jri4

i am looking for a big tank, but not overly size as to be more expensive. I would like to keep:

1 Oscar------------- 14"
1 Jack Dempsey----- 12"
1 Bala Shark-------- 14"
1 Pleco------------- 18"
6 Barbs------------- 18"

This equals 76", overstocking anything under 90 gallons, which I understand. My goal is to get a 75 gallon tank. So my question is, would a setup such as the one below be okay for a 75 gallon tank?:

1 Oscar-------------------------------------------------14"
1 Jack Dempsey-----------------------------------------12"
1 Bristlenose Pleco---------------------------------------8"
(optional) 1 Shark (Bala or Red-tailed)--------------------12"
(optional) 6-8 of a community school of fish (barbs?)------20"

This equals 66", leaving room for the messiness of the Oscar. Hopefully all these tankmates will cooperate. Does this sound okay? Also, I would lose the 'optional' fish if I could opt for a 55 gallon instead. What does everyone think, I want to do it correctly from the beginning to not harm the fish or my wallet later on.

Thanks!
~James

p ViRuS q

if i was in your position i would get the 75 gallon tank with just the oscar,dempsy,and pleco. the oscar and the dempsy can be a not so easy pair to keep. you would have to monitor them closely being that they both get big and can become aggressive. you should only keep those three fish that way they have more room to swim around. im sure you will probably put some driftwood or plants in the tank and that will take up room that the fish will have to swim. so i would not advise you to have any other fish in that tank. you wouldnt want to keep smaller fish with the oscar and the dempsy, and you wont have enough space to purchase a fish that gets equal in size. unless you want to torture your fish.

Barbrella

Inches per gallon guideline does not apply with the type of fish you're talking about. If it did, you could keep a 10" oscar in a 10 gallon tank.


1 Oscar------------- 14"
1 Jack Dempsey----- 12"
1 Bala Shark-------- 14"
1 Pleco------------- 18"

You could probably keep the Oscar, JD and pleco in 150 gallons minimum.

Forget the bala shark. They need to be kept in schools, and no home aquarium is large enough for that.

darkwolf29a

I completely agree with this. You need as a big a tank as you can afford. I have an Oscar and a Common Pleco in a 75, and I wouldn't put any more fish in there, as it would be too cramped and the bioload is big enough. Remember, Oscars are VERY messy fish.