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I'm thinking about doing a tank composed of peaceful, community fish who will do well in pairs (so that I can have a large variety).

I have a 29 gallon tank that has no fish in it but is already planted and cycled. The tank is two years old but recovering from Ich that killed all the fish in one day. After two tough months, I don't want fish on the extreme end of being delicate.

Here are some of the fish pairs that I'm considering:
Cherry Barbs
Odessa Barbs
Checkered Barbs
Half-Band Barbs (other than the cherries, would these other Barbs do well in pairs?)
Blue Rams (a must in whatever plan I end up with)
Gardneri Killifish (other Killi's?)
Honey Gourami
Flame Dwarf Gourami
A pair of Platys
A pair of Swords
Do any Tetras or small Rainbows do well in pairs or perhaps triads?

There would be a pleco (perhaps BN, Emperor or Zebra) or group of small cories which would leave me 22-30 inches for these fish pairs.

Any red flags with the above options?
Other pairs that I could add to the consideration list?
I'm also open to ideas for fish that do well alone or in triads.

It's fun to think about.
Thanks,

Of the barbs you listed the only one I've kept are cherries. They do well in pairs, are peaceful, and have nice color.

For the most part livebearers shouldn't be kept in pairs. The minimum ratio is 1M/2F to keep the stress down on the females.

I have a pair of honey gouramis I believe to be M/F, they do well together. I've heard female dwarf gouramis can be difficult to find because their coloring isn't as nice as the males.



Last edited by Theresa_M at 14-Jan-2005 00:34

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There is water at the bottom of the ocean

The tetras, rainbows, and barbs (except for the cherry barbs) should be kept in groups of at least six, and don't fare well in pairs. The same goes for Corydoras catfish, just so you know. I agree with the livebearers as well, they should be kept in trios.

I think that you should go with two rams, two of either dwarf gourami (though the flames look nicer, in my opinion), six Corydoras, a few pairs of cherry barbs, and the pleco. Just what I like.

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And when he gets to Heaven, to Saint Peter he will tell: "One more Marine reporting, Sir! I've served my time in Hell."

I thought barbs preferred to stay in schools, but Theresa's not one to steer anyone wrong Male cherry barbs have an excellent red color.

If you can get ahold of a zebra plec and can afford it, GO FOR IT! Their exportation has been banned, so they're very hard to come by and quite expensive.

Tetras and rainbow fish are schoolers, so pairs of them really isn't an option.

What I've successfully kept as pairs:
M/F kribs
M/F blue rams (excellent choice )
M/F paradise fish (I think, though it may have been 2 males)
M/M dwarf gouramis

The above fish are all wonderful and easy to care for. I highly recomment them.

A also suggest a pair of male sword tails, or maybe even a pair of keyhole cichlids. Ceck out your options and decide which ones you like. It's your tank, after all.

One last thing: the one inch of fish per gallon of water is a good general rule, but it's not always true. If it were the only rule, a full grown oscar would be ok in a 15g :%) When stocking, you also need to consider filtration and bioload. With a little more filtration than the bare minimum, you can overstock a little. Also, 10 inches of, say, neon tetras, does not create as much waste as 10 inches of a large cichlid.

HTH and good luck

><>Dani<><

I know alot of people wont agree but I had 2 cories for a long time and they been fine. They always hang out and never look stressed. Even when I put more of the same type cories in the two I had still sticks together and the other cories stay in their pack so I think 2 would be fine giving some hiding space and good water conditions. Im not an expert but its been done with no problems

It's good to get lots of food for thought... I have never kept livebearers before so I did not know about the 2F/1M guideline, but it makes sense. I don't want to keep fish in pairs that need a small school. At this point, I'm thinking about:
- a single pleco
- A pair of Cherry Barbs
- A pair of Blue Rams
- Maybe one more pair of fish
- One school of 6-7 tetras or non-aggressive barbs
or

- a school of six small cories
- A pair of Cherry Barbs
- A pair of Blue Rams
- 3 or so more pair or trios of fish

What about killifish? Are they good community fish and do they do well in pairs? Could a pair of Dwarf Flame Gouramis co-exist with a pair of Honey Gouramis? Any other pairs or trios to consider?

Re. filtering, I have a Penguin 330 Biowheel and moderate to heavy live plants

bolivian rams may b an option to

yes ive had success with the gouramies keeping flames n dwarfs
i can recomend a fish that ive kept in a trio but ppl wil say its wrong are harliquin raspboas ppl will say u need at least 6 but my tree r going strong on 2 years n bred every month 1 male 2 females they stay in a tite group to
ive never kept killies but i do no they will eat young fry

i would go with the bolivian rams over the blue germans, the reason is the bolivs get a little bigger and the germans aren't really at all hardy. Its all preference though of course but i just picked up 3 baby bolivs being housed in a 10 gallon for now till 2 of the 3 pair up and i remove the other one. Hopefully their not all the same sex lol