55 gallon stocking

[jackwagon]

I'm starting a 55 gallon tank and was hoping to get some info on some fish and some possibilities of others

My first idea was
7 tiger barbs
1 common pleco
2 pictus catfish
3 clown loaches

I know will be over stocked in about 1-2 years and will probably have to get rid of fish so this is why I'm asking

I'm looking for fish that are not found in normal or everyday aquariums
I'm not big into tetras: too mainstream
I have a couple local stores that change their stocks every 2 weeks but nothing really exciting ever shows up.
I also really want a pleco so the tank mates have to get along with 1 But I'm also interested in more exotic plecos and I really love catfish

Thank you

 

[LyndaB]

I'm a little confused. You want exotic species but you don't care if the fish outgrow your tank in a year? I'm having difficulty thinking of how to steer you in a good direction, something that's healthy for the fish. Personally, I don't recommend any species that will outgrow a tank.

 

[jackwagon]

I want good looking fish with vibrant colors and personalities is what I meant. Sorry for being confusing. I also want the fish to be happy and if that requires smaller not as " cool" fish that's alright I just need some ideas.

 

[LyndaB]

How about a decent school of turquoise rainbowfish..... gorgeous coloring.

 

[jackwagon]

I just googled them and they are pretty good looking the only thing is that I have 5 tiger barbs not cycling the tanks and so far they are doing pretty good ( I'm planning on getting 2 more in the future once the tank is done cycling. Do you know of any bottom dwellers that would do alright with them ( preferably a catfish)

 

[Luananeko]

Common pleco and clown loaches are a huge no-no in that size tank. Both of those will need a 150 gallon tank within a year to avoid stunting their growth. Also, clown loaches are social fish and need a group of at least 5.

If you like the look of the clown loaches, check out dwarf chain loaches instead. They stay small enough to live in a 55 gallon and still have the interesting personalities and similar markings. Like the clown loaches, they do best in a group of 5 or more. If you like the look of plecos, go with a Bristlenose pleco. They max out at 6" rather than the common pleco's hefty 2 foot span. The pictus catfish will do fine with the tiger barbs, but they prefer a group of 3+. The tiger barbs are fine for that tank.

So if you make the substitutions I recommended, you're looking at the following stocking:
7 tiger barbs
3 pictus catfish
5 dwarf chain loaches
1 bristlenose pleco

It's a little bottom level heavy, but definitely workable. The dwarf chain loaches and pictus catfish are active enough that they won't all be in the bottom level constantly.

 

[jackwagon]

Wow the chain loaches are really cool. Thanks for the advice I would never known about them without your help. I like the stocking you had in mind and I'm going to go with that so thank you and what about circulation for the fish? I'm thinking of getting 2 koralife 750 pumps but is that too much?

 

[Luananeko]

I'm not familiar with the Koralife pumps, but I have chain loaches and a bristlenose pleco in my 75 gallon community with a bubble wall, Marineland Emperor 400, and a Rena Filstar XP3 and they don't seem to mind. They seemed to come up to the mid/upper levels of the tank more often when I only had the emperor 400 and bubble wall, so I'm decommissioning the Emperor 400 once the Filstar XP3 filter has enough time to get its bacteria going since the Filstar XP3 has better filtration capacity.

 

[jackwagon]

Ok and I noticed the chain loaches were quite pricey (15-17) that's a pretty big investment but do you knows of a retailer that would ship fish directly to my house with a guarantee like petco or petsmart offers?

 

[alLexX]

instead of the cahin loaches,get a rainbow shark(and maybe another smallish solitary fish). they dont spend all theyre time on the bottom,but IME they are bottom/low middle level fish

 

[jackwagon]

I do like the rainbow sharks and i can get them locally but i like to look of the balas better but i think they get too big right?

 

[LyndaB]

Because the balas would require a school of at least 5, whereas the rainbow is a solitary shark, the balas are not a good choice, in my opinion. I would suggest a 75 gallon for the balas. I rehomed my rainbow shark to 125 gallons. They need a minimum of 75, my experience has taught me.

 

[Luananeko]

Ok and I noticed the chain loaches were quite pricey (15-17) that's a pretty big investment but do you knows of a retailer that would ship fish directly to my house with a guarantee like petco or petsmart offers?

Yes, that is the downside of them... Do you have any LFS other than Petco or Petsmart? Both of the non-big box fish stores near me carry the loaches and offer health guarantees, and you don't have to deal with shipping costs. If that's not an option, liveaquaria.com carries them and has a 14 day survival guarantee. They call the loaches a slightly different name, but here's the link to them directly: http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=830+885+1587&pcatid=1587

Or theres the rainbow shark option. They should do fine with the other choices you've made and are much easier and cheaper to get a hold of. ONLY get one though, as they don't tolerate others of their kind unless in a large group (and even then you could have problems).

 

[jackwagon]

What about bala sharks do they get big

 

[jackwagon]

Sorry I didn't see the previous post when I made mine. I'm not sure I will be able to afford the chain loaches so does any one else have any ideas

 

[Luananeko]

What about bala sharks do they get big

Bala sharks get way too big and need a school of 5. I don't know of any cheaper alternatives to the chain loaches that would fit your tank, but you could have more tiger barbs, or another school of a barb type, like a cherry or rosy barb.

There's also various gourami types (dwarf, honey, opaline, etc, avoid pearls though as they'll be too timid) as a potential options, but stick to only one or a group of 5 or 6 with only one male to avoid aggression issues. I'd avoid a strong current if you go with gourami though.

 

[jackwagon]

Ok thank you I'll have to see what LFS I have and see what they carry. Will petco or petsmart special order fish?

 

[LyndaB]

You may be better off checking with non chain stores. Maybe yours would, though. Mine don't but they all seem to run under a separate chain of command.

 

[Luananeko]

You may be better off checking with non chain stores. Maybe yours would, though. Mine don't but they all seem to run under a separate chain of command.

^ x2.

Petco and Petsmart will do if you have no other options, but don't expect them to special order anything, and expect to have some fish losses when you buy fish from them. They don't have the highest quality stock and tend to be sick. Most places have a small mom & pop type fish-only store nearby that are better sources for fish. If you're lucky, there will be several, and they'll tend to stock varieties that you won't find at Petco or Petsmart.

 

[jackwagon]

Ok sounds good thanks to everyone who helped