# 55 Gal. Tank Suggestions



## h_sheltie (Jun 16, 2005)

I was hoping you guys could give some suggestions for my 55 gallon tank. Right now I'm still in the cycle stage, but I want to get some ideas for when it's done. Right now I have 4 phantom tetras and 5 danios. I will most likely return the danios after the cycle because I don't like them that much. They're not bad or anything, they're just not what I'm looking for. Anyway, I was thinking I'd add 2 more phantoms, some neon tetras, and myabe 2 bala sharks. How big of a school do the neons usually like to be in? I was thinking maybe get around 6 of them. 

I'm not sure whether I want to get bala sharks or a rainbow shark. I heard bala sharks do well in community tanks and are pretty friendly. As for the rainbow sharks I heard its best to just have one of them because they are pretty aggresive. So..I'm thinking the bala sharks might be better for me. Plus, I can have more than one of them.

That's all I can think of though. What other fish would do well with the ones that I want to get?...or is there any I mentioned that wouldn't be a good idea to put together?


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## fishboy (Feb 26, 2005)

what kinda fish do u like?


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## h_sheltie (Jun 16, 2005)

To be honest, I'm new to the fish world and I don't know the names of fish yet. I guess w/e looks good, but everyone has they're own idea of what looks good. I do like some of the catfish and plecos I've seen on here. I probably should've done some research before I started this thread...woops.


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## Lexus (Jan 19, 2005)

Balas get too big for your tank. I would suggest a rainbow, in fact I have an albino rainbow and love him to death. I suggest 12 phantoms, 12 neons, 6 or so cories and then a center fish or 2


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## ames8534 (Feb 2, 2005)

i have 2 bala sharks in my 55 gallon and i love them...im gonna be putting them in a 120 gallon soon tho when my basements done because they get about 16 inches or so going on what my friends balas are but id get them their really cool fish.


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## fishboy (Feb 26, 2005)

neons are fragile but are okay. Personalt i would get tetras, some barbs, and 1 or 2 larger fish


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## maxpayne_lhp (Jan 19, 2005)

Baby_Baby said:


> ya get neons. hey would guppies work too? those are great for beginners


Sometimes it's not good for community with active fish.
Balas may grow large and nervous at a small place...

about neons, if the tank is peacful, not many menance... w emay have them schooling and be alright.

What barbs you want?


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## h_sheltie (Jun 16, 2005)

Thanks for the suggestions. I'll have to go back to my lfs and see what they have.


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## h_sheltie (Jun 16, 2005)

I finally have a pretty good idea of how I want to stock my tank. I went down to the lfs to see what they have. Here's my plan...how's it sound?
8-10 black phantom tetras
8-10 neon tetras
6 albino cory cats
1 rainbow shark
Possibly a small pleco not sure on this yet.


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## WaterMan (Jun 24, 2005)

Everything you want looks good to me except I would suggest a red-tailed shrk instead or a rainbow because they are a bit less aggressive (I have one and he doesn't ever really attack the others except sometimes at feeding time he will chase after one or 2 that are by him but a great fish overall). Also I would suggest for a pleco a rubberlipped. They only get to be about 6 inches full grown, if I remember correctly and they are very nice though they tend to hide in the day no matter what and you would need a cave for him. Those are just my suggestions. Let me know how it goes and hope I helped.


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## Guest (Jun 25, 2005)

personally, i would choose some sort of fancy pleco, but a reg pleco would be okay in a 55...


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## Lydia (Feb 6, 2005)

Scuba Kid said:


> personally, i would choose some sort of fancy pleco, but a reg pleco would be okay in a 55...


a regular pleco would NOT be ok in a 55, as far as i know they get huge


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## WaterMan (Jun 24, 2005)

Ya, that's why I thought a rubberlipped would work well since they are small but still eat a heck of a lot of algae.


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## TheOldSalt (Jan 28, 2005)

Bristlenose, Rubberlip, or one of the smaller fancy plecos would be fine, but a regular one really won't do in this setup.

Black Phantoms are terrible fish for cycling. They are very intolerant of the toxins, and are usually the first to die. If you want tetras which are good for cycling, get Redeyes instead, since they're practically invincible.

Also, 4 Phantoms and 5 danios cannot cycle a 55 gallon tank for anything more than their own tiny mass.

Texas is a big place, so I'm sure that you can get some "BioSpira." Pour a pouch of BioSpira in your tank and it will be cycled the very next day, ready for all the fish on your list. Make sure you get the right stuff, as the imitators are junk. The stuff you want comes in a foil pouch in the fridge.


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## h_sheltie (Jun 16, 2005)

Right now I'm on the third week of cycling. All the fish are doing well. I know phantoms probably arent the best for cycling a tank, but I didn't know that when I started a few weeks ago. I'll just have to stick with what I have for now. I went to the lfs and they said I probably have a week or two more of cycling.
Ph 7.2
Ammonia .25 ppm
Nitrites 2 ppm
Nitrates 0 ppm

I do live in texas, but I live in a small town called abilene. So I'm pretty limited. I just have a petsmart and another lfs which I go to. I have heard of BioSpira but I haven't seen it anywhere.

About the danios and phantoms not being able to cycle a tank. Do you mean my tank won't be prepared for anything but a fish the same size or smaller?


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## TheOldSalt (Jan 28, 2005)

Precisely. 
Cycling only sets the bacteria level to match the bioload used to grow them, so if you cycle a 55 gallon tank with only those few small fish, your tank can only handle that kind of load. Every time you add more fish, you'll have to re-cycle all over again.


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## h_sheltie (Jun 16, 2005)

Maybe it'll be ok..hopefully. The fish I want are all the same size or smaller except the rainbow shark.


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