55 Gallon Bottom Dweller Suggestions?

[Troy328]

Hello, all! I am currently getting a 55 gallon community tank set up. My current stocking plans are:

• 6-12 Cherry Barbs
• 6-8 Platys
• 2 Honey Gouramis

Since all of these species swim towards the middle or the top of the tank, I'm looking for bottom dweller suggestions for something that would get along with these species that would add some movement and life to the bottom of the tank. I know corys and smaller plecos will be automatic recommendations, but I'm looking for maybe something a little bit different or uncommon. I was looking into getting a small group of Panda Garras, but I heard they could be aggressive towards each other. I have heard mixed information as to whether you can only keep 1 or not. I was also looking at Hillstream Loaches, but I have read that they need a high level of water flow, and I'm not sure if that's something I want for this sort of set up. I know neither of these fish are strictly bottom dwellers, but I figured they would add a different kind of movement to the tank. Does anyone have any other ideas?

[Fish Folk]

A couple long-finned Bristlenose Plecos could be fun. I’d suggest an albino and maybe a “green dragon” if you can find one…

They seem to thrive when ample driftwood is available.

 

[Patrick_G]

You're gonna be sad without Corydoras! 
Venezuelans are super cool, but there are dozens of unique species. 

 

[Tazalanche]

I have driftwood in all of my community aquariums, so my preferred bottom dwelling trio for a 55 would be the above mentioned ancistrus (aka bristlenose pleco or bushynose pleco... longfin preferred), 3-6 sterbai corydoras & 3-6 kubotai loaches (aka Polka-Dot Loach, Marble Loach, Cloud Botia, Angelicus Loach, Botia "Angelicus", Burmese Border Loach) , but they can be hard to find, so the alternative for them would be a zebra loach.

The cories & loaches both tend to have a great "litter of puppies" personality. All 3 also are good as a cleanup crew.

NOTE: If you don't like driftwood in your aquarium, I would not recommend the ancistrus. As stated by @Fish Folk, they thrive on in a tank where they can hangout on driftwood. They use it (& what grows on it) as an alternate food source. Here are 2 of my old males (1 albino longfin & 1 marbled longfin) fighting over a female.

Edited June 30, 2022 by Tazalanche

[Troy328]

On 6/30/2022 at 4:34 PM, Fish Folk said:

A couple long-finned Bristlenose Plecos could be fun. I’d suggest an albino and maybe a “green dragon” if you can find one…

They seem to thrive when ample driftwood is available.

 

If I did end up going with a pleco, I think a longfin bristlenose would definitely be my first choice!

On 6/30/2022 at 4:52 PM, Patrick_G said:

You're gonna be sad without Corydoras! 
Venezuelans are super cool, but there are dozens of unique species. 

 

Wow! I don't think I've ever actually seen Venezuelan Corys before! My personal favorites are false juliis :] I will keep these guys in mind if I decide to go with corys!

On 6/30/2022 at 5:01 PM, Tazalanche said:

I have driftwood in all of my community aquariums, so my preferred bottom dwelling trio for a 55 would be the above mentioned ancistrus (aka bristlenose pleco or bushynose pleco... longfin preferred), 3-6 sterbai corydoras & 3-6 kubotai loaches (aka Polka-Dot Loach, Marble Loach, Cloud Botia, Angelicus Loach, Botia "Angelicus", Burmese Border Loach) , but they can be hard to find, so the alternative for them would be a zebra loach.

The cories & loaches both tend to have a great "litter of puppies" personality. All 3 also are good as a cleanup crew.

NOTE: If you don't like driftwood in your aquarium, I would not recommend the ancistrus.

Whoa, I have never actually heard of Kubotai Loaches either, they look striking! I'll have to consider them, or maybe some other kind of loach, perhaps some Dwarf Chain Loaches? I would guess that both species prefer a strong water flow, which is why I initially ruled out the hillstream loach, but maybe it would be worth it. Something to think about!

 

Thanks for the suggestions!!

[Lots Of Loaches]

You can’t go wrong with loaches IMO. Throw 6 Kuhli loaches and 6 striata botia in there and the bottom will stay clean. You also won’t have to worry about snails either.  Golden Zebra loaches are nice as well. I would be sure to keep all loaches in groups of 6 or more as they interact a lot with each other. When they don’t have other loaches they can start to bother your other fish. Your tank sounds great so far from what you have described! Post a picture when your done so we can all enjoy your work.

[Bev C]

i have a 55 gallon and wanting to change my fish when they are gone  I want to do bottom dwellers   i want cories and  bristolnose pelco  for sure that is what i have already

i am doing research on the Synodontis Lucipinnis catfish  i think a small school would be neat they look cool 😎  they say they are peaceful with other fish not sure if they would work with the tank and your fish   if  anyone has more info on them  would love to hear your advice  please i was thinking 2- 3 would be great for for a 55 gallon. i could be wrong 

I watched this video some time ago  first time seeing them ,, this video made  fall for them and their look and actions this a dream fish  for me 

 

 

Edited June 30, 2022 by Bev C

[nabokovfan87]

On 6/30/2022 at 1:15 PM, Troy328 said:

Does anyone have any other ideas?

Because it's a 55G I give you one of my favorites for a recommendation.

Coloration on the photo isn't great (just a camera thing) but they have this blue and yellow and black banding that really cool to me. Zebra loaches!

