# New 5Gallon tank!!



## brapbrapboom (Sep 2, 2009)

okay.. i have my new 5gallon tank ready to go with filter,heater(etc.) water cycled and is ready to go ^_______^

i just want to know what are the easiest fish to take care of and that would fit in my 5 gallon tank.. 

I was thinking about putting in about 6 neon tetras and a cory catfish..(is it true that the catfish eats fish crap? )

Please do let me know if im overpopulating the tank.. ^___^ 

Thanks in advance to those who will be able to help


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## Octavian (Sep 30, 2009)

You could add a bushynose pleco, some cherry shrimp and some low light plants to go with the neons. I would put the low light plants in first before adding the fish. Don't know about the cory catfish since i never had any in my tanks.


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## brapbrapboom (Sep 2, 2009)

any recommendations what plants to add? does it mean that.. i have to turn on the lights all the time for the plants so it doesnt die?


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## Octavian (Sep 30, 2009)

Any crypt type plant, watersprite or possibly hygrophila polysperma. You could add a simple timer to your lights so that you never have to worry about turning the lights on/off. About 8-10 hrs of lighting should be fine for the plants. How many watts is your light fixture?

The following link has some info about plants: http://www.plantgeek.net/plantguide.php


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## brapbrapboom (Sep 2, 2009)

I have a 9watt light fixture that came with the 5gal starter kit. about how much are those automatic light fixture? Thanks for all the reply sir/ma'am


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## Harry Muscle (Mar 21, 2007)

brapbrapboom said:


> I was thinking about putting in about 6 neon tetras and a cory catfish..(is it true that the catfish eats fish crap? )


Totally untrue about cories eating fish crap. I'm assuming you heard that from a store sales person ... you'll hear lots of crap like that. Cory catfish need to be fed just like any other fish. Usually all that means is that you use some sinking pellets as part of your feeding routine.

However, cory catfish are schooling fish and keeping just one lonely guy would be quite cruel to it. Suggested minimum for them is 6, however, in a 5G that might be too many if you have other fish also.

Harry


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## AquaNeko (Jul 26, 2009)

My understanding is that depending where your tank is being placed and how much light is in the area you may not need a full 8-10hr of light on the tank. ie. If the tank is placed in a bright room that gets indirect light a lot or by a window with a blind/drape for indirect light you can cut down some of the power use in your tank. 

So far I'm finding my Java Fern to work well in low indirect light for my temp holding setup as I've not had time to really aquascape yet with other project on the go. I have a 15W (I think) work shop light in one of those 18" long Home Depot lights but my light is not on top of the container holding my Java Ferns. That light is over top of my seedlings for my mini greenhouse and the scattered amount of light makes it ~50% to the 5gal bucket my Java Ferns are in and they are already starting to show new leaves after about 2 weeks of settling in when I got them. So if they can work with such low light you should have no problems with your 9W bulb (pending what temp/coloring your bulb is and lumen count. My bar light is a cool-white and I think it's about 600lm I could be wrong) .

Java Fern is leafy but also another choice is Java Moss but it's more stringy. Crypt Wendtii is a small plant that is also low light which will work in your 5 gal. I don't own that one but have seen it before and is a small plant. I think ~1.5-2 inches wide and about 2-3inches tall. WHen I saw it, it looks like a good front of the tank plant and add some 4-5" plants in the back drop for a nice depth of look and hide some of the equipment in the background. THey say Java Moss grows fast eve in low light. I've not seen it really burst out in rapid growth in my 5.5gal tank. Granted I've no light on my 5.5gal tank but only the natural indirect sunlight that lights that tank up and that moss already branched out and is growing but not out of control like what others have said. Perhaps they have higher lumens of lighting that caused the growth spourt of high nitrates or something.


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## brapbrapboom (Sep 2, 2009)

Harry Muscle said:


> Totally untrue about cories eating fish crap. I'm assuming you heard that from a store sales person ... you'll hear lots of crap like that. Cory catfish need to be fed just like any other fish. Usually all that means is that you use some sinking pellets as part of your feeding routine.
> 
> However, cory catfish are schooling fish and keeping just one lonely guy would be quite cruel to it. Suggested minimum for them is 6, however, in a 5G that might be too many if you have other fish also.
> 
> Harry


Thanks Harry!! I might just get 6 of em in my 5 gal tank and one oto cat  i kind of find these cory's cute lol.

And thanks to all of those who replied and shared their opinion..

U guys rox!


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## AquaNeko (Jul 26, 2009)

brapbrapboom said:


> Thanks Harry!! I might just get 6 of em in my 5 gal tank and one oto cat  i kind of find these cory's cute lol.
> 
> And thanks to all of those who replied and shared their opinion..
> 
> U guys rox!


Don't forget the general 1 inch of max growth size of fish per gallon of water rule. I don't own any Corycats so I don't know how large they get. I do own a pair of otocats and they are ~1".

You may want to check some other setups in other forums like Fishlore which I've seen a number of smaller tanks using 3 fish in there as the smallest groupings and the fish appear to be getting along very well and happy. Just a thought.


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## AquaNeko (Jul 26, 2009)

http://www.fishlore.com/Profiles-WhiteClouds.htm

http://www.fishlore.com/Profiles-Corydoras.htm

http://www.fishlore.com/profiles_otocinclus.htm


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