Overstocked ?

[selvan777]

Hello again,

What do you think of this with better filtration in a 20 long?

What if I had a single AquaClear 50 Power Filter with one mechanical foam filter, some water floss and 2 bio-max bags on top of it all (no carbon)? How often do you think I should change each of those considering my water change ritual of 10 gallons (more than 50%) every 5 to 7 days in a well planted aquarium?

Thanks, I can't believe I may actually be able to pull it off...thumbs2:

I want to have:

18 Cardinals
08 Cory Pygmy
06 Endler males
01 Ghost Shrimp
03 Otos

[Red]

It sounds good to me....

EDIT: You could have more cories IMO.

[rich311k]

I think that will work just fine.

[robflanker]

I'll go against the grain.

I think 18 cardinals is way too much. You have way too many fish that will occupy the midde-top of the tank. 18 cards + 8 endlers - 26 in the main body in a 20g?

I think you should cut back to 10-12 cardinals

[Red]

I kind of agree with rob, 18 is a lot, might need to do more water changes, but they are the main bioload of the tank. 10-12 is better.

[Lab_Rat]

I agree with rob that it is too much for a 20g. I know a lot of those fish are lower bioload but still, that's a ton. I'd leave out about 8 of those cardinals. Or get a 29g, it has the same footprint as the 20 long.

[Kaz]

I agree, cutting back on the endlers or the cardinals would be good.

Getting a 29g would be fantastic, I'd be careful about those Otos though, they have a bad die off rate and they like groups.

[rich311k]

I still dont see any issues with it. Small fish, feed right, water changes as the OP stated it will be fine.

[Red]

I agree, cutting back on the endlers or the cardinals would be good.

Getting a 29g would be fantastic, I'd be careful about those Otos though, they have a bad die off rate and they like groups.

They have a bad die off rate when not acclimated right, but most of the time they are fine.

[robflanker]

I dunno red - i did my best and lost 2 of 5 in the QT tank; ill see what happens now they are in the main tank

[Lady Hobbs]

I had 43 neons (only) in a planted 29 gallon.

[selvan777]

Thanks a lot everyone!

Hmm, I'll let the thought of downsizing the Cardinals simmer for a few, what a shame. Maybe I'll let the Endlers go, I don't know, we'll see.

I realize the 29g has the same footprint but the only place I like my aquarium is on the dining room counter under the cabinets on the wall and if I go with a standard 20 or 29, I wouldn't be able to open the cover, let a lone maintain it.

Unless I can convince my wife to take out the fireplace we never use....:hmm3grin2orange:

[Kaz]

Unless I can convince my wife to take out the fireplace we never use....:hmm3grin2orange:

You are a brave and adventurous man.

[selvan777]

Thanks Kaz, she's always telling me I'm crazy. Hey, what can I say, I'm after an underwater world that'll turn heads...[Only Registered Users Can See Links.]

[Lab_Rat]

Selvan, is this your first tank or have you kept fish for a while? Because if this is your first tank I'll stand by what I said before, but if you've been keeping fish for a while and know what to look for when things start to go bad I may revise my previous statement.

[selvan777]

Yes Ma'am,

The last time I had one I never knew a 20 long existed, it's been more than 20 years now. And back then I never ever tested my water, had no live plants, changed 50% of the water monthly and replaced the 3 filter types as per instructed by the manual at the time.

Did okay with it for several years but had to give it up when my job took me away from home.

As a kid, my Dad always had one.

[Lab_Rat]

Ok, I'll stick with my recommendation for more conservative stocking at first. Once you've had the tank running for a while (about a year) then increasing the number of cardinals to 18 could be reasonably done. It's always better to start slower and build up stock, not try to push too much early on.

[selvan777]

Thanks, I do appreciate it. If it's any consolation I've had my setup in the signature for 2 months now with no issues.

[Lab_Rat]

Where are your nitrates running?

[Lady Hobbs]

I think you have to look at your tank once partically stocked and see how the fish appear and how much room they appear to have before considering more. If you think they can have friends, then go with it. I certainly didn't start with my big school of neons but added as I went along. They did just fine and actually had plenty of room.

I've never had cardinals but I noticed with neons that they swim all over in the tank when the tank belongs to just them. When I had them with other fish, they tended to stay in large groups at the bottom of the tank. My next "plan" is an all cardinal tank.......maybe some shrimp.

[selvan777]

Yes, a gradual growth is definitely the plan. I'm adding just 2 or 3 at a time and let them get comfy before any more (not so much a length-of-time but the way they actually behave will determine when). Haven't given it much thought yet as to the sequence of species yet but will do when time comes.

It's pretty critical to me that the Cardinals remain the majority and largest sized fish by far just to help them feel superior in the community.

Right now I'm just so stoked that I've learned that I can pretty much actually have all the pets I truly want...thumbs2:

I think I'll also add much Swords to the Floura.

My last test was:

Nitrate - 5
Nitrite - 0
Hardness - 75
Chlorine - 0
Alkalinity - 75
Ph - 7
Amonia - 0

[Lab_Rat]

With your nitrate at 5ppm I would feel comfortable adding a couple more fish, either a couple more cards or the endlers. With a planted tank I shoot for 10ppm because the plants need the nitrates.

[selvan777]

Do you use any fertilizers for the plants? I'm new at keeping plants and have not used any yet and probably should.

[Lab_Rat]

It all depends on your lighting, substrate, etc. I use Flourish, Excel, potassium, phosphorus, flourite substrate, root tabs for the rooting plants, and I'm going to get some trace the next time I place an order.

[selvan777]

Hmm, that's a lot of stuff.

I was thinking just "Seachem's Flourish Comprehensive Supplement for the Planted Aquarium", "Kent Freshwater Supplement" and "Nutrafin's Plant-Gro sticks".

And see how they all do after a few weeks.

I'm using just Flourite Black for the substrate and an Aqua-Glo 20W 24" T8 florescent bulb.

[selvan777]

Hi again,

Just want more input on the mechanical, chemical, biological filter line-up.

Rather than Floss, what do you think of using Purigen as the chemical filter in the line-up?

Thanks

[robflanker]

Well floss would be mechanical, but purigen would be a good addition

[Lab_Rat]

With all those plants to suck up the nitrate, there is no need for Purigen. I only use Purigen to help keep nitrogenous wastes down in my non-planted tanks. Floss is good for mechanical, you could add more biomedia too.

[selvan777]

I'm real sorry for what seems like a never ending need for your expert advise.

I will forget the Purigen thought and let the happy health plants do what they do best naturally.

I've bought "Seachem's Flourish Comprehensive Plant Supplement" & will soon get "Nutrafin's Plant-Gro sticks". I guess I'll see if I need any more adjustments to keep these plants thriving, I realize they play a critical part of my underwater world. I'm only using a Aqua Glo 20W 24" T-8 fluorescent bulb, I hope to see that that is enough.

The filter media, if I got it correct for the AquaClear 50(AC50), I'll have the mechanical foam to catch debris on the bottom, the Water Floss to polish the water and the BioMax for beneficial bacteria on the very top.

Due to space, I guess I'll have a single AC50 foam and 2 AC50 BioMax bags. I'll fill the middle with how ever much Floss I can fit in between.

1. I'll only rinse the foam monthly or as needed.
2. I'll replace the floss also as needed guessing that color will be an indicator or even loss of water flow.
3. And I'll only lightly rinse the BioMax monthly and never change it.

Am I on track?

Thanks a bunch.