Maximize The Stocking Level Of Your Aquarium

Most fish hobbyists tend to overcrowd their tanks beyond the maximum limit. This is most unfortunate, as stocking level is a major determining factor in whether one succeeds in the fishkeeping hobby or not.

Disease, stunted growth, and short life spans are some of the problems that plague new hobbyists and cause them to quit fishkeeping. And more often than not, these problems are the results of overcrowding.

The conventional rule, based on the theory of surface oxygen exchange between water and air, is to keep one inch of fish for every ten square inches of water surface. This rule, however, has to be weighted against other intervening factors.

1. Age, Size, and Species

The species, size and age of the fish you keep must be taken into consideration.

Differences between adult and juvenile fish, and allowances for growth, must also be taken into account. While there are a few species that grow slowly, many common aquarium species will reach adult size within a year from hatching. This means going from a fraction of an inch to about a foot in length.

Fish inches are not necessarily equal to each other—the bigger the fish, the “bigger” its inches are. This is because the mass of a fish is a cubic measure, whereas its length is a linear measure. A six-inch fish is not only six times a long as one-inch one—it is also taller and wider. Thurs, an inch of tiger harb doesn’t necessary match an inch of neon tetra.

2. Behavioral Concerns

Some fish are more docile in nature and can coexist peacefully with a large variety of other fish, while others which are more aggressive tend to fight a lot or prey on the weaker fish. The behavior of some fish may also change over time—seemingly docile juveniles can become territorial bullies when they mature, or have a brood to protect.

3. Waste Production and Elimination

The biggest factor in determining stocking rates is waste production. A fish with a higher metabolic rate will produce more waste then a more sluggish fish of the same size.

An unfiltered tank will support fewer fish than filtered one as more ammonia and nitrite are eliminated. And obviously a bigger filter will enable you to keep more fish then a smaller one—assuming both designs offer the same level of efficiency.

With modern systems, aquarium capacity is limited principally by waste removal. However, there really is no way of comparing the effectiveness of one filter with another or one filter medium with another. Besides, there is not precise method to measure the metabolic rates of the various species of fish.

4. Making an Estimation

Until the necessary scientific data can be accumulated and an appropriate system of estimation is devise, determining the stocking level is very much based on intuition and experience.

Beginners have to use their better judgment to gauge how many fish to put into their tanks. A healthy alternative is always to keep fewer fish. In fact, an alternative rule of thumb—to calculate how many fish you think you keep and divide that number by two—has a lot of merit!

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