# Stocking suggestions for 55 Gallon Pic



## djamm (Sep 25, 2010)

Just looking for suggestion for my second tank.

It is a 55 Gallon, new to me (thanks BEN) and plants (thanks WSL). I am cycling before I add fish.

I was thinking of Convicts...but they might rip up all my plants! Maybe a community tank with Angel Fish and others?

Really open to idea's and suggestions...










Thanks


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## bowman00 (Apr 27, 2010)

Angelfish is a great idea I have 2 juvie angels in my 33 gallon. If your looking for angels I believe Farmerbill has some and Smiladon still has some. Good luck with it, tell me what direction you are going.


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## beN (Apr 21, 2010)

whoa! i think ive seen this tank somewhere.

Looks Great Guys!!

Thanks for posting pics also!


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## TCR (Jul 13, 2010)

I would estabilsh some schooling fish first. I would say through in some cardinals and corys and start growing the tetras out then add some angels. Are you shooting for a biotope sort of idea? May I also suggest some driftwood and perhaps paint the back black as it would enhance the dramatic colours of the fish


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## discuspaul (Jul 2, 2010)

A few Angels & a few Discus, along with a reasonable number of dithers - cardinals & some bottom-dwellers (say Cories) - WOW - Go for it !!!!


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## donjuan_corn (May 6, 2010)

You might want to up your filtration if you are going to do any of the above suggestions. I suggest add some caves and get some clown loaches, plecos and some live bearers, sword tails/platys/mollys


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## CRS Fan (Apr 21, 2010)

donjuan_corn said:


> You might want to up your filtration if you are going to do any of the above suggestions. I suggest add some caves and get some clown loaches, plecos and some live bearers, sword tails/platys/mollys


Ditto on upping the filtration. I suggest a good canister to help. In planted tanks, you can never have too much filtration . I don't recommend mixing angels and discus though (you can run into problems - especially with the discus). Nice looking tank, though.

Respectfully,

Stuart


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## charles (Apr 21, 2010)

And if you want some wild angel fish, i got some


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## discuspaul (Jul 2, 2010)

Just as a matter of interest re; keeping angels with discus. I have done it myself without problems, and my fairly extensive research into the personal experiences of many aquarists who have kept them together, clearly indicates the number of people who have done it successfully, (i.e. without problems) vs. those that have had trouble, (e.g. angels passing along harmful pathogens to discus), is probably in the range of 30 or more, to 1. That's my .02.


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## TCR (Jul 13, 2010)

Well I have angels with discus too. Tho I'm planning to get rid of the angels


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## djamm (Sep 25, 2010)

TCR said:


> I would estabilsh some schooling fish first. I would say through in some cardinals and corys and start growing the tetras out then add some angels. Are you shooting for a biotope sort of idea? May I also suggest some driftwood and perhaps paint the back black as it would enhance the dramatic colours of the fish


That is kinda the idea. So which order roughly do you recommend I introduce them? or do I take the plunge and throw them all together?

I too would like discus in their as well!


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## djamm (Sep 25, 2010)

Thanks I really like the idea a few angels and Discus...But I don't want to over populate...how many of each?



emile said:


> A few Angels & a few Discus, along with a reasonable number of dithers - cardinals & some bottom-dwellers (say Cories) - WOW - Go for it !!!!


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## discuspaul (Jul 2, 2010)

Well. a 55 gal. is not large, and you don't want to overcrowd. You might consider say 4 juvenile discus (2.5-3.0") and the same number of med-sized angels, with a small school of Cardinal tetras, perhaps 8 or so, and 2 or3 Cories, keeping in mind that it won't be many months down the road before the discus reach a size where you are pushing it in the 55, and would need to consider a larger tank. That's my opinion. If you like the idea though, do give it a try, but keep the above in mind.
Good luck with whatever your decision is.


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## katienaha (May 9, 2010)

i dont feel it is fair to put one discus in a 55 since they grow so large. i really enjoy my dwarf neon rainbowfish and pearl gouramies in my 55. the rainbows school and the three females and one male pearl gourami make for a good and beautiful balance.


