Concerned about bio load

**ziege** · 30th Oct 2006, 23:02

I have a standard 2 ft which is quite densely planted (w/o c02).

I now have
22 cardinals (baby size, around 1.5cm)
10 Black Neons (2.5cm)
4 Neons (2.5cm)
3 SAEs (4cm)
1 crown loach (6cm)
1 bronze cory (4cm)
1 holland ram (3cm)
1 Angel (8cm giant)

The 20 cardinals are added in yesterday and are doing fine at the moment. (actively eating and bright colour). However, i'm concerned, is the bio load way too high?

**PeterGwee** · 30th Oct 2006, 23:09

Yes. Non-CO2 tanks does not support high loading well since the uptake is slower (NH4 will induce algae..). SAEs, Angel fish and etc will get too large that tank imo.

Regards
Peter Gwee

**AquaObsession** · 30th Oct 2006, 23:30

PLease do not put a giant Angel fish with neons and cardinal in such a small tank.

**ziege** · 31st Oct 2006, 08:56

Originally Posted by AquaObsession

PLease do not put a giant Angel fish with neons and cardinal in such a small tank.

The 'giant' angel has been with the tetras for more than 1 yr alr. No harassment at all

**ziege** · 31st Oct 2006, 08:57

Originally Posted by PeterGwee

Yes. Non-CO2 tanks does not support high loading well since the uptake is slower (NH4 will induce algae..). SAEs, Angel fish and etc will get too large that tank imo.

Regards
Peter Gwee

To what amount should i be cutting it down to attain a safe level?

Regards

**Quixotic** · 31st Oct 2006, 09:46

Clown loach will grow to a max size of 30cm TL (total length), albeit slowly. SAE reaches about 16cm SL (standard length) and bronze cory about 8cm SL, not forgetting your angelfish.

When stocking fishes, always consider the adult size instead of their current size. Having that many of the above fish will definitely be an overload to your tank.

Of the above, I would recommend to leave out the loach, cory and angel, and keep only one SAE. Also, either reduce the number of black neons or keep them and leave out the neons altogether.

**bossteck** · 31st Oct 2006, 09:54

Originally Posted by ziege

The 'giant' angel has been with the tetras for more than 1 yr alr. No harassment at all

Will gladly take the angel off your hands when it gets big enough to eat it's tank mates

**ziege** · 31st Oct 2006, 11:18

Originally Posted by bossteck

Will gladly take the angel off your hands when it gets big enough to eat it's tank mates

Haha..... that'll be a headache then

**bossteck** · 31st Oct 2006, 15:50

Just kidding man.
I would rather you keep more angels! I simply love them!
By the way, I have 3-4 pieces of pencilfish from my previous set up, living in harmony with my semi-adult sized angels. No problems at the moment.

But to answer your question, your bioload do seemed a bit high for a 2ft tank. Good reason to get a larger tank!

**mmramos** · 6th Nov 2006, 09:29

Hi Guys,

I'm just curious about this bioload thing. I've been reading around that the rule of thumb is 1 inch of fish per gallon. So 10 gallons will hold only 10 fishes. What are the repercussions of exceeding the rule? If indeed must follow the rule, how come the LFS shops overload their tanks. I mean those tanks where you get the fish you want to buy. I think like for a 2ft tank they put probably 50-100 tetras in there right? Some LFS shops where they sell parrot fish, they overload it up to the point that the fishes can't move anymore

Just my observation so no flames please.

**budak** · 6th Nov 2006, 09:47

LFS change their water almost everyday, or else the stock turnover is so high that fish just come in and get sold (or die off) that it doesn't make much difference for them.

ziege's tank is definitely overcrowded and i can almost imagine a setup where fish overwhelm the scene in their entirety. It needs to be reduced by at least half.

bottom line: fish need space (to prevent stress, territorial aggression) AND crowding simply means much faster accumulation of wastes (and depletion of oxygen) and toxic by-products (ammonia and nitrite). Failing that, the population will 'naturally' reduce itself by attrition.

**bossteck** · 6th Nov 2006, 11:41

Hi,

To add to budak's comments, everyday... before opening for business, most, if not all LFS owners will scoop out dead fishes, so to us shoppers, everything appears to be fine.

**|squee|** · 6th Nov 2006, 17:35

I've always had 2ft tanks in my house, and 22 cardinals is already crowded imho.

I've had maximum 15 grown cardinals (have to consider how your baby cardinals will grow too

.) in my 2ft tank. If yours is a planted tank, keeping less fish can do wonders for the overall impression of the tank. Plants + ton of fish = big visual mess.

**taysh75** · 9th Nov 2006, 21:03

Originally Posted by Quixotic

Clown loach will grow to a max size of 30cm TL (total length), albeit slowly. SAE reaches about 16cm SL (standard length) and bronze cory about 8cm SL, not forgetting your angelfish.

When stocking fishes, always consider the adult size instead of their current size. Having that many of the above fish will definitely be an overload to your tank.

Of the above, I would recommend to leave out the loach, cory and angel, and keep only one SAE. Also, either reduce the number of black neons or keep them and leave out the neons altogether.

SAE reaches about 16cm !

Sure! I got 3SAE in my 2ft tank. Is it a typo?

**budak** · 9th Nov 2006, 22:25

It's not a typo. And your angel at 8 cm is still a baby (they can grow to about 20 cm from nose to tail).

So what are you going to do about the bioload? Is it possible for you to set up another tank to house the fish or get a larger tank? Whether with or without Co2, I think the population is not sustainable at all.