20 Gallon High Almost Done Stocking

[Kowalski]

Hello all, me again!!

A question:

How many Albino Cories in a 20 gallon high with the stocking being:

6 Platies
1 Amano Shrimp
1 American Flag Fish


Overstocked? Enough room for any Albino Cories?

Thanks so much in advance.

 

[sparklefuzz]

I'd say you're going to be pushed. You're more or less already there with what you have, based on adult sizes, and the inch-per-gallon rule. Corys should be kept in groups of preferably 4 or 5, which would overstock your tank by alot.

 

[Kowalski]

I'd say you're going to be pushed. You're more or less already there with what you have, based on adult sizes, and the inch-per-gallon rule. Corys should be kept in groups of preferably 4 or 5, which would overstock your tank by alot.

Hm, well thank you for that. Any other bottom dwellers you would suggest?

 

[sparklefuzz]

I don't know of any off-hand, all cories are schooling fish.. someone else may be able to suggest something.

 

[Kowalski]

I don't know of any off-hand, all cories are schooling fish.. someone else may be able to suggest something.

Ah, alright. Well thank you very much for the help.

 

[voo]

What about kulhi loaches?

 

[adam98150]

Kulhi loaches should be OK, as long as you provide caves etc for them to hide in (they prefer to be in groups 3+)

 

[severum boy]

Ahhhh, but with 3 Kulhi loaches, you would be drastically over stocked! Concidering that Kulhis get to a good 3'', and I have two at 5'', so you would be 6'' overstocked. If you were to do this, you would need to get a large external filter or a far larger tank. Hope this helps.

 

[voo]

Not all kulhi's get that big, and they dont contribute much towards the bioload.
With 20g i think you'd be fine with 3-4 kulhi's, as long as there's somewhere for them to hide.

Mine live under the mat of riccia

 

[severum boy]

Voo, im not directing this at you but to what has just been said on this thread. But you're (everyone) saying that having 4 cories that get to 2" (8" total) would overstock his tank but 4 kulhi loaches that get to 3/4" (12-16" total) wouldnt in respect of the inch per gallon rule?

 

[Egmel]

Voo, im not directing this at you but to what has just been said on this thread. But you're (everyone) saying that having 4 cories that get to 2" (8" total) would overstock his tank but 4 kulhi loaches that get to 3/4" (12-16" total) wouldnt in respect of the inch per gallon rule?

I'm a newbie to this too but I'm learning slowly!

The inch per gallon rule is a very rough guideline. It sort of works for small thin fish but often other considerations need to be taken into account. Some fish are very messy (they poop a lot) and as such may produce more ammonia than others of the same size, they would be said to have a large bio-load. Some fish are relatively clean so theoretically you can mildly overstock with them. Another thing that makes a difference is the filter you have, if you have a filter that is meant for a bigger tank then it has more room for 'good bacteria' and again may allow you to overstock.

From what I've picked up it's always better to understock rather than overstock, especially if you're new to fish keeping. At the end of the day it's up to you though what you put in your tank. The people on this forum can only advise according to what works for them (and TBH they seldom all agree ) just remember that it's you that will have to fish out any dead pets if you get it all wrong.

 

[severum boy]

Im not a newbie (5 years experiance), but am meerly taking the mic out of the inch per gallon rule. But if the rule only works for small fish (which it kinda does) and is an estimate, why are people told to use it in unrealistic circumstances, eg like oscars in 2ft tanks?

 

[adam98150]

Look at my stock...and a 20g is bigger then mine.

 

[severum boy]

Look at my stock...and a 20g is bigger then mine.

Dude, id say that was only slightly overstocked and wouldnt be a problem with 40% water changes a week.
Shrimps produce tiny tiny waste. One thing i would say is to take out your betta as they dont do well in community tanks aspecially with other anabantoids (unless theere have been no problems).

 

[Egmel]

[off topic]

Im not a newbie (5 years experiance),

My mistake, it was the way you phrased your question, I made the (wrong) assumption that you were asking why the inch/gallon rule wasn't steadfast.

but am meerly taking the mic out of the inch per gallon rule. But if the rule only works for small fish (which it kinda does) and is an estimate, why are people told to use it in unrealistic circumstances, eg like oscars in 2ft tanks?

Oohh Do you have a magic rule that works for all cases then?!

I think the problem is that there isn't really a magic rule, most people work on experience and most experiences are based on getting it wrong first time round. In the absence of a magic rule it's natural to use the next best thing, but hopefully as each hobbyist builds up their knowledge, either by experience of by asking people who have experience, they can help stop others from making sily stocking mistakes. I know I've learnt a lot about stocking in the past few weeks!

[/off topic]