Community centerpiece fish.

hatcheridiot

hatcheridiot

Call me crazy...Crazy
Apr 19, 2007
370
0
0
48
Washington State
Howdy all,

After looking long and hard (IMO). I still can't decide or find a 4-5" centerpiece fish for a community tank.

So here's the tank....

30g filtered by a AC 110. Lots of rocks, and driftwood. No real plants as of yet. This tank is conceptual as of yet...it's not in operation, I'm still doing homework.

10 neons
3 cory's
6 rasboras

Are there ANY 4-5" fish that will work in a 30g or is that cruel? I was hoping to find a nicely colored, peaceful fish that might not need the tank size required by most fish that size. Are there any out there? I'd love to have a discus but I've heard mixed reviews on their compatability. Plus I guess most discus get to 8" anyway. Oh well.
 
I think a pearl gourami (maybe even a pair) would be ideal in your tank. They're on the peaceful side, won't hide like lots of cichlids like to do, and won't even eat your neons. Don't let their drabbish colors at the LFS fool you, they're stunning as adults.

tn_Trlee_u1.jpg


A single discus will suffer and needs much higher temps than your neons are corys would like...so I'd not try that. Also, they get too big.
 
No on the Discus, but a nice Angel would do well. You'd have to go with Cardinals instead of Neons though.
 
I totally agree with Jayhawk. Discus are best kept in groups, and in high temps. There's just no way you would have the room in a 30 gallon.

I like the suggestion for the pearl gourami- I had no idea they could look like that!!! Or, a gold gourami or blue gourami would look nice. Even though they would tend to hide a bit more than the gourami, a pair/trio of apistogramma would look great too.
 
Thanks all for your suggestions. I too didn't know a gourami could look so cool! I'll have to research the apistogramma, I don't even know what it is! LOL

Yeah, I pretty much know I wont be able to get a discus..no worries, as they say, There's plenty of fish in the sea.
 
I've definately thought of rams! Thanks for the reinforcement. My dad had angels and they pecked at everything! I hated the little *******'s!
 
Angels are great, but you'd have to nix the neons, as the angel would eventually eat them. Just FYI, apistogramma are South American dwarf cichlids. They stay a little smaller than what you proposed in your original post (most apisto species max out around 3-3.5 inches), but they are peaceful and have a ton of personality IMO. I keep apisto steindachneri with my discus and they don't hide much at all- they have even spawned for me. Probably the most popular apisto species, and perhaps the most readily available, is apistogramma cacatuoides- the cockatoo dwarf cichlid. Even they can be somewhat difficult to find, but it's worth it if you can locate them.
 
If you like rams, then consider some of the more exotic Apistogrammas instead. The Cacatuoides, or cockatoo cichlid, is simply the most beautiful fish this side of a reef tank. They cost about $30 a pop, but they're amazing fish. A pair in a 30g would be ok, but not more than a pair, and defintely not 2 males..

EDIT: Good call Mama ;)
 
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