# What should I put in my 25 gal?



## PeteAce (Oct 23, 2010)

Now that my 66 gal convict tank is setup (posted photos in the gallery section), I would like to ask for suggestions on what to put in my 25 gal tank. I'm into breeding (beginner), so maybe guppies or swordtails?


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## neven (May 15, 2010)

if you are interested in breeding for yourself, not to sell, then guppies would be a good place to start as there many here who have guppies and it opens up the option to swap fish stock to avoid too much interbreeding.


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## Morainy (Apr 21, 2010)

And endlers are nice, too! Well, I suppose endlers are a guppy variant. They certainly reproduce quickly. 

But if you're looking for bigger fish, then what about a pair of kribensis and a small school of pygmy corydoras or a half dozen top-dwellers like espei rasboras? Kribs make fascinating parents as long as you give them some hiding spaces and don't put any bossy fish in the bottom of the tank.


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## PeteAce (Oct 23, 2010)

Wow kribensis are nice... but I already have convicts, I think most cichlids are good parents? I'm just breeding for myself, if I have too many later I'd probably just trade here or in stores for food. I might try guppies/endlers, they are very colorful.


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## neven (May 15, 2010)

just dont make guplers...


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## Mferko (Jun 8, 2010)

tanganyikan shellies + gobies  theyre awesome


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## Luke78 (Apr 24, 2010)

You could go with some dwarf cichlids (rams,apistogrammas).Lots of interesting breeding behaviour and care, amazing colours, and not too demanding with their requirements to keep them happy.Quite few of the sponsors on this forum bring in some amazing species , check them out.Good luck with your new project.


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## donjuan_corn (May 6, 2010)

I always like mickey mouse platys because there are so many different colors and they aren't tiny like guppys. Easy to breed, just have some duck weed for the fish to hide.


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## PeteAce (Oct 23, 2010)

Thanks for everyone's suggestions. Since I'm so new at this, I've decided to put guppies in the tank (also to impress the kids). Now I have so many questions about it....

I guess I should know how many I should get for the 25 gal? Right now it's just setup with gravel and a Plecos. Should I put any plants in there, what kind of plants should I get... I only have a single strip 24" power-glo light in there. Now guppies, how many should I get? 2:1 female male ratio? I'm trying to avoid the multi-tank symptoms...  so too many babies too soon will not be good. My plan is to get different males in colours.. but what about females, or do they not matter? 

I'd like to get a good start, so any pointers would be very much appreciated. Let me know if you have some extra guppies too. I'm so excited.


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## neven (May 15, 2010)

the biggest thing would be to buffer your tank properly, you need a high GH for guppies, i keep my guppy tank at around 220 ppm give or take a bit. YOu boost it through GH boosters, like equilibrium or dry fert equivalent. KH you'll want around 90 ppm if you use co2, it buffers your tank from PH swings caused by bio build up and carbonic acid (co2 related).

That is the key part.

As for Plants, most fish love plants, so stock some easy growers if you are starting out. Keep it simple with driftwoods with anubias and ferns tied to it, a moss type tied at places aswell. Wysteria is a great filler plant for those who start out aswell. save the carpetting foreground plants until you are more experienced with keeping the parameters and fertilizing down pat. You could go co2, or metricide/excel, your choice but either or is recommended, otherwise you'll have a hard time balancing it out.

Lighting, if its a double strip, you should be fine, but even with a single the ferns and anubias should grow alright, but slow


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## PeteAce (Oct 23, 2010)

sorry what is ppm? the GH test kit I have just have numbers from 0-30 degree Hardness GH with 30 being extremely hard. How do I go about that?



neven said:


> i keep my guppy tank at around 220 ppm give or take a bit.


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## neven (May 15, 2010)

hagen tests test in ppm, 17.9 ppm per every degree


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## ncutler (Apr 26, 2010)

I posted this before I noticed you had picked guppies, but I've had guppies breeding with shellies before as well, so it may still be relevant since the guppies stuck to the top of the tank and shellies at the bottom.

As Mferko said, do some research on Tangyanikan Shellies. 25G is a perfect size, they're extremely prolific (especially Neolamprologus Multifasciatus) and somewhat rare to find over here. That is if you like breeding rarer species.

shelldwellers.com is the best starting point to do research on them.


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## PeteAce (Oct 23, 2010)

That's a good idea. I'll find a pair or two of those after I'm done setup with the guppies and plants. Thanks !



ncutler said:


> I posted this before I noticed you had picked guppies, but I've had guppies breeding with shellies before as well, so it may still be relevant since the guppies stuck to the top of the tank and shellies at the bottom.


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