# 30 Gallon stocking ideas/opinions?



## Sathori (Jul 7, 2013)

Hey everyone!

Just looking for some ideas to add to my 30 gallon tank. New/more fish, possibly some beginner live plants, maybe a good algae eating fish...? I've tried a nerite or two, but my betta HATES snails and will flare at the snail until he's dead tired :/

I've got a lovely 30 gallon tank from my friends. I've got pool filter sand as a substrate, and currently has an AquaClear 50 HOB filter and an AquaClear 20 filter as well. The 20 will be removed once the 50 has fully seeded (the 20 was in my fully cycled 10 gallon and used to jump start my cycle on the 30 gallon). Almost all the fish in the 30 gallon were from 2 of my cycled 10 gallon tanks, but once I got the 30 gallon, I wanted to decrease the amount of tanks I had.

Current residents of the tank are:
1 male betta
10 neon tetras (5 recently added last Thursday)
5 harlequin rasboras
6 Julii corydoras

The betta in my tank has NO issue with any of the fish in the tank. He is super laid back and doesn't even put up a fuss when the rasboras steal his food as he's about to eat it. I've never seen him chase another fish, only flared once when a rasbora got too in his face, but it's never escalated, hasn't flared at a fish since.

I originally had 5 neons, but found them to be a bit shy still, so I increased their numbers and it has brought them out a lot more. The rasboras are not shy at all, and often steal my betta's food while he's eating. I have thought of getting more to increase their school, but it also limits the amount of different kinds of fish I can add.

I hope to add more corydoras, either more julii or perhaps panda. I've considered moving my 4 albinos corydoras into this tank as well, perhaps buying another 2 albinos to increase the numbers. I'm finding my julii corys are not as active as my albinos. The albinos leave the sand spotless in their tank, where it seems the jullis are not cleaning up as much as I hoped. I can order quite a few different kinds of corydoras from my work's supplier, but I love the look of the Julii corys. They seem rather skittish still - once pay day rolls around, I hope to pick up a few more hides for them. My hope is that more corys in the tank will help them be less skittish.

I've considered live plants, but I do not have much of a green thumb, and want to stick to the sand I have right now...
I have my light on a timer for 10 hours right now. My previous 10 gallons have had some serious algae issues... I tried otos, but they didn't last long, even though there was plenty of algae and my ammonia was 0, nitrite 0, nitrate 5ish (trying to remember off the top of my head lol). Is there a recommended algae eater for a 30 gallon if I suddenly am having issues with algae?? Again, snails make my betta flare until he's dead tired...

Here's my 30 gallon:








Also, can someone tell me if these are true Julii corydoras, or the false? I'm not bothered either way, as I find them adorable, I'm just curious. The supplier said they were Julii corys.















To sum up my questions:
1) Any suggestions on other fish?
2) Should I add new fish, or increase my rasboras?
3) Should I increase my julii corys, or try a different kind of cory?
4) Should I move my albinos into the 30 gallon, even though they are happy in their tank?
5) What would be a good algae eater for a 30 gallon, other than otos and snails (bad luck with both lol)


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## Kaynbred (Feb 16, 2014)

Okay so, the best algae eater would probably be those black ones.. UGH I forget what to call them but.. OH RIGHT! PLECOS! Plecos are great lol, but yeah, they'd do really really well in that tank. I used to have 2 big ones in my 50 gallon goldfish tank and they were just amazing.

And I think you should get at least 2 panda corys.


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## Pandanke (Jun 16, 2014)

I wouldn't add any panda corys or... well any other type of them in that tank. They only school together in like groups, so julii would group together, panda would group together, etc. Like tetras. And as you know, they're grouping fish.

Siamese Algae Eaters/Chinese Algae Eaters get MEAN and very aggressive as they get older. Not recommended. Bristlenose Pleco or a group of 3-5 Ottos would suit your needs, but have Algae Wafers on hand. I hear a lot of people have issues with Ottos, but as long as you have a good supply (read... everywhere) of algae on hand they're good. Plecos need other foods to gnaw on/wood too, and aren't safe for live plants whereas Ottos are basically made for them.

Speaking of live plants, they're definitely recommended. My corydoras love live plants, my smaller fish like to hide among the leaves, and my betta likes to nestle in them and lay. There are some varieties which are stupid easy like Argentinien or Amazon Swords, Hygrophila Compacta or Water Wisteria, Ambulia, and floaters of all types. Java Fern, Java Moss, Windelov Java Fern, and All varieties of Anubias are beginner safe too and don't even want to be planted in substrate!

You just need to get some root tabs (cheap) and proper lighting. Lighting can simply be "Daylight" fluorescent bulbs from any hardware store. I kill every plant in my house... that isn't in my aquarium. They're surprisingly easy. I'd be happy to send you starter ones even.

For now, I wouldn't add any more fish other than your chosen algae eaters and no more than another 5 rasboras.


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## Flint (Oct 22, 2013)

I would up the harlequins and the julis to 10 and leave it at that. You don't even need root tabs to keep plants in sand. My 10 gallon is planted and it has a mix of sand and gravel as substrate. You don't have to plant if you don't want to, though! Otherwise, the tank looks nice! It's so clear I thought you were just showing us what you got until I saw the betta! :thumbsup:

My 10 gal - Please exuse the tannins!


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## Olympia (Aug 25, 2011)

Your cories are three lined cories, also commonly known as false juliis. True julii are quite rare and I'm sure they would command a high price if they were imported in.

