How many fish?

[Nany14]

Hello everyone,
I am new to the hobby, but I have always been a huge admirer. I finally got the courage to get my own tank. I went to my LFS and I started the whole cycling process. I wanted to know how many fish I should put in a 20 gallon long. Also, what fish do you guys suggest. Thank you in advance and I can't wait to continue this journey.

 

[aaron23]

It all depends on the type of inhabitants fish/corals you want to house

 

[Nany14]

I just wanted to start off simple. I was told that a clown fish would be a good one to begin with, but what other fish should could I put in the tank?

 

[aaron23]

This would be a good place to start and read
http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/aquarium-fish-supplies.cfm?c=15+1926

 

[WindeyD]

A pair of clowns would work, as would a tailspot blenny.

 

[Humblefish]

Maybe have a look thru here, tell us what you like, and we'll tell you if it all goes together : http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/aquarium-fish-supplies.cfm?c=15+2124

 

[mrsaltwaterguy]

I would personally go for a pair of clownfish and then add a goby / pistol shrimp pair. It could almost be a "symbiotic relationship" tank if you decided to add an anemone down the road for the clownfish. I really enjoy watching my goby pair with the shrimp to make caves in the sand under my live rock.

 

[mcarroll]

Keep in mind that 20 gallons is a nano...

For the record, I keep a smaller fish bio load in my 50 gallon than any of the suggestions so far for your 20. Three (awesome) Barnacle Blennies.

To minimize the stress on whatever fish you get and maximize their expands I would try to minimize the fish load as much as you can. You are much better off stacking the tank with corals and other invertebrates instead.

 

[Pete polyp]

Personally I would recommend only one clown in a 20 instead of two. One reason is because as a pair they will become territorial and aggressive once they pair up. Second, that's one less fish you could add to the tank. Mostly any goby or blenny would go well and maybe a royal gramma. That would give you lots of diversity in a small tank like this.

 

[eatbreakfast]

Every tank is different, and many reefers will disagree on how many fish will work in any tank.

I agree with the above advice to only have one clown rather than a pr.

Most will agree that 3-4 small fish will be fine in a 20g.

Fish I recommend for that size tank include firefish, stigmatura blenny, swales basslet, yasha goby, royal gramma, neon goby, curious wormfish, geometric pygmy hawkfish.

 

[Pete polyp]

Geometric pygmy hawkish are really cool and I always forget about them

 

[Pete polyp]

The way I figure out exactly how many fish a tank can handle is to stock them about 50% and add a fish every few months after. If you can easily keep nitrates under 5ppm then you could possibly get away with another fish.