# Tank mates for german blue rams in smaller aquarium?



## water hyacinth (Mar 3, 2013)

turtlesoup said:


> I am setting up a planted 29 gallon tank. I really would like a pair of GBRs but I don't really know what else to stock in the tank without crowding it.


Metallic blue guppies?..... I feel really stupid here and it's probably really obvious but....GBR'S = ???


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## turtlesoup (Feb 26, 2014)

German blue rams. I have a hard time with all the acronyms too.


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## roadmaster (Nov 5, 2009)

Cardinal tetra's would be good fit with the German blue ram's.
Both appreciate warmer temp's and soft water.


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## Morbo (Feb 10, 2013)

Rummy nose tetras, cardinals, lemon tetras, cories would all work.


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## water hyacinth (Mar 3, 2013)

roadmaster said:


> Cardinal tetra's would be good fit with the German blue ram's.
> Both appreciate warmer temp's and soft water.


Never thought of them + 1 for the cardinals . :fish:


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## Italionstallion888 (Jun 29, 2013)

cories, honey gourami's, cherry barbs


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## roadmaster (Nov 5, 2009)

Cories,, with exception of perhap's Sterbai corydoras, all prefer (do much better,longer) at cooler temp's than the german blue ram's thrive in.(82 to 86 degrees F)
78 degree's F is upper range fror most cory's in my view, if it is long term enjoyment by both hobbyist and fish that is of primary concern.
Cory's I have kept above 78 degrees F seem to just burn out after a few month's .
Live much longer in my expieriences at cooler temps.


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## adive (Oct 30, 2013)

Dwarf rainbows e.g. praecox (neon blue)
Dwarf gouramis
Rasboras
Rummy nose


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## Ras (Nov 7, 2013)

schooling micro fish would be your best bet since rams tend to be pretty gentle to fish of all sizes 
and micro fish have very small bioload
there are lots that like warm (preferably soft) water
mainly rasabora and some tetra 
I think a few danio as well but they usually like the temps in the 70's where rams like strictly mid - low 80's IME 
at the moment I have a school of 17 ember tetras (5 born in the tank) with my gbr's


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## OVT (Nov 29, 2011)

Some good pertinent discussions come up under the search for " warm water corydoras". I still have 2. C. sterbai that I kept in a discus tank at 84℉ some 8 years ago.

+1 on cardinals or rummynoses or black neons.

Danios could be a bit too hyper for GBRs.

v3


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## roadmaster (Nov 5, 2009)

OVT said:


> Some good pertinent discussions come up under the search for " warm water corydoras". I still have 2. C. sterbai that I kept in a discus tank at 84℉ some 8 years ago
> 
> +1 on cardinals or rummynoses or black neons.
> 
> ...


Danio's prefer cooler temp's much like many of the corydora's.
Have kept nearly all of the commonly offered species of cory's along with some wild caught species over some forty year's, and believe that avoiding upper or lower extremes of suggested temp ranges whatever they may be,will result in longer lived fishes.IME
Some folk's see suggested temp range for fishes and keep their fishes at the upper limit or lower limit's but perhap's somewhere in the middle would produce better result's.
Try it ,doesn't cost anything.


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## vihaga (Jan 26, 2014)

I definitely think cardinals would look great.

If you're looking for a bottom dweller that won't get in the way of the ram and will have the same temperature requirements, khuli loaches tend to be listed as comfortable up to the mid-80s.


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## pantherspawn (Dec 21, 2011)

I keep all of my tanks at around 80 and they get warmer in the summer closer to 86. I have cories in my tanks and they generally live longer than any other fish. Still have most from my initial setup 4 Years ago. Also my ph is closer to 8.2. I think whats most important with keeping fish isn't so much the soft or hard water or even a few degrees of temp difference. It's consistency. Of course there are some exceptions to the rule where certain breeds Must have a lower or higher ph range. But for the majority as long as it stays consistent.. They'll adapt pretty well. 

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## OVT (Nov 29, 2011)

roadmaster said:


> Try it ,doesn't cost anything.


Wrong addressee.


