Most efficent bottom feeder?

[Shazbo]

Hello everyone. I'm new to the whole fishkeeping thing, so expect alot of questions from me.

Which bottom feeders are the least messy, and the most efficent?

I'm leaning towards catfish.

I want a relatively small, community fish. Small like a guppy, or a molly.

I have a 2 gallon aquarium for starters right now (don't worry, I know about over crowding and how many fish it can hold comfortably etc.), but I'm looking around for a larger tank.

Well, thanks.

Shazbo

 

[Kissyboots]

Hi and welcome!

The bigger, the better! I would definetly look into a 10 - 20 gallon. I started with a 20g and added a 5g and a 6.6g. The bigger the tank, the more fish you can put in.

First thing: are you familiar with cycling a tank?
Read through MissFishy's website (link in her sig) which should help you with that.

Careful with the guppies because they can reproduce quickly (I've never had any, but that's what I've heard.)

Swordtails are nice in a community tank, and I believe mollies are basically the same.

Cories are awesome bottomfeeders. They clean up the leftovers and are very cool to watch. They are only about 1.5 - 2 in. They like to live in groups.

Otos are also nice because they are small (only about 1 in.) and eat most algae. They also prefer groups.

Ghost shrimp are also helpful, they are also small, and they eat the leftovers and clean between the gravel and the plants.

I would recommend getting live plants because imo they look nicer and are just...live!

There's not much you can do with a 2g. Most people just throw in a betta but I think that's still too small. Definitely look around for a bigger one. That might be more useful to you.

Have fun here!!

Btw, 1 inch of fish per 1 gallon of water. That's a typical stocking rule. Go for the big stuff! I am very happy with my 20g. It's just the right size!

Ok, I'm done now...

 

[Shazbo]

Thanks Kissyboots.

I'm looking into a 15G long right now.

In the end my little 2G will be a fry tank.

I know WHAT cycling is. I just don't know how, but my parents do and they're going to help me. But I'll definetly read up.

Thanks for the suggestions.

 

[bunker_1]

From everything I have read, Kissyboots is right. Go with live plants. This site has taught me that if you go live plants you really do not have to cycle the tank. I have done it backwards, I have a cycled tank and fish. I am waiting on live plants to help fininsh it off.

I love my swordtails. They are very friendly and they are great in my tank

 

[brian1973]

Well looks like Kissy covered all the bases pretty well, just one thing i didnt see. You mentioned small like a guppy or molly. Molles are not very small fish in comparison to guppies, mollies can grow up to 5in, my biggest female was 4in when she died, so thats about 4 times the size of a typical guppy i believe. Cories seem to be the most popular community catfish but i have never had them. Anyway good luck with your tank.

 

[emmanuelchavez]

Pygmy Cories are your best bet if you want small cories. They stay around 1" or slightly smaller.
I have corydoras habrosus, which are about 3/4 of an inch.

What color is your gravel? If you have 'natural' gravel, they'll stand out, I suppose. They're grayish, with black spots.

As Kissy mentioned, there's also Otos.

You'll definitely want live plants if you go with either of these. And whatever you do, make sure your tank is completely cycled before you add any of these fish. They're very fragile fish, and will die very quickly if water conditions are not 'perfect.' You'll also have to slowly acclimatize them.

I definitely suggest you wait until you have a much bigger, fully cycled tank before you even consider getting these.