Is my tank harmful to the fish in it?:(

[primsloaches16]

Hey yall! I'm all new and I'm posting my first post, which i guess is also airing out one of the things I'm most paranoid about. The amount of fish in my fish tank. (To preface, the bioload is supported, it is fully cycled and the ammonia is 0ppm, nitrate is 0ppm, and nitrite is 5ppm, about 4 days into the week because I water change on friday) I'm asking if it is more a space issue for my babies. My tank is a 32.5 gallon Fluval Flex with it's internal filter, and a sponge filter and air stone for extra aeration, I have a heater on one side of the tank so that the fish with different temp requirements can all be happy, I did do a lot of research but I'm open to suggestions. I just love my fish so much and want them to be happy, I do weekly 45% water changes and sand vacs)

My stocking list: unsure
7x rummynose tetras
6x cherry barbs (4 females, 2 males, who are both disabled fish, one with a swim bladder problem and the other male only has one eye)
5x upside down catfish
11x kuhli loaches (5 black, 4 common striped, and 2 rare calico kuhlis)
6x emerald corydoras
3x juvenile golden dojo/weather loaches (all the fish stores said 30 gallons was acceptable but I'm aware that it is debated, aquarium co op keeps them in tropical temps so that's what I was coming from)
1x female betta
2x hillstream loaches (a popular and well respected youtuber aquarium co-op has kept these in higher temps than im keeping them and he said they thrived, and there are areas of faster flow in the tank that they enjoy)
1x golden tiger pleco (juvenile)
2x snails (one gold inca, the other is a stowaway from a plant, very small, unsure of type)
?x ghost shrimp (hard to count, but I'm guessing around 5)

I'm very scared and nervous to post this, my intention is to take care of my fish the best I can, and they are all very active and have varied diets, all seem comfortable and have their own space, I just know numbers wise, even if they are small fish, that that is a lot of fish. Again the bioload is stable, is this many fish considered abuse? I used to have fewer cherry barbs and cories, but I wanted them to have a full school to be most comfortable. It's taking me a lot of courage to post this, thank yall in advance

 

[Shiverz]

So first and foremost, your nitrite level is high, you need to do a water change immediately and then retake the test to ensure that it wasn't an error with the readings, anything over 0.75ppm can be stressful to the fish and over 5ppm nitrite is toxic which can cause problems and discomfort the fish, this needs to be addressed immediately.

To answer your question, yes, your tank is severely overstocked. Your golden tiger pleco needs 55 gallons, these things can get pretty darn big and your tank isn't big enough. Kuhli locahes require 20 gallons for one, and an extra 3-5 gallons for every kuhli you have extra. your catfish need 30 gallons but again, you need extra gallons for every additional catfish after that. The hillstream loaches.. that fish is designed for cooler waters, with a high flow current, just because they survive in a certain environment doesn't mean that they're happy, healthy and comfortable. they too need a larger tank size than what you have. I LOVE hillstream loaches, I absoloutley adore them, and I too was detered away from them because of these reasons. I'll admit I watched co-ops videos too, but after research I realised what he said was wrong and was detrimental to the fishes health, to be honest a lot of videos I've found of his have been wrong, so I stay away.

I'll be honest with you, you need to get rid of some fish, or to invest in a much larger tank. I'm surprised that your bio-load is stable, if they are all small then in no time at all you will most likely start seeing problems. Also in such a confined space, their growth will be stunted, yet the growth of their organs wont be. As you can imagine, with organs getting larger in a small body it can be severely painful and cause no end of problems and shorten the lifespan of the fish.

Now, I know you was scared, and I tried wording my post to be as subtle as possible, because you've took a deep dive and shown courage, I'm glad that you did because it's better to know now than wonder why all your fish are sick/dying. Everyone makes mistakes, I don't think theres a single person who hasn't. So don't feel bad for going off information you've been given by your LFS or on youtube channel who just want to score some "views" or sell products on their website by making them seem "all round fish".

 

[primsloaches16]

Thank you so much for your advice. I now feel kind of foolish for listening to a guy on youtube, he just seemed very knowledgeable. This is very saddening to me since I just invested about 700 dollars into this whole setup believing it was adequate for my babes, and I dont know how I'm going to part with them. I also accidentally gave the wrong numbers, the NITRITES are 0ppm, the NITRATES are 5ppm. I move in a few months, and that would be able for me to get a larger tank then. (This was the largest tank my mom allowed me to get.) That could also give me time to save up for a larger set up, would it be alright if I tried to keep them in here until I move and can get like a 55 or 75 for them? I know a lot of people say that they'll do it and then dont, but I already upgraded them from a 20 to the 32, and I'm more than willing to invest the funds to make them happy. Maybe when I have the larger tank, I could use the 32.5 for the hillstreams so they can have a cooler environment? Thank you so much for being understanding, it means so much.

 

[Shiverz]

Don't feel foolish, you wouldn't believe the amount of times people have used advice from youtube, or the advice of their LFS just to realise that they have been given bad information. It happens alot and theres no way we can stop people from putting out this information. Mistakes happen and when someone has hundreds of thousands of viewers you expect their knowledge to be accurate. Though now you know, all I can say is this, do 5 times the amount of research than you think you should, or whats easier is to ask on here, we prefer people ask questions then take a gamble, also, seriouslyfish is a brilliant source of information on species of fish. Yeah fish keeping can be very expensive and I'm sorry that you have this dilema on your hands, especially as you've just put out so much. if your nitrate is 5ppm then thats fine, anything up to 40ppm is generally safe for the fish, but we like to keep it as low as possible.

