The ship has been tipped-risks of overstocking

[Guest]

Well as you all may remember I was working on my new 10 gallon planted tank and was testing my waters by ... as some would think.. severerly overstocking. Well as was predicted by many well experienced aquarist on this board.. it would be fine until something happened.. and that something happened.

I awoke yesterday to a severly cloudy tank and not so happy looking fish. Perhaps a small bacterial bloom??? Well i decided to not feed that day.. i only feed this tank sparingly anyway. Today as i was cleaning i stopped and looked at the tank to find... not one but several dead fish. ALL of the guppies were dead and my 4 emerald green cories were dead. So while doing a massive water change (90%) I removed and flushed my 5 dead guppies and my 4 dead emerald greens. As i was trimming the plants through all of this i found the cause of this sudden massacre... a half rotted butterfly/hillstream loach in the very back in a bunch of plants. There's no telling how long but i do believe he had been rotting in there for days and that a huge ammonia spike must've occured when he died... and i didn't know that he died. This massive spike in an already shaky system is what i believed caused my fish death.


Anyway i just wanted to let you guy know that keeping an overstocked tank was a TON TON Of work and this is what happens when something goes wrong... massive destruction. This is why it is not usually suggested. Had i found the dead hillstream loach earlier maybe the tragedy could've been prevented. But what has happend is done and i don't think im going to stock that high again.


Current stocking (not adding anything else)

2 GBR
3 Otos
3 Corys
1 bristlenose pleco
1 SAE (temporary)

 

[Zagz]

So sorry to hear of your losses.

 

[Andos99]

Sorry for your loss....It can be hard to find a corpse before it is too late in a densely planted tank. Did you test the water during all of this to see if it was in fact an ammonia spike? Better luck with round two and you may want to consider 86ing the Ram idea.

 

[GouramiFanatic]

I'm sorry to hear about your losses. Unfortunately, I don't really have any advice for you on your stocking question (although I'd always recommend Gouramis... ), but I do have a question about the Plecos you're keeping. Are you keeping the Bristlenose Plecos in there permanantly or are you eventually moving them to a bigger tank? I'm only asking because I REALLY want to get a Pleco for my 10 gallon and suddenly my lfs seems to have Bristlenose and Candy Stripe Plecos in stock all of the time. I just thought they got to be to big for a 10 gallon.

 

[Hara]

Poor fish.

 

[Lepomis]

I am sorry to hear that it happened but as you mentioned many spoke up. Wel it doesn't seem like you really learned however. To add such a sensitive fish to an overstocked tank with the current inhabitants is just asking for dead GBR's. A pair of GBR's in the tank would be fine but I would relocate most of the others (maybe keep two otos). I can understand what you are wanting but you need to get rid of some fish to do so. Too many "clean up" crew members.

 

[Puriti]

T.T sowwy to hear bout your fishies... I'm glad I finally got at least SOME of my overstocking issues covered X.x not all. That's why I make sure every day I have every fish I had the day before @__@ So that doesn't happen...T___T hope your other fishies are okay

 

[tropicfishman]

that gotta be a bummer

 

[QTOFFER]

I'm sorry about your losses too, but very glad that you posted your experience. Stocking limits were not arrived at randomly - they were painfully discovered by trial and error, and often as a result of complete disasters like the one you experienced. Pushing the envelope works only for so long as your luck holds out.

I still think your tank is overstocked - not because you have 12 fish, but because you have 12 bottomdwellers all competing for the same 200 sq inches of space. I wouldn't recommend sensitive fish like GBRs in a 10 gal, much less an overstocked one. How about a dwarf gourami and 4 of the bottomdwellers that you currently have?

 

[Guest]

ok, i posted this topic a while ago but it didn't automatically watch the topics so now i just got the replies today and am reading them.


to update... after doing the 100% water change i tested my water daily and watched as my minicycle finished and lost a few more fish. YES it is sad and a result of my stubborness but the reason i am sharing is not to be lectured.. becuase i know what went wrong.. but the reason im sharing is so that OTHERS can learn from my experience.

As of yesterday my testing was
Ammonia-0
Nitrite-0
Nitrate-10
pH-7

Today i went to the LFS and bought 2 German blue rams which leaves my final stocking as follows:

2 German blue rams
3 Otocinclus
3 Panda Corys
1 Siamese algea eater
1 Albino bristlenose pleco
Malaysian trumpet snails

That is 10 fish in a 10 gallon and i am absolutely not going to add anymore. THe albino bristlenose may eventually move to the 55 gallon. I did move one bristlenose to the 55 gallon.
THe other losses were one of the SAE, 1 Otocinclus, and 1 of the panda cory cats.

I think this is a good stock to keep up with, i can see all of them each day and keep an eye on their health. As i stated when i started this tank that i was going to push the envelope and i said honestly i was going to update on any problems encountered... why should i be ridiculed when i am completely honest??? Here i am online and i could lie and say that i kept 20 fish in the tank with no problems but thats not true and i am here to learn and share my experience to others... not be ridiculed.

