stock questions

[Sharkweek0]

i could probably surf around and find the information i'm looking for, but from what i hear, you guys just love questions.

i have two 15g tanks still in the cycle process, it's been rough as just like most aquarists i had no knowledge of ************ i was doing before i started. but as it sits right now i have one 15 with four platys, which i think i'll just keep as a platy tank for now and thank my lucky stars they aren't dead. but as for the other 15, i moved a black lyretail molly in it and he's gonna be cycler. i hate to be so abusive to these poor fish but at this point i don't have many options. all tanks i have from here on out though, fishless cycle no questions asked.

anyway, my question is, what type of fish do you guys think would do well in a 15g? after the cycle, i could even move the molly back in with the platys and have an empty 15g.

the water i use to fill the tanks is fairly hard, i can't come up with an exact number off the top of my head but it's def not soft water. of course the ammonia and nitrite/rate is not anywhere near ideal because i'm dumb and stocked on day 1.

the only fish i have available to me would come from petco, its the only pet shop anywhere close to me without an awful far drive. but they seem to keep pretty healthy fish at my local petco.

i'm just not sure what type and what quantity would do well in my tank, and i refuse to kill or be abusive to any more fish, so any advice is greatly appreciated

[emc7]

A standard 15 is 12" x 24". You can usually fit 1 pair of small dwarf new world cichlids, or a colony of small livebearers, or a big group of multies (Small shelldweller) or 1 school of small tetra or barbs. There are some other things you can keep with them (a pleco, a group of cories with the tetra), but find one fish you really love and make it your main fish. Research its needs

[Sharkweek0]

i am a big fan of cichlids, are there small enough ones to have in a 15 gal? i know there is by the inch per gallon rule, but from what i understand that only applies to the smaller fish that i have in my other tank. i don't want to have any unhappy fish. i also would like to keep fish that aren't going to outgrow my tank. i know the platys in my first tank will be great in there, but i would like to consider having a cichlid in my second. i do plan on getting a larger tank in the future, but i don't want to get a fish knowing that i have to get the larger tank for it later. if that makes any sense.

[emc7]

I completely agree, you don't get fish that need a bigger than that you have because life has a way of interfering with plans for a big tank.

I love the little Tanginikan shelldwellers. neolamprologus multifasciatus max out under 3" and you can keep a breeding group in a pile of shells in a 15 gallon. They aren't colorful, but they are awesome to watch. They can be pricey and hard to find, but they are always in demand, so you can sell fry later.

neolamprologus ocellatus come in a much more colorful "gold" variety, but they are more aggressive, so you can only have a pair (remove the fry to another tank).

I have kept Neolamprologus brichardi in a 15 and that you might see in Petco as "fairy cichlid" or some other dumb common name. They are like convicts in that a pair will kill everything else and fill the tank with more fry than you know what to do with.

You could try Bolivian rams. they are more hardy and like harder water than blue rams, but they are sensitive to water quality, you'd need to keep it clean. Same for any of the "kribs", pelvicachromis sp. Kribs can be aggressive to each other in a small tank, but it might work for a pair.

The small jewel cichlid, hemichromis christatus can be kept in a 15 as a pair. But you will likely only find their larger cousins in the store. These are hardy and colorful, but mean and prolific, like convicts causing you to need another tank for fry.

[ZebraDanio12]

Look in my signature. A pair of Rams or apisto's would do great in a 15 gallon. The min for them I would say is 10. I breed them in a 10 gal aswell. I love them, great fish.

like emc said tanginikins would be cool too.

[emc7]

If your water isn't soft, look for "whitewater" apistogramma like agassizi rather than "blackwater" fish. If your TDS (total dissolved solids) is 300 or more or if your pH is 8+, get Tanganyikan. Hardening water is easier than softening it.

There are likely some suitable oddballs I left off the list, because I don't know enough about non-cichlids.