New 20 gallon rectangular

[Rob1114]

Hello all, my fishless cycle is appearing to be nearing its end, nitrites are going down and ammonia is 0...now I am wondering what to stock it with.

I went to PetsMart and started looking at the fish while I was getting ornaments...and their max sizes...but I dont completely trust the little tags.

I have 4 fish in mind now..I liked a silver tipped shark, a rainbow shark...and possibly 2 Angelfish. The max inches rating on the tags didn't add up to 20...but I dont trust it.

What do you all think about those 4 fish? Would they overstock the tank?

 

[SoulFish]

you could have 1 angelfish the rest get too big, 2 angelfish isnt good they will often fight and one will always hide and get beaten up

 

[Pooky125]

Since it appears that your stuck on the 1" per gallon rule, I feel that I should attempt to make u understand, why that rule doesn't work so well. While it can be a good rule for beginners, it can also be ver isleading. Let's say you just got a brand new 10 gallon aquarium, and are looking through fish profiles, and are torn, between 10 - 1" tetras or 1 - 10" oscar. Now, if you actually sit down, and think about this, you realize that, the oscar would not be happy in a 10 gallon tank, and, in fact shouldn't live in a tank smaller then 55 gallons when full grown. 10 1" tetras however, would be perfectly happy in your 10 gallon tank. It all has to do with biomass. Personally, I don't use a rule for stocking tanks, takes to much time, and as you said, many of the store do not carry good info on the fish, or even the eventual sizes. Your petsmart was just a touch off. Silver tipped sharks are also known as bala sharks, and get about 13" each, and are schooling fish. Rainbow sharks get about 8" and rainbow fish get between 6-10 depending on the species.. Now, if you add up those numbers, you get a little different views on the inch per gallon rule. This is where I say, ditch the 1" per 1 gallon rule, there are much better ones.. The one I hear most often recommended for beginners is to take the length, and he width, and multiply them, and divide by 12 to get the number of inches per tank. However, I stock my tanks, simply by how full they look. If they fish look crowded, like they can't have there own space, with out there personal bubble being popped, then, it's to many fish, but if the fish can move around freely, and rarely see eachother, you don't have quite enough.. I say, try out the LxW/12 rule, and see how it works for you, go back to your LFS, and pick out some fish, that stay under 4" and do a little research on them, before breaking out the check book. HTH..

 

[SoulFish]

Silver tipped sharks arent bala sharks and get 24"

 

[colesea]

Silver tipped sharks are another name for juvenial Columbian cat-sharks, and are not a good fish to begin with. They do not thrive very well in fresh water, but rather have brackish needs. Adults need full marine conditions.

As far as angels are concerned, most people will tell you that one full grown mated pair of angels (two fish) would be comfortable in a 20 gallon high minimum. They are aggressive and territorial when full grown (about 8"-10") and have been known to eat fish smaller than they are.

You might get away with one rainbow shark. Beware that they are a territorial fish and can beat up tankmates. A small sized one and a few small tetras might get along.

Never, Never Never go by the 1" per gallon rule. As Pooky said, it is often very misleading. The tags at the store are never correct as to the true size the fish may grow. I've seen many fish, such as balas, or irridesecent sharks, listed as only grown to 6" max, but in all truth, they can be about 24" or more! It is just that no average hobbiest has ever had one live long enough in captivity for it to grow to full adult size. This is very sad.

Don't just shop at one store. Petsmart and other chain retail pet places always get in the very small baby fish because they are what sell. In a few years that angel that was 2" is now 8" and beating the crap out of its tankmates because it is cramped. Go to more traditional LFS such as little mom&pop places. They will most likely have the larger and more mature specimens to observe because somebody dumped them when they out grew the tank. Fish do out grow tanks, and if not moved into a larger one, often die rather than live out the impressive lifespans many are capable of.
~~Colesea

 

[Rob1114]

Wow, thanks for the advice.

Definitely not going with the Columbian cat-shark, I really liked his looks....but the size and water requirements aren't realistic for a beginner such as myself.

Right now, I'm probably looking at 1 angel and 1 rainbow shark. I planned on starting with 4 fish...so I am at a loss of what else to place in my tank. Maybe some tetras or cories that are just large enough to not become angelfish food?