Like I said earlier they would be housed with corycats, and I could split their number sto 4 if necessary. And derp adressed my main concern, I'm positive I could maintain the correct water quality, but I wouldn't want to have them stunted. It would seem if they only grew 4" though that wouldn't stunt them because I know people keep BNs in 20 gallons successfully, and those can get 7-8. Ok I know my tank is less than ideal, but it wouldn't be "cruel" to keep them in a 20 gallon long? Thanks
Ordering Fish Online....meh
- Thread starter Noahsfish
- Start date
Wow theres a lot of info in this thread now 
For me Eagles did the best thing when he got the seriously fish links in - the guys that run the site are just an incredible fountain of knowledge their facebook page is awesome as well. I would usually follow all the advice from that site no questions asked.
I can appreciate that Ruskull has had good success with them in a 36g and totally agree about the inch per gallon rule and first hand experiences and research etc BUT I agree more that it would be a better idea to have a large school of them in a 55 gallon. Also on the subject of first hand experience though its always best to gather a few sources. Which is why profiles on reputable websites are a good idea as well as using forums to gain subjective views.
Equally I actually disagree with Attibones on a school of the Glass Cats being a fully stocked 55g I actually think they have a very light bioload so in a 55 other fish would be fine with them.
Using the BN as a comparison personally I dont think it is fair to keep a BN in a 20g - the reason they are in tanks now is its a better alternative to common plecs they have only been so readily available for like 6 or 7 years especially in the chain stores. In this situation its not the best alternative but it is a step in the right direction for people who dont research their fish. BUT I genuinely believe that with 90% of fish larger fish there are always alternatives best example is a Pangasious and an Ageneiousus cf.Atronasus - superficially the same fish but the Ageneiousus stops growing at about 10cm
Instead of going for the common Glass Catfish as linked above by Eagles I would suggest going for the much much smaller - Gold Hovering Catfish they only get to 2 inches which is a great size for this tank http
/www.planetcatfish.com/common/species.php?species_id=156 - they are not quite the same as the big glass cats but you do get the see through fish which I guess is the appeal.
I was going to suggest the Three Stripe Glass Catfish which only gets to 3 inches but even a good sized school of them would max out this kind of tank.
Im really trying to rack my brains as Im sure I have seen an other good option out there but I cant remember the name right now...
As to if it is cruel or not to keep the original planned glass cats its down to you we can only advise what to do and what we would do if it were our tank. If it were my tank I would go for Gold Hover Cats and keep them a group of 6
Wills
For me Eagles did the best thing when he got the seriously fish links in - the guys that run the site are just an incredible fountain of knowledge their facebook page is awesome as well. I would usually follow all the advice from that site no questions asked.
I can appreciate that Ruskull has had good success with them in a 36g and totally agree about the inch per gallon rule and first hand experiences and research etc BUT I agree more that it would be a better idea to have a large school of them in a 55 gallon. Also on the subject of first hand experience though its always best to gather a few sources. Which is why profiles on reputable websites are a good idea as well as using forums to gain subjective views.
Equally I actually disagree with Attibones on a school of the Glass Cats being a fully stocked 55g I actually think they have a very light bioload so in a 55 other fish would be fine with them.
Using the BN as a comparison personally I dont think it is fair to keep a BN in a 20g - the reason they are in tanks now is its a better alternative to common plecs they have only been so readily available for like 6 or 7 years especially in the chain stores. In this situation its not the best alternative but it is a step in the right direction for people who dont research their fish. BUT I genuinely believe that with 90% of fish larger fish there are always alternatives best example is a Pangasious and an Ageneiousus cf.Atronasus - superficially the same fish but the Ageneiousus stops growing at about 10cm
Instead of going for the common Glass Catfish as linked above by Eagles I would suggest going for the much much smaller - Gold Hovering Catfish they only get to 2 inches which is a great size for this tank http
/www.planetcatfish.com/common/species.php?species_id=156 - they are not quite the same as the big glass cats but you do get the see through fish which I guess is the appeal.I was going to suggest the Three Stripe Glass Catfish which only gets to 3 inches but even a good sized school of them would max out this kind of tank.
Im really trying to rack my brains as Im sure I have seen an other good option out there but I cant remember the name right now...
As to if it is cruel or not to keep the original planned glass cats its down to you we can only advise what to do and what we would do if it were our tank. If it were my tank I would go for Gold Hover Cats and keep them a group of 6
Wills
TallTree01
Coo, Man
Are we all forgetting that these fish are schooling?
Keeping 4 is bad. Keeping any in a 20 gallon is bad.
I equally disagree that 4 glass cats would fully stock a 55 gallon.
I think I may be missing something.....
Keeping 4 is bad. Keeping any in a 20 gallon is bad.
I equally disagree that 4 glass cats would fully stock a 55 gallon.
I think I may be missing something.....
Wow thanks for all the great info! I mean, ok if it's long story short glass cats shouldn't be in a 20g long I understand that. But that kind of leaves me hanging because ive been searching for a fish for my 20g for what seems like a long time..(maybe I'm just impatient). Thanks for the link to the other type of catfish, but i honestly can't imagine owning any, they just don't have that crystal clear look to them. Wow reading back through this whole thread it's gone from ordering fish online to a debate about glass catfish careWills said:Wow theres a lot of info in this thread now
For me Eagles did the best thing when he got the seriously fish links in - the guys that run the site are just an incredible fountain of knowledge their facebook page is awesome as well. I would usually follow all the advice from that site no questions asked.
