Am I over stocked?

[TheLyght]

Greetings! I've had my 55 gallon freshwater tank for about a year and a half now. It's fully cycled and the water parameters are near perfect. It's light planted with anubias, dwarf hair grass, java moss and a couple small java ferns, as well as some fake plants. My filtration consists of 2 HOB Aqueon QuietFlow 50s.

I've been reading various threads and other articles regarding the appropriate amount of fish and I am just looking for some opinions from this community. AqAdvisor says I'm way over stocked and other websites say the "inch of fish per gallon" rule isn't always correct.

I currently have:

2 sunburst platys
2 creamsicle mollies
1 angel fish
5 black skirt tetras
5 neon tetras
5 clown loaches (which will be moved to a bigger tank once they grow a little bit more)
2 ottos

They all seem to be happy and healthy but I don't want them to be over crowded.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated! Thanks




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[gilpi]

Personally I'd say no, I dont even see the fish in the picture. They must be juveniles? Yes the loaches will grow then it will get a little tight in there.
What is your background, tank looks good!

 

[Laser]

Provided that you move the Clown Loaches to a bigger tank, I don't think you are overstocked. I would even go so far as to say you could/should up your schools of tetras and ottos.

 

[SFAquariums1]

I don't think your over stoked. One thing aq advisor does (I believe) is base stocking levels off the fully grown fish size. If they are all juveniles, I agree with previous poster up your schools a bit


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[Brookster123]

When entering your stock into a advisor did you use the juvie size box for the loaches? That makes a big difference. .

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[BBradbury]

Your Tank Stock

Greetings! I've had my 55 gallon freshwater tank for about a year and a half now. It's fully cycled and the water parameters are near perfect. It's light planted with anubias, dwarf hair grass, java moss and a couple small java ferns, as well as some fake plants. My filtration consists of 2 HOB Aqueon QuietFlow 50s.

I've been reading various threads and other articles regarding the appropriate amount of fish and I am just looking for some opinions from this community. AqAdvisor says I'm way over stocked and other websites say the "inch of fish per gallon" rule isn't always correct.

I currently have:

2 sunburst platys
2 creamsicle mollies
1 angel fish
5 black skirt tetras
5 neon tetras
5 clown loaches (which will be moved to a bigger tank once they grow a little bit more)
2 ottos

They all seem to be happy and healthy but I don't want them to be over crowded.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated! Thanks

View attachment 247938


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Hello The...

A 55 G tank is large enough for a large number of most fish you'll find at the pet store. I have a 60 G with 100 or so fancy Guppies, 20 large Platys, 10 Corydoras and four Plecos. One Pleco is 8 inches long. As long as the fish can comfortably swim and turn around in the tank, they'll be fine.

The key to the health of a well stocked tank is large, very frequent water changes. The fish will be healthy in treated tap water with no traces of ammonia or nitrite and nitrates in the 20-30 ppm range.

Get some bottom and surface plants and you'll have no tank problems.

B

 

[PNWaquarist]

Hello The...

A 55 G tank is large enough for a large number of most fish you'll find at the pet store. I have a 60 G with 100 or so fancy Guppies, 20 large Platys, 10 Corydoras and four Plecos. One Pleco is 8 inches long.

Good God, no wonder you tell everybody to do 50% water changes.

As long as the fish can comfortably swim and turn around in the tank, they'll be fine.

Not true. Many species fish are territorial and need a lot more room than that.

The key to the health of a well stocked tank is large, very frequent water changes. The fish will be healthy in treated tap water with no traces of ammonia or nitrite and nitrates in the 20-30 ppm range.

That nitrate range may be fine for your fish, but that's not true for all species. Many fish (such as discus, rams, and Neon/Cardinal Tetras) will experience shortened lives with sustained nitrates at that level.

 

[gilpi]

I guess when the fish start bumping into each other, that's when you have too many Just kidding. I don't know, guppies are small. To me 20 African cichlids in a 55g (mbunas) starts to get overcrowded, some put up to 25.

