I'm A Bit Confused About How Much Stock Is Safe.

[ZephyrStarPlaties]

I have a question about stocking that's been bugging me for a while. If you can still keep the water quality perfect, is it safe to add a couple more fish? I don't mean something severe like two goldfish in a ten gallon, just something that would normally be labeled overstocked by about 8 gallons.


And don't worry, I haven't added any extra fish yet. It's something for future reference.

 

[sadguppy]

There is no exact science to stocking. If your filtration is good and your maintenance is regular you can often get away with more than the suggested stocking however there will be an increase in nitrates produced so you must do large changes and more often. Obviously for overstocking fish will need to be carefully chosen based on which level of the tank they occupy to make sure they have enough room, and avoid territorial fish etc... But there is a certain amount of common sense required!

 

[ZephyrStarPlaties]

There is no exact science to stocking. If your filtration is good and your maintenance is regular you can often get away with more than the suggested stocking however there will be an increase in nitrates produced so you must do large changes and more often. Obviously for overstocking fish will need to be carefully chosen based on which level of the tank they occupy to make sure they have enough room, and avoid territorial fish etc... But there is a certain amount of common sense required!

Ok, thanks! It should work out fine then.

 

[tomtomtom1230]

As Sadguppy said, it's less of 'how many fish I can fit in a tank' and more of 'can I (and my filter) keep this water in good nick'

 

[mhancock]

As Sadguppy said, it's less of 'how many fish I can fit in a tank' and more of 'can I (and my filter) keep this water in good nick'

I agree. Lots of real plants, extra aeration, over filtering and regular large pwc will allow you to have more stock - but you'll have to be committed to keeping the conditions that good otherwise the water quality will deteriorate quicker with the extra stock.

 

[Bignose]

Here's the problem with overstocking an 8 gallon tank -- it is such a small volume of water. If something goes wrong, it will go wrong very quickly. That is a main benefit of larger tanks -- a time buffer to catch things as they go wrong. 8 gallons is so small, that skipping a water change can have consequences, especially when overstocked.

In short, if you are committed to the extra work required, then it can be done. But, please be 100% committed to it before 'trying' it.

 

[ZephyrStarPlaties]

Here's the problem with overstocking an 8 gallon tank -- it is such a small volume of water. If something goes wrong, it will go wrong very quickly. That is a main benefit of larger tanks -- a time buffer to catch things as they go wrong. 8 gallons is so small, that skipping a water change can have consequences, especially when overstocked.

In short, if you are committed to the extra work required, then it can be done. But, please be 100% committed to it before 'trying' it.

It's not an 8 gallon, It's a 20 that would be overstocked by 8 gallons.

 

[Bignose]

A 20 gallon is still a small tank, really. Everything I wrote above still stands.

 

[tmiller]

The most important thing here rather than size of tank is LONG TERM commitment. It may be fine for a month or 6 but fish can and do, under good conditions live a relatively long life.

What may be perfectly fine while the excitement is fresh and they are quite the focus may not be in a year when you are tired of bi weekly or more water changes due to purposefully overstocking.
When it does go wrong it will be very fast... please be ready, for the sake of the fish.