Fish load ( 98 litres tank)

[jepot_04]

Hi, I am new here and would like to take your professional advice on board. I am also a newby to the hobby of fishkeeping. I already had my fish tank over a year now. I used to have fancy goldfish with it before, but just recently I decided to try tropical community fish. I started with the tropical fish keeping just a month ago. I have 4 male platies, 4 male guppies, 5 neon tetras, 5 glowing tetras, 4 peppered corys and 4 ghost shrimps. Am I overstocked or just doing fine with my 98 litres tank.

I am running on a Eheim biopower 160 internal filter plus a sponge filter attached to a canister with K1 media (DIY). additional air bubbles using Tetra whisper (lowest wattage-I just forgot what model name that was.) and an aquael comfort zone gold heater 200w. Got few plants on the tank as well.

let me know if the setup is ok or am my tank is overcrowded. Thanks. Your advice and opinions are highly appreciated.

 

[Byron]

Welcome to TFF.

You are not exactly overstocked, if you are diligent with regular (meaning once every week) water changes and not overfeeding. The stocking itself is a bit of an issue, depending upon your water parameters.

Livebearers (platy, guppy) and most shrimp need moderately hard (or harder) water with a basic (above 7.0) pH. Neon and glowlight tetras are soft water fish, preferring a slightly acidic pH (below 7). Peppered cory is sort of in the middle, and best if either extreme (hard or very soft) is avoided.

The neons and glowlights are shoaling fish and will always be better (= in better health, less stressed, "happier") with larger groups; same holds for cories. Assuming the water is more soft than hard, the tetras could be increased to 8-9 each, and the cories one or two more, and would benefit.

I would need to know the GH (general hardness), KH (carbonate hardness or Alkalinity) and pH of your source water before going further, as I do not want to recommend more of the tetras if they are going to have problems due to the parameters and would be better removed. And same goes for the platy especially, depending upon the numbers.

Byron.

 

[jepot_04]

Hi Byron, thanks for your opinion. I have not checked the GH and KH of the water at the moment. I'll let you know once I done that. Furthermore, I am not looking to add more corys nor tetras. Yes, you are right, they'll be better of they would be in large numbers, but I am more concern about overstocking and bioloads. I was also considering on the side of introducing a betta to the tank. I know it would be too risky since we all know it will depend on the temperament of the betta. But, I have read lots of forums and articles that betta will just work with a community tank. If I could see that as a feasible option I might get rid of my guppies and replace it with betta. I am still confused or I am just overwhelmed with loads of options for community tanks. Let me know your thoughts on this. Cheers!

Jeff

 

[Byron]

Some misconceptions here, I'll try to explain. But first, Betta are not community fish, no matter who says differently. While this or that may work, it is "experimental" and the responsible aquarist assumes the fish he acquires will be "normal," and thus behave according to the species and not contrary to the norm for the species. Putting fish at risk is not the way to go. And before you consider adding different species, you should be responsible to those you have and make their life easier.

Which brings me to the shoaling fish. This is an expectation programmed into the fish's DNA and in fewer numbers they will be stressed, which means more health problems than would occur if they had more in the group. It is frankly cruel to the fish to deny them what they expect in life...read the green citation in my signature block, Dr. Loiselle is one of the most highly respected ichthyologists in the hobby. And Nathan's citation in green (edit: changed green to blue) is relevant too.

But beyond that, keeping more of them actually has less of an impact on the bioload. Fish under any sort of stress are releasing chemicals and this deteriorates the water faster. They are also usually respirating more, further reduction. And put simply, they cannot function as nature intends, another impact to other fish in the tank.

When we select a species for our aquaria, we need to understand that we must provide for its needs, requirements and expectations. Please work to improve, not reduce, your fish's lives; they deserve no less.

Byron.

 

[jepot_04]

Hi Byron,

WOW! Thanks for that enlightenment. I had a thought of that at the back of my mind, that is why it is holding me back in adding a betta. I might get a betta in the future but, I'll house him in his own tank. I really appreciate for sharing your knowledge. I'll check those citation that you recommended for added information. For now, I'll stick with my current setup of community. They seemed look happy and getting along just fine. I am now considering your suggestion of adding more tetras. Based on my current fishload, how many more fish can I add? will it only be tetras or can I add a different kind of species together with the new tetras. If so, can you suggest of any good looking fish that could be a centrepiece for my tank.

Jeff

 

[Byron]

Hi Byron,

WOW! Thanks for that enlightenment. I had a thought of that at the back of my mind, that is why it is holding me back in adding a betta. I might get a betta in the future but, I'll house him in his own tank. I really appreciate for sharing your knowledge. I'll check those citation that you recommended for added information. For now, I'll stick with my current setup of community. They seemed look happy and getting along just fine. I am now considering your suggestion of adding more tetras. Based on my current fishload, how many more fish can I add? will it only be tetras or can I add a different kind of species together with the new tetras. If so, can you suggest of any good looking fish that could be a centrepiece for my tank.

Jeff

You're welcome.

You need to up the number of neons, glowlights and cories. Sources will give "minimum" numbers and here all three are below those, and remember than "minimum" is not the best, a few more will be better for the fish. I do not recommend adding one or two of a shoaling species, this is harder on the individual fish than adding more at the same time. And there is space here, considering the fish's best interests, so I would add 3-4 neons, 3-4 glowlihgts, and 2-3 cories.

That is not leaving room for more species in a 98 liter (25 gallon) tank. Water parameters have not yet been mentioned, so I am assuming they are suitable to these fish plus the livebearers. If not, that is more stress and impact on the biology.

 

[jepot_04]

Hi Byron,

GREAT! I would take those recommendations on board. Sorry I have not posted the water parameters yet as I have not done the test yet, I'll probably run some test this evening. I am looking forward to adding tetras and some new pals for my corys. I think the guppies and platies are ok with their numbers. Plus the addition of the new tetras will add more glimpse on my tank. Thanks for all those excellent tips and advice.