Overstocking

reefermadness85 · 01/18/2009, 03:17 PM

How bad is it to overstock a tank by a 1/2in-1in? I have a 40g tank and I was told it could host around 9.5in of fish. Does this sound right?

tanger75 · 01/18/2009, 03:28 PM

Depends on the fish, you need to watch out for bioloads. Some fish produce more waste than others. Inches per gallon is hard to say, need a fish list to help determine if overstocked or not.

Teen Aquarist · 01/18/2009, 03:31 PM

It really has nothing to do with inch of fish ( would you put a 10 inch goldfish in a ten gallon tank) tell us the fish you have then we can help you out.

nikon187 · 01/18/2009, 04:11 PM

Agreed. a completly out of date and un true rule. Inch per gallon doesn't mean jack. As mentioned above it depends on type of fish, feeding ect.

reefermadness85 · 01/18/2009, 04:41 PM

i dont have any fish yet. I am planning ahead so i dont run into any stocking problems. i would like a ocellaris clown or 2 if not a single gold banded maroon, golden midas, green clown goby, and a yellow tailed damsel. based off the conversion i was given 1in per 16L is far too much. I have heard that overstocking also depends on where each of the fish species activities will be. But I dont know how to find this information.

Sk8r · 01/18/2009, 04:49 PM

It's not how big the fish is, it's what it eats and how big it grows.
Adult size of ocellaris, if I recall, about 3" will nip if paired; maroon about 5" with the disposition of a Tasmanian Devil, gobies stay small. Yellow tail about 3", nippy.

I recommend Foster/Smiths fish sale site: they tell you how big they grow, what they eat (a carnivore or algae eater is MUCH messier than a detritus eater or sandsifter); and another chart works out compatibility.

Do not overstock at all. Understock. If you have a power failure and are understocked, your tank will likely survive 6 or more hours easily. If you have one and are overstocked, it's a real problem.

Your biggest problems are the clown fish, which are generally aggressive and territorial as all getout, once they start breeding (and maroons no matter what the circumstances: onery critters!) The mildest clowns are the perc types (but the clarkii are pushy enough to bite YOU!) and the little skunk clowns.

marineaddict · 01/18/2009, 04:51 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by reefermadness85
i dont have any fish yet. I am planning ahead so i dont run into any stocking problems. i would like a ocellaris clown or 2 if not a single gold banded maroon, golden midas, green clown goby, and a yellow tailed damsel. based off the conversion i was given 1in per 16L is far too much. I have heard that overstocking also depends on where each of the fish species activities will be. But I dont know how to find this information.

Your list sounds fine. The 2 clowns, midas and green clown are fine. The yellow tailed damsel is a fiesty SOB! If you are certain you want one add him last.

Go slow when adding. 1 month between fish has always been my rule.... except if you want 2 clowns. they can be added together.

For comparison I have a 39g CAD sig and my stock list is...

2 tomato clowns, Tail-spot bleeny, Purple Pseudochromis and an Allen's damsel. No problems at all.

reefermadness85 · 01/18/2009, 05:20 PM

how are yellow striped clingfish?

marineaddict · 01/18/2009, 05:25 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by reefermadness85
how are yellow striped clingfish?

I'm not sure - Never had one or read about them. I'm sure others here can chime in. Also check out some websites... it will explain care and size, etc.

reefermadness85 · 01/18/2009, 06:47 PM

would i be good with 2 ocellaris clowns, midas blenny and a 6 line wrasse?

gorey · 01/18/2009, 07:52 PM

In my old 40g i had, an old coralife 65 skimmer, a hang on back filer filled with live rock and 2 power heads in the tank for movement. I did 5 gallon water change about every 2 weeks. Was like that for over a year with no issues, Here are the fish i had in there:

1 coral beauty
1 false clown
1 sixline
1 royal gramma
1 yellow watchmen goby
1 banggal cardnial

Elysia · 01/19/2009, 12:39 AM

There is a lot to think about before stocking your tank, especially if you want your occupants to be healthy and happy. Its not just a matter of not overstocking. You don't want there to be constant conflict in there, either. I think many of us have felt that pit-in-the-stomach feeling of having to net a fish out of a reef tank full of live rock -- you want to avoid it as often as possible!

There are various things that you should consider, in my opinion. Yes, you have to think about size. Adult maximum size. Some fish become very elongated, while others are laterally compressed. Of course, there are those fish that are, uh, "thick," too. And some are known to eat more than others (or even consume their food in an especially messy way.)

