I wanna do it... african style ;) (crowding south/central americans)

[fshfanatic]

Where does it come from? Fish poop, where it is everpresent.

How do you treat it? Salt, heat, and most important lots of water changes. Also takes forever to treat it.

Sweet, then it can be traced by monitoring your ammonia, nitrite and nitrate levels. More fish waste ( which is the cause according to you) will mean higher levels..

Further, for a crowded larger tank there is so much beneficial bacteria you will virtually never get ammonia spikes. So once again, no ammonia present, but disease is.

Are you kidding me? In a over crowded tank you can almost guarantee the fact that you will have high ammonia levels unless you do water changes often

 

[Rbishop]

**chuckles**

 

[fshfanatic]

Will let you kill your fish in private then, since you seem to like to reverse your position of supposed "facts" as you "discuss" things.

This becomes more and more evident the more he posts..

 

[excuzzzeme]

There is no proof that hexamita causes HITH/LLE, however, it has been accepted by the industry that it is very likely the cause as most cases of HITH/LLE have tested positive for the presence of the hexamita. There is no proof that the HITH/LLE occurred before the presence or after. This is something that is still being looked at and researched. There have been cases of HITH without the presence of the pathogen but it is few and far between cases.

I personally have treated for HITH with simple frequent water changes and nothing more. No heat increase, no salt, no meds. That method should always be the first treatment used. As far as it being present in the fecal matter of fish, that would mean all fish would be susceptible to infection and you don't see that on a routine basis either.

Creating a tankful of incompatible fish also raises the possibility of cross-breeding. Having a tank full of mongrel fry would need to be addressed. Sale or release of these mongrels could have a major impact on the hobby and the local environment should an "accidental release" occur. What you want to try is fine IF you do it in a controlled environment using accepted scientific standards. To throw them all in a pot and see what survives is very immature. You need to rethink how to accomplish your goal.

 

[Dan Feller]

If you want to keep a heavily stocked New World Cichlid tank it is possible, but...

You should try to stick to less aggressive species.
The tank needs to be big enough for the fish as adults - upgrading later is always a bad idea.
Massive frequent water changes are absolutely necessary.
Lots of dither fish help.
Visual barriers are important - not just hiding places, but large structures that break the tank into distinct areas.

I keep 26 Eartheaters in a 210G and have never had serious compatibility issues, but the fish you have are a whole lot more aggressive. Also, some of them grow way too big way too fast to house in a 75G.

Just my opinion...

 

[bderick67]

Wow, quite the thread here. This type stocking can and does work. But not without complete dedication, daily attention, and lots of trial and error. There are many who successfully keep and have kept this type setups for many of years(apparently just not on this forum). Below I will just give comments based on my experiences.

I would avoid allowing any of the fish to establish territories. Less decor or easily moved decor rearranged weekly during cleanings and water changes. This will help to keep from any one establishing a territory.

Avoid females, yes males tend to be more aggressive but females will form pairs. Even with other species or other females, then start spawning and creates turmoil. Heck, I've even had females lay eggs without being in a pair, but they will defend the nest.

You may have to try different individuals of the same species to find a less aggressive more tolerable specimen. Also behaviors can change as the fish grow, becoming more or less aggressive.

Have a tank set up to house bullies or injured fish, don't wait to make a move.

Some fish may never work, I had a paratilapia polleni(similar to bleekeri) that would hang with the SA/CAs. Except once it decided to lip lock with a RD it had it's lower lip nearly ripped completely off.

Water params can go south quite quickly with heavily stocked tanks, personally I like more water changes then less. Do lots of testing and get to know the chemistry of your water and how it reacts to different scenarios.


Good luck, don't be angry with all that oppose you. They may just have differing beliefs or lack experience in the matter.

overstocking chiclids ONLY WORKS WITH AFRICANS. Don't tell people crap information.

Lack of knowledge, experience leads to crap information.

 

[blue2fyre]

I have been looking over on MFK and I have seen that this can work given a large enough tank and a careful selection of species. It may be working now but keep an eye on it and be sure to post back and let us know how it's going 6 months from now.

 

[Lab_Rat]

From the OP:
\

QUESTION - 75 gallon: if i wanted to have the best chances at a good survival rate and happy lifestyle for my crowded fish (9 cichlids plus 2 plecos 1 loach, small green spotted puffer, also keep in mind the cichlids are small too, the biggest one is the firemouth and salvini second palce, there not fully grown but not far, and considering more if deemed physically possible) in this tank, what would i need to do?

STOCK: green terror, jack dempsey, jaguar , bleekeri (madagascar??) two jewels (one is turqoise) firemouth, texas, salvini, i STILL want to go and get a elec blue jack and a nice flowerhorn, however im sure im seriously pushing it with what i hav already. theres also two plecos of 6 and 4 inches, some strange loachy type bottom feeder i found in a feeder tank in LFS, and my prized posession: green spotted puffer, about two inches nd change(first fish, the only other fish to survive this long was a pleco!)

!?!?!?!?! whats the deal people, what do i gotta do to crowd this tank?

So the OP is asking how to keep, in a 75g, the following fish:
GT adult size 11"
JD adult size 9"
Jag adult size 16"
Bleekeri adult size 12"
2 jewels adult size 4" each
FM adult size 6"
Texas adult size 10"
Salvini adult size 8"
GSP adult size 6"
Plecs unk species so ???
Loach unk species so ???

Plus wants to add:
EBJD adult size 8-9"
FH adult size 11"

The biggest problem I see is big aggressive fish in a small tank. Sure that stocking could work out, if the tank was 10x larger. Given enough room, those fish could live together. The problem is, a 75g is not nearly enough room for those fish to be healthy in the long term. It should work as a short term grow out tank, but that is not what the OP wanted according to the first post. Idk why people are hung up on ammonia or nitrite, that is not likely to be a problem in an established and well maintained tank. What water changes won't remove is the jag deciding the tank should be his and taking out all the others overnight. It won't prevent the puffer from deciding to take chunks out of it's tankmates. The tank is simply too small. It's also begging for hybridization if the sexes of the fish are mixed.

So OP, did you ever get that 135g?

 

[FuzzyLogic]

Great reply Lab_Rat. you are like an island of clarity in an ocean of diarrhea

 

[Pittbull]

That's awesome logic Fuzzy LOL..