Wackinator Posted March 28, 2009 Report Share Posted March 28, 2009 Starting a 20 gallon (hopefully planted) soon and this is what I want to keep in it 5-6 Cherry Barbs 3 Swordtails (hopefully koi if i find them) 5 Albino Cories a couple of cherry shrimps and MAYBE one black molly would that work? too crowded? should i replace something? just wanting to make sure because this wouldn't be the first time ive screwed up on stocking them properly any comments? advice? suggestions? bad jokes? Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bottomdweller_fan Posted March 28, 2009 Report Share Posted March 28, 2009 I'm not sure about stocking levels, but I wouldn't add the black molly. I find that my mollies did not do well until I put them in a brackish water tank. Hope this helps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jvision Posted March 28, 2009 Report Share Posted March 28, 2009 Your barbs and swordtails will go after the shrimp when they get bigger. Cherry shrimp max out at just over an inch, so they fit very well into the mouths of most fish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wackinator Posted March 28, 2009 Author Report Share Posted March 28, 2009 I'm not sure about stocking levels, but I wouldn't add the black molly. I find that my mollies did not do well until I put them in a brackish water tank.Hope this helps. Your barbs and swordtails will go after the shrimp when they get bigger. Cherry shrimp max out at just over an inch, so they fit very well into the mouths of most fish. Thanks guys for that, saved me from spending money on shrimps, and convinced me from keeping the molly out of that set up anything else i should change? or replace? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wingin' It Posted March 28, 2009 Report Share Posted March 28, 2009 If you really want shrimp you can buy those Ghost Shrimp, they're larger, and much cheaper. They're definately comical to watch especially when they interact with the fish. If you really want cherry barbs, I know Pisces has them 50% off this weekend. I'm not 100% sure, but I think you might end up with some issues with room when your cories grow up...i've seen some albino cories get quite large, so 5 might eventually be too much. Not so much a problem if you end up setting another tank up and you wanna throw in a few there. Good luck on your "Koi" Swordtail hunt. They definately were a head turner when I saw 'em. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishclubgirl Posted March 28, 2009 Report Share Posted March 28, 2009 IMHO, I agree with the no cherry shrimp idea as they would just be an expensive lunch. As for corys, I keep mine in groups of 4 minimum as they like to school. Wingin It, I beg to differ on the molly idea. Mollies are a great choice for Calgary water and though they do like some salt, they are fine without it. I have both schenops and sailfin who are doing well in completely fresh water tanks. The thing I disagree with is just one. Most fish like to school and I think they're more healthy that way. Both the swords and the mollies do like some algae wafer and some brine shrimp pellets are a treat for the cories. I have a tendency to have overstocked tanks and do this by having heavily planted tanks and larger filters. I admit it, I don't read fish books!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wingin' It Posted March 28, 2009 Report Share Posted March 28, 2009 Wingin It, I beg to differ on the molly idea. Mollies are a great choice for Calgary water and though they do like some salt, they are fine without it. I don't remember saying anything about mollies?? I think someone previous had an issue with a black molly though? I did see a post on Youtube.com though where someone had some 'Koi' Swordtails and they had a single black molly in a floating breeder tank. Maybe there's an issue with interbreeding between color phases? Not sure...I used to keep swordtails and mollies years and years ago...but i'm hooked on other fish at the moment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wackinator Posted March 28, 2009 Author Report Share Posted March 28, 2009 If you really want shrimp you can buy those Ghost Shrimp, they're larger, and much cheaper. They're definately comical to watch especially when they interact with the fish. If you really want cherry barbs, I know Pisces has them 50% off this weekend. I'm not 100% sure, but I think you might end up with some issues with room when your cories grow up...i've seen some albino cories get quite large, so 5 might eventually be too much. Not so much a problem if you end up setting another tank up and you wanna throw in a few there. Good luck on your "Koi" Swordtail hunt. They definately were a head turner when I saw 'em. Hey thanks, ye i went and got 5 cherry barbs from pisces this morning (its walking distance from where I live and since I cant drive yet, this was too good to pass up) , they are in a quarantine 10 gallon tank that I set up a couple days ago and a pleasure to watch, my little cousin has literally been sitting and watching them for a little over an hour. and yes I can tell that I'm going to be waiting a long time before I find any koi swordtails but i'll wait and reserve a spot for them in my tank, though im not very patient so ill see how that goes. IMHO, I agree with the no cherry shrimp idea as they would just be an expensive lunch. As for corys, I keep mine in groups of 4 minimum as they like to school. Wingin It, I beg to differ on the molly idea. Mollies are a great choice for Calgary water and though they do like some salt, they are fine without it. I have both schenops and sailfin who are doing well in completely fresh water tanks. The thing I disagree with is just one. Most fish like to school and I think they're more healthy that way. Both the swords and the mollies do like some algae wafer and some brine shrimp pellets are a treat for the cories. I have a tendency to have overstocked tanks and do this by having heavily planted tanks and larger filters. I admit it, I don't read fish books!! I am reconsidering mollies because one of my friend has a tank full of silver mollies and he says he only adds a little bit on salt in the water, they seem to be doing fine because his are breeding like crazy lol how many should I add without stuffing the tank to the max? I am trying to convert it into a planted tank so hopefully that helps. Thanks one more question how do i delete the threads I started? I started a couple earlier with stupid questions now that they have been answered iunno how 2 get rid of them. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
