New 54L Tank

Hi Guys, first post on the forum so be gentle! Just got myself a new 54L tank and have it set up and cycled (took a while but got there in the end!) and have 5 zebra danios in there since Saturday and they are getting on great. I was just wondering if you would have any suggestions as to what else you would recommend putting in there?

I was thinking of a few dwarf corydoras, and the girlfriend likes Neon Tetras. I have done a small bit of research on them and see they both like to school, which obviously means I will have to put a few of them in. How many would you recommend of each and would my tank be able to support this amount of fish (assuming I go for both and have to put a few of each in)?

Is there any other fish that you would recommend for a beginner?

Another stupid question - I do not have an air pump in the tank at the moment. Is it recommended to have one? I have read that as long as the filter disturbs the surface tension of the water it should be fine but now that I actually have fish in there I am a bit worried. And if so is it possible or recommended to put one in when there are already fish in the tank?

As I said be gentle, I know they are real beginner questions, and I have tried to do my research, but it all gets confusing sometimes.

Thanks
Bill

PS Great site by the way, have learned a lot from here already!

Welcome to the site Bill,

Be selective on the Fish you choose, Danios of any sort are beautiful, from a cost perspective, ie. heat, they save you a few bob as they and some corys, live in the lower temperature range.

As shoalers, they do this loosely as do Neons so only chose a few shoaling species as the more fish you add the less timid they become and you end up with a mish mash of fish.

Most experts recommend 6 as a minimum and the stocking rate is usually 2 inch of fish per Gallon, I love the Imperial system !!

Tank-mates can be, Harlequin Rasboras, emerald Rasboras and Danio choprai
are lovely.

Try to choose Fish that have different hues and colours as this will help each shoal stand out.

If you have Plants and decor, get one or two Ottocinclus catfish to keep your Algae down, a Tank that size with a common plecostomus would be too small.

Best of luck.

Kev.

welcome to the forun bill
good to see you done a bit of research
great advice from kev as allways

Welcome aboard man, get a pic of the tank up and we look at it so far....I'll give ye till Christmas before u get the bigger tank:laugh:

Welcome to the forum

I like the Danios, cheeky little fish, fin nippers tho.
If you want shoaling get rummynose tetras. Neon Tetras are not great shoalers especially if there is cover in the tank. I think cardinal tetras shoal a bit more and look very similar, slightly bigger with te red stripe going the lenght of the body.

Rummynose will swim back n forth all together nearly all of the time.

You can get a small pleco to deal with the algae or apple snails, clean my plants and glass and require no looking after.
Either is good.


Good luck as Mick says, it will not be too long till you upgrade, if allowed:)

Mark

Welcome to the Forum Bill Wont be long before the Bug bites enjoy

Welcome to the Forum Bill

Just to add to the good advice given by the lads. When adding your new additions to the tank, do so very slowly on a weekly or bi-weekly basis by adding just 2 or 3 at a time. You do not want to put a strain on your biological filtration which may undo all of your good work to date. Keep an eye on your water parameters.

As regards your filter, it might be best to give the brand of your tank first to see what's there.

Dave

i had neons in my tank not great shoalers as said before def recomond cardinals stick together mostly.
Welcome to the forum as the lads have said you will go bigger fast.

Welcome Aboard Bill,
Stuie

Welcome to the forum,as the lads have said,its great to see you doing your research on the fish already.Will save you alot of frustration,ask lots of question and we will answer. We have all been in the same boat at the start.As long as you have a filter you shouldnt need an airpump,but perhaps you can look into in time when you get to know more about its use etc, the fish will be fine without it anyhow.
The neons dont shoal very well,they stay close together out of fear more than anything else,the cardinals are the same,and will mix with the neons in the same fashion. Rummy nose are great shoalers,but can be nippy and I would suggest a larger tank and larger numbers of them to really get the most from them.
Harlequin Rasboras are nice fish,and will shoal well. Just research the net and forums and they will steer you in the right direction.
As with any new tank,ensure you own a testkit,as Dave said, add slowly and test your water to ensure the filter can deal with the increased fish numbers.
Ideally try to get a mix of fish that work in all areas of the tank,ie.bottom feeders like Corys,lower,mid and upper water levels.

