Too much?

[catfishchaos]

Hey everybody


I have a standard
55 gallon I've been stalking for a while and its pretty full now.

for dither fish I have: 15 glass blood fin tetras, 7 lemon tetras and 9 penguin tetras which comes to total of 31 dithers.

For plecos I have: 4 P.maccus and 7 L134.

I had hopes on adding 6-8 C.adolfoi and then calling it a full house (ok maybe some small species of earth eaters but thats it I swear). Just wondering if my tank is already to full for said additions? I can supply plenty of food for every body, might get a second smaller filter (Have fluval C4 might add a fluval C2)

Let me know what you guys think!
James

[Richard B]

What are the dimensions of the footprint? ie how long by how wide/deep is the tank - height is not important

[catfishchaos]

sorry, 4 feet long one foot deep almost little less than 2 feet tall.

[dw1305]

Hi all,

.... and its pretty full now. For dither fish I have: 15 glass blood fin tetras, 7 lemon tetras and 9 penguin tetras which comes to total of 31 dithers.

For plecos I have: 4 P.maccus and 7 L134.

I had hopes on adding 6-8 C.adolfoi and then calling it a full house (ok maybe some small species of earth eaters but thats it I swear).

I wouldn't add any more at the moment. I'd wait and see how your

Peckoltia compta

get on. You will need to thin them out at some point before they start damaging one another.

If you end up adding the

Corydoras adolfoi

you have a lot of bottom living fish in a 4' x 1' x 1' footprint.

I'm not familiar with the filter (I know its a HOB, which offers advantages), but I would be concerned about your level of biological fitration all ready. Rheophilic plecs need good oxygenation, and as your fish grow they will make further demands on water quality.

Have a look at this <http://plecoplanet.com/?page_id=829>. I wrote it for L. no. keepers, and despite the title it really looks mainly at biological filtration.

cheers Darrel

[catfishchaos]

Hi Darrel

Thanks for your feedback!


I plan on breaking the tank up A lot with drift wood tangles and heavily plant the tank to provide adequate cover (around the edges to leave adequate swimming area in the front). I plan to let the tank settle down for about two months would that not help to much?

thanks for the link I can't wait to read it!

[Richard B]

In terms of stocking density/capacity - even with the corys you are under the maximum i'd recommend but that would be about it.

The problem that Darrel highlights is the main concern - adult p.compta will need a square foot of territory each & multiple caves - your tank could hold 4 so you will need to move some at some point to prevent aggression where they are too cramped & damage to individuals

[dw1305]

Hi all,

I plan on breaking the tank up. A lot with drift wood tangles and heavily plant the tank to provide adequate cover (around the edges to leave adequate swimming area in the front). I plan to let the tank settle down for about two months would that not help to much?

That sounds a good idea. I like lots of plants and cover and for the tanks to have "grown in". After a couple of months you can see what you think about the Cories.

One reason I like relatively light stocking is it gives you a bit more "wriggle" room, if your away, as your fish grow, if a fish dies, your pump stops, your water supply is dosed with chloramine etc.

I like the BOD concept, it isn't something you can measure easily, but it provides a framework you can work with. More here: <http://www.planetcatfish.com/forum/view ... =4&t=35930> & <http://www.planetcatfish.com/forum/view ... l#p261810>

I'm also not a great fan of making decisions based upon test kits and testing, I would be if they worked, but they can't really be relied on (that's my "day job").

cheers Darrel