Help starting and stocking a 10 gallon tank.

[rf53]

Hello,

I am not quite a beginner. I have some experience in keeping an aquarium. However, I am starting a 10 gallon tank for my son, and I can use some help. I started the new tank yesterday with a 20 gallon filter, a 10 gallon air pump and bubbler that I rigged up, gravel subtrate, a couple of small rock formations and artificial plants. Now we are starting a fishless cycle, although I am thinking about using a hardy fish in a couple of weeks to move things along with the full intention of having it survive. The only thing I have done to the water so far is treat it with Seachem Prime and thrown in a tiny bit of fish food (one feeding for one fish) to get things going.

I am looking for advise on how to stock the tank (species and numbers). I realize that with a 10 gallon tank we are limited as to numbers, but we want to do the best we can with small, clean fish. I know a betta might be high on some people's list, but their aggressive nature does not really appeal to us. I don't want my son waking up one day to find the betta has killed another fish.

As for conditions... We live in Florida. I want to avoid a heater if possible. The house temperature runs a constant 74 degrees with the A/C. Sometimes in the winter it may go down to 70 or so, but only for a few hours. There is more potential for it being over 74 than under 70 by far.

Additionally, I want an easy to maintain aquarium. I know we will have to do water changes, and that is fine, but I would like "clean" fish that require the least possible maintenance. After successfully keeping goldfish we are ready for the low end of maintenance.

Finally, this requirement comes from my son... the fish have to look "cool'. So there you have it.

To the questions:

1. Should I do a one species tank, or a community tank?
2. What hardy "cool" fish should I use, and how many?
3. Any specific requirements for the cycling based on the fish I select?

I have included a picture of the tank so you can see the environment in case it makes a difference in your opinion. There is strong flow through the filter which can be adjusted, and the bubbler works very well. I know some fish may not like all that action so that is why I mention it. Thanks!

 

[CAPSLOCK]

What does your son consider "cool"? It would be a good idea to browse the local fish selection in your area, or check out liveaquaria.com or similar to see what appeals to your son.

Obviously fish wise you'd be looking at species that stay smaller. Lots of species of rasboras, smaller tetras, or danios would do well. There are lots of cool looking male guppies with interesting tails, and you could hit the entire color spectrum or pick which colors or patterns your son prefers. With guppies, you would probably be better to get all males, otherwise they tend to overpopulate a little tank like that pretty quickly. Same deal with platies.

Cycling is the same regardless of which fish.

You should be okay with most community fish at 74F. I kept my FW tank at 76 normally with no issues.

 

[FreshyFresh]

Welcome rf53.

If you intend to do a fish-in cycle, I would not add anymore fish food to the tank (w/ out fish in it) and feed LIGHTLY with fish-in. You don't want an ammonia spike with fish in the tank, you'd basically want to start with clean, fresh, dechlorinated water.

Adding fish food or household ammonia to the water is typically only done for fishless cycling. You really don't want to mix fishless with fish-in because fishless requires high ammonia levels.

An example of a hardy 'cycling fish' would be zebra danios. ~4 of them and a 'center piece' dwarf gourami or betta and some mystery snails and ghost shrimp would be a nice stocking plan for a 10g.

A betta killing everything in the tank? Keep in mind male bettas are only a problem with other male bettas. IMO, they make an IDEAL tank mate to a community tank. Same goes with female bettas, except you can keep them together. I've got 4 lady bettas in my 55g community tank.

 

[Thyra]

Welcome! I just wanted to add that male bettas are generally not the aggressor. They got a bad reputation from the name "Siamese Fighting fish" because they were used in Asia for gambling - just like roosterfighting. I have had no problems with having a male betta in my community tanks. That said, a 10 gallon tank does not give you a lot of room for a variety of fish and some can be territorial which isn't as much of an issue in a larger tank. One of my favorite colorful fish is the serpae (high fin tetra minor) They are very active and small and you could keep at least 6 in your tank.

 

[Rotaripsnoc]

A 10 gal, can be tricky to cycle, I would honestly wait until your other tank cycles, then share some filter media \ substrate. I personally like Neon Tetra's in a small tank, they require 6 + as a schooling fish, are relatively clean.

 

[FreshyFresh]

+1 on the 10g cycling. Things can go south quick. Atleast that's what I experienced when cycling mine.

The positive is water changes are a snap on them.

The negatives are:

I find tank maintenance more difficult with a 10g. Vacuuming the gravel is pointless because once you get started, you've already sucked out half the water. Simple things like scraping algae off the glass is tough to do without disturbing plants, decor, etc.

Less is better with a 10g IMO. A few fish, simple, clean decor and simple hardware.

 

[rf53]

+1 on the 10g cycling. Things can go south quick. Atleast that's what I experienced when cycling mine.

The positive is water changes are a snap on them.

The negatives are:

I find tank maintenance more difficult with a 10g. Vacuuming the gravel is pointless because once you get started, you've already sucked out half the water. Simple things like scraping algae off the glass is tough to do without disturbing plants, decor, etc.

Less is better with a 10g IMO. A few fish, simple, clean decor and simple hardware.

Thanks to you and everyone who responded. We are on day 12 of our new 10g tank. Let me explain what we have done and request comments and advise:

As stated, the tank is 10g and has a 20g filter and a 10g air pump with a small bubbler. The tank has very good filtration and aeration. It was fitted with subtrate, a couple of small decorative artificial plants, and small rock cave-like formation.

The initial water test (tap) was N02 = 0, N03 = 0, PH = 7, no ammonia.

We allowed the filter to work for a couple days to settle the PH and temperature, and then used the appropriate doze of Prime. We let the Prime work for 24 hours. After that we used Tetra Safe Start, and about 30 minutes later we stocked the tank with three Black Skirt Tetras (BST). This is the procedure that is suggested by the Tetra Care team. The BST's are very hardy according to all reports, and are among the best fish available to start an aquarium per the research that we did.

On the 3rd day with fish-in, the water tested at N02 = 0, N03 = > 20, PH = 6.5, and under 0.25 ppm or ammonia.

On the 8th day with fish-in the water tested at N02 = 0, N03 = > 20, PH = 7, ammonia about 0.25 ppm.

Today is day 9 with fish-in, day 12 overall.

We have been feeding the fish once a day. They have been fine, active, and do not seem stressed. According to the Tetra Safe Start instructions we should do our first water change on day 14 with fish in, and then proceed to add more fish if desired and commence weekly water changes.

Our plan is to add two more BST's and then maybe some Halrequin Rasboras. The Rasboras reportedly do well with the BST's and will not overload the tank according to AqAdvisor (I know its an estimate).

How does our procedure and results look so far to those of you who are experts out there? All good and positive advise is welcome. Thanks!

 

[FreshyFresh]

rf53, I wish you luck with your procedure.

What are you using to measure ammonia, nitrite and nitrate?

Keep an eye on the ammonia. The fact you are seeing ammonia is indicative of no (or very low) beneficial bacteria in your tank. I would do water changes until it disappears or detoxify it with prime at a minimum. I would definitely not add any more fish. I also do not know that black skirt tetras are extraordinarily hardy fish. I know that neon tetras are very sensitive to poor water quality.

IMO, 3 fish in an uncycled 10g is pushing the limits.

I think you'll also find bottled 'cycle starter' products to be useless. Of course stores and the name brands want to sell them to you.

 

[OrangeCones]

I agree with FreshyFresh and will add that anytime you are using Prime (or another product that binds ammonia), you will still see the ammonia on the test kits until the biofilter has consumed it (converted it to nitrite then nitrate). Also, never harmful to do water changes, just make sure to dechlorinate and match temperature.