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Hey peeps ^_^

I'm planning on buying either a two or 2.5 gallon hex tank, and I was wondering, what kinds of fish can you put in there? I was thinking either a betta fish, one to three dwarf pufferfish, or a sparkling gourami, but I don't know anything about sparkling gouramis, or whether or not they would be happy in that size tank. Are there any other options, or is that it? (Please list any and all fish that could be put in a 2.5 gallon hex.) Could possibly go up to five gallons. Thanks, Jess

Well with 2.5 gallons I would only go with a male Betta and thats it. If you went with 5 gallons would could go with Cherry Barbs, Neon Tetras, Guppies, Female Bettas, freshwater puffers and theres more i just cant think of the rest lol. But if you are interested in any of the listed me and im sure anyone else can help you with the stocking of the tank.

IMO dwarf puffers need atleast a 10g. A 5g would be bare minimum and thats for 2 of them. Having 2 in a small tank could still cause problems if you have 2 males...so I just say a 10g is minimum, for 3 DPs. So they are out for a 2.5g.

I'd just go with a betta. 2.5g tanks are small...especially the hex tanks. I'd personally get a 5g. If you don't want a betta, I think you could have a trio of sparkling gouramis (someone correct me if I'm wrong on this one), a trio of cherry barbs (1m/2f), or maybe a trio of female bettas (depends on attitudes).

I say no neons in anything under 10g...or any tetras.

*Kristin*

For a 5 gallon you can have any of those trios.

For a 5 gallon you can have any of those trios.

Not Bettas...

Chris

ok so say I went with a five gallon. . .my only issue is maintenance work. I gave up on my ten gallon because I couldn't keep it clean, so I am sticking to smaller tanks. The two gallon hex my current betta is in works really great and I just change the water every week or so, but how does a 5 gallon differ, or is it the same? My parents might not even let me waste the money on a five gallon because of the two hundred or so I wasted on the ten gallon. (on buying various cleaning equipment that didn't do anything just go whirr ) Ok so how about this stocking list for a five gallon:
~1 male betta OR
~3 neon tetras OR
~2 dwarf puffer fish OR (or 1 in a 2.5 gallon?)
~1 sparkling gourami OR
~3 cherry barbs

Well I d go with 1 sparkling gouramis and 3 cherry barbs, and maybe an otto. Maontance is the same, do a 25-30% water change weekly and remmeber do not over feed the fish.

ok on my two gallon, I change ALL of the water every week, making sure to get it the same temperature so my betta doesn't go into shock. Can I still do that with a five gallon?

And I just hand wash the marbly gravel thingys with water, in a strainer, and then fill back with water. I have NO idea how to use a siphon thing, (tried it, never going back there again) and if that is what a five gallon requires, then I won't buy one. Is there a way to clean an aquarium without siphoning the gravel? Can I just net it out and hand wash it? (Without using soap of course ) And I really like that stocking Fish Guy , the 1 sparkling gourami, three cherry barbs, and an oto. Just thinking though, because otos aren't very hardy and might not be able to stand me changing all of the water, are there any other SMALL catfish I could replace it with? Like an upside down catfish, or a khuli loach?

If you are looking to do DP you can have one only. It takes 3 gal per DP.

Well if the only way you can have an aquarium is if you want to change all the water every week then just go with a 2.5 gallon and a betta. Having the water at the same temperature is a good idea but not the most important. Your tanks needs time to cycle and every time you clean out the whole tank then it has to recycle again, really only betta are somewhat tough enough for that. So it's best to stick with a 2.5 gallon, or you'll end up with some dead fish im afraid. Siphons aren't hard to use though, just practice with some clean water and a bucket.

I think that if I were to change all the water, I should skip the oto altogether, as I don't think they would be able to tolerate it. I think the cherry barbs (I have had them in the past and they have proven to be quite hardy) and the sparkling gourami should be fine though? How about this?
~1 sparkling gourami
~2 female cherry barbs
~2 neon tetras

oh and what's 'DP'? Dwarf Pufferfish?

