am i overstocked?

[laurasmithuk]

i my set up is a 96 ltr tank.... juwel. currently homes

6 harliquins
5 neons
4 platties
2 otos
5 x-ray tetra
2 amano shrimp
6 zebra danios

have a feeling it might be over-stocked from reading posts. if i moniter water loads and keep up with water changes will this be ok?

cheers all

 

[ncjharris]

Hmmm, 96 ltrs = 25 gallons.

I think you are overstocked.

 

[laurasmithuk]

i have already stated i know that i am my question is with regular water changes etc will this be ok?

 

[ncjharris]

Ah yes, beg your pudding.
Well in theory, yes, but I would think it would have to be daily changes, and that would just be to keep the water chemistry in check.
There is nothing you can do if there are any terrortorial issues, or growing problems.

Personally, I would suggest looking into a bigger tank, another tank, rehoming them or giving them back to the LFS I am afraid.......
Others may have other ideas

 

[laurasmithuk]

how overstocked would i be? i have had the tank set up for 6 months with these stocking levels..... had no probs so am just assuming everything is ok

 

[Durbkat]

You are extremly overstocked because it is said you should only have 11 fish for a 29g so either get a bigger tank like 40g or bigger, get another 25g and split the group, return a few fish to ur lps.

 

[ncjharris]

If we take the 1" to 1 gallon rule, then you have about

6 harliquins - 1.5x6 = 9
5 neons - 5x1 = 5
4 platties - 4x2 = 6
2 otos - 2x2 = 4
5 x-ray tetra - 5x1.5 = 7.5
2 amano shrimp - negligible
6 zebra danios - 6x1.5 = 9

which is..... 40.5 inches of fish, give or take.
Thats adult sizes, so you perhaps have twice the amount of fish you have in there.

Its interesting you have had it like that for 6 months - with that stocking level?
As they fish get a bigger you may notice other probs.

There are good calcs for guides of what you can get in here;
http/www.aquamaniacs.net/aquamaniacs_calculators.html
here;
http/www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/pfk/pages/home.php

 

[laurasmithuk]

it has been set up with stocking level and has been fine.... have heard man people say that the inch per gallon rule is not always to be listened too

 

[ncjharris]

You are quite right, its only a guide, but as a rough guide its a good start.
Retrospectivley, if I was asked if your stocking would go into a 25 gal I would say no.
However, with 6 months behind you, its obviously possible - you don't describe any erratic behavior, so I assume all are ok. Just a heads up that you could expect probs in the future, and should maybe have a plan B up your sleeve.

 

[Durbkat]

Well the 1" to 1 gallon rule is just like a guideline rather than a rule because you wouldn't put a 40" fish in a 40 gallon tank because of its size you go by how much space will be left when they reach adult size or they will either die from bad water quality or aggression for space which they can kill so they can have more space. Like I said in my previous post those are your options as I see it.

 

[laurasmithuk]

i am still none the wiser. i have people syaing my stocking levels can be managed with reg water changes. by the time adults are fully grown i will have bigger tank so will this be ok?

 

[Durbkat]

Their is a 30/100 chance it will work with all the poop and room wise, and they can reach adult size in a few months. Also you are hurting them the longer you keep them in their because when they don't have room to spread out and relax they will become stunted (which means they will stop growing because don't have enough room and they will die a slow or fast painfull and stressful death) So do something quickly because you might have already started to stunt them. And if your lps does it if they have an empty tank they might hold your fish in a suitible size tank until you can get a bigger tank or another 25g so you can split the size of group.

 

[DaveW]

It might help with the water chemistry if you get a second filter, say an external one if you have an internal filter.

Just a thought.

 

[laurasmithuk]

if i did get extra filtration will it be ok to keep them as they are. hope to get bigger tank in 6-12 months

 

[andywg]

I would say that if you got a good external cannister filter, probaly twice weekly 20% water changes you should be fine. None of this fish are massive waste producers.

Always moniter the nitrate, nitrite and ammonia. That way you get a preview of any possible problems.

If possible try and plant it heavily, with CO2 if necessary, this will help remove ammonia, nitrite and nitrates.

I know for a fact that my 180 US gallon will be overstocked to around that level, but then that has double sump and UV filtration.

1" per gallon is designed to give a fair amount of leeway to allow for people who won't water change every week.