over stocking ?

[aernympha]

i was wondering if i have over stocked my tank its the 30 gallons on ein my signature any one think so?

 

[HawkEye]

you may have heard this before but the rule is 1 inch of fish per gallon of water (that estimated of course)...It looks like you have about 12 fish if I counted right...if they ar e all between 1-2 inches you are fine...what are your water parameters? If the Ammonia and/or Nitrites are high you could be over crowded...if you have "messy fish" you could also be exceeding the 1 inch rule even though physically it is less than that...this is due to the extra waste some fish produce...

 

[aernympha]

]i have a 30 gallons tank on average and in that tank i have 4 guppies, 2 swordtails,3 mollies,1 sailfin molly (we thought it was a molly!),1ballon molly and last but not least 5 platies!!! ooo and i can't forget my three little Otocinclus affinis.

i thought i had 19 fish

 

[shimanocono]

I don't think your overstocked. You should be fine.

 

[aernympha]

are u sure!!! cos if i am not them how many more fish can i have? none??

 

[shimanocono]

Not sure if you could get anymore, I would keep the same amount you have now though.

 

[aernympha]

things is i kinda regret buying so many livebearers it baisacllyis a liverbearers community....

 

[aernympha]

any one else have adifferent opinion co si recko that i am bit over stocked all the fish are about 1 and a half inches aprt from one swordtail which is 2 inches..... the cat fish are 1 and a half inches.... so anyone els got there opionion on my tank??

 

[Alia]

i have a 30 gallons tank on average and in that tank i have 4 guppies, 2 swordtails,3 mollies,1 sailfin molly (we thought it was a molly!),1ballon molly and last but not least 5 platies!!! ooo and i can't forget my three little Otocinclus affinis.

What are the dimensions of your tank? Is it about 30" long? Or is it one of the taller types of tanks? That is important because you want to maximize your water surface area and swimming area for fish like these, which tend all to inhabit the same level of the tank (excepting the otos).

So, you have 16 fish that range in size from 1.5" to 2" all sharing the same general space -- if you have a tall tank, it's probably overcrowded. If your tank is long, it could be fine. Do you have any live plants? Good filtration? Do regular water changes? Is your tank mature (six months or more) and fully cycled? Are your water parameters stable?

My worry for you is that you do have so many livebearers and they are such prolific breeders, you may get overpopulated in that way. Otherwise, if the fish are healthy and the parameters are good and everyone seems happy, you are probably ok.

things is i kinda regret buying so many livebearers it baisacllyis a liverbearers community....

Fish do not live forever, I think the life expectancy for guppies and such is probably two years??? Just a guess on that. If you do not buy a second tank to accomodate your desire to keep some different fish, like so many of us do, you will just have to try to enjoy the fish you chose while you have them and choose differently as space becomes available. HTH.

 

[Braddah]

Get a carnivore if you want to control the live bearer population....circle of life....my mollies and plattys didnt breed but it for the best my tank went crazy and i lost 1 male&1 fem platty and my fem black lyretail molly....I finally got my no2 under control and now Im just watching to see if anything happens....no new fish for me!

 

[aernympha]

the dimesion sof the tank are 31.5"=length, 13.5"=width, 16" deth. there are 6 large living plants in there and very good filtraion!. i have ahd it for about 1 3/4 months. and i might be getting another slightly smaller tank.. ten i might spread the liver beaers out or keep them in ther and put a few more different spcies in the new tank hehehe i think i ve done quite well really co sthey have bredding in the tank so i'm guessing that a good sign and i do about 15%- 20% water changes every week basically a bucket full of water and 8 litre et put back into the tank i have four water bottles