Not sure what kind of fish to get...?

Question

I have a fully cycled 5 gallon freshwater tank. I'd like to get a couple of nice fish for it. What kinds of fish do well with just a pair? I'm looking for something pretty hardy as I'm still new at keeping tropical fish and keeping the tank levels (ph etc.) has proved to be a little tricky. I DO NOT want golfish or bettas. Any help?

I'd rather not have babies to worry about, so I'm not sure about guppies.

Also 6-7 fish is way too many for a 5 gallon tank. I just want a couple.

Also want to mention that my tank IS fully cycled. It's just hard to keep the levels consistant with such a small tank. If I had more room i would get something bigger, but unfortunately, I can't.

Answer 1

My first advice is to not try to keep the pH and hardness adjusted. Just allow it to be whatever it will be. That's far easier for you and far better for the health of your fish.

For your tank why not a few male guppies? A group of 6-7 of them would be hardy and colorful in the tank.

MM

Answer 2

A 5 gallon is much too small for dwarf cichlids - not a good suggestion.

You are very limited to the types of fish you can keep in a tank this small. Most small peaceful fish are schooling, so that rules out even more if you don't want to keep more then a couple. Dwarf gourami would work though.

And a 5 gallon is not too small for 6 very small fish like mountain minnows or neon tetras.

You can also get a trio of corydora catfish with either of the above suggestions, they are very low waste fish. 3 cory's and a dwarf gourami would be a nice setup and have a low bio-load, which is what you are after. Add some plants and you really have something.

And of course, don't go messing with the PH - all it does is complicate matters and cause further problems. You're new to fishkeeping, so here's the best advice I can give you - keep it simple.

Answer 3

I would go with glow fish. They only get about 1.5" in length and if you keep the lights on for most of the day at night when you turn off the lights they will glow them come in all different colors they are very hardy fish these are newer fish that just started coming into the hobby industry. You could go with some molly fish or platty they come in several different colors and are very very hardy. The only thing I would say if you did that is if you get a male and female they well breed like crazy and you'll have more fry then your tank can handle. But you can keep two of the same sex fish and they will do just fine.

Answer 4

This is a great source for fish info as far as whose hardy who can go with who etc. There are literally WAY too many species to explain all on here. They have communities listed that state which fish can be kept with which and their specific care needs.
http://www.elmersaquarium.com/000tropfishcareguides.htm
Click on a fish species and it will tell you all about it as well as give you the link to the community that it is best suited for and a list of fish that can be kept with it.

Answer 5

How did the tank get cycled without fish?

The only thing you can put in a 5 gallon is a small school of White Cloud Mountain Minnows, about 4.

Answer 6

Guppies, Mollies, and platies are nice colorful and easy fish to care and they eat the same food. Tropical flakes. And maybe a African Dwarf Frog would be nice. There frogs that never need to leave the water!

Answer 7

Guppies are very hardy. Get a male and two females and you'll have babies soon. Or just get 2-3 males. They're very pretty and come in all sorts of colors.

Answer 8

I would say to get three or four Cherry Barbs. They will be fine in a small tank because they stay very small. I hope you make the right choice. Good Lucks

Answer 9

under no circumstances placed 2 male bettas at the same time, they are going to wrestle to the demise. and also you are able to't placed a million male and a million woman at the same time both because they are going to kill one yet another as well. i might want to get more advantageous tetras (if that's the neon form ur conversing about ) they are very cool and consumer-pleasant to take care of as long as you keep the water high quality up. i'd not get more advantageous guppies because they multiply after which crowd your tank finally killing all the fish. you are able to't placed a gold fish in there. They fish that you've are tropical and goldfish want cool water. also they get BEASTLY large loads of the time. also do not forget that you want a million gallon for each inch of fish. :) desire this enables!

Answer 10

Guppies or platties would be okay - and they're colorful! If you don't want them to breed, get two males! The males are the showier of the guppies anyway!