Is My Tank Overstocked?

[Phenz]

Hi, i have a male betta, 3 zebra danios and 6 harliquins in a 10 gallon tank, it looks fairly busy but at the same time not very full. is my tank overstocked? if i were to add a single ram to this tank - would that cause problems?

i know stocking goes by 1'' of fish for every gallon but i was sure this changes when you're looking at schooling fish?

 

[Tessla]

The one inch per gallon rule actually applies almost only to small, slim bodied community schooling fish. It changes when you look at heavy waste producers (plecos, goldifish, oscars) or more active/agressive/large fish.

I'd say you're fully stocked as is and the ram wouldn't have enough room with the other fish to stake out a territory. If you wanted to overstock a bit, you could maybe add three pygmy cories or three otos as they're bottom dwellers and won't bother your exisiting fish. Ten gallons is actually a bit on the small side for danios, as they're very active at least 20 gallons is usually recommended. Also watch out for tears in your betta's fins, the little schoolers are often also notorious for fin nipping.

 

[Phenz]

Its the girfriends tank and she doens't really like catfish, i loved my panda corries when i had them - she didn't. Its got a 400l/h pump for a 45litre aquarium which is pretty overkill i thought but its the one that the tank has built it, its an via aqua 380 or something.

the danios do go a little crazy, but there is a very strong current in certain areas which the danios love to play in and it doens't bother the betta. The danios were in a tank with a betta in the store so i thought they'd be okay, i'll watch for any nipping.

are there any other bottom dwellers which could be a colourful addition to the tank?

 

[Tessla]

Kuhli loaches, but they will require a sand substrate and lots of hiding places. They're very active when they do come out, but a lot of people don't like them because they tend to hide all the time when they don't feel secure. Another one you may try (though the betta might eat them) would be algae shrimp. Amanos and cherry shrimp are the most common varieties, petshrimp.com has more species and care info.

 

[Phenz]

Shrimp mihgt be a possibility. it isn't a planted aquarium and there aren't many hiding places at the moment - do you know how many shrimp have to be kept together?

The tank has red white and blue gravel and i think it would be cool to get something red for the tank, as the betta is an amazing blue and the danios etc are white.

 

[Tessla]

You could start with one shrimp, if you get more you'll be more likely to see them out and about as they're very good at hiding. They don't count much towards the bioload, but you probably wouldn't want to keep more than 5-6 in your tank. I have a single amano shrimp in with my betta and kuhli loaches in my 10 gallon, he sits on the plant leaves quite a bit browsing on algae and will munch on sinking pellets and flake food during feeding time.

If you haven't got many hiding places at the moment, I'd add a few ornaments, fake or live plants to provide the shrimp with some cover just in case the other fish decide to nip at them. Fish and shrimp tend to appreciate having some live plants around, but they aren't necessary for either. If you haven't tried live plants before, go for some easy ones: anacharis grows like a weed and can float or be rooted into substrate, anubias and java fern are very hardy and can be attached to wood. All do fine in low light with no special care, just keep the rhizomes of the anubias and java fern above the gravel or they'll rot.

 

[corey01]

your friend could get some platies they only grow to 4-5cm or maybe some botias

 

[loachman]

your friend could get some platies they only grow to 4-5cm or maybe some botias

No botias in a 10 gal. They're too big individually and require shoals.