I was wondering i'm getting a 75 gallon tank fish tank I wanted it to be like a planted aquarium mixed with a rocks. and I was wondering if i could have 1 type of every small gourami and some clown loaches and some sharks like a red tail and a a couple rainbows and 2 clown plecos
75 gallon fish tank
- Thread starter mechtech
- Start date
Nope, not in your wildest dreams is this possible. I started out my clowns in a 75, they are now in a 150 and I am thinking I may need a 220. Clowns grow slowly but they do get to 1 foot+. They also should be in groups of at least five and more is better. Clowns, as they get some size, tend to trash plants. I have them with a lot of anubias which is a pretty tough plant and they ravage them at times. If you are serious about keeping clownsm I suggest yo visit here https://www.loaches.com/species-index/clown-loach-chromobotia-macracanthus
-The gouramis will fight each other, often to the death.
-The sharks will try to kill each other.
-The clowns and the plecos occupy the same places and the plecos are unlikely to survive longer term. I made the mistake years ago of adding a few albino ancistrus to the above 75 when my biggest clown was about 6 inches. Those plecos all disaapeared after a few weeks. it wasn't the redline barbs in the tank that disappeared them.
IMO, you need to rethink your plan.
-The gouramis will fight each other, often to the death.
-The sharks will try to kill each other.
-The clowns and the plecos occupy the same places and the plecos are unlikely to survive longer term. I made the mistake years ago of adding a few albino ancistrus to the above 75 when my biggest clown was about 6 inches. Those plecos all disaapeared after a few weeks. it wasn't the redline barbs in the tank that disappeared them.
IMO, you need to rethink your plan.
There are all sorts of schooling fish, most tetras for ex. Corys tend to school while plecos tend to hide. Clowns are great in groups but will be wrong for you unless you can upgrade down the road. They live a long time. I got my two largest in 2002 at 4 inches they are about 11 inches today. I am 72 and they are likely to outlive me 
However, There are many other loach species that would work in a 75. The loaches.com site is a great resource in this respect.
But first, many folks use the terms schooling and shoaling interchangeably, but that is not really accurate.
My redline barbs tend to school and are lively fish. This is a group in Q for a few months pending my taking them to a weekend fish event where I would sell them. They will grow to about about 5 inches
However, There are many other loach species that would work in a 75. The loaches.com site is a great resource in this respect.But first, many folks use the terms schooling and shoaling interchangeably, but that is not really accurate.
- Schooling fish group tightly together and often swim in the same direction.
- Shoaling fish group loosely or may not appear to group at all, but they still need others of their kind close by.
My redline barbs tend to school and are lively fish. This is a group in Q for a few months pending my taking them to a weekend fish event where I would sell them. They will grow to about about 5 inches
Last edited:
There are lots of cool loaches you can keep in a 75g, but not clowns. Striata, histrionica, kubotai, kuhlis & sidthimunki come to mind. If you really want cherry barbs, they're pretty small so maybe sids, striatas or kuhlis would safest. Yoyos are common but semi-aggressive, I wouldn't trust them.
But another thing to consider is temperature. Roselines prefer low 70Fs, so if they are your focus corydoras might be a better choice. Most prefer low 70s or even upper 60s.
Like TTA said, many smaller plecos are hiders. If I weren't an insomniac, I would rarely have seen my clown plecos. Female BNs don't hide as much but males do.
But another thing to consider is temperature. Roselines prefer low 70Fs, so if they are your focus corydoras might be a better choice. Most prefer low 70s or even upper 60s.
Like TTA said, many smaller plecos are hiders. If I weren't an insomniac, I would rarely have seen my clown plecos. Female BNs don't hide as much but males do.
The shark is may chase (or worse) the denisonii (roseline) barbs. They are very territorial especially toward other torpedo shaped fish & low/bottom fish like corys & loaches...& maybe small cichlids, I'm not sure. A shark may be ok with a clown pleco or 2 IF there are LOTS of cave-like hiding places. Personally I would skip the shark & wait to get otos for say, 6 months, & get more, 10? But only get them if you like them, they only eat soft algae & may not easy eat prepared foods...
3 cichlids of even mellow 1s can be trouble if you have 2 males & 1 female. Again, lots of caves. A preferred group would be 1 male & 2 females at most. They can be hard to sex as juveniles...3 males would be least good.
I love roselines & pearl gouramis, together even better. Make sure you have a lid, roselines can be jumpers at least until they learn your tank.
3 cichlids of even mellow 1s can be trouble if you have 2 males & 1 female. Again, lots of caves. A preferred group would be 1 male & 2 females at most. They can be hard to sex as juveniles...3 males would be least good.
I love roselines & pearl gouramis, together even better. Make sure you have a lid, roselines can be jumpers at least until they learn your tank.
