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AqAdviser says my tank is not overstocked, but I feel it is?

2K views 17 replies 11 participants last post by  dbw27 
#1 ·
Okay. I have a 15.8 gallon. Fully planted.

I have:

5 White Skirt Tetras
4 Rummy Nose Tetras (need one more)
2 African Dwarf Frogs
2 Assassin Snails
2 Julii Cory

AqAdviser was kewl with that.

I need to add at least another Julii cory because I am told that they are sad just being two together. (They swim all over the place so they don't look sad to me). I also wanted to get 2 Amano Shrimp.

AdAdviser is still kewl with that, putting it in the low nineties.

I think that AqAdviser is nuts?

I printed out the AqAdviser page and brought it to the fish store. One guy said - well it is already overstocked. Another guy said it was not overstocked. Sheesh.

dbw
 
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#4 ·
personally i think your overstocked or on the cusp of being overstocked, but what heck do i know? i run all of my my tanks "overstocked", but i also over filter every one, my 20l is filtering for about 60g currently, my 40b is filtering for something like a 250g, and my 30g is filtering for 50g.

like jester asked, what sized filter are you running? that really determines if you are over stocked or not.
 
#5 ·
There is no dividing line between over stocked or not as it depends on various factors such as the ability of the filter to keep the water quality good, the room the fish have to swim without undue stress, and the types of fish you keep together and whether they are aggressive and territorial. Watch your tank and if the fish appear happy, going about their lives in a natural way then don't worry about it.
The cory's stick to the bottom mostly and the tetras school mid tank so they shouldn't bother each other. You don't appear to have a overly large bio load so if your filter is a good one with lots of bio filtration to it then again no problem. I'd go ahead and add the extra cory.
 
#8 ·
that stock sounds fine to me, as along as your water perams are good. AqAdvisor can be a good cursory guide, but imo you shouldn't worry about following it too closely. Planting a tank fully will helps loads with many problems like aggression and ammonia buildup.
 
#9 ·
Thank you very much. :) I was thinking of two amano shrimp (for algae) or 2 otos (algae and detrius) which aqadviser was also fine with.

Most of the time my fish are happy and healthy. I do have one white skirt tetra which is bullying the other tetra sometimes.

Actually, two of them like to tangle and the other ones watch it as if it was a show.

I was wondering if that was due to overcrowding or perhaps two males and was going to trade them in for danio rerios perhaps.

dbw
 
#11 ·
Thank you everyone. Yes, one does get different opinions. I think I would just you guys and the AqAdviser. One guy in the pet shop said I was overstocked. Another guy said that I was NOT overstocked and should add another white skirt tetra to the school to see if that would get them that one to stop fighting.

Interesting. Yes I want the Amano shrimp.

I had never even thought about how the inhabitants are in different areas of the tank. The cory cats do stay at the bottom mostly and the little dwarf frogs - well in the jungle that is my tank - they can hardly be found most times. They come out at night and say, 'Hi. Where's our food?' Otherwise, they are really incognito. They have more than enough hiding places. Who needs to make little artificial caves when you have a jungle?

I guess I won't be seeing the shrimp either?

So I guess the frogs, cory cats, and shrimp really wouldn't be bothering anyone at all.

Thanks!

dbw
 
#12 ·
I think people can sometimes get a little carried away with the fine details of things like aquariums. Honestly, in so long as your plants remain in good shape, you fish look/act healthy, you aren't growing algae, and your water perimeters look good, I'd say your doing something right.

An established aquarium can usually handle a lot more fish load than most people would venture to try. As long as your system perimeters stay in balance with one another and all living inhabitants all look like they're surviving, I'd advise you to simply feed your fish once every day or so and enjoy your tank. No need to worry over it unnecessarily.
 
#14 ·
If one skirt is the obvious bully then I would remove that one.
Maybe it is personality, or maybe they would prefer a larger space.

If the parameters are good (NO3, mostly) and you are comfortable with the water changes needed to keep it that way, then it is not overstocked.
 
#15 ·
One skirt is the super obvious bully. The lfs said I could exchange him for another skirt. They said if I wanted to exchange all of the skirts for smaller fish, (Danio rerios for example) that I could do that too.

My water parameters have been perfect.

Buddhaboy: I am glad that I might actually see the Amanos. The frogs hide like nobody's business, but I also understand that they sleep 12 hours per day and that they are a shy species. I am excited about these Amanos when and if the lfs around here gets them back in stock next week.

Thanks!

dbw
 
#17 ·
Amanos can be very bold critters, especially if you have several of them in the same tank. I don't doubt you will see them zooming around and crawling all over your terrain scavenging for food. I love these shrimp.

Your tank does not sound overstocked to me, particularly if it's a well-established tank. Long-running planted tanks have a way of cultivating plants, bacteria, and algae that balance out the animal load.
 
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