Straight answer on Oscar tank size

[Fish Eat Fish]

I have a big ole longfin in a 55 and he does just great! Just do big water changes and dont put any deco in that will cram his swim space. The long fins tend to be less aggressive and active in my expirience which helps. Soon though I do admit he will get a bigger tank for sure. If you have never had an oscar before your in for a treat because they are IMO alomst like dogs. When i wake up mine will always be front and center looking right at me waiting for his morning snack. Which i feed to him by hand a few inches above the water. He will jump full out of water if I held the food high enough but I dont want to train him that trick for obvious reasons.

 

[ewurm]

Trust me, I love my 14 inch Oscar. I wish I could get them all to be bigger. I think there are other factors such as temperature. I keep my tanks at 76-78 degrees. I have found that any higher than that increases aggression. I have heard that higher temps can make for bigger fish. Maybe that has something to do with it??? Or, perhaps I am just unlucky.

Higher temps increase metabolism and activity.

 

[Rakie]

road trip to cali and get a big tank for dirt cheap. there are tons of big tanks out there.

Yeah, but no medium sized tanks

Hard to find 75/90/100/120 But 135g + for super cheap is REALLY easy to find. Cant tell you how many 180-240g i see for cheap.

 

[MDH]

Out of curiosity, wouldn't an oscar do better in say a 40g breeder than a 55g long?

 

[Rakie]

Out of curiosity, wouldn't an oscar do better in say a 40g breeder than a 55g long?

Thats one of my personal debates. I think they are under rated... People see 40g and figure its too small, when its wider then a 55g by a bit.

I'll probably end up with 120's for my fish that need a minimum of 75g myself, more room its nicer and such.

 

[twhittle]

40 gallons is not enough water to disperse the bioload an oscar produces.

 

[Rakie]

40 gallons is not enough water to disperse the bioload an oscar produces.

Not a fully grown one, and not without great filtration... But a 55g doesn't even give it enough room to turn around.

 

[Onion01]

actually, due to indeterminate growth, a 400 year old oscar might reach 36"

but realistically, a 75g would be ideal for 1, maybe 2 adults

 

[twhittle]

A full grown oscar can turn around in a 55. The tail is flexible...as long as you don't have a 14 inch or larger oscar my experiences have been good with their turning abilities.

 

[MDH]

A full grown oscar can turn around in a 55. The tail is flexible...as long as you don't have a 14 inch or larger oscar my experiences have been good with their turning abilities.

I agree with you on this, but I still say a 40g breeder would be better suited given the deeper footprint. As long as you've got adequate filtration, and keep up on a large/frequent water changes.