[cro117]

hi, i just set up a new planted tank and i could use some help deciding what to put in it. its a 20H. the substrate is a peat soil/sand mix with some kitty litter tossed in covered with an inch or so of pure sand. the plants are horsetail, umbrella papyrus, and some sort of dracaena. i know the dracaena wont be able to stay long term, its just kind of a place holder for now. i have no true aquatic plants in the tank at the moment, but i might add some water sprite or wisteria.



anyway, as far as fish go, my first idea was sparkling gouramis, but now im leaning more towards oryzias woworae. as im finding that these aren't easy fish to acquire at a reasonable price though. im starting to consider bluefin killies.

does anyone have any suggestions for small, preferably schooling, colorful fish that enjoy shallow water habitats?

i might raise the water level a little bit, and i might do half RO depending on the fish i go with. also, please forgive the cloudy water and messy glass. the pic was taken 15 mins after setup and the sand hadn't settled yet. you can also see that i just droped some duckweed in a ball on the right hand side that didnt have time to disperse.

 

[Nordic]

Its not very big, how about some tiny puffer fish... I'd let it cycle and mature properly fist though.

 

[patfat]

that would be awesome in there a nice little puffer..they are pretty easy to take care of and all you need mostly is snails and thats easy to find and most place want to get rid of excess snails...is not schooling but look at that face and they are quite active and easy to find and cgeap too

 

[NotCousteau]

Nice alternative setup! Too bad you can't get rice fish. I have some, and they are very cool.

I think a small group of sparkling gouramis and a few small loaches would look great in there.

 

[cro117]

puffers aren't a bad idea, and very easy to get, but i've had several in the past already. one of my first fish was a green puffer back in the 90s. i had dwarf puffers too years back. they are definitely one of my favorite fish, but with this tank i thought id try something different. thats why celestial pearl danios are out too, along with dwarf african frogs, though i might still do some of them too depending. im also open to non-fish suggestions like triops, and i will definitely have some sort of shrimp if compatible, probably cherries.

as far as cycling, id think it should be fine. all the sand used has been live for years now.

anyone have any thoughts on splashing tetras?