, like stated above, if they could all use the same diet of tropical flakes that would be great. The tank also needs to seem populated. I am happy with what I have for now, but the family wants more fishies as what I've got seems boring to them I guess.

I was thinking a Bala Shark... but heard they get kinda big.
I like the idea of a little freshwater crab, but have no idea how to take care of that.
I want to have room for a cat or some kind of algea fish for when the tank gets its own growth pattern going.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

P.S. If its gear I need please be specific on what you recomend. Sending me into a pet store after a new gizmo is like giving the wife a credit card and pointing at Macy's.


JB20High9473
 
Posts: 58
Joined: Fri May 15, 2009 5:21 am

by JB20High9473

I just did the Freshwater Tank Wizard and saw that I should have a filter that pumps 120gal/hr. Mine is only 80gal/hr and was recommended by the petsmart guy. Can I just side by side another of the same 80gal/hr kind? I really don't want to deal with the wife telling me how I got the wrong one in the first place if I have to toss it and get a bigger one... ugh!


esparzar1
 
Posts: 164
Joined: Fri Jan 30, 2009 5:31 pm

by esparzar1

Bala sharks get huge (up to a foot long) and are best kept in groups of 3-5. So, I probably wouldn't recommend Bala's. You could maybe try a Rainbow shark. They only get 4-6 in length and can be kept with most "semi-aggressive" community's.

How many gallons is your 20 high? I don't know exactly how big your tank is but (is it a 20 gallon), there's nothing wrong IMO with adding another filter. You can never have too much filtration. I currently only have my 30 gallon up and running but I got a Emperor 400 with is rated for a 75 gallon tank. I would recommend getting either a higher powered filter or just adding another one.


tchavera
 
Posts: 17
Joined: Sat Mar 21, 2009 2:58 am

by tchavera

Well.. you only have a 20 gallon tank so your fish selection is limited. You have 2 angel fish that get up to 6 inches which is 12 inches obviously.. So you have 8 inches of fish left to put into your tank without over crowding them. Sometimes it looks like there is a lot of room for more fish but you have to think about the fish also.

Like the person before me said, you can never have too much filtration. You could buy another small filter if you wanted. But there is also a little shark called the Red Tail Shark. Even though they aren't really appealing they only get about 4 inches. But hey, sometimes the really ugly fish bring attention to the tank!


josmoloco
 
Posts: 189
Joined: Thu Mar 20, 2008 11:21 pm

by josmoloco

Ok, lets get you stratened out a wee bit,
1) I would rehome the tiger barbs fist off(they need to be in a large group to avoid fin nipping)
2) Buy a second filter these are good (I hope)
http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.j ... Id=2752390
http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.j ... Id=3065443
3)Buy a trio of cory catfish (the albinos are cool) and ther you go! You could aso add 4-5 small tetras (see how long it takes the angles to eat em)


dizzcat
 
Posts: 648
Joined: Tue Jun 24, 2008 2:30 am

by dizzcat

I would get rid of the Tiger Barbs. Even tho they only chase the Angels, they are still stressing them out.

How about a school of Neon Tetras? Say 6 of them? They look real pretty in a group and stay small. You could also get a couple Cory's to help keep the bottom clean. They need to be kept in a small group, so at the least 2. The 1" per gallon rule isn't a very good one. Some fish produce more waste than other. When buying fish, remember that most all fish in the store are juveniles and not their adult size yet. So buy them thinking of their adult size.

I would stay away from the sharks. Most get too aggressive for the angels. I have a Rainbow shark in with my African cichlids and he is very aggressive. He is not full grown yet and is already up to 6". A Red Tailed shark will get too big too. I saw some at the store that were at least 8" big.

Is your tank tall? If not, the Angels will have a hard time when they get bigger. I tried a couple in a regular 20 gallon (18" high) and one grew so big it hard to swim sideways. I gave him to my lfs to re-home.


JB20High9473
 
Posts: 58
Joined: Fri May 15, 2009 5:21 am

by JB20High9473

Ok I will try and anwser some of these.

To the last question yeah the tank is 24" high so I was told they would be ok.

As for the Tiger Barbs being aggressive, I will probably have to do something about that as the angels are kinda my priority. Of course I don't know what I will do with them... Anyone in the Colorado area want some free Tiger Barbs? LOL

The Cory cats were deffinitely a great idea and I planned on getting a Catfish anyways. My tank is still a little young though so I want to get a bit more growth for them to feed off of even if I am going to be augmenting their diets alot.