 

[PNWaquarist]

Even if we consider a guppy to be 1/2 the size of a "regular" fish, that 60 gallon tank has the equivalent of 80 regular-sized fish, plus four plecos. And weekly 50% water changes can't knock the nitrates below the 20-30 ppm range. That's an overstocked tank.

If those particular fish are healthy under those conditions, that's fine. But a tank like that is not at all representative of the average freshwater tank. Thus, the upkeep and acceptable water conditions for such a tank are not a useful benchmark for giving advice to others.

 

[CoronaBlue]

With what you listed your not over stocked. You can probably add a few more to your schooling groups. I have a 25g and have 6 neons, 6 guppies, 4 Cory cats, 3 rainbows, 2 honey Gouramis and a BN pleco. They seem to have plenty of room. The rainbows and guppies seem to enjoy schooling together.

 

[gilpi]

Even if we consider a guppy to be 1/2 the size of a "regular" fish, that 60 gallon tank has the equivalent of 80 regular-sized fish, plus four plecos. And weekly 50% water changes can't knock the nitrates below the 20-30 ppm range. That's an overstocked tank. If those particular fish are healthy under those conditions, that's fine. But a tank like that is not at all representative of the average freshwater tank. Thus, the upkeep and acceptable water conditions for such a tank are not a useful benchmark for giving advice to others.

I have to agree here. I would not use this as "standard" advice.
I am curious though on the maintenance of this particular tank and would love to see a picture of it.

 

[BBradbury]

Tank Stocking

Good God, no wonder you tell everybody to do 50% water changes.



Not true. Many species fish are territorial and need a lot more room than that.



That nitrate range may be fine for your fish, but that's not true for all species. Many fish (such as discus, rams, and Neon/Cardinal Tetras) will experience shortened lives with sustained nitrates at that level.

Whoa PNW...

The large water changes apply to any tank. The stocking level doesn't matter. The fish and plants need pure water flushed through the tank at least every week or two. The water changes replace minerals in the tank that are lost to constant filtration.

The poster doesn't have Discus or Rams that I read. I may have missed that part. But, they'd likely do well in pure water conditions. The angel might be a little aggressive, but a well planted tank will help with that issue.

As far as the Tetras, a stable water chemistry is needed for them as for any fish. The large, regular water change will take of the stability part.

Thanks for the comments. I appreciate them.

B

 

[PNWaquarist]

The OP is definitely not over-stocked, and I'd suggest adding another 3-5 Neons. Assuming Dwarf Ottos, another 2-3 of those as well. These are sensitive species that will be less stressed when in the company of more friends.

Alternatively, Neons will school with other similar-shaped tetras (particularly Cardinals and Rummys). If you want to make them feel more comfortable while adding diversity, this may be worth considering.

 

[CCXGT]

[ QUOTE=BBradbury;3026232]Whoa PNW...



The large water changes apply to any tank. The stocking level doesn't matter. The fish and plants need pure water flushed through the tank at least every week or two. The water changes replace minerals in the tank that are lost to constant filtration.



The poster doesn't have Discus or Rams that I read. I may have missed that part. But, they'd likely do well in pure water conditions. The angel might be a little aggressive, but a well planted tank will help with that issue.



As far as the Tetras, a stable water chemistry is needed for them as for any fish. The large, regular water change will take of the stability part.



Thanks for the comments. I appreciate them.



B[/QUOTE]


You can't go around telling people this stuff.
Especially those that are asking for advice and are more influential compared to other, more experienced hobbyists.

What you've said here is that it doesn't matter what fish you have or how many you want, if you do water changes it will all be fine.

It may work for you (god knows how), but it's still wrong, doesn't matter how you try to twist it.



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[PNWaquarist]

Whoa PNW...

The large water changes apply to any tank. The stocking level doesn't matter. The fish and plants need pure water flushed through the tank at least every week or two. The water changes replace minerals in the tank that are lost to constant filtration.

