Help Deciding On Bottom Feeders.

[mattvillas]

Hi all. I have a 60 gallon (227 litre) 4 ft wide tank. 25 total fish (2 molly, 7 guppy, 1 swordtail, the rest platy.) It's been up and running a couple of months. I want to get some fish or something else for the bottom for clean up. I was going to get some oto's but have read that should wait for tank to get at least 6 months old first to build up algea since they might starve. I don't know much about cory's or shrimp. I'm not too crazy about plecos because they grow too big over time and the smaller ones are more $$$. I want something relatively peaceful that will not harass my fish.

What do you all prefer or think would fit great in my tank?
Pleco
Cory
Shrimp
Catfish
5" Cobalt lobster link
or others..?

Any info is appreciated.

A pic of my tank if needed..

 

[KittyKat]

1m 2f bristlenose plecos, they'll breed for you very quickly and you'll be able to make the money back from the babies.

Not Corys because they do so much better with sand.

Not lobsters because, if I remember correctly, they eat fish.

 

[kporteo]

I love my albino BN pleco, just gets on with feeding and minding his own business. I had 3, bought at only a few months old and 2 have sadly died, but since Ive just had the one, hes grown massively and seems much more active - think I probably didnt have enough food in a 55gal tank for 3 plecos to be honest, even though i regularly fed algae wafers and veg.

K

 

[julem35]

Personally I would say a cory because I have kept two kinds of Cory cats several times(peppered and albino) in my 30gallon and they have had a fine time on the gravel. Plus they are fun to watch and have always been friendly to my other inhabitants. Plecos produce TONS of waste and personally while I had some for a while, they are not my favorite.

 

[JoshuaA]

As long as the gravel isn't sharp the Corys will get on fine, However most corys like to be in a shoal. I would advice on around 4 minimum and advise 6 to get the most out of your fish and have them enjoy themselves.

I currently have Bronze, Pygmy and Panda Corys all are beautiful little fish an the Bronze are beginning to gain a bit of size now. If you were looking for a relatively cheap fish that will get to a reasonable size then I would suggest the bronze cory. Pygmy are cool but don't show up on dark substrates very well and in large tanks they just never get spotted, I haven't got much experience with Pandas but they seem a little fragile.

If you want shrimp as well I would suggest red cherry shrimp (RCS), the RCS will be a bit of a cleanup crew for you but you really need to make sure your filter is coping with the fish stock you have at the moment. The only problem might be that you have 2 mollies which may well peck at the shrimp and eat/kill them.

 

[FishFanatic13]

I would go catfish as long as they do not grow to big

 

[XFiSh_CichildX]

i love plecos they are nice i think BN plecos they produce quiet a bit of waste though so watch out for that as said if your substrate isnt too sharp i would get corys i would say 4 bronze corys and one albino maybe as for shrimp i love them great wee clean up crews eat all left overs and entertaining to watch and will breed quite well if you provide hiding place for them and i think Bristlenose plecos need bogwood well i have never kept them without it.

 

[FishFanatic13]

the reason i did not go for plecs or shrimp is because their diet is algea based and your tank does not have much if any algea
and the reason i did not go for cory is in my opinon prefer sand
have you looked into loaches

 

[lilfishie]

the reason i did not go for plecs or shrimp is because their diet is algea based and your tank does not have much if any algea
and the reason i did not go for cory is in my opinon prefer sand
have you looked into loaches

Easily substiuted with pellets

BNs or cories would be fine if the gravel isn't sharp

 

[FishFanatic13]

the reason i did not go for plecs or shrimp is because their diet is algea based and your tank does not have much if any algea
and the reason i did not go for cory is in my opinon prefer sand
have you looked into loaches

Easily substiuted with pellets

BNs or cories would be fine if the gravel isn't sharp

yer but loaches could be an option there is plenty to choose from

 

[Danbarb]

I have bristlenoses and yoyo loaches, they look great on the bottom of my tank. Also, they don't bother each other in the slightest. Got to have a min of 3 yoyo loaches really, although some people do have less.

 

[doodleing]

I,m planning to add a Clown Plec to my tank.They do grow to 14cm but as long as your tank bottom isn't completely decorated there should be room for it.

 

[KittyKat]

...Got to have a min of 3 yoyo loaches really, although some people do have less.

6+ would be my recommendation for any schooling loach. The more, the better!

 

[mattvillas]

Thank you for all the suggestions.

I am not sure if my gravel is considered sharp... it is just colored aquarium gravel. Here is a pic

I don't think it would be considered sharp but not sure how sensitive the fish are.

How well do loaches clean the bottom? (not familiar with them) Like a clown loach or dragon/dojo loach? I don't have to worry about them eating small community fish?

 

[KittyKat]

the reason i did not go for plecs or shrimp is because their diet is algea based and your tank does not have much if any algea

Both must have additional food in any aquarium, or they would starve.

I don't think it would be considered sharp but not sure how sensitive the fish are.

It should be fine for plecos, but I really do prefer to have sand for fish which sift, such as Corys or loaches.

How well do loaches clean the bottom? (not familiar with them) Like a clown loach or dragon/dojo loach? I don't have to worry about them eating small community fish?

You should not be getting fish expecting them to do cleaning for you: bottom fish are fish who eat and live on the bottom, not who clean.

Your tank is too small for clown loaches and dojo loaches (weather loaches) are coolwater so not really suitable for tropical tanks. Most smaller loaches won't bother community fish.