I Would Like To Add 6-8 Bristle Noses...

[super-MAGuire]

If anyone has realised my posts from other parts of the forum, i have been given the responisbility to stock and look after a large display tank, dimentions are 300cm x 50cm x 60cm so around 900liters.

I would like to add 6-8 bristle noses ablino and normal mix, as they will ad a bit character on the bottom or sides of tank through theirs activies through out the day. The tank has already got 2 large common plec of around 12"...

Should i not bother with the smaller plecs as the already present plecs will just outcompete for food, are they terratorial at all? and will it just look silly?

Their is currently no bottom dwellers atm, was considering cory's but the subsrate is gravel, so would like to avoid them. Any suggestions for bottom dwellers (suckers, non suckers ect)... even some potentaily growing big, but has to be friendly in a community of angels, rams, neons and small speices alike. Non of the mentioned are stocked yet, but thats the plans for it.

Just fishing for ideas really

 

[Ahmotorsport]

For that many Pleco's to live in the same tank you'd need loads and loads of hiding places.

Commons and BN's arent a problem in my experience, but to avoid aggression, lots of hiding places!

 

[super-MAGuire]

For that many Pleco's to live in the same tank you'd need loads and loads of hiding places.

Commons and BN's arent a problem in my experience, but to avoid aggression, lots of hiding places!

thanks for the reply, i've been waiting a while!

Yeah the tank is 10ft/3m long with 3 x bog wood piles, and 3 seperate rock piles along its length... I might leave it until i have everything else stocked in it, and see how it looks. I would prefer the commons not in their, but they are have been their for a while now, so feel like i shouldnt swap them.

 

[Livewire88]

I would love to see some photos of your 10ft tank

 

[super-MAGuire]

I would love to see some photos of your 10ft tank

It is not "my" tank, but it is in a local gym, who had a bit bad luck with it, so i have taken it over the responsibility to looking after it.

here is the work in progress





I have added a group of giant danio's, 2 pairs of dwarf gouramis, and a large group of neon tetra.
I'm planning on a goupe of angels, a couple of pairs of dwarf cichlids, columbian rams or some sort of apisto.
maybes a group of neon rainbows, maybes 6-8 bristle nose plecs, and some sort of active bottom dwellers.

I was going to go for a large species tank of barbs and things, but they are a bit too unpredictable as i'm not their all that often to keep an eye on how everything interacts, so going for the smaller speices approach but larger numbers. see how it pans out.

 

[N0body Of The Goat]

I would have gone for something like 15-20 Giant Danios with a similar number of Clown Loaches, 20x real water turnover at 25C, two big social groups of colourful active fish with little risk of agro between the species because they use such diferent water levels.

Ordinarily I would not mix Giant Danios with Dwarf Gourami, the latter need far calmer water movement and might be intimidated by the zippy danios (as might the Neons, which to be honest and could even end up at live lunch over time).

6-8 adult Bristlenose Plecs would need immense filtration (3 FX5s would be my choice once they reached adulthood), regular big water changes including daily removal of poop, not to mention "millions" of hidey holes and line of sight barriers!

 

[cambojnr]

6-8 adult Bristlenose Plecs would need immense filtration (3 FX5s would be my choice once they reached adulthood), regular big water changes including daily removal of poop, not to mention "millions" of hidey holes and line of sight barriers!

He is right about the bristlenoses I had 1 that was only 1 inch long and the amount of poo was pathetic for such a small fish. I think you should just go with a 2-3 big shoals of some diffrent species, our just go with the 200 neons as that would look amazing, and wouldent produce as much waste as bigger fish. I think it would be easier anyways to look after them when it isint my tank.

 

[super-MAGuire]

I would have gone for something like 15-20 Giant Danios with a similar number of Clown Loaches, 20x real water turnover at 25C, two big social groups of colourful active fish with little risk of agro between the species because they use such diferent water levels.

Ordinarily I would not mix Giant Danios with Dwarf Gourami, the latter need far calmer water movement and might be intimidated by the zippy danios (as might the Neons, which to be honest and could even end up at live lunch over time).

6-8 adult Bristlenose Plecs would need immense filtration (3 FX5s would be my choice once they reached adulthood), regular big water changes including daily removal of poop, not to mention "millions" of hidey holes and line of sight barriers!

The filtration from what i have seen in it is 4 x 600-900lph powderheads with undergravel filter and a aqua one 2450 filter. I have a spare tetratec 1200 in my house i would install if i seen any issues with it. But i dont have any/much controle over that.
It is not my tank otherwise i would change the subsrate to sand and have the loaches + a big group of cory. But looking at other options for that, any suggestion?
The danios should not eat the neons, they are only 3cm atm so the time they grow full size the neons should be at their max size too, Also the neons should be lower in the water colum, like you said above, to groups of active fish to use different water levels.
I'm sure in all that surface area, including 2 pockets of suspended plants the gouramis could hide out and make their terratory their, and males have more than enough space to keep away from each other.
Also i'm certain once i get the tank planted up their will be plenty of space for the BN if i do follow through and add them. However i think i will only get the BN if i didnt have the commons in their.