What Small Fish To Put With Red Belly Piranhas

[Jenste]

No fish will eat the waste of another fish.....anything you add to your tank (yes, even snails) will contribute it's own waste to the tank as well.   

 

[AmtotheBurr]

Do you own a gravel vaccum? That sounds like what you need.

 

[Vethian]

I have a battery cleaner that is awesome.  I use it every other day to keep waste under control.

 

[AmtotheBurr]

And I have snails in a 5 gallon. They do produce waste. And they do eat food bits in the bottom of the tank, but you have a 55 gallon. I doubt you'd ever see a dent in it because the tank is so large and the fish are continually fed (so it will stay continually dirty). Large apple snails (the golf ball sized ones are around $10 a piece) smaller ones are cheaper but, well, smaller. And like we said they will be adding to waste too. So I won't say a snail couldn't survive in the tank because I don't know, but I will say that I don't think they will clean the tank enough for it to be noticeable.

I have a battery cleaner that is awesome.  I use it every other day to keep waste under control.

Never heard of that but it sounds awesome

 

[RobRocksFishTank]

Having a proper set-up is first and foremost the most important aspect of keeping fish. Proper filtration will minimize your maintenance and keep water conditions balanced. Simply put, you've got too much fish for your set-up. Adding more life of any type is going to increase the bio-load. Making it even harder for you to attain a decent environment in an almost impossible situation.

 

[AmtotheBurr]

Rob makes a good point, do you know what kind of filter you're running on the tank?
I think the messiness of this particular fish may be an issue more than there being 3 in the 55 gallon. They are over crowded, but their eating habits aren't the most ideal for a clean tank

 

[Vethian]

And I have snails in a 5 gallon. They do produce waste. And they do eat food bits in the bottom of the tank, but you have a 55 gallon. I doubt you'd ever see a dent in it because the tank is so large and the fish are continually fed (so it will stay continually dirty). Large apple snails (the golf ball sized ones are around $10 a piece) smaller ones are cheaper but, well, smaller. And like we said they will be adding to waste too. So I won't say a snail couldn't survive in the tank because I don't know, but I will say that I don't think they will clean the tank enough for it to be noticeable.

I have a battery cleaner that is awesome.  I use it every other day to keep waste under control.

Never heard of that but it sounds awesome
 

 
 
http/www.petsmart.com/fish/vacuums/national-geographic-trade-aquarium-power-vacuum-zid36-27527/cat-36-catid-300083?var_id=36-27527&_t=pfm%3Dcategory

 

[RobRocksFishTank]

I've never been a fan of them but I've never used that one. They aren't really designed for large messes just quick, clean-ups. The OP has a large mess and the ones that I've used would get full or clogged up in this situation. Which would require cleaning the filter bag many times.

 

[Vethian]

true, it does require some effort.  But, it is great in between water changes.  I use it in a 55 gallon SA cichlid tank.  Very messy fish.  I use it every other day and it needs cleaned 2 - 3 times for the complete cleaning.  I keep a 5 gallon bucket with water and just pop off the filter and rinse.  Very quick and easy.
 

I've never been a fan of them but I've never used that one. They aren't really designed for large messes just quick, clean-ups. The OP has a large mess and the ones that I've used would get full or clogged up in this situation. Which would require cleaning the filter bag many times.

 

[CthulhuReborn]

Well I don't care about the wast it's the leftover food that sometimes get knocked around that annoys me but the piranhas won't eat the snail right?
And also I'm not sure what the filter is but my LFS said when I bought it that filter will work good with the piranhas so I'm trusting them on it lol

 

[RobRocksFishTank]

Your options listed in order of efficiency are:
 
Manual clean-up after feeding - Stresses out your fish because the hate people. I've seem timid fish and it is not good to freak them out.
 
More filtration in the way of some sort of mechanical filter that is easy to clean - LFS guy is wrong.
 
Adding a scavenger - Anything that would be effective would have to be big. Fish are dangerous to anything resembling food and tank may not handle adding anything substantial.
 
Time to break out the magic wand.

 

[CthulhuReborn]

Sorry guys I can't find what my filter is still I'm gonna keep trying to find the box it was in

 

[Wildbetta]

You have gotten some really good advice on this thread so I won't repeat everything that has been said already.  The most important thing I am seeing though is that you are having leftover food issues -- there is no need to bring in another fish you will need to feed (because they will not exist solely to eat leftovers).  Your best bet is to reduce how much you are feeding to a point to where there is nothing left over.  The solution is as simple as that.  Don't feed the fish as much = no left over food in the tank.

 

[CthulhuReborn]

You have gotten some really good advice on this thread so I won't repeat everything that has been said already.  The most important thing I am seeing though is that you are having leftover food issues -- there is no need to bring in another fish you will need to feed (because they will not exist solely to eat leftovers).  Your best bet is to reduce how much you are feeding to a point to where there is nothing left over.  The solution is as simple as that.  Don't feed the fish as much = no left over food in the tank.

k thanks I've been making them eat less and it seems to be working better

 

[Ryan10]

I have kept Piranha since the late 90's. There is a lot of trail and error. Anything you put in the tank with them will be eaten. It might take a day or several months but they will eat it so don't spend a lot of money on something. I had around 20 convicts living with mine for about a year and all of a sudden they ate them all within a week.

As far as keeping the tank clean, try getting rid of the gravel and going with sand. That way the chunks of food stay on top of the substrate for easier cleaning.  I use play sand as my substrate.  Just make sure you rinse it really well.   With your filtration you are going to have double what the tank needs.  I have a 125 gallon tank and filtration that's setup for over 250 gallons.  I also only feed mine once or twice a week and do big water changes after feedings. 
 
I see you are feeding them shrimp and salmon.  Shrimp is great but salmon isn't good for piranha at all.  Instead use a white fish like tilapia.  It doesn't have the oils that are bad for your fish plus it is a lot cheaper.  Tilapia should be your fishes main food source.  Don't feed live fish imo...there is nothing worth while that's going to come from it.   Goldfish carry diseases and offer nothing nutrition wise.  They can actually stunt your fishes growth.
 
Here is a look at one of my setups.  If you have any questions feel free to send me a message.


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