FishProfiles.com Message Forums

I'm currently setting up my new tank. I used to be into fishkeeping 2 years ago and had 5 various tanks from piranhas to beta splenden breeding tank. Circumstances changed and i had to get rid of them all

I now have a 60L tank thst I'm currently fishless cycling and need ideas for fish.

I would of liked a clown plec but I think my tank is slightly too small so may go with a group of corys instead.

I also want a schoal of rummy nose tetras but thinking about something a bit bigger like a paradie fish?

I know these are cousins of beta's and can be aggressive so have been advised maybe best to just have one on it's own? Would this be ok or maybe a pair?

My question is I've seen many pics of these fish and obviously in the LFS and some are stunning colours and some are a bit plain looking. Do they come in many colours or is this depending on how mature they are or the sex of them?

Thanks

Welcome to FP

Corys are fun to watch, especially a school of them.

I had a paradise fish, nice bold color. Not good in my guppy tank. It systematically explored the tank and hunted down all the fry. The way it did this was really cool though. I watched amazed. They're an interesting fish to observe, and very clever. I'm wondering if a female betta would get along with it, or gouramis.

I think the tetras can get away from it.

I've seen them in red and blue, there's a couple more colors which look more natural.

I think of everything in gallons unless I buy a litre of milk lol. So a 20 to 30 gal tank ?

Have you chosen a substrate yet ?

The Amazon Nut...

it's about 16 US Gallons. I have really fine gravel in my tank.

I think it may be a bit small for a paradise fish and female beta unless i go with that option rather than a school of rummies?

A 16 g would be fine for a paradise fish plus friend,
or some rummies

Fine gravel lends itself well to a plant tank.
What are the tank dimensions & light setup ?



The Amazon Nut...

May sound like a proper female here but i bought it 2nd hand from a work friend and i dont have a tape measure to measure it lol!!

I know it's 24" and probably by about 12" not sure about height though.

And yeah, i have some bogwood in there already and going to get some real plants once my fishless cycle is complete or it will slow it down.

So you think it will be fine on its own with some rummies or 2 female beta splendens?

24" x 12" is usually about 20 gallon, I think. It isn't all that important for this type of setup. You are looking for footprint and easily visible territories more than volume and swimming space. You also have the added benefit that the paradise can breathe surface air. What filtration are you running and what sort of substrate?

You can keep multiple paradise fish together, but you are best off buying females, much like with bettas. Try and get them all at the same time and add them at the same time to avoid any one fish getting in early and establishing a territory. In that size tank I'd be keeping a single fish, or 3 girls. 2 is always an iffy number unless they are paired IME.

The colours I have seen are wild (dark red & blue) blue (no red) albino (red eyed white) and pastel (light red and blue).

I would avoid having a paradise with a betta, regardless of gender. It either works or it doesn't, and there is a higher risk of another labyrinth fish not working than something like danios or tetras. If you have somewhere to keep the betta should it not work out you could try it and see, just be careful

For animals, the entire universe has been neatly divided into things to (a) mate with, (b) eat, (c) run away from, and (d) rocks. - Terry Pratchett

The substrate is fine gravel, the finest i've seen anyway, before you get to sand. The filter is a Fluvel U1, although can buy another small filter if needed. I will have about 5 corys, a school of tetras and a paradise fish. I think this should be sufficient, if I for more than 1 paradise fish i would get another small filter.

Thanks

My 15g tanks are also 24x12, but approx 12 in height.

If its a couple inches taller then it is wide, it's prob a 20. Knowing the gallons helps calculate many things.

Does your top hold a single or double tube or 2 screw bulb fixtures, and what plants do you wish to grow ?

Knowing that & the height will determine if you can use the existing top, or will have to purchase or diy a light strip, or need to make a reflector to get more light to the substrate level.

A person locally bought a canister filter w/out measuring his cabinet, to discover it wouldn't fit. Since it was bought used, no refund was possible and had to sell it at a loss. He owned a tape measure so don't feel bad

The Amazon Nut...