As for the filter thing. I will be buying at least another RENA 80gal/hr and appreciate the advice.

For a school of tiny fish or more low impact fish anyways, are their any that might not be angel food? I mean I am new to the hobby, and if my kid catches glimpse of the big fish eating the little fish I am sure to hear about it for a year.

Thanks sooo much for all the feedback!

JB


dizzcat
 
Posts: 648
Joined: Tue Jun 24, 2008 2:30 am

by dizzcat

Hey, where in Colorado are you? I am in Colorado Springs!

Cory cats don't eat algae, they eat food they find laying around. They really help keep the tank clean in that aspect! Otto cats are real good for eating Algae and they stay small and don't eat live plants.

A lot of the Tetras get to be about 2". You can do Neon's if they are big enough. My older ones are about 1.5" now. Just be careful when you buy them that they are not too small. You could also do a school of zebra danio's too.


zambize
 
Posts: 401
Joined: Mon Feb 25, 2008 9:14 pm

by zambize

It sounds like your tank is rather full as it is. At maturity, you have 12" of angel fish and 9" of tiger barbs. Not only that, the tank you have is far too small for mature angel fish. Their finnage gets very, very large and they need a much larger, deeper tank to be happy. Also, angel fish tend to be aggressive toward one another and odds are very good that one of your two will be the dominate and kill the other, or at least make it wish it were never born. They are getting along now because they are babies, but when they mature you will have fireworks. And as for the barbs, any number of tiger barbs under 6 usually spells disaster for their tankmates. Yes, you have a bad combo, as someone already told you, but the angels are a bad choice for a 20 gallon tank, even alone. If you read some literature on angels you'll find that a much larger tank, something like a 45 gallon, is the recommended *minimum*. I'm sure they're fine and look cute right now, but they're only 2" at the moment. I have an angel in a 55 gallon, it isn't even full grown, and it barely has sufficient vertical room to really swim.

And as for getting a red-tailed black shark, I wouldn't advise that either. They may only get to 4", but they require a much larger tank because they are *very* territorial. They will pick out a section of the tank and claim it as their own...anything comes inside it is subject to attack, especially anything slow with big fins....say, like an angel fish. RTBS require a *LOT* of space for a 4" fish. The one inch of fish per gallon is just a guideline. It does not apply to all fish or in all situations.

Even if the angel fish didn't get so big vertically, they get 6" long. A 20 gallon tank is 24" long...that's hardly room for a 6" fish to swim back and forth one time. This is when that 1" per gallon thing doesn't apply. You wouldn't put a 10" fish in a 10 gallon tank?! You still have to think of the needs of the individual fish. In my opinion, the fish you have and the RTBS you are thinking of are too big/inappropriate for your tank.

Zambize


JB20High9473
 
Posts: 58
Joined: Fri May 15, 2009 5:21 am

by JB20High9473

WOW! This is truely enlightening. As for whee in Colorado, WE MIGHT BE NEIGHBORS! LOL. I am in Falcon right outside of the Springs.

I have a neighbor that took the barbs so that mess is averted. As for the angels I am already buttering the wife up for a big tank. So I think withint the year I should be cycling a 55+ gallon tank. The angels can move into that and I can use the 20 high for the tetras and some odds and ends. I have decided that the Cory cats will be a great addition, and the shark is off the list for now. I have some pics with my phone, not that great, that I will post.

I have a few questions as it goes to testing strips for water quality. I got some 5 in 1 strips that do the nitrite/nitrate/ph/alchalinity/hardness vs softness and the tank seems to be riding the ideal line. My questions is, and I think I know the anwser, am I going to need the ammonia strips as well?

The one Angel is deffinitely the boss in the tank. He doesn't bully the other one arround at all really, but he is gorgeous and is about 1 to 2 centimeters bigger then the other. I went with tetras to fill the tank out. I got 4 neon blues and 4 neon oranges. Adds some variety and they get along well. The oranges act kinda weird though. Its like they each picked their few inches of gravel and are camping them out unless there is food in the tank. They aren't spawning are they? If they even do that... Another question is that my bubble bar is almost right under the filter output. This seems to put thousands of tiny bubbles everywhere in the water. Is that ok? Should I move it?

20 High Freshwater tank could use advice.....

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