In addition to the size of the fish, you should take into consideration how active the fish is and in what area of the tank the fish will usually hang out in -- both swim in and "own."

Conflict can exist when multiple fish eat the same type of food, have the same body type, or are the same color.

My examples: lots of hawkfish aren't very active, but they are always hungry and thus generate a fair amount of waste.
Fish, like some blennies and gobies, the jawfish, dottybacks, grammas and dartfish have a home area or bolt hole that they rely on for protection and which they will protect. Most gobies and dartfish are so peaceful and timid that they don't do much in the way of protecting their bolt holes; the others mentioned will defend their bolt holes to all comers. I have seen blennies and grammas pick up snails in that ventured too close and drop them outside their "zone."

Sorry, I just got hit w/ a bad headache, so the end of this post may not make sense -- I'm having trouble focusing.

jthao · 01/19/2009, 01:51 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by reefermadness85
would i be good with 2 ocellaris clowns, midas blenny and a 6 line wrasse?

yes.

reefermadness85 · 01/19/2009, 01:16 PM

how can i find out which are so called messy eaters?

michellejy · 01/19/2009, 01:18 PM

Tangs and rabbitfish/foxfaces are usually considered messy eaters. I didn't see anything on your list that would strike me as a messy eater.

Teen Aquarist · 01/19/2009, 01:30 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by reefermadness85
how can i find out which are so called messy eaters?

The larger fish are ask your trusted LFS for more help about a certain kind of fish too. Also look inito a flame hawkfish my favorite fish ever.

Elysia · 01/19/2009, 08:44 PM

I would classify a fish as a messy eater if it is likely to bash large pieces of food into smaller pieces (some dottybacks will do this, so the fish don't have to be large to be messy.) There is sometimes a correlation between aggressive fish and messy eaters/fish that generate a lot of waste. You will see this talked about a lot in the FOWLR forum.

01/18/2009, 03:17 PM	#1
reefermadness85 Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: bowling green, ohio Posts: 93	Overstocking How bad is it to overstock a tank by a 1/2in-1in? I have a 40g tank and I was told it could host around 9.5in of fish. Does this sound right?

01/18/2009, 03:31 PM	#3
Teen Aquarist Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Posts: 411	It really has nothing to do with inch of fish ( would you put a 10 inch goldfish in a ten gallon tank) tell us the fish you have then we can help you out. __________________ One thing's for sure: Nobody ever sees the Pool Shark coming Current Tank Info: 180 gallon fowlr and 25 gallon sump and a 24 gallon nano reef

01/18/2009, 04:11 PM	#4
nikon187 Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Edmonton Alberta Posts: 4,717	Agreed. a completly out of date and un true rule. Inch per gallon doesn't mean jack. As mentioned above it depends on type of fish, feeding ect. __________________ ----------------- Current Tanks: New 210 custom 84 x 24 x 24, 60g sump, SWC 250 extreme with bubble blaster 5000, 2 vortech mp40, 2 vortech mp10, 12 T5, Water blaster 5000, warner marine bio pellets, 60g clownfish cube, red carpet anemone with a 25g sump,SRO octopus 1000sss, 250w radium, lumenarc large.

01/18/2009, 04:49 PM	#6
Sk8r RC Mod Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Spokane WA Posts: 34,628 Blog Entries: 55	It's not how big the fish is, it's what it eats and how big it grows. Adult size of ocellaris, if I recall, about 3" will nip if paired; maroon about 5" with the disposition of a Tasmanian Devil, gobies stay small. Yellow tail about 3", nippy. I recommend Foster/Smiths fish sale site: they tell you how big they grow, what they eat (a carnivore or algae eater is MUCH messier than a detritus eater or sandsifter); and another chart works out compatibility. Do not overstock at all. Understock. If you have a power failure and are understocked, your tank will likely survive 6 or more hours easily. If you have one and are overstocked, it's a real problem. Your biggest problems are the clown fish, which are generally aggressive and territorial as all getout, once they start breeding (and maroons no matter what the circumstances: onery critters!) The mildest clowns are the perc types (but the clarkii are pushy enough to bite YOU!) and the little skunk clowns. __________________ Sk8r Salinity 1.024-6; alkalinity 8.3-9.3 on KH scale; calcium 420; magnesium 1300, temp 78-80, nitrate .2. Ammonia 0. No filters: lps tank. Alk and cal won't rise if mg is low. Current Tank Info: 105g AquaVim wedge, yellow tang, sailfin blenny,royal gramma, ocellaris clown pair, yellow watchman, 100 microceriths, 25 tiny hermits, a 4" conch, 1" nassarius, recovering from 2 year hiatus with daily water change of 10%.

