1" per gallon vs 1" per 10 square inches of surfac

[Hungry Seacow]

I was reading The Complete Aquarium, and it mentions that the amount of freshwater fish one can have in a tank depends on the amount of surface area of a tank. A ten gallon tank is 10" x 20" giving you 200 square inches. Divide that by 10 and you get 20 inches of fish. I think that in a way this method is a bit silly. You could have a 10 gallon or a 15 gallon high and both would have the same surface area. I am thinking that the authors logic is based on oxygen exchange. But if that is the case then what if you had a bunch of Labyrinth Fish. They would not need such a large surface area for oxygen exchange.

Now with that said, I don't think that either method is accurate. One inch of a skinny fish is going to produce a lot less waste then one inch of a fat fish. Then you also need to think about which fish are OK in large groups and which like to have a lot of room to themselves. Too bad there isn't a grand web site to help one figure out how many of which species will fit into a particular tank.

[talloulou]

Originally Posted by Hungry Seacow

Now with that said, I don't think that either method is accurate.

Agreed. Much depends on species of fish being kept , amount of filtration, and amount of maintenance you are willing to do. That being said though I do prefer longer tanks over tall tanks and I feel they almost always allow for more stocking options.

As far as the grand website for figuring out stocking levels.....if there was one it wouldn't be accurate anyway for the same reasons the one inch rule isn't accurate. It would still depend on how much time/maintenance one is willing to dedicate to a tank.

However you can buy testing kits and moniter your tank closely and this should be the best indicator of how your tank is doing. If you can keep your ammonia/nitrites at 0 and your nitrates under 40 then your tank is okay. If your nitrates are easily kept under 10 then by all means add another fish. If your nitrates are always through the roof then your probably overstocked.

Also you can tell if your fish are colorful,active, and spawning then your tank is okay. If they are crowded, faded colors, and inactive then they are probably stressed and things need to change.

You can also view disease as an indicator of tank health. IMO many diseases you hear about over and over again are due to poor water conditions and someone who is not doing the amount of water changes they need to do for their tanks stock.

I think everyone agrees with what you are saying. Was there a question in there?

[Hungry Seacow]

I guess not, just aggravation

[greenmaji]

It sounds like 1in per 20sq in would be better.. and I do think that a 10 gallon and a 15 gallon is more alike then a 20H and a 20L.. as far as how many fish it can handle..if that makes any sence.. but of course there are alot of factors in how many fish can be kept in a tank..