No, they don't. They're unnecessary in reasonably stocked tanks, and they stress the fish. Fish do not like abrupt changes in water chemistry. Some deal with it better than others, and there may be good reasons to do it in some cases (overstocked tank, fish with high sensitivity to nitrates, etc.). But in general, it's worth avoiding if possible.

If you need to change out 50% of your water every week, it's better to change out 25% of it every four days.

The poster doesn't have Discus or Rams that I read. I may have missed that part. But, they'd likely do well in pure water conditions. The angel might be a little aggressive, but a well planted tank will help with that issue.

As far as the Tetras, a stable water chemistry is needed for them as for any fish. The large, regular water change will take of the stability part.

No, large-volume water changes impart instability on the tank. When you replace half of the tank water with pure water, you significantly and abruptly change the tank's water chemistry.

The poster has Neon Tetras, which are sensitive to both nitrates and sudden changes in water chemistry. They would not live long in your tank.

You need to stop spewing this large-water-changes-are-appropriate-for-every-conceivable-situation-and-will-fix-everything line. It's just not true.

 

[CCXGT]

No, they don't. They're unnecessary in reasonably stocked tanks, and they stress the fish. Fish do not like abrupt changes in water chemistry. Some deal with it better than others, and there may be good reasons to do it in some cases (overstocked tank, fish with high sensitivity to nitrates, etc.). But in general, it's worth avoiding if possible.

If you need to change out 50% of your water every week, it's better to change out 25% of it every four days.



No, large-volume water changes impart instability on the tank. When you replace half of the tank water with pure water, you significantly and abruptly change the tank's water chemistry.

The poster has Neon Tetras, which are sensitive to both nitrates and sudden changes in water chemistry. They would not live long in your tank.

You need to stop spewing this large-water-changes-are-appropriate-for-every-conceivable-situation-and-will-fix-everything line. It's just not true.

+1


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[emilygupps]

I can't add much, but I bet aqadvisor was just freaked out about your loaches.

It yells at me too. I agree with adding more ottos and neons. I have between 12-16 ottos. It's hard to keep track of them. But they stopped dying off so fast when I added the last batch of 10. They have a personality like loaches. Mine like to school with my zebra danios and swim around in a v shape like geese. Same with my neons in an other tank, I have 7 neons and a betta. They seem MUCH happier since I added the batch of four.


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[SFAquariums1]

Hello The...



A 55 G tank is large enough for a large number of most fish you'll find at the pet store. I have a 60 G with 100 or so fancy Guppies, 20 large Platys, 10 Corydoras and four Plecos. One Pleco is 8 inches long. As long as the fish can comfortably swim and turn around in the tank, they'll be fine.



The key to the health of a well stocked tank is large, very frequent water changes. The fish will be healthy in treated tap water with no traces of ammonia or nitrite and nitrates in the 20-30 ppm range.



Get some bottom and surface plants and you'll have no tank problems.



B

The key to the health of a well stocked tank is large water changes? That couldn't be further from the truth. Though water changes are a big part of the aquarium hobby, there are many MANY more important things than water change especially when it comes to stocking. I believe a previous poster mentioned my next point, huge water changes just put stress on the fish, better to break them up.

I believe your tank is Way overstocked.... Aside from size of fish, you need to take into account how much swimming each species likes to do, how aggressive they are, as well as how territorial they are.... Among other things.

People, especially beginners, are impressionable on this forum, so advice like that can't be given to make that sound like the normal thing to do. Though it may work for you, it is not good advice to give beginners. Normally I don't chime in like this, but it's not the first time I've read something like this from this poster.


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[Fishobsessed7]

Yeah as soon as I add my CAE to aqadvisor I'm like 350% more stocked than I was without it and it's still small but I need to rehome it soon because I bought it not knowing anything about them when I was newer

 

[SFAquariums1]

Yeah as soon as I add my CAE to aqadvisor I'm like 350% more stocked than I was without it and it's still small but I need to rehome it soon because I bought it not knowing anything about them when I was newer

I'm sure everyone has a story about the Chinese algea eaters turning into monstrous killing machines, destroying your tank, and being impossible to catch when you try rehome them!


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