# 5 gallon stocking



## xrayjeeper83 (Sep 6, 2009)

I just got kicked out by my gf, she got to keep her 29 and the 10 that we had. But I got the 5 gallon, and now its at my apartment and is up and running. Im waiting for it to do its cycle thing then will be getting fish. 

On to my question. Would a betta and 3 corys be a good fit for the tank?? Im going to be putting some live plants in it also.

Also tell me what yall think would be a good fit for a small tank, Im up for anything


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## aunt kymmie (Jun 2, 2008)

xrayjeeper83 said:


> I just got kicked out by my gf, she got to keep her 29 and the 10 that we had. But I got the 5 gallon, and now its at my apartment and is up and running. Im waiting for it to do its cycle thing then will be getting fish.
> 
> On to my question. Would a betta and 3 corys be a good fit for the tank?? Im going to be putting some live plants in it also.
> 
> Also tell me what yall think would be a good fit for a small tank, Im up for anything


Well that wasn't very nice of her! I keep a 6gl planted w/ a betta and a trio of otos and they do very well together. I wouldn't think regular cories wouldn't have much of a footprint to root around in a 5gl. Maybe some pygmy cories??


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## xrayjeeper83 (Sep 6, 2009)

No it wasnt, she should have given me the tanks since I was the one that always took care of them lol.

But dont otos need lots of alge?


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## aunt kymmie (Jun 2, 2008)

Yes, otos need algae and an established tank. My otos love spinach and cucumber so they are never hungry. Maybe some otos for you down the road after your tank has been set up a few months...

On a side note, maybe after having to take care of the tanks and getting tired of it the ex will call you to come pick them up???


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## xrayjeeper83 (Sep 6, 2009)

So for now you think just the betta till the tank is a few months old and I have decent amount of algae?

sidenote: thats a good possiblity, she doesnt tend to keep things that frustrate her(hence why im gone lol)


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## redchigh (Jan 20, 2010)

If you're set on a betta, that's cool, and a pretty good choice.

Some other choices for upper middle fish would be-
1 dwarf puffer (they're freshwater, tons of personality. Limited on plant choices though...Plus they're territorial, but will probably leave things on the substrate alone. Unless it's an invertebrate, then its lunch.)
1 Badis Badis (beautiful fish, and can normally only be kept in a species tank- a 5g would be perfect.)
a school of 6 ember tetras- (they're tiny, maybe 1/4-1/2 inch long- and bright yellow/orange so you can't miss them in the tank.)
2 of the smaller gourami species. (sparkling gourami and croaking gourami are smallish- 1-2 inches long.)
2-3 male guppies/mollies/platies (livebearers also graze on algae, so you could, theoretically, use them as your cleanup crew.. swordtails like more room I believe)

Options for lower strata/cleaners-
3 pygmy cories
3 ottos
Snails (assassin snails or nerite snails would work well, but not with the puffer. If you choose the puffer then pond and ramshorn would be best, since they will multiply, are usually free, and will be an alternate food source when the puffer feels like hunting.)
Shrimp (RCS and/or Ghost shrimp would work well- personally I love shrimp as the cleaner crew over corys and ottos. The only thing I feel is better than shrimp and snails at cleaning IMO is the BN pleco, which won't fit in a 5G. Works ok in a 10G though if you decide to move up. )

Really, the decision should be based on the PH/hardness of your tap water (rather, the ph/hardness of the tank once cycling is over. Snails/livebearers/or I believe the puffer would prefer PH above 7.
the tetras/gourami/badis badis/cory like acidic water, around 6.

If your water is around 6.8-7.2, then just about anything will do pretty well.


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## xrayjeeper83 (Sep 6, 2009)

Thank you for all the opitions, now its going to be a hard desicion then i originally though. lol

Just got to wait for the cycle do my tests see what my PH is and then go from there.


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## xrayjeeper83 (Sep 6, 2009)

Now Im not sure of the fish Im going to get, but I do know Im going to get some plants. What plants would yall suggest for a 5 gallon hex tank? Also what kind of light bulb should I get?


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## Byron (Mar 7, 2009)

Presumably it is incandescent, so I would select a CF bulb in daylight or enhanced daylight, whatever they may call them, with a kelvin rating around 5500-7000K, close to 6500K preferably but this range will be fine. Get the smallest wattage. If this tank is or could be close to a window, esp west or south facing, small planted tanks often do very well with no artificial light. Just a thought.

As for plants, I would avoid stem plants and go with substrate rooted or object-rooted (for lack of a better term). The latter include Anubias and Java Fern; these are relatively slow growing so wouldn't overtake the space too fast as stem plants will. For substrate plants, crypts are ideal being slow growing and low light (esp if you do the window idea). Pygmy chain sword will add a lighter green, and though fast growing once established by runners it is easy to control by simply cutting the daughter plant runners as they appear. A tiger lily in red or green would probably do well, the floating leaves can always be removed to keep it compact. Small swords other than pygmy are Echinodorus parviflorus 'Tropica' variant Dwarf Sword (see the profile linked for description and photo).

Byron.


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## xrayjeeper83 (Sep 6, 2009)

thanks for the info. bad part about my new apartment is that the only windows face north i beileve. I get no direct sunlight into the apartment(which is great for my electric bill in the summer lol).

Also how long do I just let it run till I start putting stuff in, ie plants and some kind of start fish.


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## Byron (Mar 7, 2009)

If you can have the tank in front of the window, a north window might work as it would not be direct sun; depends upon how bright the light is. That was just a thought, as I have read that it works well with small tanks. I'm in the process of trying this out with a 10g, one of these days soon.

If you have enought plants they cycle the tank for you, with only one fish (a betta was mentioned). So as soon as you have the plants in, off you go with the betta. After a week or so, you could add the 3 corys if they are still intended. I'm assuming hardy corys; if you intend pygmy or any of the rarer species, I would let the tank run a few weeks.

Byron.


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## xrayjeeper83 (Sep 6, 2009)

Well after redchigh's post I have no idea what I want to do with fish. It will all depend on what my final PH comes out to be. So I guess Ill go hunt down some plants and let them start the cycle


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## iamntbatman (Jan 3, 2008)

Even if you do a traditional fishless cycle, plants aren't bothered by a cycling tank so you can put them in the tank whenever you want.


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## Byron (Mar 7, 2009)

In my last post I seem to have got a bit confused over the corys; I must have been thinking this was a 10g rather than a 5g as I would not suggest anything other than one of the dwarf cory species for a 5g. Kymmie is right, there is not enough space. And corys must be in small groups; with the dwarf species, I would never go with less than 5-6, 3 is not sufficient for their social aspects. Sorry for the mix-up, totally in my mind (or what's left of it these days). B.


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## xrayjeeper83 (Sep 6, 2009)

Im getting some Red cherry shrimp and im thinking a sparkling gourmai if i can locate one local(shipping kills getting them off the internet) if i cant find the gourami i will go with a beta


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