Size tank for ATF?

[Derpeder]

What is the minimum size tank you could keep an ATF in for a few years as a smaller fish?

I have a Empty 100 gallon acrylic could I keep one or two in there for a time and plan on saving for a larger tank?

I found a great deal at $30 each thats why I ask.


Plus is there any way a pleco would survive with an ATF? Just curious.

 

[Bsixxx]

depends what species you get!

vittus/forksail being the most common i would say absolut minimu would be a 360 8x3x2
goliath being the largest i would say a 450-500 8-10x4x2
and brevis being the smallest i would say a 210-300

but bigger is always better
thats just me though other may say you can get away with your 100 gallon, but keep in mind they are open water predators and are extremly fast and with just a fick of the tail they can clear the whole tank and opssibly kill them selves.

 

[Derpeder]

depends what species you get!

vittus/forksail being the most common i would say absolut minimu would be a 360 8x3x2
goliath being the largest i would say a 450-500 8-10x4x2
and brevis being the smallest i would say a 210-300

but bigger is always better
thats just me though other may say you can get away with your 100 gallon, but keep in mind they are open water predators and are extremly fast and with just a fick of the tail they can clear the whole tank and opssibly kill them selves.

You know... I've heard they can do that in aquariums.

I am not 100% sure what kind they actually are. I'll try to get a picture. Is there a short time period I could keep them in 100 gallons while they grow?

It just seems like a good deal that I don't want to miss if I can make it happen.

 

[Bsixxx]

You know... I've heard they can do that in aquariums.

I am not 100% sure what kind they actually are. I'll try to get a picture. Is there a short time period I could keep them in 100 gallons while they grow?

It just seems like a good deal that I don't want to miss if I can make it happen.

its most likely a vittus or forksailli if its under 100 bucks

i geuss if you get a small one 2-5" about 6 months i would think

 

[mike C]

you can get away with a 100 gallon for a short time and the you will have to upgrade. I don't reccommend that you buy 2 or 3 even, get 1 or get like 5. I say this because they tend to be agressive and establish a pecking order. If there is only 1 below the alpha, it will be picked on until it dies. This is my own personal experience as I bought 3 and 1 was killing 2 of them within 1 day so I returned 2 back to the store. They are amazingly fast predators that are really cool to own. Mine very unfortunatly died this past weekend.

 

[killerfish]

sure you could grow it out in there if you wanted but get it to a new tank before it gets past 12'' which wouldn't be long

 

[Derpeder]

Okay. Then I gotta think about it a little more. I need to know if I can get a much larger tank in the near future. This is definately in the plans so......... we'll see.

Do they have to eat live food or can they eat like pellets or chicken and stuff? What do you feed yours?

How long will it take to get them to 12"?

I was only going to get 3 max. So maybe I should just stick with 1 for now. Can other fish go with them as long as they are bigger?

Thanks for all your help guys.

 

[Bsixxx]

Okay. Then I gotta think about it a little more. I need to know if I can get a much larger tank in the near future. This is definately in the plans so......... we'll see.

Do they have to eat live food or can they eat like pellets or chicken and stuff? What do you feed yours?

How long will it take to get them to 12"?

I was only going to get 3 max. So maybe I should just stick with 1 for now. Can other fish go with them as long as they are bigger?

Thanks for all your help guys.

they most likely have been raised on feeders so it would be hard to convert them to frozen or freeze dried food. tank mates i wouldnt recomend till they get used to the tank, but after pretty much anything not to aggressive or that can eat them.

 

[West1]

I currently have 2VATFS (6"), 2 mono sabaes (5-6"), 2 comm pleco (3"/5"), 1 7"goldfish (my daughters first fish), 1 gold nugget pleco (3.5") and 1 indo dat (3.5"). Its a bare bottom tank with 2 pots with plants. I feed all my fish crickets, jumbo krill, earthworms, and once a week flakes. My ATFs take shots at flakes (spirilina) amd earthworms. I have absolutely no aggression from my ATFS. Infact they all swim together. My Atfs swim in the middle and the monos swim with them (I would say 50% of the time). The monos play tag with each other and zoom by the Tigers. I think I got a good pair of tigers, cause when my Monos fly bye, the tigers dont even follow them or move. They keep on doing what they are doing. I also sometimes sit next to my tank and watch them and the ATFs swim around me and sometimes pause in front of me. Its pretty neat. I think based on the fish I got with them and an open tank, they are pretty laid back. I plan on putting some Barracudas next week with the group. Other than that, I dont see the aggression like everyone says about ATF (hope I didnt jinx myself ). Oh, incase your wondering... Its a 5x2x2 and all my fish have no missing or scratched scales

So as for your Q Derpender, Id go for it. Just try to put something with them, so they dont only know ME ME ME. I think thats where the aggression starts from. Thats my experience with VATFS. Hope this helps