Stocking my tanks or yours

[BEEF11]

i go by the one inch per gallon rule mostly although i don't count my plecos and my corys only get counted as half. my thinking is that if i change water frequently and don't get only fish that occupy one level of the tank i could have a few more. Is this thinking shared by anyone else or am i lost? Will my fry grow faster in a big tank or a smaller one? I think stocking rate will affect them too or will it only affect them once they hit a certain size?

 

[MXPX4318]

hmmmm why do you not count plecos? they are quite the waste "put-ter out-ter" I personally try to go by the 1 inch per gallon rule, though I believe if with more water changes and matienece you can go over that rule a bit, also I go by if the tank looks cramped, for example my 20 gallon has 6 rasporas, 5 gold barbs, 3 cories, and 1 german blue ram which is probably 10 inches over the inch per gallon rule, but I do water changes twice a week and the tank doesn't look cramped (fish don't run into other fish etc) and the water parameters don't get out of hand so I don't think it's a problem.

 

[BEEF11]

i guess the reason i don't count the corys is that they are bottom dwellers and don't compete space wise with the other fish. My thinking is that if you have fish that like different levels then you can go over the limit some i'm not sure if it is the way things are though. I don't count my african dwarf frogs.

 

[Sorrell]

Space isn't the main reason in the stocking guidelines, waste and territory are the main ones. Plecos are extremely messy fish which definately needs to be taken into consideration

What size tank is this and what kind of fry are you talking about?

 

[BEEF11]

i have a 55 g a 15 and a 10 setup right now. I raise mostly livebearers in it as for now but am planning on spawning some corys very soon.