55 gal tank stocking options

[Katome556]

=X My dad said i don't have to transfer my guppies into it and that i can get anything i want for it *with the exception of his Red tail shark* i haven't got the tank yet but i was wondering what kinda stocking options would be good?

Also i'd probably my platys and danio from my 30 gallon long to the 55 and move my bettas to other tanks.

Also i'll be cycleing the tank w/ bio-spira and lots of TWEAC*tender watching eyes and care*.

I want fish that'll be ok with a red tail shark and that are not live bearers unless they are mollies.

List of fish i'd like*not all compatible i know* : A Gold or maybe a Blue gourami,a single Angel fish or some other type of Cichlids *don't really like the idea of an all species only tank*, German Blue or German Gold Ram,Clown Killifish,Rachovi Killifish or some other type of center peice fish. Barbs such as green or tiger *aggressive i know but they are cute*, or other schooling fish like Glowlight Danios,Turquoise Danios or a small school of tetras.catfish such as : Panda corys,Peppered Corys ,Otos, a bristle nose pleco ,Zebra Pleco ,Clown pleco,Pictus Cat*heard they need 70 gallons+ is this true or not?* also Maybe a type of Eel like a Fire Eel or maybe some type of loach *That does'nt look like a snake*

Tell me what kinda fish would probably be good with a red tail shark and not over do a 55 gal tank.Any and all suggestions will be a great help.*will research fish after i have an idea of what and who to put in the 55 gal tank*.

 

[sclabman]

how about a group of tiger barbs? they are usually fast enough to escape dangers if the shark felt that they were evil. Clown loaches are cool too, but will outgrow your tank

 

[fishbrain]

I'd go with an Asian theme; the red-tailed shark, barbs (your tiger idea would be good in a school of 6 or more), a gourami, yoyo loaches or polka-dot loaches & maybe some danios (not sure about them though because they are small........ but fast).

 

[Katome556]

I like the idea of the Asian theme,would that not be too many fish for the 55 gal?

 

[Breeze7050]

The asian idea is good at it wouldn't be overstocked - assuming you are well filtered and keep up with your water changes. I love the yoyo loaches!
You could do 6 barbs, 1 gourami, 3-6 yoyo's and a handful of danios. Plus of course your shark. Danios should be fine in there as they are fast little buggers. With this set up you could also toss in some ghost shrimp and a few snails for fun - though both could get eaten, so I wouldn't spend too much money!

 

[Katome556]

What type of danios and gourami would probably be good?

 

[Big Vine]

I'd say definitely a gold, opaline, or three-spot gourami (all of these, aside from the latter, are essentially different color strains of the original three-spot). As for danios, it really depends on how much room you've got left once you've picked out your other fish. If you have more room, you could get a group of giant danios. If not, then zebra danios---several varieties are available, but personally I'd stay away from the long-finned ones in this particular setup.

BV

 

[Katome556]

just wondering,would green barbs and tiger barbs school together?And would may 1-2 male mollies be ok in the tank?

 

[Fishywishy]

yeah and yeah.......to the last question

but make sure you have like even amounts of each color barbs because they do pecking order by color and by combination of colors

barbs may pick on the mollies when they are first introduced, but barbs have a short attention span for other fish, they're more interested in the other barbs

 

[Katome556]

so it'd be like 3 green and 3 tiger barbs right?

 

[Fishywishy]

I've got 6 and 6 in my 55 gal plus a couple of angels and an algae eater......and some plants

it depends on what you want to do with the tank....

 

[Katome556]

Well i was thinking of going with the asian theme and have the stock like so:
1 Red tail Shark
4 Tiger(& 4 green) Barbs
1 Opaline Gourami
4 YoYo loaches
2 male mollies

but i think that may be to many for a 55 gal.

 

[Fishywishy]

you know, you'd probably really enjoy a set up like I have, your father too (doesn't he have poor eyesight?) I really enjoy this tank and watching the barbs nd their little antics and then the angelfish with their attitudes....

right now one barb is off resting (doing a headstand), 3 others are in the corner battling a pecking position (they don't hurt each other or stress each other out) and the rest are schooling back and forth (they're burning off the worms I just fed them). I have this baby angel who thinks it's a barb trying to keep up with school (I forgot to mention the baby angel) and the other two angels are just cruising the top half, trying to workout why I left the lid open to the tank (no reason).......all the fish seem to be gliding rather then swimming

the barbs and the angels would be plenty large for your father to see, and I think you'd really enjoy a change from the peaceful guppy/molly/typical type fish, into something a little more aggressive but quite peaceful

 

[Katome556]

sounds like a neat set up,uhg it's so hard to make up my mind and my family's minds as well. x.x

My dad though insists on his shark and a gourami he really got attatched to the last one i had.

Maybe i'll just convince him to get a huge tank something around 180 gallons.

 

[Plee_cO]

This tank is sounding like it would look really cool
i hope some pics get put up so we can check it out

 

[Katome556]

heh i currently don't have the tank or the inhabitants for it but i will as soon as April comes around and i decide on something.

 

[Fishywishy]

take 2 yoyo's out and the mollies.....and add an angel to the list

not sure how well the angel and guorami would get along, but I bet you could pull it off ........

 

[Katome556]

so
1 Red tail Shark
4 Tiger(& 4 green) Barbs
1 Opaline Gourami
2 YoYo loaches
1 angel

And uhg my dad can't make up his mind about what size tank he wants to get.

 

[Breeze7050]

i wouldn't leave just 2 yoyos. They really need to be in a group of 3 or more. They like friends and there true behaviours come out in groups. Also, I wouldn't add the mollies at all - they generally like some (or even alot) of marine salt in their tanks.
Not to sure about the gourami and angel.... may fight.

 

[Katome556]

i thought 2 yoyo's would'nt be too good on their own.


and i know where to get some mollies that were born in freshwater and don't have any salt in with em and i think if the gourami and angel are young they may get along.