Well it is up to yourself, but only taking out 25% of the water is easier then taking out 100% of the water. For the stock I would go with 1 sparkling gouramis and 3 cherry barbs. Male cherry barbs are much brighter. In terms of neons they do require lots of swimming space and prefer to be in schools, so i'd leave them out. Yeah DP means dwarf pufferfish.

Well,

In all honesty, and the hope that you will appreciate that, I think you should do some serious reading on tank and fish related topics first, or fire away with basic questions here until you got that stuff down.

For one thing: the last thing I ever would recomment is to remove all the gravel and to wash it by hand. This is the main place in the tank where beneficial bacteria sit (also on glass and in filter, but these two entities are way more likely to be cleaned, for good reasons) and removing it to clean it will deprive you of these helpful guys. In effect - causing a mini cycle (or even maxi) each time you wash the gravel.

Small tanks are way more fragile and much less forgiving for mistakes than large tanks are.

I hope my words do not cause you to be angry at me, I am only trying to avoid that your experience will be a bad one and you will leave this beautiful hobby because of the dissapointment it may have caused you. Just my opinion,

Ingo

---

Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

well if I can't just hand wash the rocks, then how do I clean them? I am sick of wasting money on gravel cleaning equipment, getting it home, and only finding out that it doesn't work.

A gravel vaccum wirks great, same thing as a sphion. Just get a bucket and suck on the end of the hose until you see the water going through it and just put it in the bucket. Then just lightly go through the gravel with it. Under gravel filteration is another option but still you need to sphion.

um I spent 30$ on a battery operated 'gravel cleaner' that supposedly would siphon it for me, it went 'whirr' and didn't do anything, just stirred up the gravel and made the tank dirtier. I spent another 30$ siphon thingy that simply wouldn't start, and sucking on that thing is gross. . .I don't mind doing the work on a fish tank, but not if I don't know how. And they don't really come with instructions either, and neither of my parents could figure the darn thing out either, and I really don't want to buy anything else unless I KNOW how to siphon it. I don't have the other stuff either; I threw it away

You don't have to suck on the tube to start a siphon, simply submerge the entire tube, put your thumb over the end of the tube that is going to the bucket, pull it out of the tank and pull it below the level of the other end of the tube and let go.

I had a manual siphon and started it like Bonny is suggesting. Works fine. I have a Python now that works even better. You just hook it up to the sink and turn the water on and the water pressure sucks water out of the tank. Its hard IMO to use the Python on smaller tanks though because it takes water out pretty fast.

I think cleaning bigger tanks is easier than cleaning smaller tanks.

I wouldn't have dwarf puffers (DPs) in a 5g. The rule is 3 gallons per puffer and they like company of their own. I've heard of DPs that are alone starving to death. I also think these are not beginners fish. They can be hard to feed and most will only take frozen blood worms. They also are really messy (even though they are small) and need really clean water (which it doesn't sound like you are up to doing). That means changing out water atleast once a week. These guys don't handle ammonia and nitrite well, so its best to keep them in a larger planted tank where the water parameters are more stable. I think having them in 5g is asking for trouble. I also don't think you are ready to keep DPs.

Neons don't belong in a 5g tank. They are schooling, so a group of 6 or more is preferred. IME neons do much better the more you have, so a school of 8 is better than 6. You can't keep 6 or 8 in a 5g. Leave them out and save yourself the money. I don't think they will last too long in a 5g, especially if you don't clean regularly.

Seriously, you should be doing regular water changes and gravel vacs with something. Invest in a $10 siphon and start it like Bonny explains. It may take a few times to get it right...it did me. Change about 40% of the water a week. Don't hand wash the gravel. That gets rid of the good bacteria and probably recycles your tank every time...not good for the fish.

I'd also skip the sparkling gourami. I think they can be a bit sensitive as well, so not great for a small tank that isn't cleaned regularly. Cherry barbs do best in planted, cycled tanks IMO, so I'd skip them too.

That leaves you with another betta. Until you read up on cleaning and such, I'd just stick with a male betta. They are more forgiving, when you don't clean every week. They can also (sadly) handle ammonia and nitrites a little more than other fish, when the tank has to recycle.

*Kristin*