max number of bottom-feeders in a 30 gal. hex?

[Tostada]

My tank is only 21" across, and I'm wondering how many bottom feeders I can fit in there.

Right now I have 3 tiny glass shrimp. I just got them because I thought they looked kinda cool and they were 5 for $1.00 at the LFS. Well, then I put them in my tank and fed my fish, and as soon as one of the flakes drifted to the bottom, this little shrimp (probably exactly 1" long) just latched onto this huge flake (also about 1" long) and just started shoving the whole thing in its mouth, and it was pretty awesome seeing him eating and seeing the food inside him that he had just eaten.

So, these little glass shrimp take up no room at all. It takes me awhile just to find them. I was thinking of getting a few more. But I'd also like to get a couple other bottom-feeders eventually -- maybe a pleco, or maybe just one or two small catfish/cories/algae eaters/something.

I'd like to get a cherry shrimp, too, but I can't find any locally.

Anyway, would 1 bottom-feeder fish, 1 cherry shrimp, and about 8 glass shrimp be too much? The glass shrimp are so small you can't even see them till you get right up on the tank and look for them for a second.

Also, I'm pretty new to this, so if I have tons of shrimp in there, should I just overfeed my fish a little to make sure enough gets down to the shrimp?

 

[Cinder]

What size (in gallons or liters) is your tank? I'm going to assume, based on your 21" measurement, that it's around a 15 gln. So my suggestions are based on that.
The best bottom feeders would be Corydoras. You could have three or four (they need to be in groups as they are very social).
I wouldn't suggest any pleco in that tank it's just too small.
Of course if you want other fish you need to keep that in mind for your bioload.
Shrimp don't add much bioload at all so having up to five or six (more if there aren't other fish than the bottom dwellers) should be just fine. It was suggested to me that I could have five Amano shrimp in my 20 gln. tank, but I have other community fish in there also. They do get larger than the Cherry shrimp but Glass shrimp can also get to 2" so take that into consideration. (Meaning you could have more Glass shrimp because they are smaller.)
I wouldn't overfeed just to make sure your shrimp get food. It's highly unlikely that the fish will get all the food and Cherry shrimp are also great algae eaters. If you do add extra food do it once in a while and make sure you gravel clean when doing water changes.

 

[chotie]

What size (in gallons or liters) is your tank? I'm going to assume, based on your 21" measurement, that it's around a 15 gln. So my suggestions are based on that.
The best bottom feeders would be Corydoras. You could have three or four (they need to be in groups as they are very social).
I wouldn't suggest any pleco in that tank it's just too small.
Of course if you want other fish you need to keep that in mind for your bioload.
Shrimp don't add much bioload at all so having up to five or six (more if there aren't other fish than the bottom dwellers) should be just fine. It was suggested to me that I could have five Amano shrimp in my 20 gln. tank, but I have other community fish in there also. They do get larger than the Cherry shrimp but Glass shrimp can also get to 2" so take that into consideration. (Meaning you could have more Glass shrimp because they are smaller.)
I wouldn't overfeed just to make sure your shrimp get food. It's highly unlikely that the fish will get all the food and Cherry shrimp are also great algae eaters. If you do add extra food do it once in a while and make sure you gravel clean when doing water changes.

 

[Ky'smommy]

well i agree with the above.
but tostada said that it was a thirty gallon tank.
and i think also to take into consideration what kind of fish you want and other fish and go from there also.
im sure saying what types of fish you have people will better be able to help you.

 

[JustOneMore20]

Hex tanks have limited surface area...as you know. I'd choose either the shrimp or the cories. Forget the pleco...there just isn't room.

I'd keep the 3 shrimp you have and add 6 of a smaller type of cories. Habrosus, panda, or pygmy cories would be good. I wouldn't get anything larger than that. You could probably squeeze a couple more glass shrimp in with them.

Or you could get 3 more glass shrimp and 6 or so cherry shrimp and just have shrimp as your bottom feeders.

What other fish are in the tank or will be in the tank? Alot of fish will eat shrimp so I'd be careful what you put in there.

 

[Tostada]

I know you're supposed to keep cories in groups, but 6 seems like a lot. Would I have to worry about cories eating the shrimp? Panda cories would be great, but aren't they a bit delicate?

Right now there isn't much in the tank. I've got 3 Zebra Danios and a 3" Koi in there, but those all might be finding a new home. The tank has only been going for a week, and ammonia is still going down. Those color bars on the test kit are a little vague. The bars are 0, 0.25, 0.50, 1, 2, 4, 8 ... and the color is a little lighter than the 0.50 bar, so I guess that's good, but I thought anything over 0.50 would kill fish pretty fast. Anyway, I'm just letting it go with those fish until the water quality is perfect since they're supposed to be really hearty.

