Fish for a 10 gallon tank?????

Question

I just set up a new 10 gallon tank ( i did not opt for a heater). I know that I should cycle the tank and add a good harty fish first before slowly introducing more. But what? I want alge eaters as well. And what about snails? Do they do anything?

I'll pick up a heater. No problem. So what would be the best starter fish?

Answer 1

Most "algae eaters" will get too big for a 10 gallon, or require a heater. If I were you, I'd pay the extra 12 dollars to get a heater. Your options will be much greater.

As far as algae eaters go...
None will do all the work. You're going to have to clean the algae off yourself occassionally. Most fish will pick at it a bit, but few do a super job. You can get a small plecostomus, but don't get a regular one. They grow to 18". Unfortunately, these are the only ones most fish stores stock. A clown plecostomus or bristlenose plecostomus will be ok though, although you will also need to invest in some driftwood. Mystery snails work well, and are fun, I think. They also won't breed like crazy, so you wont' be overrun with them. Mystery snails are NOT the type of snail people have been warning you about. They generally won't breed unless you try for them to breed, and in any case, require more than one to breed anyway. The Otto Catfish is another option. It only gets to 1.5 inches, and you could have a small school of these.
http://www.timstropicals.com/Inventory/Catfish/OttoInfo.asp
Also common or corydoras catfish, which come in several varieties. Some which can be kept in colder water, but I wouldnt' recommend it.

White cloud minnows are the typical recommendation for a coldwater tank. They stay small, and are fun to watch. You could get a small school of 6 or 7 of these with your catfish selection.

Gold barbs CAN be kept in cooler waters, and they are also a fun schooling fish. I have had mine for 2 years, and they all swim together. You could probably get 5 maybe 6 in the 10 gallon.

Many other fish, while staying small, require more swimming room. In my first 10 gallon, I had guppies and mollies, both of which breed like crazy. The mollies, I wouldn't recommend as they need some salt in their water. Male guppies can be a nice addition to your tank, however, if you add females, you're going to want to make sure you have some other kind of fish in there that will eat them, and in a 10 gallon, I'm thinking population control would be a bit tough unless you had all males.

Another option, although this again will require a heater, is a male betta and several corydoras catfish. That is, if you like bettas. Cories are very energetic, and while they are catfish and generally stay at the bottom, they will swim at all levels. So if you were to get 4-5 corydoras and a betta, I think that would be a beautiful and active tank. The betta will not harm the cories either :) Adding a single mystery snail as well would be an interesting addition.

One final consideration: Even coldwater fish need consistent temperatures. Therefore, even if you do choose not to keep tropicals, you would be best getting a heater anyway so the temperature doesn't fluctuate. You could keep fish without a heater, but they are more likely to get stressed, get sick, and die, which will end up being more costly to you than a 10 dollar heater. For a cheap place to buy fish supplies, try www.bigalsonline.com. That's where I get all of my supplies.

EDIT: SInce you said you're getting a filter, I would recommend the betta setup I mentioned if you want a "centerpiece" fish surrounded by a few others. If you like schooling fish, i would get 6 white clouds and 4 corydoras catfish of any type (whatever is available at your live fish store). White clouds are very attractive in my opinion, especially when they're healthy, very hardy, and stay small. Gold barbs school as well, but they get a bit big. In any setup, you could also throw in 2-3 ghost shrimp. Whatever you do, add these fish SLOWLY. After your tank is cycled, see link on that, add only 2-3 fish per week to allow your tank to adjust. Be patient! It will be worth it :) Mollies and platies get too big and need more room to swim around than a 10 gallon will provide. Zebra danios are fun and could be kept, but they really need a minimum of 20 gallons to swim around in and be happy. You could swap the 6 white clouds for 4 male fancy guppies if you would prefer that.

Answer 2

Most algae eaters get way too big for a 10 gallon. Some need 200 gallons. Otos are okay in 10 gallons, but they are fragile. I suggest waiting until you have a more established tank before you get any algae eater. Snails are ok, get a mystery snail. They lay eggs above the water line so they won't take over the tank. Small fish like tetras, barbs, minnows, rasboras, and livebearers are good for the tank. Killifish are fun fish to own.

Answer 3

Wth no heater in a 10 gallon tank your choices are very limited. White clouds are a good cool water fish as are some barbs like cherry barbs or gold barbs.

You might want to dodge the snails, they are a hassle because they breed too fast.

Youneed to leave off any kind of algae eater because 1> they get too big for a 10 gallon tank and 2. they would require warmer water.

MM

Answer 4

My opinion would be to get guppies. They have a great immune system, and adapt to new places well. They dont need a heater, just fresh water about every 2 weeks, and food. I have 5 guppies of my own, and they do great. You dont need to spend a lot of time on them, and they are very beautiful! (Especially fancy guppies.) Snails...I have one of those in my tank too. They help the floor and walls stay cleaner, just like alge eaters. (snails and alge eaters would be great also! And they wont go after eachother. Guppies are very passive agressive, along with snails and alge eaters) That would be my suggestion. Also, you can get little ghost shrimp, they wont do anything to the fish either. I have 6 of em in my tank, and they help keep it clean too!

Answer 5

your going to want to wait to get thoses guys they need alge to live and thats something a new tank just does not have. try it with 2 fish at first to grow alge then you can try a snail(they are neat to watch climb the side of your tank), the fish store people told me before five gallons of water per fish. good luck with your tank, there always nice to have.

Answer 6

my advice:
DO NOT get snails. Yes, sure they make the tank cleaner, but they multiply like HELL. Once we got a couple of the tiny snails and then went on vacation and had the automatic fish feeder set up and they multiplied like crazy. This isn't a bad thing, it keeps the tank clean, that is untill you have to clean it (take out filter, etc) they were all over the place and become such a major pain.

There are those fish that leech onto the sides of the tank cleaning. Those are good for a tank. You could get possibly one of those. My advice is to get mollies. They are little fish that come in tons of colors (dalmation, black, orange, red, etc) and can adjust easily. They're friendly and are fun to keep.

Answer 7

Please be careful if you do not have a heater! White clouds can tolerate no heat as can bettas and goldfish. But "no heat" doesn't mean below 60-65 degrees!!

Do you have any friends with a filter like the one you have? You could just take their used filter and some of their water and be pretty much through the cycling phase.

Answer 8

snails help clean. a tank that small is probably good for neons and similar small fish. don't use untreated tap water you know. the chlorine in city water killss the fish. have to use additive. don't use too cold or too hot water either.

fish tanks are fun but a little bit of a pain.

Answer 9

you shouldnt get a plecostomus (algae eater)until your water has cycled. Get a couple cory cats or some regular goldfish for about a month, they are very hearty. Snails dont do a whole lot but they will probably live in a new tank.

Answer 10

It would be best to do a fishless cycle before adding any fish by dosing ammonia. You will find an article about cycling a tank on my website.(Link below)