overcrowding???

by **greasemonkey24** » Sat Dec 10, 2011 4:06 pm

i havent cleaned my filters for roughly 3weeks i do it evry 5-6 weeks, i have filter pads bio balls and the tubes in aqua1 an in eheim limestone and filter pads i clean tubing evry 6-8 weeks

intakes are from 3/4 of the way down outlet at top and spray across the sides at the top. with air i have a aqua one 12000 4way air pump one line into 5ft and the other three run my sponge filters in fry tanks im thinking the same needing a bigger filtration system but not sure how to go about it any ideas???

okiimiru

they are always very happy and are breeding well i have elec yellows, blue peacocks breeding evry 3-4 weeks roughly, my silver sharks mainly stay mid way and they all get along well no aggression.

by **greasemonkey24** » Sat Dec 10, 2011 4:09 pm

apparently the eheim does 360 litres p/h and aqua one not to sure about the breeder i bought it from told me it would be fine but it wasnt doing the job well so thats when i put eheim in

by **Okiimiru** » Sat Dec 10, 2011 9:14 pm

"they are always very happy and are breeding well i have elec yellows, blue peacocks breeding evry 3-4 weeks roughly, my silver sharks mainly stay mid way and they all get along well no aggression."

Then they're not overcrowded.

Measure your ammonia and nitrite. If your ammonia and nitrite are at 0 ppm then you do not need to add any more biological filtration. If your ammonia or your nitrite are either one of them above 0 ppm then you need a larger population of beneficial bacteria in order to process the nitrogenous waste load, and more filtration would help.

Then measure your nitrate. If your nitrate is below 30 ppm then you do not need to perform a water change at this time, and you should measure again in a week. If your nitrate is above 30 ppm then you should do more frequent water changes to remove it from the water. It's good to keep nitrate below 30 ppm, although the nitrate toxicity really does strongly vary by species. You might want to do some research on your individual fish species to see how sensitive each of them are. Acute toxicity is different from chronic nitrate toxicity over time.

My bet is that since your fish are breeding (happy), your water parameters are probably fine.

by **Alasse** » Sun Dec 11, 2011 5:12 am

Breeding is a fair indicator but not something you should fully believe, fish are survivors and will breed in less than stellar water.

My angels managed to breed in water that honestly they should not have been, i know cause the tank was cycling and i was testing regularly. Do you have healthy fry growing to adulthood? That is a better indicator of water status and overcrowding issues.

360 lph is not enough, the aqua one is defiantely not enough.

Overcrowding is something most cichlid people do, but be warned if you lose power or something goes wrong, it goes wrong usually extra badly.

Please test your water. That sized tank i would be inclined to have at least an FX5 running on it, possibly 2

by **yasherkoach** » Sun Dec 11, 2011 7:59 pm

live plants will help

by **DanDman18** » Sun Dec 11, 2011 11:22 pm

However, most cichlids I've noticed rip the plants to shreds.

by **yasherkoach** » Mon Dec 12, 2011 4:26 am

Dan, I agree to a degree - if the fish are over 3 inches, then yes, cichlids probably will uproot the plants...so how do we get around this?

by planting hardy or robust plants:

1. Malayan sword-plant
2. Java fern
3. Anubias hastifolia
4. Amazon sword-plants
5. Java moss
6. Water sprite
7. Dwarf sagittaria
8. Corkscrew vallisneria
9. Anacharis
10. Hornwort

That is the Top Ten Live Plants which are robust or hardy for the type of fish in this tank unless the cichlids are 3 inches and under, then any plant will hold itself up against this type of fish

also, a few caves would help

let us know what you prefer to do

by **yasherkoach** » Mon Dec 12, 2011 4:28 am

as for the overcrowding - 80 fish? depends on the size of the tank and the size of each fish...could you breakdown the exact (size of each) fish you have in the tank?

by **greasemonkey24** » Mon Dec 12, 2011 1:13 pm

ive tried live plants but know nothing about them and they get eaten really quickly i have a fish store owner that lives 3 houses down and i take water samples to him every 4 days in 6 months of having this tank and cichlids i have only lost 3 fish due to ich and only had a little ammonia problem once other than that my water tests have been almost perfect as he says i havent had to adjust them for quite some time. it looks really stunning with so many different fish wich is what im after but alot of private breeders who have seen it keep saying over stocked its really confusing me that is why i was seeking other opinions thank you every one who has replied and given advice

alasse

i have just bought an fluval fx5 think i got taken for a fool as it cost me $550 an been told they are cheaper else where but oh well ive had it running for two days now and cut back on feeding my tank is almost crystal clear but not quite need to do more research and find out why

by **greasemonkey24** » Mon Dec 12, 2011 1:17 pm

the size of my fish vary from 8-12 cm with 60% being 8cm i have quite a few caves for them as i have stacked limestone to create them. i would love to have live plants but know nothing about keeping them i am inclined to research how to keep them and very keen to grow them in my tank

overcrowding???

45 posts • Page 2 of 5

overcrowding???

45 posts • Page 2 of 5