firestorm Posted March 29, 2009 Report Share Posted March 29, 2009 (edited) Ghost shrimp will look like this when they get bigger, definitely interesting to watch. They may not be as colorful as some of the micro shrimp, but can usually be safely kept with fish that will eat smaller shrimp. BTW, some mollie species can handle the brackish/salty water, others cannot. I will go back and find out what species they were. But for the most part I think the mollies sold at most LFS's are the type that can handle salt. Edited March 29, 2009 by firestorm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wackinator Posted March 29, 2009 Author Report Share Posted March 29, 2009 Ghost shrimp will look like this when they get bigger, definitely interesting to watch. They may not be as colorful as some of the micro shrimp, but can usually be safely kept with fish that will eat smaller shrimp. BTW, some mollie species can handle the brackish/salty water, others cannot. I will go back and find out what species they were. But for the most part I think the mollies sold at most LFS's are the type that can handle salt. thanks firestorm I will definectly look into the ghost shrimps cuz I really wanted to add some shrimps, for now all i got in the 20 gallon would be 9 cherry barbs (went and got some more today), and 2 albino cories, after adding plants to it i really want to add a black molly cuz i love how they stand out in a planted tank Thanks again Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wackinator Posted March 31, 2009 Author Report Share Posted March 31, 2009 Just one last question would it be alright if i added a bolivian ram? would they not work with cherry barbs or something? Thanks and I just need 2 know how 2 delete the threads/posts i started Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wingin' It Posted March 31, 2009 Report Share Posted March 31, 2009 Just one last question would it be alright if i added a bolivian ram? would they not work with cherry barbs or something?Thanks and I just need 2 know how 2 delete the threads/posts i started The Bolivian rams get quite a bit bigger than the barbs, but if you have enough plants/hiding places then it might not be so much an issue. I personally just go ahead and try different combos, and if it doesn't work out I just sell/give away the fish that makes the tank not work. As for deleting threads...I don't think you can, unless you send a msg to one of the moderators, "Ask Moderator a Question". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fleshgear Posted March 31, 2009 Report Share Posted March 31, 2009 i have swords, guppies, neons, corys, and some other fish and one black molly. i have this combination in two tanks. the molly's are fine. sometimes i add salt and somethimes like now they go with out salt for months at a time. on a side note i just noticed my albino corys spawning i took about 50 eggs out of the tank. why do you want albino corys? i think there is so many other good looking corys. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wackinator Posted March 31, 2009 Author Report Share Posted March 31, 2009 The Bolivian rams get quite a bit bigger than the barbs, but if you have enough plants/hiding places then it might not be so much an issue. I personally just go ahead and try different combos, and if it doesn't work out I just sell/give away the fish that makes the tank not work.As for deleting threads...I don't think you can, unless you send a msg to one of the moderators, "Ask Moderator a Question". okayy thanks again, I should probably try it, if it doesnt work ill return it, and ill try leaving a message because I randomly see people writing down how mods can delete their thread but thanks again i have swords, guppies, neons, corys, and some other fish and one black molly. i have this combination in two tanks. the molly's are fine. sometimes i add salt and somethimes like now they go with out salt for months at a time.on a side note i just noticed my albino corys spawning i took about 50 eggs out of the tank. why do you want albino corys? i think there is so many other good looking corys. I really like albino and panda cories, and I've heard panda cories are harder to take care of and die easily so Ill stick with albino and I've already got 2 albino cories swimming around in my tank and wanting them to give some more to school with. but thanks for the confirmation of putting mollies in that tank Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fleshgear Posted April 1, 2009 Report Share Posted April 1, 2009 I really like albino and panda cories, and I've heard panda cories are harder to take care of and die easily so Ill stick with albino and I've already got 2 albino cories swimming around in my tank and wanting them to give some more to school with. but thanks for the confirmation of putting mollies in that tank i have some panda corys in a 33 gallon tank with some other type of corys and they are fine. never had a problem with any corys. i think they are a very hardy fish. i thought i killed some once by adding straight cold water. they started twitching and flipped upside down swimming in circles. once they warmed up they were fine. they are still alive today. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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