silver dollar fish compatability

Question
QUESTION: i have a 50 gal. tank w/ 3 silver dollars & 1 placostamus algae eater. first,how can i tell gender of the silvers,and what else would be a good room mate? by the way, water is fresh water.
any help?

ANSWER: Well first off let's fix some minor bugs in the 50 gallon tank.

1. Silver Dollars need at least 6x schools and this will not be overstocking your aquarium.
2. Pleco's need a 100+ aquarium as they get 2-3 feet in length.

Once you add some Silver Dollars and remove the pleco there are a lot of options.

Silver Dollars do get large so I recommend fish that are of 4-5+ inches in size. You'll need peaceful fish that will not bother the silver dollars.

Here's a list (not all to add):

Gold Barbs get a good size and would look great paired with the silver they need 3+ groups and they can school as well.

A good bottom feeder (without the pleco) would be a squeaker catfish. They are semi-aggressive and do not tolerate other bottom feeders but they squeak and are beautiful in coloration.

Mollies get large and sailfins look great in any aquarium, sailfins hit a high 5 inch mark.

It really depends on personal opinion! If you have a stocking list planned out, relay it to me, and I'll help you out adjusting one to properly fit your aquarium!

- Ash

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: thanks for your response. my questions are: by 6x do you mean my tank size will accommodate a total of 6 silvers? my second question is : my little pleco will grow to 2-3 feet in length? if yes to my second question, will a pet store take my pleco in trade, or will he just store it?

Answer
Yes, your tank size can accommodate six silver dollars. Your Pleco will grow to 2-3 feet in size and yes the petstores will or will not take it depending on the store. They won't keep it in storage they'll put it up for sale and give you in-store credit. I also suggest Craigslist.

Once your common pleco has been rehomed you can look into Dwarf Pleco's such as Bristlenose Pleco's or Clown Pleco's.