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## Kanesska (Oct 7, 2010)

I have a 55 gallon too. This is what I stocked it with. 5 rainbows (2 dwarf neon and 3 "yellows". 2 clown loaches, harlequin rasboras, rummynose tetras, neon tetras, glowlight tetras, zebra danios (ones albino) bronze cories, 2 redtailed loaches (looking for a new home) a couple koi angels, oto's and one very blue opaline gourami male. The tank is thriving! I found my weather loach was eating fish, so he's been rehomed, but other than that everyones peaceful and noones eating my plants! Plus it looks very active and colourful 

Hope that helps you in your decision 
Cheers!


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## Elle (Oct 25, 2010)

_(this is djamm's wife)_

I kind of like the idea of Kanesska's mix. ;-) But I really like clown loaches, so I'm biased there. Somebody had mentioned upping the filtration - how much would you suggest?

What size of tank is recommended for fully grown discus? I think they're absolutely gorgeous fish, but wouldn't want to squish them into too small a tank.


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## donjuan_corn (May 6, 2010)

You can overdo the filtration but on a 55 gallon, I put two ac 110's because I had 20 africans but if you do one ac110 you should be fine and a power head  Go Go clownloaches


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## 2wheelsx2 (Apr 21, 2010)

Upping filtration doesn't really do anything for discus. I'm not a discus expert, but just a wannabe. Where you want to concentrate is on water changes. Discus all tend to be intolerant of nitrates, so all the filtration in the world is not going to help you if you're not changing at least 50% of the water once a week, and if you're going to get juvies, it'll have to be that amount 2 to 3 times a week at least. I personally wouldn't go juvies if this is your first time with discus as they are a lot more high maintenance and prone to stunting/disease/eating problems compared to adults.


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## Elle (Oct 25, 2010)

The other stocked and planted tank gets an 80% water change weekly (fancy goldfish = messy pigs), so this tank would likely get similar maintenance. With discus and angels, do you need to worry about current? They don't strike me as the most effective swimmers out there.


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## donjuan_corn (May 6, 2010)

I was talking about clowns not discus, don't think they need a good current. However more disturbance on the surface the more oxygen = healthier fish ac110 is great for this.


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## 2wheelsx2 (Apr 21, 2010)

I think first of all, you have to decide which are the main fish and the build around it. I wouldn't recommend getting clown loaches (or any loaches for that matter) with discus and angels, as the water requirements are on opposite ends of the spectrum as far as pH goes.

Since you're used to messy fish, then changing water is part of your routine, and as I understand it for discus, the more water changed, the better.

I think it's definitely possible to do discus in a 55, but you'd have to limit the overall bioload by limiting the other fish you put in the tank.


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## Kanesska (Oct 7, 2010)

Oh, I forgot to mention my dwarf aquatic frogs too lol

My angels are quite happy with a gentle bubble wall and my 2 powerheads forming a sortof cross current.. My hang on the back filter just died, so I'll be replacing it next payday, in the meantime thats all I'm using. However that being said, I am doing a 15% waterchange twice a week and could probably get away with more. 

Love my clownloaches they're so active and add a great splash of colour.. although I dont recommend getting less than 2. I'm going to be getting some caves/tubes for them soon, just havent decided which I want to go with yet. 

I only got my clownloaches (and so many fish) because I'm planning to upgrade in the near future to a larger tank as I hear the clowns can get pretty big. If however they outgrow your tank, I'm sure someone will be willing to take them off your hands lol


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## discuspaul (Jul 2, 2010)

*Keeping Discus*

I've kept discus on & off several times over the years, and I currently maintain a 75 gallon well planted tank with 9 - 3" juvie discus, and a good number of dither fish. Up to date recently, I've kept discus for a year. While I'm certainly no discus expert, I have reasonable experience with them & would hopefully like to clear up a few questions that have arisen in this thread: BTW, I filter with 2 AC 110's on my tank, for ease of maintenance, handling, cleaning media, & ability to interchange media on a regular basis - The use of Purigen & filter floss, along with 3 X per week w/c's, keeps the tank crystal clear.

