# 25 Gallon stocking ideas



## Pearl2011 (May 21, 2012)

I got a 25 gallon fish with an Aquaclear 20 filter and I need some ideas for a community.

I rather not have cories or neon tetras because it seems everybody has them (not saying dont like them, just want something unique).

I like the look of kuhli loaches and BN plecos a lot.

Sorry if this is in the wrong place or something like that, I'm new on fish forums.


----------



## Pitluvs (Jun 22, 2011)

Best thing to do is to go to your pet store, write down a list of the fish that you like and come home and research each type  Find out what the min tank is for them, how many in a group etc etc. Then build from there


----------



## Micho (Aug 22, 2011)

Also find out what your water's pH and hardness is. 

Kuhli loaches a standard 25 gallon with a footprint of 24" x 12" can house these guys, you want to keep a group of 4 or more, also your substrate must be sand, cannot be gravel because these guys are usually buried in the substrate, with gravel they'll get stressed out and even hurt trying to dig themselves into it. 

Bristlenose Plecos would also work in a 25 gallon, just one of them. 

I also suggest you upgrade your filter, to an AquaClear 30 or even 50! This will keep your filtration capacity very high.


----------



## Pearl2011 (May 21, 2012)

Pitluvs said:


> Best thing to do is to go to your pet store, write down a list of the fish that you like and come home and research each type  Find out what the min tank is for them, how many in a group etc etc. Then build from there


I was going to today but I played softball for 8 +hours yesterday, so I had an unplanned PJ day.

Micho:I'd love to, but I just cant afford it. I have a *very *strong '2' gallon filter I think I might use.


----------



## thekoimaiden (Oct 19, 2011)

You should be fine with an Aquaclear 20. They are great filters. If you cut the sponge they come with in half, then you will have room for another finer pore size sponge which will increase your biological capacity. And if you remove the carbon insert that will leave you more room for another bio-media insert. This filter will be just fine for your tank. Live plants will also help.

As far as stocking, Pitluvs has the right idea. Instead of looking online for what you want, go see what your local stores have to offer and research them. It will be much less stressful on you (and cheaper as shipping live animals is very expensive). 

We will also need to know your tap water GH, KH, and pH. This will be the strongest factor to determine what you can stock in your tank.


----------



## Pearl2011 (May 21, 2012)

I got everything used for 20$, so I dont think I have the right foam. Its in a package that just say FLUVAL on the top. I have the sponge stuff and carbon pads.


----------



## Micho (Aug 22, 2011)

You can find replacement carbon, sponge and "BioMax", it's in a box and it should have a big "20" on it.  They're pretty cheap, probably around $3, you can buy them individually or three per box.

Here's an example:


----------



## Pearl2011 (May 21, 2012)

Thanks for the pic! I'll look for it next time I'm there.
My pH is 7.0, and I dont have testers for the other two.


----------



## Micho (Aug 22, 2011)

7 is nice, dead on neutral.

You can find your water hardness by simply Googling, just type in your city's name + water hardness and an official town report should show up.


----------



## Pearl2011 (May 21, 2012)

Thanks Micho, I'll do that!


----------



## Pearl2011 (May 21, 2012)

Went to the pet store and I like the look of Chinese hi fin shark (too big), blood parrot (too big), piranhas (like my mom would say yes) and a bala shark (too aggressive), and discus (no need to explain).

I got some duckweed while I was there (and it was free ), the flying fox and tinfoil barb and bumblebee goby looked cool. Anybody have any experience with these?


----------



## MaisyDawgThirteen (Dec 7, 2011)

You may want to look at more peaceful community fish. Barbs are little terrors. lol


----------



## Pearl2011 (May 21, 2012)

What would be a good fish to breed/spawn to make money off of? And compatible with bettas?


----------



## thekoimaiden (Oct 19, 2011)

Pearl2011 said:


> Went to the pet store and I like the look of Chinese hi fin shark (too big), blood parrot (too big), piranhas (like my mom would say yes) and a bala shark (too aggressive), and discus (no need to explain).
> 
> I got some duckweed while I was there (and it was free ), the flying fox and tinfoil barb and bumblebee goby looked cool. Anybody have any experience with these?


