Can angelfish be kept by themselves?

Question

I have a 30 gallon tank and intend to keep some tetras with a single angelfish if that is possible. I know you can keep 2 in 30 gallon tank ( most sites say 40 litres per angel, so 10 gallons) but if I do this, I can't fit in any other tetras and stuff.

Answer 1

yes they can, they need company from other fish to be happy, but not necessarily their own kind. We kept angels and lots of other fish together, so you might not need to worry about the space thing. 40 litres per angel... that seems like a bit much, lots more than i heard.

Answer 2

Angels can be kept by themselves. It is nicer to have multiples because they are cichlids. Interaction between cichlids is what makes having a cichlid tank cool to own.

As for capacity of a fish tank, a general rule of thumb is 2 inches of fish  per gallon of fresh water for tropical.  For cold water fish like a goldfish it is 1 inch of fish, they require more oxygen, per gallon of water. This is just a guideline,  the actual amount or total length of fish you wish to maintain is a direct effect of your willingness to maintain a stable environment. You can double those numbers if you double your filtration and stay on a consistent water changing schedule of at least 20% once a month.

Remember though that means if the filtratation system develops a problem or water gets out of balance or you expierence a prolonged power outage the fish will feel the harmful effects in a much shorter time period than a tank that is under stocked.

Note: Be careful on what type of tetras you choose to mix with cichlids.  Cichlids can be aggressive and territorial and clean a tank of other inhabitants if they choose to do so.

In short you can put the 2 Angels in a 30gal. tank and sill put some tetras in without to much of a problem.

Answer 3

Well, you can keep them with other fish, but tetras is not a good species of fish to keep them with. All tetras tend to be nippy and fast swimmer, and angelfish are slow swimmers with long fins. See the problem. The angelfish will most likely get its fins nipped. I say go for 3 angelfish (As long as the tank is tall, not long) and nothing else. angelfish do better in a tank with no other fish but them. One combination I think might work is a school of 6 or so hatchet fish and a school of 6 or so cory cats at the bottom of the tank.

Good luck with whatever you do! =)

Answer 4

When I started my tank, I only had one angelfish with other fish species and the angelfish did just fine.  Later, when I upgraded my tank size I added more angelfish, but to be honest the angelfish really either ignore each other of fin nip each other.  You will be fine with a single angelfish.  The only thing I would caution in adding tetras is they type that you get.  I wouldn't add neons, cardinals, or black neons, as your angelfish may eat them.  Personally, I currently have pristilla tetras with my angelfish and they do fine with each other.  No nipping by either one.  In the past I have also kept ruby tetras and bleeding heart tetras and those have been fine as well.  If it were me, I would make sure that you had at least 5 of the same kind of tetra so they can form a school.  Good luck

Answer 5

Yes you can