A few months may be a bit too long to have them in there for that amount of time, I'm expecting that your fish will start showing signs of aggression due to their environment before you move, I also expect some fish to grow a little bit by then and possible eat some others (looking at you catfish, you hungry hippo's). In all honesty if I were in your shoes, I'd look at returning some fish to the store you got them from, possibly the larger ones like the pleco, the catfish, limit your kuhli's and some others.

For your loaches, if your tanks is 75cm x 30cm then that will be fine for your baby xeno's (hillstream loaches), as long as they have a good current, ideal temperatures and lots of room to play they'll be happy.

The way I see it, there's no point putting someone down for following advice, it was out of your control and you only followed what you believed to be good advice. You're also trying to rectify the problem, so I don't see any reason to be "nasty". If you was adding more fish despite what I've said, then I'd tut at you (as is british standard).

Just a disclaimer here. I'm new to fish keeping, I've done alot of research but I am no where near as experienced as some members on this forum. No doubt others will be able to expand on the advice I've given you and possibly give you better solutions

 

[vanalisa]

Thank you so much for your advice. I now feel kind of foolish for listening to a guy on youtube, he just seemed very knowledgeable. This is very saddening to me since I just invested about 700 dollars into this whole setup believing it was adequate for my babes, and I dont know how I'm going to part with them. I also accidentally gave the wrong numbers, the NITRITES are 0ppm, the NITRATES are 5ppm. I move in a few months, and that would be able for me to get a larger tank then. (This was the largest tank my mom allowed me to get.) That could also give me time to save up for a larger set up, would it be alright if I tried to keep them in here until I move and can get like a 55 or 75 for them? I know a lot of people say that they'll do it and then dont, but I already upgraded them from a 20 to the 32, and I'm more than willing to invest the funds to make them happy. Maybe when I have the larger tank, I could use the 32.5 for the hillstreams so they can have a cooler environment? Thank you so much for being understanding, it means so much.

Aside from and in addition to that advice: if you are moving in a few months and need to do SOMETHING to hold over some of your babies you can aways do a cheap DIY tank out of inexpensive items until you get another and/or larger tank.

Bravo for reaching out.

 

[Shiverz]

That is a good point Vanalisa, I completely forgot about plastic tubs and such. Alot of people use them here for QT tanks, or for fish they couldn't turn away at the Fish shop. Thanks for pointing that out!

 

[vanalisa]

That is a good point Vanalisa, I completely forgot about plastic tubs and such. Alot of people use them here for QT tanks, or for fish they couldn't turn away at the Fish shop. Thanks for pointing that out!

No problem. Dollar store DIY !

 

[primsloaches16]

No problem. Dollar store DIY !

I have a spare 20gal and a spare 10gal, with filters for both, the only problem is that my mom wants me to get rid of the tanks and would not let me set them up, I might talk to my girlfriend and ask if i can keep them at her house maybe?

 

[vanalisa]

I have a spare 20gal and a spare 10gal, with filters for both, the only problem is that my mom wants me to get rid of the tanks and would not let me set them up, I might talk to my girlfriend and ask if i can keep them at her house maybthue?

Good idea. Be sure the whole household is prepared and understand the dos and don'ts about fishtanks, feeding, etc.
Any kids?
Any
Or...
Garage?
Your closet?
Laundry room?
Obviously temperature could be an issue; at least it's not winter.
Any other unused spaces at home?
Glad you have the extra tanks!

 

[primsloaches16]

Good idea. Be sure the whole household is prepared and understand the dos and don'ts about fishtanks, feeding, etc.
Any cats?
Pesky moms

No cats! All my girlfriend has is a small dog (we both raised her, a schnauzer yorkie named "Totino's", who won't bother the tanks at all) but its a big maybe, I don't want to put that on her because it's a lot. I dunno, I also have a friend that takes care of exotics and fish, I could ask her as well.

 

[vanalisa]

No cats! All my girlfriend has is a small dog (we both raised her, a schnauzer yorkie named "Totino's", who won't bother the tanks at all) but its a big maybe, I don't want to put that on her because it's a lot. I dunno, I also have a friend that takes care of exotics and fish, I could ask her as well.

You'll work it out. I edited my post if you want other ideas, I forgot what's what!

 

[Shiverz]

That is a good solution to have your girlfriend look after them, though if she doesn't have alot of knowledge on the matter then you may have to give her a boot camp for fish care (or just use it as an excuse to go over *cough cough*)

As for what fish in what tanks, that could be dilema. simply because alot of your fish are on the larger side. I do believe your rummynose could go in the 20 gal, Your shrimp and snails too (mainly to stop other fish nomming at them), I would've said your cory's but I think for 6 of them, you may need a slightly larger tank than 20 gal (hoping someone has more input on this).

As for the ten gal all I can say is have the tank for the betta. for fish compatibilty and tank size I'd need someone elses hand to give me aid, as i said before I'm new myself and wouldn't want to give you false information.

 

[primsloaches16]

Thank yall for all of ur ideas! I asked my friend who cares for exotics and I hope she responds, but yeah, if not, I might shell out my closet and keep it in secret lol... XD

 

[Shiverz]

Thank yall for all of ur ideas! I asked my friend who cares for exotics and I hope she responds, but yeah, if not, I might shell out my closet and keep it in secret lol... XD

Well if she keeps fish as it is, it definitely would be a good choice to let her care for them for the time being. You'd know they were in good hands, and if she has room in her tanks it could help even further as she might already have the room available. I wish you the best of luck

 

[primsloaches16]

Thank you so much! I feel so much better having talked about this with yall, it was so appreciated!<3