i have 120L tank(gallons ?)
2 12"airstones
currently i have 2 redblood parrots/1 thumb size oscar/3 african cichlids (same size as oscar) pleco/ red tail shark /catfish/ in the long term when will i have to upgrade or will i? heard about oscars needing 50gallons min (does good aeration change the rules) thx
2006-11-20 02:42:10 · 6 answers · asked by Anonymous in Pets ➔ Fish
No, good aeration does not change that rule. The problem is that too many fish cause drastic increases in ammonia, nitrites and nitrates. All of which are toxic to the fish. Water changes are the only solution to those toxins other than lots of chemicals (which are not a good thing in the long run $$$).
You would have to be doing water changes every day or two to keep up with the amount of fish waste and uneaten food that is decaying in the tank.
One oscar (a very dirty fish) needs a 55 gallon tank for just himself. Good filtration and frequent (weekly-30%) water changes will allow you to add a few fish, but not many.
An oscar will grow an inch a month for its first 8-10 months of life if you feed it properly and do your weekly water changes like you are supposed to.
The pleco will grow to 24" if fed well and the red tail shark will top out around 10 inches. The other small cichlids will soon be big cichlids or be eaten by the oscar. They will start being agressive as soon as they reach maturity if any of them are males.
Your tank is way overcrowded with that mix of fish in it. You need to upgrade to at least a 75 gallon (225 liters) to support that many fish without serious stress and health problems. Either that or get rid of the biggest ones before you get attached to them.
120 liters is 31.746 gallons. That is if there is nothing in it but water. Then you add sand or gravel and decorations and you are down to probably 27-28 gallons.
Email me if you would like to discuss further.
Good luck!
2006-11-20 03:01:31 · answer #1 · answered by 8 In the corner 6 · 3⤊ 0⤋
A liter is slightly more than a quart (32 oz quart and 33.9oz liter) so your 120 liter tank would be about 30 gallons. Sounds like you need a bigger tank to me. About twice as big probably. I dont think good aeration will make a whole lot of difference. The fish still need room to move around and interact with the other fish in the tank. Crowding could lead to fighting and some fish killing others.
2006-11-20 10:53:57 · answer #2 · answered by fat_albert_999 5 · 3⤊ 0⤋
Hi it is roughly 4.75 litres to 1 gallon. I just say 5 litres to a gallon, so you have a 24 gallon fish tank.
Rule of thumb for any fish tank is 1 inch of fish per 1 gallon of water.
Try to figure out how many inches (in length) your fish are in total and if it is more that 24 inches then you have got an overcrowded tank. and good airation does not change this rule it only helps the oxygen move around in the water so your fish don't suffocate.
Eventually you will need a bigger tank if you don't already need a bigger one now
Hope this helps
2006-11-20 11:26:11 · answer #3 · answered by greenhorse8179 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
you will need to upgrade eventually, the Oscars particularly requir space as they grow (upto around 12") and they will become territorial and throw gravel/rocks all over the place!
use the following link to do your conversions:
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/ray-brown/Conversions%20and%20Aquarium%20Volume%20Calculator.htm
adding more aeration will not prevent you from upgrading
2006-11-20 10:53:32 · answer #4 · answered by dave a 5 · 2⤊ 0⤋
It depends on the surface area of the water as well as how much water there is - any good fish stockist should be able to tell you.
2006-11-20 10:45:42 · answer #5 · answered by mishmash 3 · 0⤊ 3⤋
you should be perfect although i dont know about the african oscar mix didnt work for me the afrians got teritorial then killed the oscar
2006-11-20 10:48:53 · answer #6 · answered by great white fisherman 4 · 0⤊ 3⤋