How Many?

[nurglespuss]

OK I know there are fish stock calculators out there, and most of it is phooey (if at least a guide ).

I know its all down to size/shape/surface area/temperature/maintainance etc. etc.

SO,

in my 106L (30"x12"x18") aquarium, filtered by two of the large eheim liberties, with a powerhead on the way, and with no bulky decoration...

... at a temperature of 22'C, and a pH of 7.2...

how many white clouds could I get in there (for a decent school)

I've currently got 4, and a pitbull plec (I have also just added another pitbull, 2 bristlenose and a bulldog - all babies).

I was thinking of bumping the school up to 10 or possibly 15....?

What do you guys think?

Would that leave me room for anything else?

Cheers! - The facts are out there, but I'm really more after opinions! - thanks guys!)

 

[soybean]

Variatus platys do well in cooler temps, two or three of those would add a bit of colour alongside the minnows.

Seen some in pets at home fairly cheaply, nice orange ones.

 

[fishguy2727]

There are a lot more cool water fish than many people realize. The following are fine if not better at room temp: zebra danios and all color morphs (wild type, gold, leopard, blue, glofish, and longfin versions of all of these), pearl danio, scissortail rasbora, platy, molly, guppy, swordtail, bristlenose pleco, and more.

Stocking has everything to do with water changes. If you can keep the nitrate concentration under 20ppm BEFORE a water change you are not chemically overstocked. In this case it comes down to physical space in the tank, which is a case by case issue.

When you need accurate information about fish like their max size, temp range, etc. check with fishbase.org.

There are a lot more cool water fish than many people realize. The following are fine if not better at room temp: zebra danios and all color morphs (wild type, gold, leopard, blue, glofish, and longfin versions of all of these), pearl danio, scissortail rasbora, platy, molly, guppy, swordtail, bristlenose pleco, and more.

Stocking has everything to do with water changes. If you can keep the nitrate concentration under 20ppm BEFORE a water change you are not chemically overstocked. In this case it comes down to physical space in the tank, which is a case by case issue.

When you need accurate information about fish like their max size, temp range, etc. check with fishbase.org.

 

[nurglespuss]

thanks!

will platies breed at this lower temperature?

 

[soybean]

Variatus platys are a specific type of platy that is better at temperate temps. So yes they'll breed. Regular platys require normal tropical temps.

If you don't want babies get a same sex group.

 

[nurglespuss]

Thanks

Yes they have variatus platies at our local petsathome (though I am always wary of buying fish from there - except when I get a bit impulsive!!

Thanks

It would be nice to get some babies, provided I can also get something to keep their numbers under control!

 

[soybean]

I think with minnows as well and not too many bushy plants the fish would keep them down easily.

The ones in my nearby p@h looked really good, but any good lfs should order you them.

 

[fishguy2727]

Regular platys require normal tropical temps.

This is absolutely not true. Regular platies are also fine, if not better, at room temp. Mine are bigger than I have ever seen them get in tropical temps and breed like crazy. Please speak from experience or facts, not misinformation.

 

[soybean]

No need to be rude. I have kept both types if platy and found the common ones sluggish at lower temps. So I am speaking from experience, just because it doesn't match your experience doesn't make my opinion less valid.

PS all platys breed like crazy, nothing short of freezing would stop them.

 

[Fishy friend2]

wow, this is really interesting, thanks for the info

 

[N0body Of The Goat]

nurgelpuss, given you added four catfish recently including what could well be an L444 Chaetostoma, a word of warning from bitter experience. I had one of these Rubbernose about 12 months ago and it sadly died some six weeks or so later, with no obvious signs of an external cause. They live in fast flowing streams/rivers that have a very low concentration of fish and besides not being easy to get feeding in home tanks, they are extremely sensitive to nitrate levels (which in hindsight is what I think may have killed my one, as my 5x2x2 was relatively heavily stocked last winter). On that basis, I would suggest to you that you should keep your 160l relatively understocked.

In your position I would up the WCMM to 10, think about rehoming the BN Catfish (so you could then safely lower the temp to 20C, increasing the potential oxygen saturation for the L444) and leave it at that, presuming that your Pitbulls are P. jumbo and not one of the other Parotocinclus species http/www.planetcatfish.com/catelog/genus.php?genus_id=72

 

[fishguy2727]

It is less valid when you state it as if it is a fact. Fishbase.org lists platies at 64-77F, not tropical temps. I am not sure what you did differently when you tried them in cool water, but when you state it as if it is a fact that 'regular platies require tropical temps' you need to be corrected. This is not true. They can thrive in room temp.

 

[soybean]

What I 'did differently'? I didn't do anything differently - a tank had to make do without a heater for a couple of weeks and they were definitely sluggish compared to their usual selves, and perked up again in warmer water. I can only speak from that experience.

"They can thrive in room temp" - well apparently not every time.

 

[fishguy2727]

Not when they had a heater then suddenly were dropped down to room temp for only a couple weeks. That is not a good experience to make an example of. If I kept my goldfish heated and the heater suddenly died they would not do well, does that mean they should only be in tropical temps too?

 

[soybean]

The temperature drop my fish experienced was not that extreme - only a few degrees - and if they can "thrive" at cool temps I would've expected them to adapt after a couple of weeks, much the same as fish can cope with warmer tanks during the summer.

By your own example of temp changes there, surely platys bred in and bought from a store with tropical temp water would therefore suffer from being introduced into a cooler environment. It's unnecessary. They're sold as tropical fish, would be used to that setup, and therefore in my opinion should be considered tropical.

This is a pointless argument. You have your opinion, I have mine. I'm not going to change my mind and start suggesting common platys for unheated tanks on the basis that you've told me another website says it's fine. I value my own experiences more.

And as this is largely irrelevant to the original post I think it best to leave it there.