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I'm starting up a new 10 gallon tank and I'm trying to decide on what fish to add in to start cycling my tank. I'm pretty set on ending up with mostly livebearers in the end. Could I try to cycle with 2-3 platys? Should I cycle with some danios? If I cycle with danios and get livebearers later, how do the danios do with salt?

Hello and welcome to FishProfiles. An alternative to cycling with fish is "Fishless cycling" I placed a link to an article on the topic below. I used to use the Zebra Danios to cycle my tanks but if I ever get a new tank again I will probably try the fishless cycling. Platys and Danios are both very hardy fish though and both could be used but that method is quickly becoming known as a bit barbaric.

I used to believe in the power of salt as a preventative for disease. I used to add one tablespoonful for every 5 gallons of water to my tanks. Those tanks included danios and platys as well as angels and guoramis. I do not know how much good it did but I never saw any adverse effects from it. Most people do add it for the platys but I have come to believe that it probably does not matter unless you get platys right out of the wild and I consider it a waste of money. But this is only my opinion. Look around here for other past posts on the use of salt in freshwater tanks.

As far as your stocking goes, what quantity were you thinking of for your 10 gallon? I would suggest no more than 7 Platys in a 10 gallon tank. Something to think about with livebearers is that they have young quickly and can easily get out of control. One way to combat that is to have only one sex in the tank. See "How to distinguish sex in livebearers" in the Livebearers section. Please excuse me if you already know all this. I am just trying to be helpful but I do not know your experience level. For all I know you have other tanks you can move fry into and this 10 gallon is going to be a breeding tank. lol
Anyways, I hope this info was helpful and I wish you luck. Later!http://www.fishprofiles.com/articles/article.aspx?id=31

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I was thinking about maybe breeding the livebearers but no I don't have a second tank. I hadn't thought about getting all 1 sex of platys. Probably all female would be better since I think the males can fight....maybe not if there are no females? If I get all females I could always get a male later when I get another/bigger tank.

OR

I could just go with about half a dozen tetras of some kind and get some ottos to keep it clean. Thinkin glowlights, cardinals or black neons.

Since I don't have a source of bacteria from another tank I don't think I really have a way to do a fishless cycle.

This is only a 10g. Half a dozen of anything is not going to fit(cept maybe shrimp). You could do 5-6neons and a couple otos but I do not like suggesting any schooling fish for a 10g tank. It does not have enough length for them to school properly. I've never seen male livebearers of any type fight except maybe shoving each other around when there is a female present. If you get all females then your going to have fry anyway. They can get pregnant very young and will give birth several times without coming into contact with a male again. Unless you have another fish that will eat the fry then breeding livebearers is a bad idea. Noone wants them. It's hard to get stores to even take them for free. You are going to end up with 100s of fish within a month or 2 and they are not all going to fit in a 10g. You better off getting a group of all male guppies or platy for the tank.

Do not add salt to the tank. Noone of those fish are from waters with salt and all have been kept and bred in freshwater for many generations. Salt is not going to be helpful and may be harmful. There are some long posts around here somewhere on the reasons not to use salt in any freshwater tanks.

Since I don't have a source of bacteria from another tank I don't think I really have a way to do a fishless cycle.

In a fishless cycle you usually use pure household
ammonia brought up to a level of 2.0 ppm in the tank.
The bacteria will grow on its own.
A with fish cycle can take up to 60 days or more,
a fishless cycle about 2-3 weeks.

If I cycle with danios and get livebearers later, how do the danios do with salt?

Livebearers do not need salt in their water. Not platies, guppies, endlers, or mollies. These fish need well stabilized, clean water. Theres really no need to add salt.

This is only a 10g. Half a dozen of anything is not going to fit(cept maybe shrimp)

I have to respectfully disagree. There are many small schooling fish that are more than suitable for a 10g tank.
Neons, Glowlights, Black Neons, Cardinals, Lemons, Silvertips, Bloodfins, Harlequin & Lambchop rasbora, white cloud minnows.

There are others like Heterandia formosa, where you could easily keep 20 of them in a 10g tank.

Platys and mollies however, are in my opinion, much too large for a 10g tank. Platys, with the exception of the new dwarf platy, large females can reach up to 3 inches and carry a very large amount of girth.
Platys and mollies which are even larger should be reserved for tanks 20g or more.

Endlers and Guppies are suitable for a 10g tank,
so are many of the other less common livebearers.
I have found male guppies kept alone will fight horribly,
so I would agree with a group of all females.
Sure they may have a couple batches of fry - those are easily taken to the fish store, and they soon wont have
any more fry.

If it were me, I would probably go with a group of
6 of a small schooling fish, and a pair of oto cats.




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My 10g is currently home to a female betta, asmall school of 6 neons and a pair of ottos that I only see at night when I turn up the light. Thing to remember with the smaller tanks is 1. very frequent and very regular water changes if you have even a moderate stocking level and 2. Stick with small fish! Dwarf gouramis are too big and too susceptible to maladies caused by unstable water conditions. (just an example)
10g tanks, or anything under say 15g tanks just don't hold enough water for the parameters to remain stable very long, and will spike very easily given the chance. I'd suggest for your 10g start with something very hardy and eye appealing.
A nice school af harlequin rasboras with perhaps an otto or two.
A nice male betta and a few cardinals perhaps.
If you decide on ottos, add them last when the tank is fully cycled and acclimate them very slowly because they is un-hardy and won't survive a cycling tank

In addition to what divertran mentioned about stocking (some great ideas BTW ), I'd hold off on any ottos for well over a year and only get them if they're really needed. My experience is that most stores that stock them do not do a good job of keeping them happy before they're sold and they have a high rate of DMS and will die even a month after you get them often just from the stress they went through prior to your purchase.

^_^

yeah, unfortunately I know what you mean. Just about everyone I know who has ottos has had a few casualties, I've even read somewhere that suggested buying 6 if you want 3, cause half of them usually die within the first few weeks