It Drive Sme Insane!

[chrismr]

I am sorry, but this has to be the stupidest idae I have ever come across, and it bugs me to see people constantly referencing it....

That is like saying a 4" keyhole cichlid has the same space requirements as a 4" khuli loach. Where I could have 2 keyholes, I could have a lot more khuli loaches....

Or a giant danio has the same space requirements as a male betta... maybe not the best size comparison, but using this as an example of activity.

And that is to say that is I have filled my inch quota on bottom dwelling fish, I could not put in a top dwelling fish, such as hatchets.

It is just silly!

Sorry for the rant, but it really bugs me.

 

[piper]

I think its a great Rule Of Thumb, and should obviously not be followed to the extreame. It must help Newbs loads and should prevent them from majorly overstoking.

Sorry Chrismr I know there are alot of floors in the inch/gal rule but its a great starting point.

The bit that gets me going is when people thinkn they can dismiss it when housing tetras etc, they think that there low waste means the rule isn't applicable.

 

[dwarfgourami]

Anybody who knows anything about the inch/gallon rule also knows that it is only meant to apply to slimbodied fish under 3 inches, and that issues such as territoriality, schooling, high activity levels, waste production etc also have to be taken into account. So your comparison with a keyhole cichlid is pretty irrelevant; they are neither slimbodied nor under 3 inches.

I can't remember the circumstances of your particular tank, but bottom dwellers v top dwellers is not the only relevant issue; it is possible that posters have made an estimate of the likely bioload of the whole community. Whether fish poo at the top or at the bottom doesn't really matter; it still produces ammonia. Then again, posters may have made a mistake estimating your particular bioload: we are all human.

 

[chrismr]

Ok, lets take tetras as an example.... lets say lemon tetras....

Lets us hypothetically put them in an approximate 3 foot, 30 gallon tank.

Lets say I put 15 lemon tetras in... I can't really put anything else in there?

not a 5 inch ancistrus? not a pair or trio of dawrf cichlids on the bottom?

Using that rule, I could also then in theory complete crowd the bottom of a tank with say, a few varities of dwarfs and cories...

Or.... a 30 gallon tank? Well, I could in theory have a trio of fully grown clown loaches in that.

there is no subsitute for common sense and a bit of research, and working out which fish have which requirements and having sufficient filtration.

this rule of thumb for people new to the hobby still leaves too much room for error.

 

[Damsel_in_Distress]

Anybody who knows anything about the inch/gallon rule also knows that it is only meant to apply to slimbodied fish under 3 inches, and that issues such as territoriality, schooling, high activity levels, waste production etc also have to be taken into account. So your comparison with a keyhole cichlid is pretty irrelevant; they are neither slimbodied nor under 3 inches.

I can't remember the circumstances of your particular tank, but bottom dwellers v top dwellers is not the only relevant issue; it is possible that posters have made an estimate of the likely bioload of the whole community. Whether fish poo at the top or at the bottom doesn't really matter; it still produces ammonia. Then again, posters may have made a mistake estimating your particular bioload: we are all human.

this person is completely right.. all it really takes to follow this rule is common sence.. duh................... i only use the rule when using small fish.. (for example) you wouldnt put a 40 inch long fish into a 40 gallon... DUH!

 

[chrismr]

Um, yes, I am aware that it does not matter whether a fish poos at the top or bottom of the tank....

And I have never known this rule only appplied to fish under three inches. People just seem to use it regardless of fish in question. Have never seen anybody say it is only for fish smaller than 3 inches...

but then again, I normally ignore anything where people quote "the rule"

Then again, posters may have made a mistake estimating your particular bioload: we are all human.

Someone was not trying to push the inch per gallon rule on me. I saw somebody else being given it as a reference.

The fact that I now know it applies only to clim bodied fish under three inches (or should) makes it a little easier to swallow, and I can not correct people who use it as a general rule for ALL fish.

 

[Damsel_in_Distress]

change your mind on how stupid this rule is? RESEARCH!

 

[chrismr]

this person is completely right.. all it really takes to follow this rule is common sence.. duh................... i only use the rule when using small fish.. (for example) you wouldnt put a 40 inch long fish into a 40 gallon... DUH!

People have come close.

 

[Squid]

change your mind on how stupid this rule is? RESEARCH!

Im pretty new to this, but itsnt it slightly hypocritical for a person with a common plec and 2 clown loaches in a 29 gallon tank to be talking about research and stocking.

If im wrong then ill put my hand up, if im not, then im off to buy some clown loaches!!!

Squid

 

[dwarfgourami]

Um, yes, I am aware that it does not matter whether a fish poos at the top or bottom of the tank....

And I have never known this rule only appplied to fish under three inches. People just seem to use it regardless of fish in question. Have never seen anybody say it is only for fish smaller than 3 inches...

but then again, I normally ignore anything where people quote "the rule"

Then again, posters may have made a mistake estimating your particular bioload: we are all human.

Someone was not trying to push the inch per gallon rule on me. I saw somebody else being given it as a reference.

The fact that I now know it applies only to clim bodied fish under three inches (or should) makes it a little easier to swallow, and I can not correct people who use it as a general rule for ALL fish.

Do feel free to correct people who use the rule incorrectly. I have always regarded it as a starting point, not as the finishing line.
Basically, it makes it easier to explain to beginners why their 10 gallon tank cannot sustain 20 platies, and to give an idea of what average filtration CAN sustain. I should have stressed that the rule is based on average filtration; the sort you get if you, say, buy a Juwel kit. If you are able to add extra filtration, obviously that is another factor to be taken into account.
Newbies often find it difficult to understand why they cannot emulate the sort of stocking levels they see in the lfs, being unaware of the different filtration used by the shops.
When I give advice I always do try to take into account the different tank levels as well. Clearly, you can have a situation where the bioload is fine but a certain level is overcrowded, like too many bottomdwellers, so it's still not working.

 

[chishnfips]

would it not also depend on how good your filtration is, also not all the fish occupy the same space at the same time.

I mean if Your filtration was excellent then you should be able to fit more fish, depending on swimming room, teratories etc........

 

[The-Wolf]

it is not just filtration but your housekeeping too
if you don't perform partial water changes for weeks on end, or at all
then you can't/shouldn't have lots of fish.

most of my tanks are well overstock by the rule of thumb but most are filtered by at least 10 times the tanks volume per hour, and I do water changes every week. In fact as I'm writing this I'm in the middle of doing just that.

 

[annka5]

it always strikes me as odd that so many people use or refer to the "inch-per-gallon rule", but so very very few people ever consider the inch-of-fish-per-surface-area-of-water "rule" which always used to be common place. That takes into account the oxygen requirements of the tank rather than the waste production.
It's just as flawed and also cannot be used blindly, but not any worse.
Both refer to adult sizes.
Used as a rough guide with the addition of common sense and research into the particular fish, it's not totally pointless...

 

[andywg]

The Inch per gallon rule is a guide - just a guide. If you have around average filtration and aren't very good at your water changes then it is best not to exceed it. That is all. The idea is that you don't over stock and then as your experience develops and you get a better feel for how a tank is doing and how ti will respond you can consider further stocking.

It does not mean you can never exceed it. Hell, most of the larger tanks (150+ Imperial gallons) are way over that limit, but most have excellent filtration and a stricter regime of water changes.

I must admit I often consider the surface area as well, especially with high oxygen dependant fish (such as balas) - hence why I prefer to run sumps.

 

[timmystood]

I tend to use my common sense when stocking.