Hi, I have a 55 gallon tank and two oranda goldfish which are small. I was wondering if I get one bristlenose pleco, could I also get some cory cats to keep in that tank and how many could I get?

I'm anxious to hear the answer to your question, Torbe! A local aquarium service owner recommended those exact fish to add to my 55 gal. He said that he doesn't count bottom feeders and algae eaters in the fish count either, because they consume more bad stuff than they produce.

I'm hoping to get the straight poop here

I don't think that a bristlenose and a couple of cory cats would overload the system, sounds like you have plenty of room in there. I know that a bristlenose is compatible, and the tank doesn't need to be heated if it stays above 18C. I don't know about the requirements for cory cats, I've never kept them but plenty of people here do so someone will fill you in soon.

I agree that it doesn't sound like too much for your tnak but do keep in mind that Bristlenoses poo and poo and poo some more and really do add to you bioload. Not as much a goldies but they can be little poo factories and definatly need to be considered in the bioload.

I also agree that a bristlenose would be fine. But, they should be included in your count because as Maceo said, they poo alot. I have one in my tank and just love it. It does such a good job at keeping the algae cleaned up.

I used to have cory cats together with my goldfish when the goldfish were very small. They did fine. Someone here on koko's mentioned to me they should not be kept together because of temp. differences. But, if your tank doesn't get real cold I doubt it would be a problem. I would just be careful because cory cats are small and if the goldfish get very big they might eat them.