Stocking Questions!

[Aeroase]

Hi!
I have a 10gal tank with 4 false julii’s, a dwarf gourami, and an otocinculus (i know they do better in groups, i just haven’t found a shop to get some from that aren’t half dead in the store).
The tank is heavily planted and fully cycled! The fish that are in there are doing good.
My question is, can I add more fish than this, or is that tank pretty much full? Do live plants help with filtration at all?
I also have a 20gal long with 6 bronze corys and 7 cherry barb. They are also doing fine, but the tank looks very empty, like they don’t take up enough room. Would it be overstocking to add more fish (a gourami, or maybe a few guppies or something?) The tank also has a good amount of live plants, but not as many as the 10gal.
Please help! I’m having a hard time knowing how much to stock a tank, especially knowing that the inch per gallon rule isn’t quite accurate.

 

[Roden]

I wouldn’t add anything to the 10g, it’s already overstocked.

Plants do help with nitrates and such, so I suppose if you mean nitrates by filtration, then yes they do.

For the 20 long or suggest moving the gourami from the 10g to it and adding 1-2 more bronze cories and call it stocked.

 

[Aeroase]

I wouldn’t add anything to the 10g, it’s already overstocked.

Plants do help with nitrates and such, so I suppose if you mean nitrates by filtration, then yes they do.

For the 20 long or suggest moving the gourami from the 10g to it and adding 1-2 more bronze cories and call it stocked.

Thanks for responding! Yeah, that’s what I meant, filtering out the nitrates.
Also I would move the Gourami, but he really likes the 10gal because it’s heavily planted. He swims all around making bubble nests and squirting water when people pass by. I would feel bad moving him without adding a bunch more plant cover to the 20gal! Would the cory’s like a bigger group? I thought 6 was already a good number!

 

[Roden]

Thanks for responding! Yeah, that’s what I meant, filtering out the nitrates.
Also I would move the Gourami, but he really likes the 10gal because it’s heavily planted. He swims all around making bubble nests and squirting water when people pass by. I would feel bad moving him without adding a bunch more plant cover to the 20gal! Would the cory’s like a bigger group? I thought 6 was already a good number!

6 is a good number, but it’s also the minimum. Since you don’t have much room to add to many more fish in the 20g, I think it’d be best to just add a few more cories and the gourami if you were to end up deciding to move it.

Now I wouldn’t add any more cories or Otos to the 10 because that would be overstocking even more so.

 

[Colin_T]

What are the tank dimensions (length x width x height)?
How long have the tanks been set up for?
Are the filters cycled?
What is the general hardness (GH) and pH of the water?

Dwarf gouramis (Trichogaster lalius) and all their colour varieties can carry 2 diseases, the Iridovirus and Tuberculosis (TB), neither of which can be treated. If you buy these fish from a local breeder they are usually fine but anything imported from Asia can be infected. If you keep these fish then monitor them for unusual sores on their body and fins, and watch for sudden bloating where the belly swells up overnight. If the fish show these symptoms they normally die within a short time of showing them.

 

[Byron]

Generally concur with previous advice, with a couple options. Agree with Colin that the GH and pH would be useful. Also about the disease issue with dwarf gourami. As you already have the DG, and leaving it in the 10g seems preferable, I would do this. TB can spread to other fish, the iridovirus maybe--some sources say it has been documented crossing gourami species, others say it is confined to DG. Leaving the DG in the 10 seems best here.

I would however increase the cories to six or seven. The "false" julii is not an official species, but most use this common name for Corydoras trilineatus which is the species most often seen under the name "julii" in stores. Both are fairly small at maturity and don't need a lot of length for active swimming. This is a case where I would not advise cories (other than the "dwarf" species like C. pygmaeus, C. hastatus and C. habrosus) for a 10 gallon, but you have four now and weighing their health in the balance they will without question be healthier with more of their own species, so you actually have a situation where there will be less impact biologically with a few more than without. Six though I would aim for seven.

I would leave the oto on its own, or you could move it to the 20 gallon and acquire a couple more. I had three in my 90g a few years back, then one day there were five; obviously two of the three spawned. More than three would be OK but as this is a 20g you might want to stay with three, if you move the one from the 10g.

The 20g long, with 6 bronze cories, 7 cherry barb, and maybe 3 otos (?) could take more fish but I would not suggest gourami. Adding more cherry barb would be highly advisable; males will be more colourful when kept in larger groups as they continually display to the females. Many see this rather drab fish in stores without realizing its potential when a group of 8-9 are in a tank with plants, and especially floating (or overhanging vegetation). Another small shoaling species perhaps, but I would want to know the GH and pH before suggesting species.

 

[Byron]

Hi guys
I’m looking to get angelfish for my 220l tank and was wondering if they would harm my other fish I have guppies
Honey guramis
Wood shrimp
Rummy nose
Neon dwarf rainbow fish
Mollies
Rusty pleco
Any advice appreciated

You might want to start a new thread with this topic. Posting in existing threads will usually not be as readily seen as a new thread of your own.

Welcome to TFF.

EDIT: I see you have a new thread...I'll ask a mod to remove this post here.