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## turtlesoup (Feb 26, 2014)

I think I may go with rasaboras. What I want is a tight schooling fish, how many do you think I could keep? I have one oto but plan on getting 2-3 more. Would hatchet fish work too or I could move my two dwarf gourami into this tank. If it works I would like a group of top fish, schooling mid fish (rasabora), GBR, otos, and two nerite snails. How does that sound or should I rethink it? I would like smaller cories, how are the pygmies or are there other choices under 2"?


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## pantherspawn (Dec 21, 2011)

turtlesoup said:


> I think I may go with rasaboras. What I want is a tight schooling fish, how many do you think I could keep? I have one oto but plan on getting 2-3 more. Would hatchet fish work too or I could move my two dwarf gourami into this tank. If it works I would like a group of top fish, schooling mid fish (rasabora), GBR, otos, and two nerite snails. How does that sound or should I rethink it? I would like smaller cories, how are the pygmies or are there other choices under 2"?


I would do no less than 6 raspbora, and you could also do one dwarf guarami, a pair might be too much unless the rams stay to their cave. Adding another 4 oto would be ideal, but I would consider the tank pretty well stocked at that point. The raspbora are mid level and the guarami will travel all over but generally hang out near the surface, leaving the oto to the bottom mainly. make sure there are plenty of hiding spots for the oto and a den or cave for the rams to Claim as their own. Of course this is all just my opinion and there's no guarantee to any fish because personalities do differ. 

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## roadmaster (Nov 5, 2009)

pantherspawn said:


> I keep all of my tanks at around 80 and they get warmer in the summer closer to 86. I have cories in my tanks and they generally live longer than any other fish. Still have most from my initial setup 4 Years ago. Also my ph is closer to 8.2. I think whats most important with keeping fish isn't so much the soft or hard water or even a few degrees of temp difference. It's consistency. Of course there are some exceptions to the rule where certain breeds Must have a lower or higher ph range. But for the majority as long as it stays consistent.. They'll adapt pretty well.
> 
> Sent from my SGH-T889 using Tapatalk


 
:icon_cry: Lot's of folk's do indeed keep fishes way outside their comfort levels.
Not sure why.:icon_roll

Example,your post.
Or I could say that goldfish like cooler temp's, and out from the wood pile pop's someone who claim's to keep them fine at boiling temp's.
I could say the German blue ram's in general, fair poorly in hard alkaline water, and out pop's someone who claims to keep them just fine in Portland cement.
Could say that the most abused fish in the hobby (Betta) will do better in heated filtered aquarium's of at least five gal and out pop's those who claim their's are nine year's old and living in a shot glass.
Lot's of half truth's and down right lies on the internet, this is a certainty.


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## roadmaster (Nov 5, 2009)

OVT said:


> Wrong addressee.[/QUOTE
> 
> OOP's My Bad.


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## LuckyCharm (Jan 20, 2014)

I have a pair of GBR in my 25 gallon with: Neon Tetra, Skirt tetra, cories, guppy, shrimps and snails.
One thing I can tell is that if the GBR happens to spawn,cories is going to be an issue. Since they are constantly looking for food and my Rams would lay the eggs on the substrate. Which makes it a constant battle between cories and Rams


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## pantherspawn (Dec 21, 2011)

roadmaster said:


> :icon_cry: Lot's of folk's do indeed keep fishes way outside their comfort levels.
> Not sure why.:icon_roll
> 
> Example,your post.
> ...


I did not call your practices into question because I do not know them. I also did not state that my way was the only way, simply stated what I personally do. I don't appreciate you presumptions that you are correct and that everyone else is wrong that does it differently than you. It's common knowledge that all animals adapt. Period. Most information provided in fish husbandry is outdated and based on the fish in questions natural environment. Well natural environment doesn't always apply when breeding standards and lines of breeding change. To think only within one small box is old fashioned and petty minded. 