 

I think they should be ok with everything you have and it's a bit of a unique fish species. Definitely do research on care and all of that, but I think some of the dwarf loaches might be a good place to look!

 

Edited July 1, 2022 by nabokovfan87

[Troy328]

On 6/30/2022 at 5:25 PM, Lots Of Loaches said:

You can’t go wrong with loaches IMO. Throw 6 Kuhli loaches and 6 striata botia in there and the bottom will stay clean. You also won’t have to worry about snails either.  Golden Zebra loaches are nice as well. I would be sure to keep all loaches in groups of 6 or more as they interact a lot with each other. When they don’t have other loaches they can start to bother your other fish. Your tank sounds great so far from what you have described! Post a picture when your done so we can all enjoy your work.

Yeah, I am starting to lean towards loaches! I actually have some Kuhlis in my other tank, so maybe I will look into something else. Are there any species in particular that are forgiving when it comes to flow rate? My Kuhlis seem to do fine with lower flow, but I know a lot of other loach species are a lot more active.

On 6/30/2022 at 5:42 PM, Bev C said:

i have a 55 gallon and wanting to change my fish when they are gone  I want to do bottom dwellers   i want cories and  bristolnose pelco  for sure that is what i have already

i am doing research on the Synodontis Lucipinnis catfish  i think a small school would be neat they look cool 😎  they say they are peaceful with other fish not sure if they would work with the tank and your fish   if  anyone has more info on them  would love to hear your advice  please i was thinking 2- 3 would be great for for a 55 gallon. i could be wrong 

I watched this video some time ago  first time seeing them ,, this video made  fall for them and their look and actions this a dream fish  for me 

 

 

Wow, they do seem very cool! I think they might be a little too much with the tank plans I already have, but definitely something to think about down the road! I wish you luck with them!

On 7/1/2022 at 6:00 AM, nabokovfan87 said:

Because it's a 55G I give you one of my favorites for a recommendation.

Coloration on the photo isn't great (just a camera thing) but they have this blue and yellow and black banding that really cool to me. Zebra loaches!

 

I think they should be ok with everything you have and it's a bit of a unique fish species. Definitely do research on care and all of that, but I think some of the dwarf loaches might be a good place to look!

 

Zebra loaches seem like a good suggestion, seems kind of like what I was looking for! The question I asked to Lots of Loaches also applies here: how picky are Zebra Loaches when it comes to flow rate? The whole reason I ruled out Hillstream Loaches is because I was worried I would not be able to provide fast enough water flow for them. Are Zebra Loaches a little more forgiving? Or are there any other similar loach species that work well in a lower flow environment?

 

Thanks for all the ideas guys, it's been very helpful!!

[nabokovfan87]

On 7/1/2022 at 9:52 PM, Troy328 said:

The whole reason I ruled out Hillstream Loaches is because I was worried I would not be able to provide fast enough water flow for them. Are Zebra Loaches a little more forgiving? Or are there any other similar loach species that work well in a lower flow environment?

Pretty much all of them I think prefer high flow, but I think it depends what you mean by low flow? Are you able to add an air stone to increase oxygenation? The big thing apart from flow is also temp. Some, like hillstream might want a cooler tank than other species just to boost up that oxygenation.  I cannot speak to it personally, but it's just the two things to research for any loach.

[Troy328]

On 7/2/2022 at 12:55 AM, nabokovfan87 said:

Pretty much all of them I think prefer high flow, but I think it depends what you mean by low flow? Are you able to add an air stone to increase oxygenation? The big thing apart from flow is also temp. Some, like hillstream might want a cooler tank than other species just to boost up that oxygenation.  I cannot speak to it personally, but it's just the two things to research for any loach.

Oh I can definitely do an airstone! I was under the impression that Hillstreams needed a circulator pump or a powerhead or something to that effect. My current plans for filtration involved a double HOB filter combo, and I wasn't sure if that would provide strong enough flow across the whole tank. But I suppose if oxygenation is the issue, not exactly the movement of the water itself, I might be fine? I guess I have more research ahead of me!

[nabokovfan87]

On 7/1/2022 at 10:06 PM, Troy328 said:

My current plans for filtration involved a double HOB filter combo, and I wasn't sure if that would provide strong enough flow across the whole tank. But I suppose if oxygenation is the issue, not exactly the movement of the water itself, I might be fine? I guess I have more research ahead of me!

In my 55 and 75 I ran two 75G rated HoBs and then I had one or two ziss bubble bios. Easily id suggest:

1. HoB on each "section" of the tank intake on the left, output towards the center of each.

2. Airstone in the middle of those two.

3. Thermometer underneath each HoB

I had Borneo loaches, they did pretty good for a long time, but eventually I had issues when the tank crashed.

[Lots Of Loaches]

Striata Botia/Zebra Loaches are pretty forgiving on water flow as long as they have a group to hang out with. They will play in the HOB outflow when they want more water current. Mine spend a lot of time snooping around in the calmer parts of my tank and then go play in the powerhead outflow. Also, they don’t get huge.

[Bev C]

I was considering  stripe zebra loach  or a another loach type but heard the zebra  do not get along with cories they bully them  plus was concern with my  mystery and netrite snails but the zebra loach are a beautiful fish 

Edited July 2, 2022 by Bev C