a new set up...

[uglygoat]

i'm getting an aquarium for the bar in the basement... i blame my brother, who got my daughter a little tank for xmas. changing the water the other night and seeing how happy she was feeding her frog sparked the old nostalga of when i had tanks full of guppies...

the walmart sells three or four start up kits for reasonable prices... right now i'm eyeing the 29 gallon job that comes with a filter, flourescant light/hood, heater, thermometer for about 88 bucks... it's only 14 bucks more than the twenty gallon setup, and from reading around, the ten will be too small for the fish i wanna get... which are catfish, mostly the tropical ones from the amazon river...

sooo... i'm looking for tips on getting a nice tank set up for some cats! thanks in advance folks!

 

[richiestang_78]

What sorta of catfish, most species will be too large for a 29gal

 

[theotheragentm]

I keep some Cories and they like to dig around in the bottom, which is why I went with sand substrate. I just went and bought pool filter sand from a local pool supply store, because it's a lot cheaper than substrate from a fish store. Other people have better luck than me, but mine took quite a bit of rinsing. Under the florescent lights, the sand is pretty bright, much whiter looking than it normally looks sitting in regular lighting.

 

[JustOneMore20]

In a 29g you could have some Corydoras (cories) and a smallish pleco (I'd go with one that gets under 6 inches full grown), as well as some tetras, and a centerpiece type fish. I'd go with a South American theme.

 

[uglygoat]

i was looking at the spotted raphael catfish from sa.. .says it only grows to six inches.

 

[JustOneMore20]

That will work.

You just have to be careful what smaller fish you keep with it. They will usually eat small tetras I believe. But there are alot of fish it won't eat.

Do you have any more ideas about your stocking?

 

[WaterPond]

in that sized tank you could have

http://www.planetcatfish.com/catelog/species.php?species_id=334

http://www.planetcatfish.com/catelog/species.php?species_id=313

any type of corydoras catfish, and smaller types of plecos.

 

[uglygoat]

i really just want bottom feeders and live plants. my daughter has an african dwarf frog, that might go in the drink with the cats later on, but he might turn into fish food... on the other hand, the little tank she was given is really a nightmare to maintain....

 

[JDogg]

i really just want bottom feeders and live plants. my daughter has an african dwarf frog, that might go in the drink with the cats later on, but he might turn into fish food... on the other hand, the little tank she was given is really a nightmare to maintain....

if you plant to grow live plants, you are going to have to upgrade the lights, you will need around +/- 55 watts of fluorescent light to keep the plants alive.

 

[fynnie]

Hey dont forget about Otos! I just love those little eating machines. They stay small (about 2"), they eat algae like crazy and they are very sociable little critters in fact they actually like being in a group.