Overstocked?

[kpintheshed]

i have 11 tetras well thats the shop keeper said but they're not. did have 12 but one died; stayed at the top and died. i think it had swim bladder disease as it was sinking into the water upside down into the water and as it hit into something it would swim back up.

anyway 4 neons 3 copper rasboras, 4 white cloud mountain minnow
(tetras)


the tank is a 15 imperial gallon tank 6 plants bogwood and one of those samll logs with 3 holes.

i brought on sunday so if i am overtocked i can just give some back. a neon is hiding in a log so i think it might be bulled. one neon has a nail mark in it because of the dump way the little girl netted him, poor bugger.

was thinking about giving the coppers away
any suggestions

 

[*Fishkies*]

So you have 11tetras plus the 4 neons, plus 3 copper rasboras. And how many white cloud minnows? Just 1?

Well if that's your stocking that is 3 fish and possibly more depending on how many white cloud minnows you have, over your limit. If you go by one inch of fish per gallon......you are overstocked. Especially with the decorations added into the equation. This takes up more "space" in the tank.

 

[fishwatcher]

What kind of tetras are they? That could make a difference in your stock load. I for one have always had the habit of overstocking a hair, but if you keep up on your water changes and the fish are all happy (no one getting picked on badly) then all is well.

 

[Zanziba]

When you say 1 inch per gallon, how many millilitres in the gallon that you are referring to? Is it an 8 pint gallone (ermm 8 times 568ml?)

Could someone suggest a cm/liter conversion.

Also, does it make a difference if you get fish that vary in area of tank they use (Guppies near top, catfish near bottom?)

 

[Jozlyn]

Did you buy everything on Sunday? Or just the fish?

 

[fishwatcher]

It doesn't make much difference in the actual bioload as the fish will still eat and poop the same amount, but it does help if all of them don't swim on top of each other. I always plan my tanks to cover all 3 levels, that gives a nice look and allows a slightly over stocked tank to still run well.
The inch-per-gallon rule is a good base, but it's a guideline really, not a hard-fast rule.
If you need a converter just google cm to liter converter... I'm sure you'll get plenty.

 

[kpintheshed]

sorry i did it in a rush i have 4 neon tetras (the 4th with the nail mark is mush better now), 3 copper rasboras and 4 white cloud mountain minnows. think they max size is 5cm

11 in total.

Did you buy everything on Sunday? Or just the fish?

just the fish

 

[rdd1952]

In answer to your original question, you should be fine other than the fact that the white clouds prefer cooler water and a lot of current. They aren't the best tank mates for the tetras and rasboras.

Another potential issue is how long you have had the tank set up and is it cycled (did you add ammonia or fish flakes to build the bacteria colony)? If not, that is way too many fish for cycling. You will have very high ammonia and nitrite levels pretty soon and will need to start doing water changes to lower the levels. Do you have test a liquid test kit to measure ammonia, nitrite and nitrate?

 

[kpintheshed]

i used the king british amonia and nitrite conditionair
its been 4 weeks which i waited than in the 2-3rd week i put the plants in

the fish seem fine, i took i sample to the fish shop they said everything was ok

 

[rdd1952]

Don 't trust chemicals to take care of ammonia and nitrite and don't trust the fish shop saying everything is "ok". The general consensus on those "bacteria in a bottle" products is that they are useless. Even if they did contain bacteria, if you didn't add a food supply (ammonia) the bacteria would have died off from lack of food.

If you don't have test kits of your own, please get a good liquid master kit. If you do take the water to the lfs, make them tell you the actual readings. Most of the time they look at a chart and see that it's in what they call a "safe range". With ammonia and nitrite, there is only one safe range and that is zero.

If you didn't add pure ammonia to your tank, then it isn't cycled. You need to start checking the ammonia and nitrite levels at least twice a day. The neons in particular can't handle any ammonia and nitrite and will soon be in serious trouble. That could be the reason that one is already hiding. High ammonia and nitrite causes stress and fish hide when they are stressed. Stress is also a prime trigger for white spot disease which will infect all your fish, even the hardy ones.

 

[kpintheshed]

thanks will do there was green stuff on the inside glass but i think its algae