How much space

[chunmak]

how much space does a fish need to live (Per inch)?

 

[Cheese Specialist]

As much as you can give it.

It depends what fish!! Some are 1inch and some a 3feet, how can we answer that question.

Maybe the answer should be, how long is a piece of string?

 

[guppymonkey]

I guess it depends on how happy you want the fish. You can keep a fish alive in a tiny space but it won't be happy.

For example, would you like living your entire life in a closet where you ate, slept and pooped all in that closet for years? Wouldn't it be easier if instead of that closet you got an appartment or an entire house? There would be a lot more room. Its the same with fish usually. The more room there is the better off they usually are.

 

[rsz]

the general rule is 1 inch per gallon, but you do have to be sensible - you can't put a 20inch fish in a 20 gallon cos it won't have swimming space.

however, this rule is not set in stone

 

[Cheese Specialist]

I see you edited to say per inch.

A general rule is one inch of fish per gallon. However, this does not mean you can keep a 20" fish ina 20 gallon and things such as waste, how much a fish swims and other sizes must be taken into consideration. So, a fish that is 4" long but only half an inch wide will probable need less space than say an angel fish.

I think everyone knows deep down how many fish could be happy and healthy in their tank. It is possible to get more than an inch of fish per gallon and for the fish to be happy as long as the owner knows this and maintains a good routine.