My New Tank

[Jim_D]

Hi

I have a 10 gallon tank, which I've had up an running for about 2 months now. I currently have 5 platies (all male) and 6 harlequin rasboras. I'm thinking about adding some more fish but don't want to overstock. I'd like to get some small cory catfish for the bottom of the tank, I like the look of Panda Cories. I'm also toying with the idea of adding some more Harlequins and instead getting some neon tetras for a bit more variety. What number of fish would I be able to add without overstocking the tank? Any advice would be great.

 

[marieukxx]

A lot of people go by the one inch of fish per gallon rule. So you need to work out the max size each of the fish you have already grow to and add up how many inches they will take then you'll know.

 

[notg2009]

Hi

I have a 10 gallon tank, which I've had up an running for about 2 months now. I currently have 5 platies (all male) and 6 harlequin rasboras. I'm thinking about adding some more fish but don't want to overstock. I'd like to get some small cory catfish for the bottom of the tank, I like the look of Panda Cories. I'm also toying with the idea of adding some more Harlequins and instead getting some neon tetras for a bit more variety. What number of fish would I be able to add without overstocking the tank? Any advice would be great.

Platies and rasboras are top-middle swimmers and the bottom of the tank should be free for some cories, BUT with 5 platies and 6 rasboras you are already overstocked to some extent. I think it is best not to add any more fish.

 

[OldMan47]

You have plenty of stock in that tank already. Over time, as your skills develop and your routine water changes become second nature, you might get away with 3 or 4 panda cories. Be aware that less than about 6 cories will not present the fish at their best, but you do not have room for that many. The idea that a different level leaves room for more fish is one I have seen before and misses the point that we are dealing with water quality, not crowding. I see that Notg2009 followed up the statement with a statement that you are fully stocked but I don't want to see people start thinking in terms of crowding. In any real world situation, most of our fish are very crowded while all of the water in the creek around them is almost empty. The fish do not usually care about crowding but definitely need decent water quality to thrive.

 

[waterdrop]

Yes, completely agree with OM47. The inch guideline followed during the first two years greatly helps you to obtain the "feel" of successful fishkeeping, which then gives you greater "feel" for things being off when you later attempt to push the stocking boundaries a bit in certain situations.

And to play a little further with the natural stream analogy: think of OM47's image of a tight school of tropicals in out in natural water. As snorklers we might see a beautiful image of fish, tightly packed and colorful against a beautiful green backdrop. But how does the water that they are living in compare to our tank environment? In the stream, the 10 gallons immediately surrounding the shoal of tropicals might be immediately "replaced" by a fresh 10 gallons within literally 1 or 2 seconds (think of sitting at a stream with your hand or foot in it, think of the flowing movement of the entire stream past you.) It is profound to think of the shoal receiving a "fresh" tank of 10 gallons second after second. This fresh water has come from the clouds and filtered its way through ground that acts as media on a scale of acres and acres. The filter is vast, the volume is vast.

Now think about our little tank with the little plastic filter box and the tiny little impeller the size of the intake tube. We are often just barely bringing our stale water up to the minimum needed to keep the fish alive and ok. The "visual" we are going after in our tanks is like that packed shoal in the stream, but the "environment" they draw upon to live like that is much, much more vast than what we are providing. This kind of comparison is one of the ways I think about stocking limits to help temper my desires.

~~waterdrop~~

 

[Jim_D]

Thanks for the advice. I guess I'll leave adding any more fish. I'll just have to get a new tank (I have two already). I've been well and truly bitten by the fish keeping bug.

 

[Smells a bit fishy]

Yes, completely agree with OM47. The inch guideline followed during the first two years greatly helps you to obtain the "feel" of successful fishkeeping, which then gives you greater "feel" for things being off when you later attempt to push the stocking boundaries a bit in certain situations.

And to play a little further with the natural stream analogy: think of OM47's image of a tight school of tropicals in out in natural water. As snorklers we might see a beautiful image of fish, tightly packed and colorful against a beautiful green backdrop. But how does the water that they are living in compare to our tank environment? In the stream, the 10 gallons immediately surrounding the shoal of tropicals might be immediately "replaced" by a fresh 10 gallons within literally 1 or 2 seconds (think of sitting at a stream with your hand or foot in it, think of the flowing movement of the entire stream past you.) It is profound to think of the shoal receiving a "fresh" tank of 10 gallons second after second. This fresh water has come from the clouds and filtered its way through ground that acts as media on a scale of acres and acres. The filter is vast, the volume is vast.

Now think about our little tank with the little plastic filter box and the tiny little impeller the size of the intake tube. We are often just barely bringing our stale water up to the minimum needed to keep the fish alive and ok. The "visual" we are going after in our tanks is like that packed shoal in the stream, but the "environment" they draw upon to live like that is much, much more vast than what we are providing. This kind of comparison is one of the ways I think about stocking limits to help temper my desires.

~~waterdrop~~

What an insightful image that put in my head.

I think that is one of the best posts I have seen on here. However I havn't been on here very long.

So glad this place has so much experience in fish keeping. So glad I stumbled across it!

Thanks for all your hard work and great great advice over and over again.

Brilliant sums it up nicely!!!!

 

[marieukxx]

I know hoow you feel I'm the same. I wanted more in my tank but can't and don't want to risk it. Now I've discovered I love it so much desperately want another tank.