The flying fox and tinfoil barb get waaaay to large for your tank. Find more info here Flying Fox (Epalzeorhynchos kalopterus) Profile and Tinfoil Barb (Barbonymus schwanenfeldii ) Profile There are many different species of bumblebee goby (_Brachygobius spp_), so we will need a bit more information about the species at the store to know if it is suitable. 



Pearl2011 said:


> What would be a good fish to breed/spawn to make money off of? And compatible with bettas?


Breeding fish for money on the hobby level is almost impossible. Fish stores won't take fish until they are a certain size. This means that you have to grow them out which takes a lot of tanks and time. Basically, you will never get the money that you would put into the setups back. Hobby breeders breed because they enjoy it, not to make a profit. Just stick to keeping fish for a while before you begin to breed them. 

For your tank, you should be looking at small schooling tetra, danio, guppies, and rasbora. Until we know your exact hardness any stocking suggestions will just be shooting in the dark as pH isn't a reliable indicator of hardness.


----------



## Pearl2011 (May 21, 2012)

I thought those were the piranhas . . . guess I was looking at the wrong fish. lol
I think I probably going to go with a planted tank, a BN pleco OR kuhlis, and some type of tetra.


----------



## Micho (Aug 22, 2011)

I would recommend Rummynose Tetras, they're really cute and a stunner species of Tetras, they also shoal better than the average Neon Tetra, so maybe about fifteen of them would work. As for the Kuhli Loaches maybe six of them, I would up the numbers but I think that's a bit overdoing it, 15 Rummynose Tetras and 6 Kuhli Loaches is probably pushing it since you can't upgrade your filter. I would suggest what Olympia said to do, by just cutting the aquarium sponge in half, removing the activated carbon and just shove as much biological filtration you can in there. 

I wouldn't do a Bristlenose Pleco, they poop lots and I don't like them in general. But before you go buying your fish we still need to know what your water hardness is, your pH is 7 which will be able to house both Kuhli Loaches and Tetras, but they both need soft water. So find out before buying fish!


----------



## Twilight Storm (Apr 14, 2011)

You would have to research these guys more but i've seen my petstore carry them from time to time. They wouldn't get along with bettas... and i'm not sure how many inches a 25 gallon is... (I basically wanted to share one of my favorite looking cichlids)










http://www.tropicalfishkeeping.com/profiles/cockatoo-dwarf-cichlid/

I tend to think everyone is on the right track though with going with what your local pet store has unless you are determined to own a particular kind of fish. Oh, and *plan on cycling your tank for about a month or so before you put anything in the tank,* so you will have PLENTY of time to keep changing your mind, and plenty of time to research!  

(Tropical fish keeping is the parent forum to bettafish.com. I am not sure what site you logged into, but your password works on both sites)

BTW Welcome to the forum


----------



## thekoimaiden (Oct 19, 2011)

Rummynose tetra really only do well in very soft water. While they do school nicely, they are more sensitive than your average tetra. I would recommend glowlight tetra or bloodfin tetra as better alternatives. They are much more hardy and adaptable. Kuhlis are a great beginner fish as they are hardy and entertaining, but you need a sand substrate for them. However, sand isn't as bad as it seems. 

But we still need to know your water parameters. Both tetra and kuhli loaches are softwater fish and won't do well with hardness above 10 dGH.


----------



## Pearl2011 (May 21, 2012)

Hardness is 75 (according to an official website) and I'm am going to add live plants to help with filtration. Rummynose are beautiful. My freind has one (she has never had good luck with them) that I could try to convince her to give me . . . Time to practice puppy dog face lol
But I'll go research them


----------



## Pearl2011 (May 21, 2012)

Thats moderately hard, right?


----------



## thekoimaiden (Oct 19, 2011)

Pearl2011 said:


> Thats moderately hard, right?


I'm assuming you mean 75 ppm which would put you at about 4dGH. This is rather soft water and is great for rummynose tetra as well as kuhli loaches.


----------

