hmm......empty 55 gal ....what catfish?

chonhzilla · Post by **chonhzilla** » 18 Dec 2007, 19:28

ok need everyone's help here if possilble....i know i want a catfish tank....one that will stay full grown under 2ft in length....its ok if he'll be the only one in there.....thank will be filled with plants and wood...which catfish would you get?....and where can i get one?

thanks in advance

MatsP · Post by **MatsP** » 18 Dec 2007, 20:56

So where do you intend to have your 8ft x 4ft x 4ft tank when your proposed fish actually grows out to the "maximum size" of 2ft. A 55g tank is fine for fish up to about 7" - if you have concrete plans for a 125g tank, I'd stretch that to about 1 ft. Bigger fish than that are really specialized things, and you need to REALLY know what you are doing to keep those, never mind have a big house [or fish-hut] to keep the tank.

For finding fish that grow to a certain size, you can use the Cat-eLog search page, you can also add information such as the required temperature [keep this as strict as you can, otherwise you will "miss out" on many species], select a family or genus to restrict the search, etc, etc. If you sort the search by "hits", you will get the most popular fish first.

http://www.planetcatfish.com/catelog/search.php

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Mats

chonhzilla · Post by **chonhzilla** » 18 Dec 2007, 21:18

so if i wanted to stick with a 55 gallon aquariuim ill be restricted to have a smaller fish....dang i didnt know that....obvious but i didnt think of that...im glad you pointed that out....well anyone else's opinion will be greatly appreciated..

thanks

MatsP · Post by **MatsP** » 18 Dec 2007, 21:42

Obviously, you still have a pretty wide-ranging selection - I think I checked a while back and there was a list of about 700-800 species that "stay relatively small" in the Cat-eLog [which has 1900+ species right now], so almost everyone should be able to find a species that is both of suitable size and available locally [although the latter is usually the bigger problem].

And if you modify your profile to give at least some more details of where in the 700 miles north to south of California you live, maybe somone living nearby [within a few hundred miles or so] can give you an idea of a shop carrying a good selection of fish.

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Mats

chonhzilla · Post by **chonhzilla** » 18 Dec 2007, 23:24

haha...ok sorry..from fresno CA,

thanks

Post by **Birger** » 19 Dec 2007, 06:08

There are some real character fish that would do well in a 55, they do not have to be huge to have an attitude, as suggested have a look see what catches your eye, predatory in nature, bizarre looks, rarity, attitude, bright colors could be any number of reasons for liking a fish, get a basic idea what you want then maybe ask a few questions.
Part of the fun is deciding what to get!

I am partial to Synodontis cats(family Mochokidae), there are different species that come in a range from small to huge and everything in between.

Birger