Stocking

[shockshockshad]

I know not to follow 1" of fish per gallon, but is 60" of fish too much for a 30 gallon tank? There are no messy fish; the biggest I want are tiger barbs. It is just a community tank, but it seems like a lot of inches, but when you look at the list, maybe its just me, but it seems fine. What do you think?

7 harlequins
6 tiger barbs
6 lemon tetras
5 panda cories
3 kuhli loaches

There are going to be 10 cherry shrimp. Is this best kind of shrimp? is Are there too many? If this a good plan, I want the temp to be 75-78, the pH neutral, staple diet flakes and tablets, supplemented with bloodworms and shrimp pellets. Am I ready? Oh, there will be lots of plants.

 

[Luketendo]

Shrimps produce very little waster so 10 is ok. Provided you have ample filtration and a good maintenance routine then you'll probably be ok.

 

[mark.w.jones]

The 1" per gallon US rule is for slim bodied fish up to 3" in adult size. It is an excellent guideline for beginners and if adhered to leads to a slightly understocked tank which is far easier to maintain and keep stable. If you have more experience and are prepared to overfilter and keep up larger weekly water changes up to 50% then yes of course you can overstock. However, if..... things go wrong in an overstocked tank they tend to go massively wrong. So a broken heater or malfunctioning filter can lead to massive losses in a very short space of time.

So in short I would advice strongly against your stocking list. That tank is fully stocked with just the harlequins, tigers and tetras and kuhli loaches really need a bigger group than that from what I've read. Also bear in mind that they are a very timid and largely nocturnal species so you are unlikely to see them in the day much.

 

[shockshockshad]

Well, I think I am semi-overfiltering. I have a aquaclear 50, made for 20-40 gallom aquariums, and a penquin 150, made for 30 gallon aquariums. I think I want the harlequins, barbs, and cories. That way I have some fish on each level of the aquarium. With these fish, can I use dechlorinated tap water? Mine is 7.5 in pH.

 

[dwarfgourami]

IThe one thing that strikes me about your stocking list is that it might get a bit stressful for the harlequins. Tiger barbs are very boisterous fish; their sparring matches are going to fill most of the tank as it's not an enormous one and the harlequins may find themselves yearning for a quiet corner. Lemon tetras are some of the nippiest tetras, so again a bit stressful for the harlequins. If I were you I would keep one of these groups and maybe up the number of tiger barbs or tetras slightly if you choose them. Panda corys may also find themselves a bit intimidated with the barbs and become reclusive. I would go for either:

Peaceful tank: 7 harlequins+6 panda corys or 6 khuulie loaches+ one Indian gourami (not dwarf as they are often sickly)+ amano shrimps (or cherry shrimps if you don't have the gourami)
or
Boisterous tank: 8 tiger barbs+ a bristlenose plec
or
Lively tank: 8 lemon tetras+ small plec (NOT common or sailfin)
or possibly
Boisterous/lively: 8 tiger barbs+ 8 lemon tetras

IME it is often a good idea to mentally divide tanks up in peaceful/boisterous. Also, be aware that fish don't stay on one level all day however they are labelled in the books: tiger barbs will root around on the bottom, corys shoot up to the surface to swallow air and often dance all over the tank.

I am another one for understocking, partly for the disaster scenario mentioned by jonesy, partly because I am becoming more aware of how much swimming room different species require. The most efficient filtration in the world won't comfort a fish that's finding itself without a corner for its own territory.

 

[shockshockshad]

Thank you! I think I will go for the first tank. It has variaty, while there are not too many fish. I have flakes, bloodworms, shrimp pellets, and algae wafers. Is there any other food I need? What temp and pH should I keep it at?