Overstocked?

P

Primetime

AC Members
Nov 12, 2005
409
0
0
Okay, I have 2 Male guppies, 4 neon tetras and 3 ottos right now, BUT this is what I am planning to get for my 20 GALLON tank.
6 Guppies
6 Neon Tetras
3 Ottos
3-6 Kuhli Loaches (how many should I get?)
2 Ram Cichlids or anything else that size that can be the centre of attention.

Would this be overstocked for a 20 gallon? If so, can I have 2 male guppies and 3 femailes, which is against the ratio of 1 male: 2 female.
 
Hi Primetime, the general rule of thumb is one inch of fish per gallon of water. A 20 gallon tank probably really has 18 or 19 gallons of water by the time you factor in gravel, rocks, etc. If you understock a bit, you won't be spending as much time cleaning the tank and filters. If you have a lot of good filtration you could probably get away with it but you'll be spending a lot of time on maintenance.
 
Rob E. said:
Hi Primetime, the general rule of thumb is one inch of fish per gallon of water. A 20 gallon tank probably really has 18 or 19 gallons of water by the time you factor in gravel, rocks, etc. If you understock a bit, you won't be spending as much time cleaning the tank and filters. If you have a lot of good filtration you could probably get away with it but you'll be spending a lot of time on maintenance.
Click to expand...
Thanks, well I can always get around 2 more male guppies and no females... I do want to get 2 more tetras so I can have six though.. Can somebody tell me if those set of fish are overstocked? (see post 1) and if so, what do I have to take out to give my fish the space that they need?
 
Last edited:
the inch per gallon rule is NOT a good rule. its very general and doesnt even begin to apply to half the fish that people keep. however, i do think that sounds overstocked for a 20 gallon.
 
What about 3 Otos, 6 neon tetras and 2 Dwarf gouramis?

Or you can just go for 3 Oto's, 6 neon tetras and 4 guppies, but you won't have a nice centerpiece fish like a gourami though.
 
pbrack said:
What about 3 Otos, 6 neon tetras and 2 Dwarf gouramis?

Or you can just go for 3 Oto's, 6 neon tetras and 4 guppies, but you won't have a nice centerpiece fish like a gourami though.
Click to expand...
How about:
4 Neon Tetras
3 Guppies (but they'll all have to be male :( )
3 Ottos
2 Dwarf Gouramis
4 Kuhli Loaches (I really want this fish)
 
hmmm, I think you'd still be overstocked. Which ones are you willing to let go of? If you want 4 kuhli loaches, you may not be able to have much more, since they do grow to abuot 4 inches I believe. Maybe you can have them with a small school of neon tetras?
 
If you really want the kuhli loaches... most loaches do well in groups of 5 or more... I'd say that would be the only fish you could keep in there :( Get a bigger tank or try a different species. They generally only get to about 3 to 4 inches. Is your 20 gallon tank LONG (30") or AVERAGE (24"). The extra length is great so the fish have more room to swim. The loaches are all bottom dwellers... so the more room the better. Make sure you give them tons of rocks and/or plants so they can hide and swim around them. I have golden zebra botia (botia = loach family) and they LOVE the rocks and plants.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
AquariaCentral.com
Top Bottom