01/18/2009, 07:52 PM	#11
gorey Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: 292	In my old 40g i had, an old coralife 65 skimmer, a hang on back filer filled with live rock and 2 power heads in the tank for movement. I did 5 gallon water change about every 2 weeks. Was like that for over a year with no issues, Here are the fish i had in there: 1 coral beauty 1 false clown 1 sixline 1 royal gramma 1 yellow watchmen goby 1 banggal cardnial __________________ There is fine line between a hobby and an obsession Current Tank Info: 75g AGA 30g/ sump vertex 100 skimmer. Yellow tang, 2 clowns, cardnial, royal gamma, six line

01/18/2009, 03:28 PM	#2
tanger75 Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Morris, IL Posts: 52	Depends on the fish, you need to watch out for bioloads. Some fish produce more waste than others. Inches per gallon is hard to say, need a fish list to help determine if overstocked or not.

01/18/2009, 04:41 PM	#5
reefermadness85 Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: bowling green, ohio Posts: 93	i dont have any fish yet. I am planning ahead so i dont run into any stocking problems. i would like a ocellaris clown or 2 if not a single gold banded maroon, golden midas, green clown goby, and a yellow tailed damsel. based off the conversion i was given 1in per 16L is far too much. I have heard that overstocking also depends on where each of the fish species activities will be. But I dont know how to find this information.

01/18/2009, 05:20 PM	#8
reefermadness85 Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: bowling green, ohio Posts: 93	how are yellow striped clingfish?

01/18/2009, 06:47 PM	#10
reefermadness85 Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: bowling green, ohio Posts: 93	would i be good with 2 ocellaris clowns, midas blenny and a 6 line wrasse?

01/19/2009, 12:39 AM	#12
Elysia Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Central PA Posts: 1,718	There is a lot to think about before stocking your tank, especially if you want your occupants to be healthy and happy. Its not just a matter of not overstocking. You don't want there to be constant conflict in there, either. I think many of us have felt that pit-in-the-stomach feeling of having to net a fish out of a reef tank full of live rock -- you want to avoid it as often as possible! There are various things that you should consider, in my opinion. Yes, you have to think about size. Adult maximum size. Some fish become very elongated, while others are laterally compressed. Of course, there are those fish that are, uh, "thick," too. And some are known to eat more than others (or even consume their food in an especially messy way.) In addition to the size of the fish, you should take into consideration how active the fish is and in what area of the tank the fish will usually hang out in -- both swim in and "own." Conflict can exist when multiple fish eat the same type of food, have the same body type, or are the same color. My examples: lots of hawkfish aren't very active, but they are always hungry and thus generate a fair amount of waste. Fish, like some blennies and gobies, the jawfish, dottybacks, grammas and dartfish have a home area or bolt hole that they rely on for protection and which they will protect. Most gobies and dartfish are so peaceful and timid that they don't do much in the way of protecting their bolt holes; the others mentioned will defend their bolt holes to all comers. I have seen blennies and grammas pick up snails in that ventured too close and drop them outside their "zone." Sorry, I just got hit w/ a bad headache, so the end of this post may not make sense -- I'm having trouble focusing.

01/19/2009, 01:16 PM	#14
reefermadness85 Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: bowling green, ohio Posts: 93	how can i find out which are so called messy eaters?

01/19/2009, 01:18 PM	#15
michellejy Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: OH Posts: 1,076	Tangs and rabbitfish/foxfaces are usually considered messy eaters. I didn't see anything on your list that would strike me as a messy eater. __________________ Michelle Current Tank Info: 30G FOWLR Clownfish tank soon to be replaced by JBJ 28 Gallon Nano

01/19/2009, 08:44 PM	#17
Elysia Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Central PA Posts: 1,718	I would classify a fish as a messy eater if it is likely to bash large pieces of food into smaller pieces (some dottybacks will do this, so the fish don't have to be large to be messy.) There is sometimes a correlation between aggressive fish and messy eaters/fish that generate a lot of waste. You will see this talked about a lot in the FOWLR forum.