Do I have too many fish in my tank?

Question

Hi! I have a 189 Litre Tank which i keep cichlids! I have 13 and that includes a Pleco and lobster, they are no bigger than 2.5 inches! I want to do the best by my fish, but got a bit carried away when purchasing them, i am pretty knew to this and really enjoying every aspect of keeping these beautiful fish, from testing water, changing it and feeding them a variety of foods, And of course watching them! Please some advise on my stock levels will be great. Thankyou!!

So you could put a 20inch fish in a 20 gallon tank?? That doesnt sound nice! Anyway with small fish i could have 18 - 20 fish?

I have all malawis, yellow labs x 2, golden cichlids x 2, red tops x 3, pleco 4inch, lobster 2.5 inch, 3 x marble type (forgot the name)! I cycles my tank for 3 weeks adding a lobster and pleco afer two, third week adding 2 pairs or trio every week or two there after! My water levels are perfect!!! 100%!! and i have been doing regular 25% water changes every 7 - 10 after my tank finished its cycle. I have read about the rule on 1 inch of fish per gallon but not sure how big my fish will get to avoid having to change my tank. I know about the pleco and when the time comes i will find him a good home!

Answer 1

Your tank is about 50 gallon for the non-metric users. Your fish might be okay in it for a while since they're small, but they may need something much larger as they grow. You don't mention any of the species you're keeping. A pleco can get to be up to 47cm as an adult, and the cichlids will vary in size and personality by species. They might get along while they're young, but as they mature and pair up, they may have some major territorial issues if they don't have enough space. You should do a little research on the species of cichlids (and the pleco) to find out their adult sizes (fish do NOT grow to the size of their tank - this is a myth!) and if they species you have are compatible.

That may not be all - if the tank is new and you didn't cycle beforehand, adding this number of fish at once may cause high ammonia and nitrite levels in your tank. I'm glad you have a test kit, so you can see if these get too high when you'll need to do water changes. The ammonia can be toxic to your fish, as can the nitrite it forms.

By the way, the inch of fish "rule" only applies to fish that are about 2 inches or less in size. You might be able to keep 5 - 2" fish in a 10 gallon tank, but not one 10" fish - it would have nowhere to swim! Plus good filtration and tank maintenence can go a long way. And some fish are bigger waste producers than others!

Answer 2

Common Glass Aquarium Sizes

5.5 Gallon 16x8x10 (128 sq. in.)
10 Leader 20x10x12 (200 sq. in.)
10 Hexagon 14x12x18 (127 sq. in)
15 Gallon 24x12x12 (288 sq. in.)
20 High 24x12x16 (288 sq. in.)
20 Long 30x12x12 (360 sq. in.)
25 Gallon 24x12x20 (288 sq. in.)
29 Gallon 30x12x18 (360 sq. in.)
30 Gallon 36x12x16 (432 sq. in.)
30 Breeder 36x18x12 (648 sq. in.)
33 Long 48x13x12 (624 sq. in.)
37 Gallon 30x12x22 (360 sq. in.)
38 Gallon 36x12x20 (432 sq. in.)
40 Long 48x13x16 (624 sq. in.)
40 Breeder 36x18x16 (648 sq. in.)
45 Gallon 36x12x24 (432 sq. in.)
50 Gallon 36x18x18 (648 sq. in.)
55 Gallon 48x13x20 (624 sq. in.)
65 Gallon 36x18x24 (648 sq. in.)
Petite body fish
1” per gallon or 1” per 12 sq. in. of surface
For example 20 long has 360 sq. in. surface area
360/12=30
Can a 20 long support 30” of fish? Probably not.
A 20 high has only 288 sq. in. surface area
288/12=24
Can a 20 high support 24” of fish? Probably not.
A 25 is also 288 sq. in. surface area
288/12=24
Can a 25 support 24” of fish? Probably.
I like to average the two for a more accurate capacity.
For the 20 long, 30 by surface area, 20 by volume averages to 25”
Can a 20 long support 25” of fish? Probably.
For the 20 high, 24 by surface area, 20 by volume averages to 22”
Can a 20 high support 22” of fish? Probably.
Why does the 20 long support 3” more fish that the 20 high?
A larger surface area allows a greater oxygen exchange, which is as important as volume of water.
Large bodied fish, such as gold fish you need to double or even triple these numbers, i.e. 3 gallons per inch and 36 sq. in. of surface per 1” of fish.
This is not the only consideration for fish tanks. Types of fish will appreciate one type of tank over another. For example, fast swimmers like Zebra Danios, Pearl Danios and Blue Danios will do best in a tank that is at least 30” long. They would be better kept in a 20 long rather than a 25. Giant Danios would do best in a tank at least 48” long. They would be better kept in a 55 rather than a 65.
On the other hand, slow, tall bodied fish like Angel Fish and Discus will do best in a deep tank. They would be better kept in a 65 rather than a 55. They, like other cichlids also need a bit more than the 1” per gallon and/or 12 sq. in. surface.

Answer 3

start by flushing the idea of 1 inch of fish per gallon down the toilet. Its a very common misconception. Other than that you could have done wuth fewer cichlids as once they grow big and trust me they grow pretty big, they become very aggressive.

Answer 4

1 inch per fish per gallon

Answer 5

1 inch of fish per gallon is the rule of thumb


yea. one 20 inch fish in a 20 gallon tank. are you retarded? i was trying to be helpful.

Answer 6

I don't think you are overloaded.

Seems ok.


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