# stocking suggestions for 15 gal. please?



## dorabaker (Jul 3, 2010)

ok so i know i haven't been on here for ages. things haven't been going too well here...my corys recovered from their gill flukes but then all died of fungus, for no apparent reason. one of them never really seemed to get over the gill flukes and he died first. i thought the others were going to be ok, but then they got fungus too. anyway, all that's beside the point...
i now have only one fish in my 15 gallon tank, my dear little golden gourami. she seems healthy, although i'm not keen on adding any fish to the tank for a few months until i'm sure it's all ok. but i'd like to start planning what to put in it. originally i was going with a south american themed tank with glowlight tetras and corys, but since the corys died i've started to think i want to try something a little different.
i'd think i'd like to keep some southeast asian fish, not a strict biotope, but just fish from a similar part of the world as my gourami. much as i love anabantids, i've been advised not get any more, because of the fights that would ensue, so can you reccomend to me any south-east asian fish that would get along with a gourami in a 15 gal planted tank? preferably fish that like warmer temps (26-27 C) and can tolerate acid water.
thanks 
p.s. i know the gourami should probably have a bigger tank, but that's out of the question 
also i was overjoyed a few days ago to realise my tank was cycled. this is going to sound crazy, but on a regular basis i sniff my fish tanks, as i find the smell of the water can say a lot about the health of the tank...anyway i know what a cycled tank smells like and a few days ago i noticed my tank smelling like that  although the fact that i couldn't smell it before could be attributed to the fact that i've had two colds in a row and therefore lost all sense of smell...haha.
i do have a nitrate/nitrite test kit but ever since i've got it both have read zero in my tank. i attributed that to the plants. also i dont have an ammonia test kit yet :\


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## Byron (Mar 7, 2009)

The gold gourami is a colour variant of the blue gourami, so the info in the profile of this latter fish applies.

The fish attains 4-5 or maybe 6 inches, so space in a 15g is going to be limited, and tankmates must be selected with this in mind. In a 15g, the medium rasbora would be best, any of the Trigonostigma species, we have three of the four species in our profiles. A small loach for the substrate level, but very small in a 15g, possibly something like Yunnanilus cruciatus. This species is not yet in our profiles, but it is 1.4 inches max, needs to be in a group of 5-6 or more, quite peaceful. The common dwarf loach might also work, they do get a bit larger at 2.5 inches, need a group (5+) and are very active which might annoy the gourami in so small a space. Both these species do well in quiet water like the gourami needs (little movement).

Byron.


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## Inga (Jun 8, 2010)

Any chance you could sell your Gold Gourami back to the fish store and start anew with fish in your tank? Gourami definitely get too big for a 15 gallon tank. Also, they can certainly be aggressive and kill other fish. I didn't know that when I purchased 4 Gourami. My one, grew a bit faster then the others and killed 2 of them off before I removed her. Now I have only 1 Blue Gourami in a 60 gallon tank with a few other smaller species of fish. She fills the tank though at almost 5 inches long and growing.


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## dorabaker (Jul 3, 2010)

yeah i know goruamis can be super agressive, had two once and the results were terrible...but i've never had a problem with just one. i dont want to sell my gourami as i'm rather attached to her  i doubt the store would take her back anyway.
i'll look at some rasbora species, thanks  i'd like some bottom feeders, but at the moment my tank is bare bottom so that may be out of the question for a while.


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## dorabaker (Jul 3, 2010)

update: i think i'd like some of those little dwarf loaches, they are realy cute. that means getting some gravel...more money *sigh* 
i'm not much of a fan of the rasboras, but would a shoal of cherry barbs work? i rather like them.


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## Byron (Mar 7, 2009)

dorabaker said:


> update: i think i'd like some of those little dwarf loaches, they are realy cute. that means getting some gravel...more money *sigh*
> i'm not much of a fan of the rasboras, but would a shoal of cherry barbs work? i rather like them.


Yes, cherry barb are smaller peaceful barbs as noted in our profile.

On the substrate, get the smallest-grain gravel you can, 1-2mm grain size, and in a dark or natural tan colour, no sharp edges (run your hand through it). It is better for plants, and the loaches. Sand would also work, but in your circumstance I would not recommend it, gravel will be easier to maintain. You can often buy inert aquarium gravel in bulk in fish stores, that is much less expensive than pre-packaged.


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## dorabaker (Jul 3, 2010)

Byron said:


> Yes, cherry barb are smaller peaceful barbs as noted in our profile.
> 
> On the substrate, get the smallest-grain gravel you can, 1-2mm grain size, and in a dark or natural tan colour, no sharp edges (run your hand through it). It is better for plants, and the loaches. Sand would also work, but in your circumstance I would not recommend it, gravel will be easier to maintain. You can often buy inert aquarium gravel in bulk in fish stores, that is much less expensive than pre-packaged.


yay! thanks. i'll get a shoal of cherry barbs then. what's the minimum number of loaches you can keep?


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## Byron (Mar 7, 2009)

dorabaker said:


> yay! thanks. i'll get a shoal of cherry barbs then. what's the minimum number of loaches you can keep?


If this is the dwarf loach, 5, as noted in the profile.


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## dorabaker (Jul 3, 2010)

k, i dont really like keeping uneven numbers of fish so i'd probably get 6. same with the cherry barbs i assume?
i think i'm going to get rid of the ceramic log in my tank and replace it with some cryptocorynes, once i have a substrate. as long as that will be sufficient hiding place for shy fishies...


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## Byron (Mar 7, 2009)

dorabaker said:


> k, i dont really like keeping uneven numbers of fish so i'd probably get 6. same with the cherry barbs i assume?
> i think i'm going to get rid of the ceramic log in my tank and replace it with some cryptocorynes, once i have a substrate. as long as that will be sufficient hiding place for shy fishies...


Six is fine.

I just checked your photos to see what you meant about the log. Those plants are looking very good. And I like the dark wood. As for the ceramic log, I think you could work with it. With a dark substrate (black, brown, or natural mixed) that log could be placed with plants (crypts) at the ends leaving the tunnels. I expect the corys like it (I see pandas), and your dwarf loaches will love it. They need lots of hiding spots to feel secure.

That's looking quite nice now, but with a dark substrate, you will have a _very_ lovely aquascape. Nice work.

Byron.


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## dorabaker (Jul 3, 2010)

Byron said:


> Six is fine.
> 
> I just checked your photos to see what you meant about the log. Those plants are looking very good. And I like the dark wood. As for the ceramic log, I think you could work with it. With a dark substrate (black, brown, or natural mixed) that log could be placed with plants (crypts) at the ends leaving the tunnels. I expect the corys like it (I see pandas), and your dwarf loaches will love it. They need lots of hiding spots to feel secure.
> 
> ...


wow thanks so much!  
sadly i don't have the panda corys any more, they died of fungus. i miss them :-(
main problem i find with the log is that detritus builds up in the tiny gap under it and it's very hard to clean in there. that might not be so much of a problem with a substrate, but at the moment i can tell you, it's a real pain.


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