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So i have a fairly new 45g that I am just getting fish in and would like a few cats to join. This is a 45 tall, not a long tank, 36x13x24h

It has wood, rocks, pvc, live plants and a flower pot and currently the only inhabitants are a few snails and some filament barbs. I would like to add a paradise fish and congo tetra but for the bottom I want cats and maybe loach...or maybe just different cats...

Point is I know i need to stay small, something that wont kill my plants...i have water on the softer side, PH around 7, temp about 80

I found a few I liked but reading about them and then hearing experiences on them are 2 different stories..

cuckoo cat - leopard frog pleco - orinoco angel pleco - hoplo - chocolate zebra pleco - candy striped pleco

i wasnt expecting to like so many pleco, but i didnt want cory's, and i need to stay small

any advice, any i didnt mention i should look at - here to learn so teach me!!

thanks

Filament barbs get to 6"+ & can be quite boisterous, lots of people suggest you need a bigger tank with high oxygenation for these - congo tetras would mix ok but given max sizes you'll need to carefully think about stocking levels for 2 shoaling species. Paradise fish are a slower species & prefer cooler water - maybe not the best mix. The cuckoo cat would really need a rift tank set up so best avoided. Most of the plecs you list will be hiding away for most of the time you have them - if you're happy to rarely ever see them a group of one of them would be ok - avoid mixing species from the same genus though as there is the potential for hybridisation. Hoplos are active during the day & may only disrupt plants slightly if well established & would be a good call.

Yes seems no one near me knew anything about the filament barbs and for the moment they are juveniles...i have already thought about re-homing them as i can see they are very boisterous and "active" eaters...

the more I read on the paradise it doesnt seem like it would fit into my ideas for this tank so I am searching for a new centerpiece fish, however I still am left with needing to fill the bottom level correctly.

Anything else that may work well with plants that wouldnt hide so much?

I personally love my L260's they are always out and about, so are my L144's, my L333 are still small so hard to say but there are plenty of plecos out there that are cool and not shy

A 45 tall is not the largest tank as tanks go. And it being tall - and you wanting plants, makes it that much more tough to find a pleco that works well in that situation, other than otocinclus and possibly farowella cats don't know enough about plecos to be of much more help in that department. Small Hoplos are a good suggestion. But I would definitely consider a smaller barb (perhaps gold barbs but nothing that max out more than 2.5-3 inches and i would avoid tiger barbs). A more fitting Labyrinth might be a colorful betta or a nice honey gourami like Trichogaster lalia or chuna. my 2¢