How Stocked Are Your Tank/s?

[Tokis-Phoenix]

Just a general curiosity thread, but how stocked are your tank/s?

I used to keep my tanks very stocked in the past, always at their limits and sometimes even a little overstocked (guppys always breeding out of control, unexpected danio arrivals etc). Over the years i have stocked my tanks less & less and now days they are very understocked by most people's standards. When i get my new tank all my current fish will be moved into it- it will still be understocked but still more stocked than any of my current tanks.

In many ways i prefer having the tanks a bit understocked; i think that the fish display more natural interesting behaviours and make more use of the tank in general- i noticed this the most when i upgraded my swordtail fry tank from a 5gal to a 30gallon tank. Throughout the trials of the last 2 years this has given me far more enjoyment in the hobby than buying any new fish or thing for the tanks etc.

So yeah, while i'll undoubtedly buy new fish for the new tank when i get it (would really like to get some Pineapple Swordtails & maybe some Cardinal Tetras ), i'm quite happy to keeping it an understocked tank v .

 

[Biulu]

Difficult question to answer. My tank is heavily planted and I know I have overstocked, but what would you call heavily overstocked?

I have an 180 litre with 3 angels, 12 cherry barbs, 10 congo tetras, 6 loaches and 3 otos. According to several 'tank composing' sites I am not overstocked and my inhabitants are very healthy. I have not yet sicknesses in a long time.

 

[Mikaila31]

Also when does a tank go from stocked to overstocked?... if you know anything about stocking this question is a total PITA to answer.

 

[Tokis-Phoenix]

Difficult question to answer. My tank is heavily planted and I know I have overstocked, but what would you call heavily overstocked?

I have an 180 litre with 3 angels, 12 cherry barbs, 10 congo tetras, 6 loaches and 3 otos. According to several 'tank composing' sites I am not overstocked and my inhabitants are very healthy. I have not yet sicknesses in a long time.

I'm not going to have a go at anyone about overstocking and did not intend anyone to get that vibe from the OP. No, rather i'm just generally curious as to what sort of stocking levels people have and how they feel about their tanks etc.

Also when does a tank go from stocked to overstocked?... if you know anything about stocking this question is a total PITA to answer.

Well i wasn't expecting anyone to be millimetre-specific about their stocking levels, the poll options are quite generalized (i don't expect exact percentages or anything like that from anyone and if you find it too hard to judge the stocking levels of your tank then this thread is probably not for you) '_' .

Maybe it was a mistake to do this poll...Was just looking for a friendly chit chat about fish tank stocking thats all .

 

[PRW1988]

Some of my tanks are slightly overstocked, some of them are understocked, and some are stocked just right... So I say....... OTHER

 

[myrtle]

I went for medium stocked as I have one tank that looks overstocked but only has inhabitants with a relatively small bioload and another that is rather understocked and overfiltered so I plumped for the middle ground!

 

[snowflake311]

MY tanks are full. My 100 gal will be over stocked when 2 of my fish get to thier full size. But right now it's ok.