# Fish Ideas?



## Rowzy (Jan 13, 2012)

So I finally got myself a 10 gallon tank. Its the biggest I can have in my apartment without renters insurance, so I wanted to wait before I get a bigger tank. Anyways, the tank was only $10 with everything, but I had to take the fish too. Well, I got the tank but it turns out the fish are an at least 5" cichlid (not sure what kind) and a 3" danio. The LFS doesn't have tank space for them (no surprise, but she was surprised they were still alive and healthy after being in a 10g tank for so long) so I listed them on craigslist for free to anybody that has a big enough tank, because obviously a 10g tank is too small. I should be able to give them away soon. I already have somebody that is interested, but he only has a 30g tank, and I was told they need a 55g tank at least.

Anyways, I want to figure out what I want to put in the 10g tank once I give away of the other fish. I currently have a 3.5g tank with 5 male guppies in it and a baby snail. I know its too small for them, but that's what petsmart recommended (not going back there). I don't really want any more guppies, so I was wondering what I could keep with them. I like plecos but I know my tank is too small for one. I was looking at dwarf cory catfish but they need to be kept in groups of about 4 correct? And that would be at the max of what my tank can handle? Oh and I was also thinking about getting shrimp, but I don't really know anything about them.

Any recommendations are appreciated. 

On a side note, I am in Bellingham, WA if anybody is interested in the cichlid and/or danio.


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

You should get the renter's insurance. A fire in your apartment or a nearby unit will leave all your clothes unbearably smokey and the water from sprinklers or firefighting will ruin all you electronics. If you have enough money in your stuff that you can't afford to replace it all, you should get insurance. It will also cover you if you stuff gets stolen.

If you post a pic, we will ID the cichlid (maybe). That will up the odds of someone responding to your ad.

Red cherry shrimp are pretty cool and easy to keep.

There is an aquarium society in Vancouver http://vahs.ca/ and another in seattle http://www.gsas.org/ 
Clubs are usually a good way to find homes for unwanted fish (large group of people with multiple tanks).


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## Rowzy (Jan 13, 2012)

I am planning on getting the renters insurance, just not right now. I wanted time to look around and get the best deal for my money. But the other part of the reason I didn't get a bigger set up yet is that I need to find something I can afford. 40-50ish gallon set ups don't show up used very often around here, and when they do they want way more than I can afford most of the time (which is understandable, because they cost a lot to set up new). My dad offered me his old 100g set up that's been sitting in the garage, but its not really an "apartment sized" tank.

Here is a picture of the fish. Not a very good quality picture but I hope it helps.








The cichlid changes color too. When I got it, it was a really light grey, with almost no stripes showing. Then eventually it darkened. It gets almost completely black with red on the tips of its fins sometimes (usually when the tank lights are off...).

As for the red cherry shrimps, could I get like 3 of them? At that point could I get any other fish? I don't really know what my options are for a tank this size. I've been told tetras, but they need to be kept in groups of 6 right? Which would be over the number of fish I should really have in my tank.


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## P.senegalus (Aug 18, 2011)

I just got 20 red cherry shrimp and they are fun to watch. They're in a 10 gallon for now and it doesn't look crowded, but I don't plan to add any fish until I move some of them to my 30 gallon.

I would try for 5 cherry shrimp if you want fish too.


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

Hm, maybe a sarathodon mossambicus


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## Rowzy (Jan 13, 2012)

I gave the fish that came with the tank away about 2 weeks ago. I added my guppies to the tank then (4 males). Last Monday I bought 3 pygmy corys, and they seem to be getting along great. 

Now I am wondering what I can add to my tank? I was thinking possibly cardinal tetras, dwarf rasboras, or...? Lots of ideas would be great. I was hoping to go to the LFS this week to pick the next addition, so I am looking for ideas of what fish to look for/what would work well in this tank. Just as a reminder, the tank is 10 gallons. I have a Whisper 10i filter that came with the tnak, but I am planning on replacing it soon because I really don't like it.


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## jrmasterbreeder (Feb 12, 2008)

You could add some neons, or some kind of small tetra.
Really anything under 3 inches. 
If you add a second filter on low flow, you can get a few more fish in there.
Just dont overdo the filtration.


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## Rowzy (Jan 13, 2012)

I added 4 baby cardinal tetras. I asked the guy at the LFS and that's what he recommended. I asked if it was OK to keep them in such as small group, and he said it should be fine (and he seemed very knowledgeable, not just making things up). I noticed this morning that I could only find 3, and I figured the other one was hiding. Unfortunately, when I came home I noticed the water was a little cloudy (clear yellowish), so I did a water change and found one of them dead. The water is still a little yellow, but very light. I just ordered a new filter online yesterday, an AquaClear 20, so hopefully a better filter will help clear up the water quality. All the other fish seem healthy, but I am planning on picking up test strips at some point this week.

How long should I wait before I replace the fish? 3 seems like too small of a group for tetras?


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## Ladayen (Jun 20, 2011)

Cardinals rarely bred in captivity, as such virtually 100% are wild caught. They need parameters that very closely mirror those of the wild. Guppies and cardinals should never be kept together as they require rather different parameters.

Do you have any idea what you PH and Gh is? Guppies are fairly adaptable but do need alkaline water( PH above 7) Your pygmy cories need acidic(PH below 7) water (as do cardinals) Depending on your PH, one species of fish is not going to do well long term.


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## Rowzy (Jan 13, 2012)

2 of the guppies died over night. One was acting strange around 1am when I went to sleep (it couldn't swim) but the other one was acting normal.
So I got my water tested today. Ammonia is 0, Nitrite is 0, Nitrate is 10. pH is 7.2, KH is 4. The LFS did the test, and I told them what fish I had in the tank. She said that the pH and KH were close to the regular city water (which, from what I understand but I could be wrong, is what they use in most of their tanks), but for some reason it was slightly harder than normal. The rest of the fish are acting normal but she recommended I add Melafix in case it is something bacterial.


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## Ladayen (Jun 20, 2011)

Dont go adding meds just in case. You're just as likely to harm the fish as help it. Also improper dosages will make bacteria that survive more resistant to future treatment.


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