Tank size for adult discus: (approx. 5" to 7") - Example: A 55 gallon will comfortably house 6 full grown discus in a bare-bottom tank with no other fish present. The experts say 1 adult discus for every 10 gallons, - that certainly holds good in a planted tank, but may be on the side of overcaution in a bare-bottom tank, where the number can be increased slightly.
Until Juvie Discus reach a 4.0" + size, they can be comfortably accommodated @ a 25%- 30% higher number than adults (or even greater than that in a BB tank).

Juvie discus: 2 wheels is correct - they do require more frequent W/C's, and more frequent feedings than adult fish, to maintain properly, but are not really that much more difficult to keep thriving, than adults, in a BB tank - but somewhat more so in a planted tank - they simply require good clean water, stable parameters, & a varied diet, to avoid health problems & stunting. 
Filtration: Upping filtration beyond normal requirements will do little in a BB tank, (apart from assisting the bio-filtration level) but will certainly help water conditions in a planted &/or community tank.
As I'm sure you all know, Discus are completely intolerant of the presence of any noticeable level of ammonia or nitrites, but can readily tolerate nitrates up to say 20 ppm, or even somewhat more.
With frequent W/C's and the presence of plants, nitrate levels can readily be maintained at or near zero pretty much all of the time. The only other essentials for Discus are higher temp - no,less than 83-84 F, and consistently stable Ph - anywhere from 6.0 to 8.0, give or take, so long as it doesn't vary much if at all.
Hope this helps you, Elle.
Paul


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## Maxxxboost (Jun 29, 2010)

I have a 55gallon with

7 Silver dollars
6 Denison Barbs
2 SAE
1 Bala shark

All fairly large and i would not put any more fish in there.

My friend just gave me a 55 Gallon (restoration) that will go upstairs and it will be a barb tank

Odessa barbs
Gold barbs
Denison barbs 
Rosey barbs
Cherry Barbs
Two Spot barbs
and SAEs

I've tried thinking of other combination like a Rainbowfish (lots of colour and variety) tank but cost is a factor so barb tank seems like the second option.

55 gallon to me is not very big if you plan to put a shoal of fish that grow up to be big.


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## katienaha (May 9, 2010)

the size of fish some of you guys put in too-small tanks baffles me. would you like to live in an apartment sized bathroom with someone else for the rest of your days?


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## slipstream (Apr 25, 2010)

katienaha said:


> i dont feel it is fair to put one discus in a 55 since they grow so large. i really enjoy my dwarf neon rainbowfish and pearl gouramies in my 55. the rainbows school and the three females and one male pearl gourami make for a good and beautiful balance.


im for the neon rainbows (10-20) as well, throw in a school of cardinals. (10-20) UP the filtration, and a couple stay small plecos, with a couple clown loaches and you have a great colored tank. FLASHY and comical relief with the clowns. 

Also suggest darken the back pane to bring out more color.


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## slipstream (Apr 25, 2010)

katienaha said:


> the size of fish some of you guys put in too-small tanks baffles me. would you like to live in an apartment sized bathroom with someone else for the rest of your days?


Its different with fish. As long as they are fed well, and the tank is kept clean and healthy there arent any problem with overstocking a little (not overly excessive of course). It just means that you have to do way more maintenance thna you would if you didnt. THAT goes for humans as well. No matter how many people you pack into a 4 bedroom apartment, as long as it stays clean and organized its a LOT easier to live in than if it were dirty and unorganized.

P.S. the stated above is in my OPINION, and experience.


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## katienaha (May 9, 2010)

agreed to a certain extent but a fish that naturally grows to 4ft shouldnt be kept in a 4ft tank. thats my point.


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## Luke78 (Apr 24, 2010)

If your choice is to go with discus , keep in mind that they should be matched with other tankmates which could tolerate the higher temps.Plants are a close second behind them.Ph levels are another issue to consider as well.


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## cichlid (Jul 30, 2010)

katienaha said:


> agreed to a certain extent but a fish that naturally grows to 4ft shouldnt be kept in a 4ft tank. thats my point.


I think its safe to say your view is different than a lot of people here, not all discus grow big, and some take longer to grow than others. also, depends on the lighting, brighter the light the fast green will grow. It also depends on your cleaning schedule. I wouldn't say discus in a 55 gallon isn't bad for the fish, it may not be your choice, and there for you wouldn't do it.

