Best bottom feeder for Tiger Barb tanks?

[Grouchy]

I have a 10 gallon tank, gravel bottom, plenty of live plants, and a single power filter system. Think tank contains a small pleco (about 2 inches), 2 orange platys, and about 20 young Tiger Barbs. I would like recommendations on what type of bottom feeders to get for the tank, it does not have an undergravel filter.

Here is the problem: the 20 young barbs are quite aggressive to anything that goes in the tank, except the platys for some strange reason. I placed a 1" cory catfish in there and it was fin nipped to the point of stress and eventually died even when removed from the tank. A friend swears by ghost shrimp but after seeing what they tiger barbs did to a couple neon tetras I put in there I'm guessing their life span would be about three to four hours tops, eight hours until only husks remain.

I want to keep the gravel and bottom clean. Any suggestions?

- larger cory?
- another type of catfish?
- shark?

 

[digital_run]

WOW!

Ok...well im sure there's gonna be alot to say here and i know im not going to hit half of it....first off...Tiger barbs are a fish that needs lots of swimming space and a 10 gal tank isnt going to cut it...you have 20?....they will get to be about 3" and theres no way that you should have so many in a small tank...5 would be alright...but 20 won't due...when tigers are cramped in a small tank they will be agressive to anything that cant handle/to slow to take the abuse ...What kind of plec is it? .... some plecs can get to almost 12" if not bigger....i know your tigers are probably small...i was at my Ifs today and they had tiny ones..BUT ...they will grow..and if you care about them than you'll have to take some of them back...also read around on the web...and in this forum...Old posts will probably answer most of your questions...I'm not tryin to yell at you or anything...I got into this hobby the same way...2 many tiger barbs in a 10 gal....I couldn't give em up so i got a bigger tank...

Good luck

 

[sushi]

hello. I don't know for sure about this, but judging by size, maybe a corneo sucker. I saw them in my lfs yesterday. it's a type of pleco I think. same colour anyway. it only gets 2" I think,if I remember rightly. It's a pleco shape with these skin/fin things that makes it look like a peanut shell shape with a little skinny tale out the back. Like I said, i don't know about this, I'm only going on size.

 

[Daveo]

YOU DON'T NEED TO BE THINKING OF MORE FISH YOU NEED TO GET A MUCH, MUCH BIGGER TANK NOT MORE FISH.YOU NEED A 55 GAL FOR THAT MANY FISH ESPECIALY IF YOU WANT MORE FISH! 8)


Daveo

 

[Grouchy]

Thanks for the comments so far, and I'd attach a picture if I could, but there is plenty of space both volume wise and open space for swimming. As they grow, they get moved to a larger 29 gallon tank - with my mature tiger barbs. I have already moved a couple dozen up there and realize that as they grow they will exceed the capacity of the 10, and even 29 gallon tank (been budgeting a 50 gallon tank for about a year now).

Using the 1" of fish per US gallon rule, it's about at capacity; but cycled and planted.

Also, in another post here I mentioned that due to tank failure I was forced to move two neon tetras into the barb tanks. They ended up in the 29 gallon tank. The young barbs were the most aggressive in both tanks towards the neons and nipped their fins (happy ending, though - the neons are back to full-fin and healthy and living and feeding amongst the tiger barbs young and old). The mature barbs keep to themselves. Young barbs seem extremely aggressive especially when feeding.

Here is the contents of the 10 gallon tank:

2" pleco
2x1" orange platys
over 20 young tiger barbs average about 1/2" largest 3/4"

I can always move the Pleco and was considering moving the platys (and neons) into a tank to replace the one that failed.

I have considered trying to donate some of the young barbs to a LPS or in exchange for some food or maybe that bottom feeder. Only about 4 are big enough for sale, though.

 

[tear-scar]

Oh . . . are the 20 extra barbs the result of a spawn?

 

[Grouchy]

Yes, I've raised them from the fuzzy white dots to this stage. They are less than a year old.