Enjoy picking out the fish and please stick to the golden rule of no impulse buys unless you know plenty about the fish!!
Gavin

welcome

as said a few times, rummy nose tetra are great schoolers, my 4 are across the front of the tank all day.
cory's are great, get ones that clash colours with your gravel/substrate so you can see them better, but dont expect them to act like a "clean up crew" as most shops will tell you, they need proper catfish pellets and wont reduce your maintainence schedule. they dont need to be kept in groups of any particular size but do enjoy the company of their own kind, so 3 would do nicely
otto's, bristlenose pleco's, shrimp and snails will keep unwanted algae under control (but you still need to keep up the water changes) although dont go getting all of the above, maybe a bristlenose pleco as they are hardy, only grow 4" or so and can come in lovely colours (the yellow ones are amazing if you have plant decorations) otto's can often have habits of dying easily within a few weeks of being in moved to another tank, and i would only recommend them for a well established tank (been running for a long time with stable parameters - get a test kit to keep an eye on these levels)
take a look in some of the sponsor's shops, they usually have a good selection of stock, you can see something you like and ask them as many questions you need like how big they get, do they need to school, will they go with..., any special feeding requirements and what water type they need.

this time next year you will be buying the biggest tank you can afford, trust me. i went from a goldfish bowl to 6 tanks (2x100l, 40l, 35l, 25l and 600l) within the last year and half. if my apartment was bigger, so too would be my tank selection!

Well said joey, i second that motion..........

I suggest Guppies or Endlers, Red Cherry Shrimp, and Dwarf Cories. They go well together and they are very entertaining to watch.

Have you considered any of the Dwarf Cichlids? There are some out there that are fine for starting out and are full of colour and great fun to watch, especially if you get a mated pair. Just a thought...

Jay

Wow, thanks for the warm welcome and all the suggestions guys. I'll do a bit of research on all the suggestions. I'll be introducing them slowly as suggested, don't want to undo all the good work!

As for getting the bug I am already looking at bigger tanks, unfortunately my apartment might not be able to hold anything bigger, but then again we don't really need a couch do we.....

Try Columbian Tetra, they are a great shoaling fish, bigger than your standard neon and easy keep. you should have a min of about 6 for the shoal effect. I have guppys at the minute and one female has had a batch of fry every 3 weeks for the past 2 months. once they pop they wont stop.

that works out to 12ish gallons give or take substrate and decor so your talking maybe 10gallons, your pretty limited but good man it's great your studying, i had 2 common plecos 2 opaline gourami 2 bettas 2 german rams 2 bolivian rams 5khuli loaches 5 ghost glass catfish 2 african butterflies 6 guppies and neon tetras and glowlight tetras plus many more that i cant remember in the same size tank. although they all did fine till i moved them to my 100 gallon (wit a lot of studying)and all i had left after 2weeks was 2 of the khulis, one pleco, and a neon tetra

Welcome matey,

As you can see there's a lot you can do with any size tank, many many lovely setups I have seen in a 54L

Re your question about aeration. Suface tension is fine at lower stock levels in upper water columns. An air stone down not mix that much air with water really, what it does is take water to the surface from the lower water columns as it rises with the air bubbbles making an upward current and a lot more surface tension as the bubbles hit the top.


Mark

If you intend on keeping plants I wouldnt bother with the airstone.
Gavin

Thanks for all the suggestions again guys. The danios are doing great! Unfortunately the tank isn't! The light decided today to give out. Tried unscrewing it from the hood and having a look and changed the fuse. Also tried a different outlet. Nothing worked so it looks like its just dead.

Whats the story with replacing the light? Are there standard fittings for them or are all the different bulbs different? Will I just have to replace the hood? Really don't have a clue!

Oh and thinking of getting some fish this weekend. Got myself a test kit and all the levels seem good. I was in a shop looking at bronze corys. Would these guys be good for the tank would you reckon? They looked like funny little guys!

Bring the light with you to the local fish shop.They will replace it, main things to notice from the light is the wattage,size (true length & diameter). They will give you a steer on what they are going to replace it with.If you were growing plants etc, then you would look at the wavelength (nm),but in this case it sounds like a straightforward change of light.

Bronze cory's are great,they will be perfect for your tank,try to get at least 5 of them as they prefer to be kept with a few of their own.

Gavin

Thanks for the reply Gavin. The tank is one of the ones that were on sale in Aldi over the Christmas. The light is one that you can't just pop the bulb out (its soldered in). After a quick google search I found out that apparently it was a faulty batch and even the replacements you get are crap and die after a couple of weeks link . Don't know what to do now. There are a few suggestions for quick fixes like getting a light and altering your hood to fit it but not really digging that. Any suggestions what to do? Are LED's a viable option? I hear they are expensive but don't even know which ones to buy or where to get them. Kinda annoyed I have to say! Just really getting into the whole fish keeping thing!!