I guess I'd like to stick a snail in there. I'm really not sure what other fish I want. I'm thinking it'll probably be something colorful, hearty, and small enough that I can have a little school of them ... probably something like swordtails, harlies, or platies.

And I'll also have a couple plants once I get a better hood.

 

[Cinder]

Tostada - just for your future reference, it's actually cruel to cycle a tank with fish in it. I don't know if it's possible for you to take the fish back that you have but it would be in their best interest to not cycle with them in there. If you can't take them back or find someone to keep them for a while for you then make the best of it and keep a close eye on things while the tank cycles.
I'm sorry I get lupey when I'm tired. It's been a long week. I see your tank size in the heading! Duh!!
Anyway, no the Cories won't eat the shrimp.
The Koi needs to be moved out. They are cold water fish and are too messy (bioload) and will become way to big for even a 30 gln. tank.
I've been hearing that people are having trouble keeping Panda cories alive - some think it's due to really indiscriminate breeding in the U.S. You may want to try another type of Cory and just go with four.
Apple snails are great and won't breed without both a male and female. (All other snails can produce babies with just one snail.)
If you add any livebearers (swordtails, platies, guppies) you will have lots of fry unless you keep only females (and then they can come already pregnant from the LFS). You will quickly overload your tank unless you have somewhere else for your fry. They are great fish though with bright colors so they may work well for your tank, if you're prepared for the babies.
Definitely get plants as soon as possible. Even low light plants (Java Fern, Java Moss, Anubias, some Crypts) will help with your water quality and make the fish feel more comfortable.
You have plenty of room for a good school of fish with the Cories and shrimp and a snail. You could do two different schools of six to eight smaller type fish without any problems in that size tank also.

 

[JustOneMore20]

The tank size is in the title of the post....30 gallon hex.

If pandas are too delicate for you, I'd go with Trilineatus cories...also known as False Juliis. They stay around 2 inches. Or go with Metae cories (Bandit cories) which also stay on the smaller size, but I don't think they are as delicate. They may be hard to find though. I'd stay away from bronze, albino, paleatus (peppered), and sodalis cories. They all get too large.

I agree that the Koi should be moved out. It just gets too large for that size tank and it is a coldwater fish...not tropical. Give it to someone with a nice big pond!

 

[Tostada]

Thanks for the replies.

Tostada - just for your future reference, it's actually cruel to cycle a tank with fish in it. I don't know if it's possible for you to take the fish back that you have but it would be in their best interest to not cycle with them in there. If you can't take them back or find someone to keep them for a while for you then make the best of it and keep a close eye on things while the tank cycles.

I'm sure as a generalization you can say it's cruel to cycle a tank with fish in it, but I'm testing the water regularly and keeping the numbers under control. I doubt you'd be suggesting I take the fish back if you could compare their current conditions to those in the LFS, though, which is the reason I got those specific fish to begin with.

The Koi needs to be moved out. They are cold water fish and are too messy (bioload) and will become way to big for even a 30 gln. tank.

You honestly think it's a bad idea to keep a 3" Koi in an understocked 30 gal. tank? If you saw the tank she was in at the LFS with 10 friends you'd no doubt be phoning in bomb threats. Yeah, Koi are pond fish, but everything I've looked at says they actually do fine in even warmer temperatures than most tropical fish. As far as bioload, I don't have anything else in there that is much of a load at all, and I have a larger-than-recommended filter. I have a friend with a Koi pond in his backyard, which is probably where this one will end up, but she seems a little small for that now.

Anyway, not trying to sound like an ass. If I'm completely stupid feel free to let me know.

 

[Cinder]

No you're not stupid - sounds like you have a good handle on things.
However, as a fishkeeper, not a fishhaver, I always put the fishes best interest first. That, for me, means only getting fish that will always be able to be in my tank and not knowingly doing anything that might harm them. Thus my replies.
(Yes - I completely understand the frustration of the awful conditions of the tanks at the pet store.) Good luck.

 

[Tostada]

Well ... I got a few shrimp, and they started disappearing. So I got the biggest shrimp they had at the LFS. I figured there's no way a 3" Koi will eat a 2" shrimp. Now my tank is down to 1 shrimp -- the Koi has eaten 13 of them! She may be moving to the pond sooner than I thought.

I just don't see how a fish that size can even possibly eat 13 shrimp in 4 days.

It doesn't seem like I have many options for invertebrates. The fish eat shrimp. Crayfish would eat the fish. I guess I'll just get a snail and some cories.