# Upside down catfish + ? =55g tank



## thecookiemonster (Apr 21, 2007)

My mbuna tank has gotten kind of boring, the breeding groups killed each other down to groups of 1 and 2, and not much is happening any more.
I have decided i will sell them, and restock as a community tank.
So far i plan to have
6 Upside down catfish
A school of Blind tetras(5-10)

I was hoping i firemouth, what other fish could work with these fish?

To reduce maintenance, the tank will have no substrate. I will use either an AC500 or 3 350lph filters


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## Fogelhund (Dec 3, 2002)

A pair of firemouths, could easily eliminate most other fish in a 55 gallon if they breed.

If you want more of a community setup, I would recommend either going with some Pelvicachromis, or Bolivian Rams as a starting point.


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## thecookiemonster (Apr 21, 2007)

Would having a single firemouth cut its aggression down enough to let other fish survive?


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## gage (Feb 7, 2007)

a single firemouth will surely have less aggression then when it has a counter part, though firemouths aggression level varies tons, from very peaceful, all the way down to mine, a flowerhorn killer...


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## hollyfish2000 (Aug 23, 2007)

How does having no substrate reduce maintenance? Just curious . . . Doesn't a plain glass bottom look weird?


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## MetalHead06351 (Oct 3, 2007)

It reduces maitenance by being easier to vaccumn. I've always thought it looks weird, and i'm sure the fish would appreciate something to sift through and rest on, as well as to play colors off of, but its a personal choice I guess.


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## PsYcHoTiC_MaDmAn (Dec 26, 2005)

bare bottomed tanks have their uses, particularly for quarantine tanks or fry tanks. as you can keep them free of dirt.

however, IMO they should only be used as that. fish in BB tanks do have a tendency to be skittish. I always shove a thin layer of sand in.


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## rjf (Oct 23, 2008)

I've had Firemouth before, I didn't find them to be so tough. They only grow to about 4 inches at best, so other young Cichlids usually outgrow them pretty quickly. I don't know how they would do with dither fish, may eat them up. In Cichlid communities though my experience is that a Firemouth will start a fight and then get his finny little butt kicked.


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