180 gal tank

[cornbread_5]

I think my mother is finally going to let me set up my 180 gal. tank . In my overstocked 55 gal , i have a 6 inch butti , 5 inch red devil or midas , a pleco, and a 4 inch pike cichlid . my question is will they be alright in the 180 gal and can i add more tankmates and does anybody know any tough cat fishes that will hold there own in an aggressive tank.

 

[shookONES]

You can add a fair amount of fish in the 180g. Just make sure you have some decor to break up the lines of sight and control aggression. As for catfish, the biggest issue you're going to face is getting food to a passive eater with all those aggressive cichlids. Some cats you might want to look into would be P.Niger and M.Irwini. Both are armored cats that have faired well with cichlids for me.

 

[cornbread_5]

what about a saint raphael catfish ? and whats cichlids are fast and equipped enought to survive with a butti?

 

[Bogwoodbruce]

Your gonna need a tough armoured cat as not much can survive with an adult butti.

 

[importracer]

If these fish have been raised together snce a small size, then chances are good they will colaberate in the 180....But, and this is a big BUT, I have known of more than a few Midas Devils that snapped on co-habs after many years of peacefulness....As with a Butti, these fish get big and a bit nasty too...Like mention before, be sure to have a lot of decoration to break up the eye contact....I would like to suggest getting large pots from Home Depot and cracking them in half...This way you will have made 2 houses out of 1 thing(2for1 deal)....Plants are possible, but not a definate...Due to the fact that cichlids dig a lot, your chances of growing any plants are slim to none....

 

[cornbread_5]

i am not worried about the midas cichlid , the butti is king and it will always be that way for the most part , i am just hoping the butti does not kill the midas