# Compatibility advice



## DavidMcGreggor (May 15, 2008)

Hi,

Needed some advice on compatibility, im pretty new to this, so any advice/tips would be very much welcome!

I currently have a pair tin foil barbs, 2 pairs of koi, and a sucker cat fish, all picked out by my kids.

This has been the config for a while now, in a 18x9x12 (lxbxh) tank.

I am looking for some additions, probably something a little brightly coloured, my tank looks a bit dull as it is.
I was thinking of tangerines (orange mollies).

The fish have not shown the slightest signs of agression so far. I got them when they were pretty tiny, now all of them are about 1 to 1.5 inches in length.

Appreciate any help you could offer..
Thanks,
David


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## Falina (Feb 25, 2007)

Koi really need ponds to live in. They get absolutely HUGE!

Tinfoil barbs get vry big also. You're into hundreds of gallons to keep a school of 6, and that is th number thy do best in as they are a schooling fish.

Do you know what kinda of fish th sucker mouth is? A pleco? Chinese algae Eater? We'll need to know what kinda before we can offer any advice. If you're not sure post a photo and we'll identify it for you.

Don't lt this put you off. Everyone starts out somewhere and buying incompatable fish is a mistake many fish keepers make hen they start out.

Personally, I think you should return th fish to th store, and we'll hlp you pick out some more suitable fish that you w, and your kids will enjoy.


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## Pasfur (Mar 29, 2008)

Your Tinfoil Barbs will grow very fast and eat anything that fits in their mouth. I have seen many a small fish become food to a Tinfoil. I would suggest purchasing fish which will stay large enough to avoid becoming food. There are many members of the Barb family which fit this description and fit well in your setup. The most obvious are Clown Barbs and Bala Sharks.

That being said, your aquarium is way to small to sustain any of these fish long term, including your current selections. I would suggest upgrading to a minimum of a 125 gallon aquarium, or making plans to remove your fish at some point in the coming year.


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## DavidMcGreggor (May 15, 2008)

thanks for the replies guys, i guess my wife was right, shouldnt have let the kids pick out the fish!

seems like i have quite a situation on my hands, im glad they are still small, so i doubt exchanging them will be too much of a problem.. 

what fish do you recomend i get in return?

PS: yups, its pleco.. wasnt sure of the name..


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## Falina (Feb 25, 2007)

Your tank is 8 US gallons which does limit you a bit, but thre are still a good numbr of possibilities for you.

Are there any particular fish you have in mind? or anything specific about them? Colour/ Activity? Fancy fins?

Some options i can think off from th top of my head are:

a betta
dwarf puffers
ottos
school of small tetras
school of small rasboras
pygmy cories

there's many more, but maybe if you looked up a few of these fish you would get a better idea of what you might like, and we could help you from there?


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## Cody (Dec 22, 2007)

As stated, Koi should be in ponds, or very very large aquariums when small. They can reach 3 feet in length, and poop a lot.

The "suckerfish" can be anything from a Pleco to an SAE. Will most likely have to be rehomed if it is of a common specie.

The Barbs will also get very big; up to 16 inches!

I would suggest rehoming all of your fish, as they will get too big for your tank.

Now, your tank is appromixatley 8.4 gallons. If you want something colorful, you could dedicate your tank to a specie-only tank with Cardinal Tetras or Neon Tetras (I personally like Cards). You could get by with 8-10 Cards if you are good with water changes. Live plants would look very good provided your lighting is not indancascent. I am going to use this setup in my 5 gallon.

Mollies will easily overrun your tank. They are livebearers and will produce almot every 30 days if a female has been exposed to a male.

How about you take your kids to your local fish store, and see what they like. Write the names down. Then, come back here and post the names, and we could figure out what they like best.


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## DavidMcGreggor (May 15, 2008)

thanks!
ill do some snoopin around and come back armed with some ideas


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## Lupin (Aug 2, 2006)

Hmmm...Pleco, it's most likely a _Pterygoplichthys pardalis_ which grows to 18 inches or the _Hypostomus plecostomus_ which is even larger. I'd get a large tank assuming space permits it.


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## DavidMcGreggor (May 15, 2008)

Iv just booked a 48x18x12 tank 8) 
spoke to the aquarium guy, he had this to say about the kois
according to him, these are not the pure bred japanese kois, but a mix with the indian ones.. much hardier, but smaller made, says they grow to a max of 6 inches! :shock: 
how true could this be?


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## Lupin (Aug 2, 2006)

DavidMcGreggor said:


> Iv just booked a 48x18x12 tank 8)
> spoke to the aquarium guy, he had this to say about the kois
> according to him, these are not the pure bred japanese kois, but a mix with the indian ones.. much hardier, but smaller made, says they grow to a max of 6 inches! :shock:
> how true could this be?


I wouldn't believe that quite easily. I've never seen koi growing to 6 inches only and we know most of those talks are gibberish and part of their marketing ploy.


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## bf2king (Aug 3, 2007)

only thing i could think of that he is talking about is possibily a shribunkin but i highly doubt that. For 8 gallon id probably get 2 Oto's and 6 Cardnal Tetra's


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## herefishy (Dec 14, 2006)

Many purchase smaller fish not knowing the adult size. Research is the best thing for any aquarist. However, many will put adolescent fish in smaller tanks and rehome them during the growth cycle. This allows for the hobbyist to justify their addiction and the fact that they suffer from "multi-tank syndrome"(MTS). MTS is not fatal, but one of it's symptoms is a "bruised" pocketbook.


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