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## roadmaster (Nov 5, 2009)

pantherspawn said:


> I did not call your practices into question because I do not know them. I also did not state that my way was the only way, simply stated what I personally do. I don't appreciate you presumptions that you are correct and that everyone else is wrong that does it differently than you. It's common knowledge that all animals adapt. Period. Most information provided in fish husbandry is outdated and based on the fish in questions natural environment. Well natural environment doesn't always apply when breeding standards and lines of breeding change. To think only within one small box is old fashioned and petty minded.
> 
> Sent from my SGH-T889 using Tapatalk


Don't shoot the messenger.
Re-read everything I've posted in this thread.Nowhere did I say anything that was not true .Even stated...based on my expieriences over some four decades.
You are just flat wrong when you say that all animal's adapt.Fact is, they either do or they don't, and die prematurely.(many do)
In a fishes natural enviornment,,they could move from warm shallow water when they become uncomfotable to deeper ,cooler water in lakes and stream's where they are found, Not so in glass box of water .
Are no tides,current's,rain's in glass box of water to carry away toxin's so we perform water changes.
Nothing new about this info, nor is it outdated.
I could keep an eagle in a bird cage,raise a child in a closet,would they adapt and thrive??
Everyone is free to do as they wish , but if they should grow weary of replacing fishes,treating sick fishes,then perhap's they may wish to try adjusting,, rather than forcing fishes who cannot speak,, to try and adapt.


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## OVT (Nov 29, 2011)

It is not the messenger per se, it's the delivery.

Searching on "evolution" might turn up some surprises.

And yes, I have been flipping the light switch for decades, that does not make me an electrician.

v3


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## roadmaster (Nov 5, 2009)

OVT said:


> It is not the messenger per se, it's the delivery.
> 
> Searching on "evolution" might turn up some surprises.
> 
> ...


Ahh,another country heard from.:hihi:
Yes evolution,, increased pollution in nearly all water way's,crossbreeding,inbreeding resulting in deformities,unpredictable physical ,behaivorable trait's,poor hatch rates, 
,agricultural runoff,decreased resistence to pathogen's,parasites, more and more species becoming extinct or on the verge of it, Increased resistence to medication's.
I call em the way I see em.


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## gt turbo (Sep 13, 2012)

The thing is though, many of the fish we get in the hobby now are tank raised and with good reason. Over many years of research and purposeful breeding we find ourselves with fish who are more "tank-ready" and "tank-hardy".

Fish who previously were never bred in certain parameters and now kept in and readily breed in them.

We don't know all and what little we know and truly understand keeps changing. The one thing that seems factual for most species, is that they like and appreciate stability.

my 2 cents.


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## pantherspawn (Dec 21, 2011)

gt turbo said:


> The thing is though, many of the fish we get in the hobby now are tank raised and with good reason. Over many years of research and purposeful breeding we find ourselves with fish who are more "tank-ready" and "tank-hardy".
> 
> Fish who previously were never bred in certain parameters and now kept in and readily breed in them.
> 
> ...


Agree 100 percent. Stability is a thousand times more important then 3 degrees and 2 parts per million of kh

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## roadmaster (Nov 5, 2009)

My apologies for all who were offended,especially the OP for straying from topic.
I am not a warm fuzzy guy,just an old basement hobbyist.I am sorry that my passion for the well being of fishes I keep,have kept, increasingly seem's to be just my own view's not alway's shared by other's .
I agree that many species of fishes have adapted to water in our tank's that may be different than that found in natural enviornment's ,but it is becoming increasingly more difficult for them to do so for reason's mentioned previously.
Will stand by my assertion's that keeping tropical's,(cory's in particular for they are my favorite fishes) at upper temp ranges,, result's in lower dissolved oxygen,increased metabolisim's,shorter life span's.
Agree that pH is not nearly as important as GH depending on species being kept.
Agree that stability is all important, and perhap's single biggest reason that fishes added to newly established tank's do poorly, as opposed to mature tank's that only time can produce.
We live in an age of instant gratification. We want what we want right now, whether it be plant growth,or tank's full of fishes that appeal to us.
Fewer are those who research the need's to make what they want to see a reality, and fewer still,, are prepared to practice patience to achieve desired result's.


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## JHart (Mar 8, 2014)

Nannostomus Marginatus are a perfect dither fish. I've kept them with apistos and rams, along with marbled hatchet fish for the top. All fish occupy different regions of the tank, and won't bother each other.

Nannostomus Marginatus prefer bigger groups, as do marbled hatchets. they are both calmer than any danio or rasbora, which rams appreciate. and both bring a lot of visual interest. 

they're all from the Amazon, and prefer the same warm and acidic conditions. 

learning where fish originate from can make it easier to figure out a good mix.

Cardinals fit in with GBR's for all the same reasons. 

good luck


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