I work with numbers all day at work, so I'm attempting to come up with a more reliable way for new fish owners to calculate the minimum tank size for their fish.
This is my first shot at doing this so additions/correction are welcome. Fellow numbers people get on it!! I'd like to figure out ways to to calculate stocking ratio rather than use the old 1" of fish per gallon adage that we all know is bunk.
Calculations are for a minimum tank size (in inches).
Rather than use the gallon measurement, I aim to use the dimensions of the tank as a guideline. To convert the dimensions to gallons, you can use this link. http://www.ifocas.fsworld.co.uk/calculator.htm
For reference in the equation
L= Length of tank
W= Width of tank
H= Height of tank
FL= Length of fish
FW= Width of fish
FH= Height of fish
These calculations are specific to the type of fish you plan to own.
Large Cichlids / Goldfish/ Plecos:
FL x 4 = L
FL x 1.5 = W
FH x 3 = H
I'll use a 12" Oscar for example.
12 x 4 = 48"
12 x 1.5 = 18"
6 x 3 = 18"
Those are the dimensions of the tank and by using the calculator I can see that minimum tank size for one 12" Oscar would be 67.3 US Gallons.
Also, using this formula, we can see that the height of the tank is very important to taller fish such as angels.
More equations:
Small schooling fish (tetras, danios)/Mbuna Cichlids/ Other small fish:
when calculating for schooling fish, calculate in increments of 6 (1-6 fish = 1, 2-12 fish =2 and so on) fish as housing 1 tetra in a betta bowl is just wrong.
6 x FL x 4 = L
12 = W
12 = H
By this Calculation 1-6 1" tetras/danios would require a minimum of a 16.8 Gallon tank, likewise 18 tetras/ danios require 44 Gallons.
More to come as I "work" away here in my office.
This is my first shot at doing this so additions/correction are welcome. Fellow numbers people get on it!! I'd like to figure out ways to to calculate stocking ratio rather than use the old 1" of fish per gallon adage that we all know is bunk.
Calculations are for a minimum tank size (in inches).
Rather than use the gallon measurement, I aim to use the dimensions of the tank as a guideline. To convert the dimensions to gallons, you can use this link. http://www.ifocas.fsworld.co.uk/calculator.htm
For reference in the equation
L= Length of tank
W= Width of tank
H= Height of tank
FL= Length of fish
FW= Width of fish
FH= Height of fish
These calculations are specific to the type of fish you plan to own.
Large Cichlids / Goldfish/ Plecos:
FL x 4 = L
FL x 1.5 = W
FH x 3 = H
I'll use a 12" Oscar for example.
12 x 4 = 48"
12 x 1.5 = 18"
6 x 3 = 18"
Those are the dimensions of the tank and by using the calculator I can see that minimum tank size for one 12" Oscar would be 67.3 US Gallons.
Also, using this formula, we can see that the height of the tank is very important to taller fish such as angels.
More equations:
Small schooling fish (tetras, danios)/Mbuna Cichlids/ Other small fish:
when calculating for schooling fish, calculate in increments of 6 (1-6 fish = 1, 2-12 fish =2 and so on) fish as housing 1 tetra in a betta bowl is just wrong.
6 x FL x 4 = L
12 = W
12 = H
By this Calculation 1-6 1" tetras/danios would require a minimum of a 16.8 Gallon tank, likewise 18 tetras/ danios require 44 Gallons.
More to come as I "work" away here in my office.