All said and done I would definitely try and get some tall background plants in, real or fake. More cover for the fishies!


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## jeaninel (Aug 24, 2007)

Your cories are c. trilineatus (false julii). True julii are rather hard to find and most petstores mislabel the Trilineatus. 

I would add your 4 albino cories to your 30 gallon as I feel a 10 gallon is really too small for most cories except the dwarf species such as Pandas and Hasbrosus. And besides, they will enjoy eachothers company even if they are two different types. It would help to make your other cories less shy.

I love anubias and they are such easy low maintenance plants. They are slow growers so you don't really need any special ferts or lighting.

For small tanks I find Nerite snails to be the best at taking care of algae. That's too bad your betta has such an issue with them. You might be able to fit a bn pleco but be aware they poop alot and so have a high bioload. Wiping down the glass and not overfeeding to keep algae in check may be your best bet. And plants will help too.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Agent13 (Apr 23, 2013)

False Julii and true Julii seem to need larger groups to feel safe then the albino corys . I'd definitely up their numbers to as high as you're comfortable with . 


Sent from Petguide.com App


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## Sathori (Jul 7, 2013)

Thanks everyone. I kinda figured the juliis were false - but I didn't really care either way since I love the look of the false as much as the true. 

I've looked high and low for taller silk plants with no success, hence why I'm considering live plants. 

I'm in no rush to get an algae eating fishy - just wanted to hear your thoughts on what would work if I suddenly had less control over my algae. I will likely toss my albinos in the 30 and order some more juliis. Depending on my bioload, I may increase the false julii to 12 and the albinos to 6. I think my rasboras are doing alright - they actually tend to school with the neons from time to time. 

Thanks guys! I will look into where in the world I can get live plants lol


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## Sathori (Jul 7, 2013)

Pandanke said:


> I wouldn't add any panda corys or... well any other type of them in that tank. They only school together in like groups, so julii would group together, panda would group together, etc. Like tetras. And as you know, they're grouping fish.
> 
> Siamese Algae Eaters/Chinese Algae Eaters get MEAN and very aggressive as they get older. Not recommended. Bristlenose Pleco or a group of 3-5 Ottos would suit your needs, but have Algae Wafers on hand. I hear a lot of people have issues with Ottos, but as long as you have a good supply (read... everywhere) of algae on hand they're good. Plecos need other foods to gnaw on/wood too, and aren't safe for live plants whereas Ottos are basically made for them.
> 
> ...


I've heard some pretty nasty things about the chinese/siamese algae eaters. I remember having one in a tank, when I was a kid, and that little guy chased everyone one around :|

My 30 gallon came with, what appears to be, a flourescent bulb. It gives my tank a bit of a purple-ish tone... I don't know what kind of bulb it really is. xD We sell fish tank bulbs at my work place - The AquaGlo brand... I don't know if those are good at all for plants...?

If you have some starter plants to spare, I would gladly take some  I have no idea where to start looking for good plants without draining my bank account :/ I really want to give my fish a good place to hide and would love to have my tank full of live plants one day...

That is a gorgeous 10 gallon btw Flint!! I wish my tank looked that good T-T


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## tankman12 (Nov 13, 2012)

The chinese are evil. The true siamese are good, you would want to get a school of them though.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Pandanke (Jun 16, 2014)

Yeah, I have heard of people keeping them with angels, to come back to see SAE sucking a hole through the side of the angels... so... I'm firmly in the "never keep" group. :|

I have a good fair bit spare, mostly low light/easy to grow varieties and floaters. Shipping is only like 6$ or so for the US but I don't have any idea on shipping to Canada... Or the laws. I'd have to look into that before I could commit to it. If you have any insight to spare, or anyone here does, I don't mind on doing it if you cover the shipping. I have plenty, if not a bit too much.

I cannot say much on the purplish bulb, I don't use flourescents except in one of my tanks and they're just standard daylight ones. 6500k.


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## tankman12 (Nov 13, 2012)

Those are flying foxes (look like sae) and the CAEs. The true SAEs will not do that. I had them with discus. People get confused between them, but they are pretty easy to tell apart.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Sathori (Jul 7, 2013)

Pandanke said:


> I have a good fair bit spare, mostly low light/easy to grow varieties and floaters. Shipping is only like 6$ or so for the US but I don't have any idea on shipping to Canada... Or the laws. I'd have to look into that before I could commit to it. If you have any insight to spare, or anyone here does, I don't mind on doing it if you cover the shipping. I have plenty, if not a bit too much.
> 
> I cannot say much on the purplish bulb, I don't use flourescents except in one of my tanks and they're just standard daylight ones. 6500k.


I'm not too knowledgeable about shipping live plants across the border... I cannot imagine it causing a ton of trouble as long as it's for aquarium use... Either way, if shipping is not outrageous, I am more than willing to pay for shipping 

I'll have to look up the bulbs a bit more and see what I can find.


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## Olympia (Aug 25, 2011)

Sathori, what province do you live in?


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## Sathori (Jul 7, 2013)

Manitoba


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## Olympia (Aug 25, 2011)

Ahh.. that's too far, I can't recommend anywhere. I wish I could send you some but after setting up 3 tanks I don't have enough myself. :/ There isn't really any good online places to buy aquatic plants for us either. ;-;


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## Sathori (Jul 7, 2013)

I know T-T I've looked around and there's not much out there. Our supplier has some aquatic plants, but nothing that people have recommended as beginner plants. Except Java moss, but that is not a cheap plant from our suppler :/


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