First tank - 55gal

Snapple75 · 08-24-2009, 04:48 PM

Hi everyone, i'm new to the forums and have been an aquarium enthusiast for quite some time.
I plan on picking up a 55 gallon tank tonight from a friend who's moving to chicago and will soon start the cycling process, however I do have a few questions.

Is a 55 gallon tank too big for a beginners fish tank?

I'd eventually like to have a couple red tail or rainbow sharks in the tank, I've heard all the quick calculations for carrying capacity of a tank(1 gallon = 1 inch, etc) but I realize that the shark's aggressiveness would limit the number that could be put in a tank that size. That being said, what would be the ideal number of sharks in a 55g setup like that? What sort of fish would go well as tank-mates with the sharks?

Judge · 08-24-2009, 05:27 PM

Hey Snapple, welcome to ftf. We are pleased you have joined our friendly informative group. Absolutely NOT. A 55 is a great size to begin with. Think about it this way, the more volume of water the less likely something small going wrong can have a large effect. In a smaller tank is does not take much of an error to become devastating. Make sense? As far as the shark question, well I can't help much there. They can be aggressive, depends on how big the particular species gets. I would research for possible tank companions, pick a few and return for specific questions. I am sure someone here will be able to help.

ZeroSystem · 08-25-2009, 03:09 AM

I've kept a Rainbow Shark and a Redtail Shark in the past. I found the Rainbow to be the more aggresive of the two, but it was a tough comparison. I should mention that these two were kept in different tanks (two seperate 55g) and I've never kept more than one shark per tank. I've been told that multiple redtail/rainbow sharks wasn't recommended, but like I said, I've never tried it. I kept my Rainbow Shark with a Firemouth and a bunch of larger tetra's and Barbs (buenos aires tetra's and tiger barbs). Eventually the Shark actually started terrorizing the Firemouth! I was a bit surprised by this, but then again the Firemouth always was pretty shy. The Redtail I kept with African Cichlids (Mbuna). They all seemed to get along just fine, never had any issues with 'em. Sometimes the Bristlenose pleco and the Shark would have a dissagreement about food, but nobody ever seemed to get hurt.