I can appreciate that Ruskull has had good success with them in a 36g and totally agree about the inch per gallon rule and first hand experiences and research etc BUT I agree more that it would be a better idea to have a large school of them in a 55 gallon. Also on the subject of first hand experience though its always best to gather a few sources. Which is why profiles on reputable websites are a good idea as well as using forums to gain subjective views.
Equally I actually disagree with Attibones on a school of the Glass Cats being a fully stocked 55g I actually think they have a very light bioload so in a 55 other fish would be fine with them.
Using the BN as a comparison personally I dont think it is fair to keep a BN in a 20g - the reason they are in tanks now is its a better alternative to common plecs they have only been so readily available for like 6 or 7 years especially in the chain stores. In this situation its not the best alternative but it is a step in the right direction for people who dont research their fish. BUT I genuinely believe that with 90% of fish larger fish there are always alternatives best example is a Pangasious and an Ageneiousus cf.Atronasus - superficially the same fish but the Ageneiousus stops growing at about 10cm
Instead of going for the common Glass Catfish as linked above by Eagles I would suggest going for the much much smaller - Gold Hovering Catfish they only get to 2 inches which is a great size for this tank http
I was going to suggest the Three Stripe Glass Catfish which only gets to 3 inches but even a good sized school of them would max out this kind of tank.
Im really trying to rack my brains as Im sure I have seen an other good option out there but I cant remember the name right now...
As to if it is cruel or not to keep the original planned glass cats its down to you we can only advise what to do and what we would do if it were our tank. If it were my tank I would go for Gold Hover Cats and keep them a group of 6
Wills
. I know some people here are saying you can only keep 4-6 in a 55 while others say more then that, but either way I think we can all agree now that a 20 long is far less than ideal...I feel like I should almost start another topic now haha..but, anyone have any ideas to what I could keep in a 20g? I really like weird or more exotic fish, at least for this tank. Does anybody have any experience with African butterfly fish and their compatibility with corys? I've only seen one before at a lfs dead...I just recently got peacock gobys for my other tank (inspired by aprils winner haha).
TallTree01
Coo, Man
If you like see through fish have a look at pristella tetras.
What about Glass Bloodfin Tetras?
A nice and hardy option, but for my money, they are far too active for a 20. They should have 4 feet of length to swim in, if you ask me.
eaglesaquarium said:
Fair enough I've not kept them before just trying to wrack my brain for any other "see though fish" that might work here.
Wills
The glass bloodfins act just like the regular bloodfins... They are a little (but just a little) less active than zebra danios. Bloodfins should be in 4 foot tanks (I suppose you could get away with a 3 footer), and zebras in 6 foot tanks (certainly never less than 4), if you ask me.
Totally agree on the Danio front - just such a shame they are so easy to find and have the "publicity" campaign from the heart foundation (sure Im missing the main point of that advert - Im joking I get it).
Taken it on board for the bloodfins
Wills
Taken it on board for the bloodfins
Wills
Both Wills and Eaglesaquarium are very knowledgeable posters, as are many of the other posters in this thread. I didn't mean to contradict anyone's advice, only adding my firsthand experience with these awesome fish. I also use Seriouslyfish as a major reference point as well as Planetcatfish among others.
I would also recommend the Pristella X-Ray Tetras. They can be kept in a much smaller tank than the Glass Cats and they are available in the standard X-Ray coloration as well as an albino strain known as the Gold Pristella Tetra. Strangely enough the Gold variety is is roughly half the price of the X-Ray and just about the same in transparency. The Gold Pristellas that I recently added to my son's 55 gallon kinda glow also, which looks great against the greens of the plants & the black background. Glass Catfish cost about $5-7 each, while the Gold Pristellas are only $1.89 at Petco here in North Carolina. These are shoaling fish that shouldn't be kept at less than 6 specimens and more is always better.
If you decide to get Pristella Tetras I would say you could fit up to 10-12 in a 20 gallon, of course depending on what else you keep in that tank. Since the Gold variety is just a color morph of the X-Ray, you could keep a shoal with half of each much the same as keeping Tiger Barbs, Green Tiger Barbs & Albino Tiger Barbs.
Back on topic: Glass Catfish are one of the worst types of fish to order online since they require swimming room. It's safe to say they won't get that room in transit to your address so there's a good chance of getting fish that are very stressed and aren't healthy.
Gold Pristella Tetras:
I would also recommend the Pristella X-Ray Tetras. They can be kept in a much smaller tank than the Glass Cats and they are available in the standard X-Ray coloration as well as an albino strain known as the Gold Pristella Tetra. Strangely enough the Gold variety is is roughly half the price of the X-Ray and just about the same in transparency. The Gold Pristellas that I recently added to my son's 55 gallon kinda glow also, which looks great against the greens of the plants & the black background. Glass Catfish cost about $5-7 each, while the Gold Pristellas are only $1.89 at Petco here in North Carolina. These are shoaling fish that shouldn't be kept at less than 6 specimens and more is always better.
If you decide to get Pristella Tetras I would say you could fit up to 10-12 in a 20 gallon, of course depending on what else you keep in that tank. Since the Gold variety is just a color morph of the X-Ray, you could keep a shoal with half of each much the same as keeping Tiger Barbs, Green Tiger Barbs & Albino Tiger Barbs.
Back on topic: Glass Catfish are one of the worst types of fish to order online since they require swimming room. It's safe to say they won't get that room in transit to your address so there's a good chance of getting fish that are very stressed and aren't healthy.
Gold Pristella Tetras:
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