Apache's Catfish Community Thread.

Well, if an aquarium can be found that has a footprint of 30cm x 45cm exactly, it would have an internal capacity of about 40Litres, if it were 30cm tall.

The water alone would weigh about 40Kg, and then there is the substrate and any hardscape on top, so you're looking at about 50Kg.

Is it a peice of solid furniture, or is it flat-pack IKEA type furniture?
If it's the latter I wouldn't trust it to hold that weight safely.

I didn't say I'd found the tank, I was talking hypothetically based on your measurements. 
Just wanted to check the furniture would hold the weight.

There are a few small tanks here to give you food for thought.

Sorry to hear about your male catfish 

If you can spare 47cm instead of 45cm you could get a 45L
https://fishkeeper.co.uk/product/aqua-range-aqua-45-black-aquarium-set

If you can spare 47cm instead of 45cm you could get a 45L

If you click on the spec, it turns out to hold 40 litres. Some have misleading names which don't equate to the number of litres they hold, so always good to check the actual dimensions and see if there is mention of number of litres it holds.

Last year I bought a "45L" tank for my shrimps. It was a good deal, a well known manufacturer and LFS. When I got it home and measured it internally, it worked out at about 33L! Always check the internal dimensions before you buy. It turned out that the "45L" was the "shipping volume" - i.e. how many of these can we get in this truck / container? Needless to say, discussions ensued!

                                                Skittler

Sorry about that, I hadn't read the technical specs in enough detail. 
That's why we appreciate the more experienced people on this forum (thanks fcmf & Skittler)
 

Hi

Have you tried eBay or gumtree they may have some suitable sized 2nd hand tanks in your area, saving more of your birthday money to buy fish with. 

Cories are my favourite fish, I think they are so chilled and not concerned about anything.  They are either really busy bustling around the tank or motionless on the bottom resting.

Anne

Sounds like a good idea, however you'll need to consider what to do when they have laid eggs.

Taken from seriouslyfish:

Set up the breeding tank (18″ x 12″ x 12″ or similar is a good size), with either a bare bottom, sand or fine gravel substrate. Use air-powered sponge or box-type filtration as fry won’t be sucked into these and provide some clumps of vegetation such as java moss. A temperature of around 75°F and a pH of 6.5 should be fine. Filtering the water through peat is useful, as is the use of RO water.

It’s always better to have a higher ratio of males to females when breeding corys and 2 males per female is recommended. Condition the group on a varied diet of live, frozen and dried foods. When the females are visibly full of eggs perform a large (50-70%) water change with cooler water, and increase oxygenation and flow in the tank. Repeat this daily until the fish spawn.

It’s worth observing a couple of notes on general cory breeding at this point. Many species are seasonal spawners, breeding during the wet season in their native countries. This occurs at the same time of year as the UK winter, so if summer breeding attempts are failing, it may be worth waiting until winter before trying again. Additionally, it can take several years for certain species to become sexually mature, so be patient. Finally, different tactics may sometimes be required, such as timing of water changes, oxygenation levels etc. If you aren’t having any luck, don’t be afraid of trying different approaches.

If the fish decide to spawn, they will usually lay their eggs on the tank glass, often in an area where water flow is quite high. Spawning behaviour is characterised by an initial increase in activity and excitement, before males begin to actively pursue females. A receptive female will allow a male to caress her with his barbels, before the pair take up the classic “t-position”, in which the male grasps the females barbels between his pectoral fin and body. He then releases some sperm and it’s thought that this passes through the mouth and gills of the female, being directed towards her pelvic fins. These she uses to form a ‘basket’, into which she deposits a single egg (although up to 4 may be released). Once this is fertilised, she swims away to find a suitable place to deposit the egg, before the cycle is repeated. If you spawn the fish in a group situation, you will often see multiple males chasing a female as she goes to deposit an egg, in an effort to be the next chosen to fertilise them.

The adults will eat the eggs given the opportunity, so once spawning is complete you have a couple of choices. Either remove the adults and raise the brood in the same tank, or move the eggs and raise the fry elsewhere. If you decide to move the eggs, you’ll find they’re quite robust, and can usually be gently rolled up the glass with a finger. The new container should contain the same water as the spawning tank and be similarly well-oxygenated. Wherever you decide to hatch the eggs, it’s always best to add a few drops of methylene blue to the water to prevent fungussing. Even then, some eggs will probably fungus, and these should be removed as soon as they’re spotted in order to prevent the fungus spreading. Other options include adding an alder cone to the hatching container (these release various beneficial chemicals). Some hobbyists even use certain species of freshwater shrimp to pick any fungal spores from healthy eggs. Cherry shrimp, Neocardina heteropoda work well. These will eat diseased eggs, but leave healthy ones unharmed.

The eggs hatch in 3-5 days and once the fry have used up their yolk sacs, they’ll accept microworm and brine shrimp nauplii as first foods. They seem to be less susceptible to disease when kept over a thin layer of sand, rather than in a bare-bottomed setup.

http://www.seriouslyfish.com/species/corydoras-panda/

There's no need to introduce CO² as this is only useful for maintaining a high maintenance planted tank.

You could use an airpump to increase oxygenation, or just ensure the filter outflow creates a good amount of surface movement.

well, i may use some sponges from my current filter in my main tank when i get the filter so it will already have a large amount of bactiria. my cories bread previously and my old tropical fish encyclopedia says that breeding is similar to Corydoras Aneus so i'll give it a reason for a new tank; Thanks Everybody

I think even Otos might not be able to resist the extra protein they'll get from fish eggs.