BTW---the plants are doing WONDERFUL through all this. Although the fish loss was sad the spike in nutrients has done wonders for my plants.

 

[Andos99]

As i stated when i started this tank that i was going to push the envelope and i said honestly i was going to update on any problems encountered... why should i be ridiculed when i am completely honest??? Here i am online and i could lie and say that i kept 20 fish in the tank with no problems but thats not true and i am here to learn and share my experience to others... not be ridiculed.

Uhhhh......what? I don't think anyone "ridiculed" you at all. After re-reading this post, just to make sure I didn't offend anyone, I came to the conclusion that a majority of the repliers apologized for your loss and politely recommend another option besides GBR's. What you do with your tanks is up to you.....we were just offering advice, because after all, that is what this forum is about.

 

[QTOFFER]

Ashley, nobody ridiculed or lectured you at all. However, you have to understand that nobody here who knows their stuff is going to congratulate you for overstocking either.
It's your tank, and you can stock it as you see fit. You posted an honest report of your esperience, and people responded by posting their honest advice.

 

[Guest]

As i stated when i started this tank that i was going to push the envelope and i said honestly i was going to update on any problems encountered... why should i be ridiculed when i am completely honest??? Here i am online and i could lie and say that i kept 20 fish in the tank with no problems but thats not true and i am here to learn and share my experience to others... not be ridiculed.

Uhhhh......what? I don't think anyone "ridiculed" you at all. After re-reading this post, just to make sure I didn't offend anyone, I came to the conclusion that a majority of the repliers apologized for your loss and politely recommend another option besides GBR's. What you do with your tanks is up to you.....we were just offering advice, because after all, that is what this forum is about.

your post was fine Andos..
I was just sharing my experience so that others could learn.

Ashley, nobody ridiculed or lectured you at all. However, you have to understand that nobody here who knows their stuff is going to congratulate you for overstocking either.
It's your tank, and you can stock it as you see fit. You posted an honest report of your esperience, and people responded by posting their honest advice.

didn't have a problem with your post either QTOFFER.. your reply was honest and direct and i appreciate your educated input.

I am sorry to hear that it happened but as you mentioned many spoke up. Wel it doesn't seem like you really learned however. To add such a sensitive fish to an overstocked tank with the current inhabitants is just asking for dead GBR's.

just the post that said "if you get a GBR you are killing it" was what i thought was a form of ridicule.. but its fine... its that persons opinion



on another note... i did another 50% water change today and my parameters are still the same and healthy. The rams are coming out and eating and they look beautiful.. although i think i got 2 females. They have basically the entire tank to themselves since all the other fish are.. as someone said, bottom feeders...and although i know they do contribute to the bioloade my nitrates are at 10 and the live plants provide tons of coverage.

 

[Zagz]

I have been known to be guilty of overstocking although I do try and not overdo it. Threads like this do help me to remember why I shouldn't heavily overstock. A good reminder IMO. I find that personally sometimes even when I know better I can be seriously tempted to disregard the rules so to speak. Reality checks are a good thing for me. Although I have made plenty of my own mistakes so you would think I would have learned on my own. :?

 

[krap101]

just my experience, the siamese algae eater should get around 5-6" i think.. im not worried about the stocking, just their a really active fish, and small tanks could cause them to jump out.
otherwise i think its fine

 

[Guest]

just my experience, the siamese algae eater should get around 5-6" i think.. im not worried about the stocking, just their a really active fish, and small tanks could cause them to jump out.
otherwise i think its fine

Yes i am aware. The SAE is only a temporary fix for the hair algae growing in the tank... which it is almost completely gone now. Then he will either be sold back or given to my friend for her 55 gallon community.

 

[Wizzard~Of~Ozz]

Have you considered putting an ammonia badge on the tank? I know my stocking levels are a bit high so I have 1 just incase something croaks.. just an early warning..

 

[Guest]

i don't believe in using ammonia removers.. otherwise there is no ammonia available for the biological cycle. With the stocking the way it was before it was way too much to keep up with. But as it is now i can see all of the fish each day and i thinned out the plants a LOT.

 

[Gryph]

Ammonia badges aren't ammonia removers. They're tabby things you suction cup to the inside of your tank, and they turn colors to warn you about ammonia levels. Pretty nifty, actually.

I use Prime, since it changes dangerous ammonia into non-dangerous ammonia and doesn't muck with my cycle.

Just as an aside, I don't think anyone ridiculed you. I do think, however, that one of the prices of bucking the trend and pushing the envelope is then gamely accepting the inevitable "I told you so"s and the lectures. Pioneers are a staunch sort.

 

[Wizzard~Of~Ozz]

Thanks Gryph.

http://www.bigalsonline.com/catalog/product.xml?product_id=19577;category_id=3095;pcid1=3233;pcid2=

They are 5$ and can save you quite a disaster, esp. useful for medicating a tank. You can also get them at Petsmart (I had in store credit there so I picked one up)