Awesome Ideas for a 10 Gallon Tank?

[Fishatron]

Hey everyone,

I inherited a 10 gallon fish tank from my brother and have completely revamped it and planted it. I have 2 bettas (male and female) however, they both cannot handle a huge tank life, so I have them in smaller tanks (also, just so you know, I did not put them together as I know they are territorial.) So, although I tried to make a betta heaven, each betta prefers the smaller space. Which leaves me with a 10 gallon tank to fill!

So many people overstock their tank I would like to avoid this. Is there anyone who has posted on this site, or would like to share with me humane 10 gallon tank setups? I like bigger colorful fish and am not really into the whole schooling tank. Any suggestions? I also have a roomate so we'd each like our own individual fish.

If anyone can enter their ideas on humane ten gallons , I would so appreciate it!

 

[mariners]

my personal favourite in my 10 gallon was when i had a bolivian ram and 6 harliquin rasboras. The ram was beautiful and the harlies were so active it was amazing.

You can't really get bigger colourful fish for a 10 other than rams or shell dwelling cichlids. IMO

 

[jediinthedark]

Well... one of you could get a Silver Needle Fish, and the other could get all of the feeder fish for it. j/k

Gouramis maybe? Perhaps 2 dwarfs and a couple of Corys on the bottom? You'd have to make sure you get a male and a female though.

 

[ashleigh]

I wouldn't do two dwarves in a ten- maybe two honey gouramis or some sparkling gourmis though-

 

[Allen Chi]

I have 2 dwarfs, 2 platies, and 2 plecos in my 10g

(PS the plecos are 1 inch each)

 

[Leopardess]

There aren't any single, large-ish colorful fish that would fit in a 10g. Dwarf gouramis or bettas are as close as you'll get. And a ram too, I guess.


One dwarf gourami and 7 neons or glowlights or harlequins.

Dwarf gourami, 6 pygmy cories (or 3 regular cories), 3 African Dwarf frogs

6 Scissortail rasboras, 3 cories

 

[Fishatron]

would angelfish definately be out? I know my brother had one in his ten gallon with 2 dwarf gouramis... can 2 angelfish do a ten gallon alone or is that way too much?

Here is what i'm thinking sounds right for me so far:
2 honey gouramis or sparkling gouramis or a blue ram
3 cories or some type of minature pleco? Are there mini plecos? haha. Cories are cool, but a pleco would be great, however i know they usually get pretty big. Are there dwarf ones?

 

[blueturq]

2 Angelfish CAN NOT BE PUT IN A 10 GALLON!!!

You could get some guppies, harlequin rasboras, smaller tetras(neons,glowlights,cardinals, etc)

 

[Fishatron]

Thanks so far everyone for the great input too, maybe we could start a section of this site where beginners can go for preset guides to stocking a smaller tank. This would prevent overstocking or tank outgrowing. Any more ideas?

 

[Fishatron]

haha, okay okay no 2 angelfish in a ten gallon, i promise See? This is why I ask, I'm somewhat overwhelmed with what to exactly do with a 10 gallon. I definately want to be good to my fish though!

 

[mariners]

yeah there are mini plecos, do a search of the threads on here, i would personally get a clown pleco since they look brilliant, don't get too big and are cheaper than most other plecos, i've seen rare plecos go for over $100!

When people aren't sure what to put in a tank they normally just post it in this forum or the beginners one.

 

[phantomfe3]

i saw some awesome guppies at the pet shop today, the tail of one was black and orange, looked like tiger fur except the colors were very vivid and bright, very cool, i was tempted to buy it but i dont have a tank for it. if you got a whole bunch of awesome looking guppies like that and some other small fish it would be sweet

 

[RootBeerFan]

Why not try a school of tetras? In a 10 gal, if you did 5-6, and maybe a couple of cory cat fish on the bottom. I have a school of gold pristella tetras, and they look really hot in the tank. Cory cats are really hardy, too, I've found.
Neons are also really pretty, and cheap, (and small!) and you can fit a lot of them in a 10 gal, depending on what else you wanted in the tank.

Either way, you get color, and motion, and since they're schooling, you won't have to search the tank for those one or two fish that tend to hide.

I definitely wouldn't reccomend most gouramis for a 10 gal tank, they'll get too big. (As I learned the hard way.)

 

[Lotus]

What about dwarf puffers? They're not big, but they certainly are very cool fish.

 

[Prune Tracy]

Dwarf puffers is what I was thinking.

If you like larger fish and the colors associated with them then maybe you should look into the dwarf cichlids. They only grow to three inches or so but they have great colors.

 

[fishboy]

You should definately check out Apistogrammas, if you would like to try something colorful. Most are easy to keep, but they do require attention... What kind of water do you have?

http://www.apistogramma.com/cms/


http://forum.apistogramma.com/

 

[AliD1225]

I have in my 10 gallon. 2 silver mollies, 3 black mollies, 6 mickey mouse platties and a betta. I will have another black molly in the 10 gallon once it's big enough(only 3 weeks old). It looks as if I have to upgrade to a larger tank because a platty and black molly looks pregnant. Possibly 2 platties.

These are livebearers and can reproduce every month or so but are beautiful, peaceful fish. Great to have if you're a beginner. Not verry expensive either. The mickey mouse platties run around 3.00, black mollies run around 1.69, and silver mollies run around 3.00.

 

[Phantom_Tetra]

Originally posted by Fishatron
Thanks so far everyone for the great input too, maybe we could start a section of this site where beginners can go for preset guides to stocking a smaller tank. This would prevent overstocking or tank outgrowing. Any more ideas?

If you look at my tank setup YES it is overstocked but I also I keep it clean and I haven't had a fish die yet since I started!

When I started my tank there was always questions so I found this website and after a while I found it hard not to buy more fish and eventually I just have to clean my tank more often and even then I still only have to clean it once every 14 days if necessary!!

So if you are willing to keep up with your tank then you can " Overstock" all you like.

 

[Fishatron]

Wow, thanks everyone for the awesome ideas! Especially the dwarf puffer idea. I love puffer fish, they are so curious and attentive. I know they would appreciate the planted tank too! My only concern would be if they released toxins into the water- if coming in contact with my skin while cleaning would this greatly harm me?

 

[Fishatron]

Apistogrammas are beautiful too! I've never even heard of them. but I'm definately going to put in some research now. Thank you!

also, to answer another question I have soft water : )