It has to be with in reason, I have a ten gallon setup sitting here, empty right now, I am not going to put 1 discus in it because the rule is " 1 per 10 gallons "

I think in a 55, a pair of red terqouise, 5 neons or cardinals, 3-5 german rams or electric blue rams, 5 rasbora, a pleco, would be nice. the trick is small fish. maybe buy your discus as young.


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## donjuan_corn (May 6, 2010)

Maxxxboost said:


> I have a 55gallon with
> 
> 7 Silver dollars
> 6 Denison Barbs
> ...


.... a bala shark and 7 silver dollars in a 55 gallon. please tell me you are going to sell or upgrade before they are all full size in your 55. I've got too many fish and I sell when they get big and start fresh again, but oh boy.


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## Adz1 (Apr 21, 2010)

Charles also has some nice Geos and plecos.....


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## Elle (Oct 25, 2010)

update on the tank...right now we have 11 zebra danios, 10 juvenile green tetras, 3 juvenile corys (catfish) and a pleco.

Everyone seems to be doing fine so far!


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## TCR (Jul 13, 2010)

i would put a few more corys in there.. usually the suggest a group of 5.. im sure tehy will be fine but they are a shoaling fish

its a nice combo btw...
danios top
tetras mid
corys bottom
plec cleanup

what kind of plec did you get?


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## 2wheelsx2 (Apr 21, 2010)

If you add Cories, I'd get a dozen if possible. I have 30+ in my 125, and you really see the shoaling, much more so than any tetras I've ever seen.  I plan to add 20 or so to my 100 gallon.


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## Elle (Oct 25, 2010)

djamm picked it up last night...I think it's a bristlenose. He's looking at getting another pleco as well, not sure exactly what type though? I think it was a golden colour.

We don't want to add too many fish to the tank right at this point b/c we're going to be moving it to a new stand, adding a black background and aquascaping it properly this weekend. Catching/containing the little buggers while that's happening so they don't get either sucked up in the siphon or squished while the hardscape and plants get moved around is going to be a pain and a half already.


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## 2wheelsx2 (Apr 21, 2010)

If you like bristlenose plecos, take a look at Davej's long finned calicos. They're beautiful.


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## Elle (Oct 25, 2010)

OK, I'm wrong, it's a common pleco. But I will take a look at Davej's, thanks!


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## chrislinrocks (Oct 31, 2010)

get a jardini arowana! arowanas are awesome, but expensive. you will have to get a bigger tank eventually but i think its worth it. an aro will look sick in that tank


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## TCR (Jul 13, 2010)

chrislinrocks said:


> get a jardini arowana! arowanas are awesome, but expensive. you will have to get a bigger tank eventually but i think its worth it. an aro will look sick in that tank


lol the funny thing is that used to be my tank before Ben.. and I used to have a jardini in it.. a jardini and lungfish and a common plec..

before that it was a community tank but i moved them in to the 50 gal tank.. but it looked the best as a com tank.. the plants grew very well in that tank too..


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## djamm (Sep 25, 2010)

Okay, 


I love this Hagen tank. The stand is in the process of being changed for a Hagen...3 door all black 55 gallon stand...a real nice one. I have added several pieces of driftwood...and the setup is starting to take shape  It actually kind of reminds me of my screen saver...lol...

I will post some pictures after spending some time on the tank this weekend. More to come!!!


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## djamm (Sep 25, 2010)

*Update on tank!*

After two weeks, Elle and I did big change up!










So far:

Florite for the bottom substrate with small peable gravel on top
4 pieces of Driftwood
multiple plants (Elle know most of the names)
11 Zebra Danios
12 Green Neon Tetra's
3 Cory's 
1 Pleco
1 cherry red shrimp...thinking it came on a plant? may try adding a few others....
Variety of small snails WSL knows the names....came free with plants...
Black background (didn't want to paint it at this point...)
Sponge on intake...

I still am very open to suggestions to make this tank thrive...thinking about a couple more corys...maybe Boeseman's, or Red Rainbow? 
I will be adding another filter...not sure if I should go with another HOB or Canister?

Cheers,


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