# What final fish should I add to my new 20 gallon?



## Red Triangle (Mar 1, 2012)

I currently have a red and black lava rock themed 20 gallon tank (I will post pics later), and currently I have a red devil, black convict with red belly, firemouth, Jewel, and a Plecostomus. Right now they are all under 2" and I want one more fish to add with a red theme to it. My wife has the final say on the final fish, so some good choices would be appreciated.

This is my first post, btw, and I love the site setup! I will post my fishy pics with names soon, and more info, but input in the mean time would be great.


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## Red Triangle (Mar 1, 2012)

Any Red Sail Fin Plecostomus' owners?


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## lucid_eye (Apr 12, 2009)

I hate to be the bearer of bad news but I think you may have too many big fish for that size tank.


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## fmueller (Jan 11, 2004)

Welcome to CF, and awesome looking Jewel in your avatar. Is it yours? If my wife was to decide, a lot more of my fish would be red too :lol:

Are you looking for a recommendation for any fish that is red, or for a red fish that can live long term in a 20G? You mention that your fish are still small, so I assume you already know they get a lot bigger. For example your Red Devil will soon need a 75G by itself as a bare minimum!









_I doubt this red devil would fit in a 20G if you took all the water out and cut the fish into filets._ :wink:


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## Red Triangle (Mar 1, 2012)

I used to have 8-10 fish in my 55 gal tank as a teenager, and the grew from babies to about 8 inches healthy. They were able to live fine with each other, because I had cave and plants barriers for them to all have space. I will be getting a 75 gal in a few months,though, so I plan on getting another cichlid or two, and a Leperinus (who lived well with the other cichlids in my old 55 gal).


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## fmueller (Jan 11, 2004)

Well, a Red Devil (_Amphilophus labiatus_) is still be a baby at 8". An adult Red Devil will be around 16", and Red Devils are known to be highly aggressive towards any other tank inhabitants - hence the name! If you keep a Red Devil in a 75G, anything else you throw in the tank will be a punching bag for that fish, and probably become food before too long.

When we started out in the fish keeping hobby, most of us probably believed the old myth that fish grow to the size of their tank. In reality that isn't true, because a fish that can't grow to it's full size in a tank will grow to the size of that tank, and then die because of stress. It's only that they don't tell you about that last part when you buy fish at chain stores!

In reality, fish slow down a lot with growing when they reach their "maximum size", but they will never completely stop growing as long as they live. Under the right conditions, cichlids in captivity can easily live 15 years and longer. If fish die after 4 or 5 years, lots of people attribute that to old age, but in the right conditions, including a suitably sized tank, those fish wouldn't have been at half of their life span.

Convicts, Firemouth and Jewels are pushing it for a 20G, even if you keep one species by itself. Given the right decorations - caves and plant barriers as you say - they can make fine tank mates in a 75G. As for the pleco, there are lots of different types of plecos that grow to different sizes, and also have totally different food requirement - not all plecos are algae eaters! I keep fingers crossed for you that you haven't got a common plecostomus, although that's the pleco most commonly found in chain stores. Here is what they grow into. Now picture that thing in a 75G - let alone a 20G!


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## Red Triangle (Mar 1, 2012)

That's the fun part of growing them from $2 fish to being worth a lot at 8", and I trade em in to get a new bunch of babies. I know how long it takes em to grow too, so when the time comes they get traded in. I also rearrange my fish tanks weekly, because (just like the fish) why not be able to change my moving piece of art when I want to?


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

You let a fish get to 8" in a 20G? Or maybe you mean you keep them in the 20G when under 2" and move them to larger tanks to grow them out bigger? :thumb:


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## Red Triangle (Mar 1, 2012)

DJRansome said:


> You let a fish get to 8" in a 20G? Or maybe you mean you keep them in the 20G when under 2" and move them to larger tanks to grow them out bigger? :thumb:


Al lmy fish in the 20 gal now are 1.5" max, and i'll let em get as big as they can in this tank, until I get my 75 gal this summer. When they grow to be nearly a foot long in that tank, I'll trade em in and get a new set of baby cichlids.


