texanboy81
New Member
my new 20 gallon tank seems to be running great with two active demsels living inside now. Im wanting ideas for a good mixture of fish for a 20 gallon tank for after i get rid of the demsels and the tank cycles.
New tank
- Thread starter texanboy81
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1journeyman
Active Member
Get rid of the Damsels now.
Cycling with fish is an unnecessary evil. Cycling can/often does kill or permanently injure the fish. Ghost feeding a small tank some fish food every few days will accomplish the same thing minus torturing the fish.
Check out the Nano section of this forum for suggestions on good fish.
Are you wanting a reef or fish only tank?
Cycling with fish is an unnecessary evil. Cycling can/often does kill or permanently injure the fish. Ghost feeding a small tank some fish food every few days will accomplish the same thing minus torturing the fish.
Check out the Nano section of this forum for suggestions on good fish.
Are you wanting a reef or fish only tank?
texanboy81
New Member
hey sorry im not getting rid of my fish i have spent too much money not to have fish in my tank and second yes only a fish tank to be honest im in the military and im really not gonna worry about two 3.00 fish when i have fellow soldiers dieing in iraq right now!!
nicetry
Active Member
Originally Posted by texanboy81
im in the military and im really not gonna worry about two 3.00 fish when i have fellow soldiers dieing in iraq right now!!
Really not a good analogy, but the point journeyman was trying to make is that it's not necessary to use live fish to cycle a tank. While cheap, damsels shouldn't be considered disposable. Some folks have a terrible time getting them out of large tanks and have to tear the tank apart. If you set up another system down the road, save a few bucks and use food or even a raw shrimp. You'll get the same results.
im in the military and im really not gonna worry about two 3.00 fish when i have fellow soldiers dieing in iraq right now!!
Really not a good analogy, but the point journeyman was trying to make is that it's not necessary to use live fish to cycle a tank. While cheap, damsels shouldn't be considered disposable. Some folks have a terrible time getting them out of large tanks and have to tear the tank apart. If you set up another system down the road, save a few bucks and use food or even a raw shrimp. You'll get the same results.
1journeyman
Active Member
Originally Posted by texanboy81
hey sorry im not getting rid of my fish i have spent too much money not to have fish in my tank and second yes only a fish tank to be honest im in the military and im really not gonna worry about two 3.00 fish when i have fellow soldiers dieing in iraq right now!!
I've got several friends over there right now.
You can definitely care about both.
hey sorry im not getting rid of my fish i have spent too much money not to have fish in my tank and second yes only a fish tank to be honest im in the military and im really not gonna worry about two 3.00 fish when i have fellow soldiers dieing in iraq right now!!
I've got several friends over there right now.
You can definitely care about both.
texanboy81
New Member
my plan is if they are still alive and healthy to keep the damsels after the tank has cycles and get other fish to go with them if i can.
1journeyman
Active Member
Originally Posted by texanboy81
my plan is if they are still alive and healthy to keep the damsels after the tank has cycles and get other fish to go with them if i can.
The problem is Damsels get big, territorial and aggressive. In a 20 gallon tank it is very possible that they will kill any other suitable tank mate.
Seriously. Damsels get flat out mean. Pet stores sell them because they are cheap. 30 years ago when this hobby was poorly understood they were used as "test" subjects in aquariums.
Our hobby has progressed a long way since then. We now more fully understand the Nitrogen cycle in marine aquariums. These sacrificial lambs are no longer a neccessity. The fact that pet stores still push them for new tanks should tell you they aren't keeping up with the newest info in the hobby.
You did what many of us did when we first set up our tanks. You listened to the people who you trusted selling you the fish. now, as hobbyists here, looking to gain not a cent from you, we're telling you they were taking advantage of ya.
Any fish, whether $5 or $500, becomes your responsibility the moment you buy it. It is your responsibility to give it the proper habitat.
Not lecturing you, just trying to help! This can be an amazing and rewarding hobby, or it can be a time/money pit.
my plan is if they are still alive and healthy to keep the damsels after the tank has cycles and get other fish to go with them if i can.
The problem is Damsels get big, territorial and aggressive. In a 20 gallon tank it is very possible that they will kill any other suitable tank mate.
Seriously. Damsels get flat out mean. Pet stores sell them because they are cheap. 30 years ago when this hobby was poorly understood they were used as "test" subjects in aquariums.
Our hobby has progressed a long way since then. We now more fully understand the Nitrogen cycle in marine aquariums. These sacrificial lambs are no longer a neccessity. The fact that pet stores still push them for new tanks should tell you they aren't keeping up with the newest info in the hobby.
You did what many of us did when we first set up our tanks. You listened to the people who you trusted selling you the fish. now, as hobbyists here, looking to gain not a cent from you, we're telling you they were taking advantage of ya.
Any fish, whether $5 or $500, becomes your responsibility the moment you buy it. It is your responsibility to give it the proper habitat.
Not lecturing you, just trying to help! This can be an amazing and rewarding hobby, or it can be a time/money pit.
rbaldino
Active Member
Originally Posted by texanboy81
my plan is if they are still alive and healthy to keep the damsels after the tank has cycles and get other fish to go with them if i can.
The damsels will probably survive, so you're going to have to carefully consider what fish will mix well with them. What kind of damsels are they? A lot of people are saying they're going to get big and mean, but it really depends on the type of damsel. Yellowtails and four stripes don't get very big and are quite capable of getting along with other fish. Three stripes and dominoes can get pretty aggressive, so we really need to know what kind of damsels they are. As for other fish that would work, I would look at percula or tomato clowns, as well as any one of the wide variety of psuedochomis/dottybacks. There are a lot of other fish that would work as well.
my plan is if they are still alive and healthy to keep the damsels after the tank has cycles and get other fish to go with them if i can.
The damsels will probably survive, so you're going to have to carefully consider what fish will mix well with them. What kind of damsels are they? A lot of people are saying they're going to get big and mean, but it really depends on the type of damsel. Yellowtails and four stripes don't get very big and are quite capable of getting along with other fish. Three stripes and dominoes can get pretty aggressive, so we really need to know what kind of damsels they are. As for other fish that would work, I would look at percula or tomato clowns, as well as any one of the wide variety of psuedochomis/dottybacks. There are a lot of other fish that would work as well.
aquaguy24
Active Member
i have a 24g aquapod and cycled wit a damsel myself.. i wanted to keep the damsel after the tank cycled.. well the tank has cycled and i put some shrimp and some crabs in.. the damsel pimp slap they inverts all day.. imagine wat it will do to some small clowns..if u have a blue devil like i do u need to get rid of him... just took out my damsel out.. i had to take out all the live rock to catch him..have fun tryin to get rid of him..