STRESS from Water Quality, Overcrowding, Strong current ????

[Bubble_B0y]

Question: is the stress from water quality, overcrowding and strong current all independent from one another ???

the reason I ask is because i was just pondering.....

lets say someone gets a bigger, more powerful filter for their tank
- kinda like at the LFS/pet store

are they able to keep MORE fish - since the filter can handle a bigger bioload ??

which brings me to the next question:
if the water quality is perfect (because of the bigger, powerful filter), then is overstocking still an issue ?

hence, can fish still become stressed not because of the water quality, but because of overcrowding and the stronger current (caused by the bigger, more powerful filter)


just something to think about.
P.S i think this hobby makes me contemplate ALOT !!!!

 

[jrp1588]

Depending on the fish, the filter could stress them out a lot, and other fish like to have lots of room to swim...so they wouldn't like bumping into others all the time.

 

[Fishyfanatic]

You can overstock if there is adequate filtration........to an extent. If you have a 1,000 gph filter on a 29 gal tank, you still can't keep 40 three inch fish in it. That's an extreme example, but it is still valid. You can overstock to the point where the fish are still happy. Meaning if the tank looks busy with fish bumping into each other, its too many, no matter how much filtration you have on the tank. Adequate swimming space and territories still need to be established. Some fish do not like strong currents ie Bettas. So I don't think that plays an issue in it. That's just all based on opinion. Then again, hardly nothing is fact in fish keeping.

 

[Bubble_B0y]

I just found a great article:

The number and size of the fish you keep in your tank should be based on several factors. It should not be based solely on the chemistry of your water nor on the magic of the inch per gallon myth. It's more than simply a matter of successfully keeping the ammonia and nitrites at zero or the fact that you may have "great filtration". certainly these are important issues, but one of the most important factors is almost always overlooked. The number and size of fish that one maintains in a tank should be predicated on the "biology" and behavior of those fish. This means that the interaction of a mixed community tank and/or the behavior of a single species, is the single most important factor to consider.

read the rest here !!!
http://badmanstropicalfish.com/articles/article27.html

 

[malkore]

Over stocking refers both to the bio-load placed on the tank, as well as the swimming space needed for the inhabitants.

Yes, with a bigger filter, the tank can handle a much larger bio-load...but swimming space remains a constant.
Don't give fish enough space, and you start to see strong aggression, fin rot, fish deaths, fish gasping for air because oxygen levels are low due to stocking levels....

I think you get the point. No matter how large a filter you get, there's still a line you cannot cross without dire consequences.

 

[krap101]

as long as its spread out, no agression and enough hiding places its usually okay. personally i dont think filteration is needed as long as tehre is air flow. the bacteria does its job, and if it cycles without a filter, but like an air stone or something, the bacteria will stay more in the substrate. i dont know if its possible to overcrowd bacteria? like if your tank is so overly stocked no more bacteria can grow past a certain point?

personally i dont believe this. as long as the fish are added like maybe 1-5 fish a week, and your tank is cycled, your bacteria will grow with the fish.