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## fmueller (Jan 11, 2004)

Red Triangle said:


> That's the fun part of growing them from $2 fish to being worth a lot at 8", and I trade em in to get a new bunch of babies.


You know, I've heard that story a lot, and sometimes I am almost inclined to believe it. But then I meet people like Jonathan (aka TheFishGuy), who used to run a site called Monster Fish Rescue until he could no longer afford it.

Jonathan has devoted countless hours of his free time to save tank busters that people buy every day at chain stores, without giving any thought to how large they get and what size tank they need just a year after purchase. He has lots of stories to tell how difficult it can be to find homes for these fish. Everybody wants a cute little Pacu when they see it at Walmart, but nobody in the US except for a few zoos has the tank space to keep a fully grown one. The situation for fish like Red Devils and Common Plecos is only marginally better. Many of these fish are now invasive species and create environmental problems in Florida, because people just dump them in the creek behind their house when they get too big. I am sorry to say, but growing these fish out, and returning them to the store, is anything but a valuable service.

Research your fish before you buy them, and never buy fish that you can't keep as adults!


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

That's true. My LFS really did not want my 8" borleyi because a large fish is harder for them to sell, not as big of a market for them.

In any case, it is fun to raise juveniles, but I can't think of anything I would add to your tank. :thumb:


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## lucid_eye (Apr 12, 2009)

+1 fumueller enough said thanks thefishguy, at least you have some nice tanks to show for your sacrifice.


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## 13razorbackfan (Sep 28, 2011)

lucid_eye said:


> +1 fumueller enough said thanks thefishguy, at least you have some nice tanks to show for your sacrifice.


I agree....one of my LFS's has two 125g set up side by side with a couple pleco's that are at least 18". They can't hardly move from side to side. He also has some of the largest frontosa's I have every seen....massive. The same with MANY other cichlids. He doesn't know what to do with them....took them in on trade....and they just grow and grow.

I remember as a kid starting out in the hobby with a baby kenyi and several other fish in a 20g tank. It may have been smaller...can't really remember. What I do remember is that it killed all my other cichlids and couldn't figure out why. Heck...I didn't even know what it was as we didn't have the internet to research it. The LFS's didn't have a clue...they barely sold any african cichlids and what they did sell were labeled assorted. I finally found it in a book...read the description of the fish and then knew why I had all my problems. I kept doing research through books then thank goodness the internet came along. Most people at LFS's are clueless and will sell a unsuspecting customer a oscar for a 10g tank all day long and tell them they are good tank mates with tetra's. I am not trying to paint all LFS employees with the same brush but certainly a majority where I live.


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## Red Triangle (Mar 1, 2012)

fmueller said:


> Red Triangle said:
> 
> 
> > That's the fun part of growing them from $2 fish to being worth a lot at 8", and I trade em in to get a new bunch of babies.
> ...


I don't know of this plight you speak of to save the fish.....but I do know that Sacramento has a few exotic fish shops that will gladly take in giant fish for a few bucks of store credit; never been a problem for fish enthusiasts that I know.

My tank has changed a lot... My convict became too aggro for my firemouth, so I gave it to my friend who needed a fishy for his black themed tank. My jewel still punks out the firemouth, but not like the convict would. I tried to add a Bolivian Ram to the tank, but both the jewel and firemouth nipped him up too much. Oddly, however, I put in the Bolivian ram into my 10 gal bamboo betta tank, and him and my red male betta get along as great as they look together.

I've also made plans to build my own plywood aquarium, and it will be over 100 gal for sure, so my summer will be full of fishy fun.


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## Red Triangle (Mar 1, 2012)

Oh, and the red devil ended up being returned......lol


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