Too many fish for 30 gallon tank?

[beehive124]

Hey All!

So I kinda screwed up. I ordered 5 fish for my 30 gallon tank (Flame Hawk, 3 Bangai Cardinals, and a Prawn Goby). I was thinking it would be nice to add a couple fish to my tank, because it was somewhat boring. I currently have an ocellaris clown pair and tailspot blenny. Is this a bit overkill for bio load & aggression? I do have plenty of caves and what not, but I’m just afraid of a rogue fish or too much bioload.

Thanks!

 

[Rmckoy]

Hey All!

So I kinda screwed up. I ordered 5 fish for my 30 gallon tank (Flame Hawk, 3 Bangai Cardinals, and a Prawn Goby). I was thinking it would be nice to add a couple fish to my tank, because it was somewhat boring. I currently have an ocellaris clown pair and tailspot blenny. Is this a bit overkill for bio load & aggression? I do have plenty of caves and what not, but I’m just afraid of a rogue fish or too much bioload.

Thanks!

Too high bioload can only be determined by testing

if your system can process the ammonia you will not be over . But ….. at any point or time if can be pushed to it’s limit by even feeding

aggression would be my next concern

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

it could work in time, but adding all 5 at once might overload the system. Maybe not, but I wouldn't do it

 

[Andresnyc93]

Bioload depends how long your tanks been up and running. This is a lot of fishes going in at once. I usually keep it to 1-2 fish at once and give them at least a week to settle in to avoid any future problems. That does sound like alot of fish for a 30 gallon. I would ditch the cardinals and should be fine.

 

[vetteguy53081]

Hey All!

So I kinda screwed up. I ordered 5 fish for my 30 gallon tank (Flame Hawk, 3 Bangai Cardinals, and a Prawn Goby). I was thinking it would be nice to add a couple fish to my tank, because it was somewhat boring. I currently have an ocellaris clown pair and tailspot blenny. Is this a bit overkill for bio load & aggression? I do have plenty of caves and what not, but I’m just afraid of a rogue fish or too much bioload.

Thanks!

I would hold off. It is however possible to manage as long as you:
Manage water quality to high regards
Provide proper diet
Test regularly ( Not API kits either)

 

[fish farmer]

IMO long term yes. Give those fish space to grow.

I'm the guy who will say 4 fish max for a 30 gallon, unless they are tiny....1 to 2" maximum size.

I have three fish in a 29 gallon, pair of mature clownfish and a sixline wrasse. If I didn't have the sixline I feel I could do a couple more fish without it looking cramped.

 

[beehive124]

I have lots of nutrient management in my tank. It’s also been up for 3 years, so there’s a healthy amount of good bacteria. I realized 5 fish at once was stupid, but I wasn’t able to cancel the order. I’ve been feeding my tank a touch heavier the past week, just to build up some more bacteria. Time will tell I guess.

*Will not be ordering large numbers of fish in the future!

 

[beehive124]

I was smart enough to order all small fish. Nothing over 2 inches. And from what I’ve read on Cardinals, one of the 3 might be killed be the other 2 if a mating pair is established

 

[Joe31415]

It’s also been up for 3 years, so there’s a healthy amount of good bacteria.

There's only enough bacteria as required to support the current bioload. Excess bacteria will die off. As you add more fish, more bacteria will form, but it takes time, which is one of the reasons you typically want to give a few days/weeks between adding fish.

I'm thinking you should start dosing bottled bacteria and/or small amounts of ammonia (on the order of a few drops a day) to help prevent the tank from cycling when you add the new fish.
In any case, you should probably be prepared to do some regular water changes as soon as you add them.

You might even consider setting up a quarantine tank just so you don't have to add everything all at once. For example, put the 3 Cardinals into QT and give the other two a week or so in the DT before adding the cardinals back in (or the other way around) just to give the fish time to establish themselves both with respect to their bioload and their tankmates getting used to them.

 

[beehive124]

There's only enough bacteria as required to support the current bioload. Excess bacteria will die off. As you add more fish, more bacteria will form, but it takes time, which is one of the reasons you typically want to give a few days/weeks between adding fish.

I'm thinking you should start dosing bottled bacteria and/or small amounts of ammonia (on the order of a few drops a day) to help prevent the tank from cycling when you add the new fish.
In any case, you should probably be prepared to do some regular water changes as soon as you add them.

You might even consider setting up a quarantine tank just so you don't have to add everything all at once. For example, put the 3 Cardinals into QT and give the other two a week or so in the DT before adding the cardinals back in (or the other way around) just to give the fish time to establish themselves both with respect to their bioload and their tankmates getting used to them.

Gotcha Thanks!

 

[Rmckoy]

Believe it or not there is 15 fish in this 230
and we’re stocked 1-2 fish per month

In terms of bioload and if the system can handle it …. Yes
But aggression could easily be upset
Adding the last sailfin was almost a fail

 

[beehive124]

@Joe31415
About the ammonia thing. I have a bottle of Dr. Tim’s ammonia. Could I add a couple drops every day until tuesday when the order is supposed to come?

 

[Rmckoy]

@Joe31415
About the ammonia thing. I have a bottle of Dr. Tim’s ammonia. Could I add a couple drops every day until tuesday when the order is supposed to come?

I wouldn’t add ammonia if there is fish in the system already .

 

[BanjoBandito]

@Joe31415
About the ammonia thing. I have a bottle of Dr. Tim’s ammonia. Could I add a couple drops every day until tuesday when the order is supposed to come?

That seems reckless. I would dose microbactr7 or another biological booster.

 

[Rmckoy]

That seems reckless. I would dose microbactr7 or another biological booster.

Nitrifying bacteria ..

I don’t understand why to dose ammonia if adding too many fish could potentially push the ammonia over the top which will in turn kill every new addition

 

[beehive124]

I was a bit confused on the ammonia thing as well. I’ll see if I can find some bacteria at the local pet store

 

[beehive124]

Good news! Got some bacteria

Quick question, does anyone know roughly how much ammonia builds up in a fish bag over the shipping process?

 

[Rmckoy]

Good news! Got some bacteria

Quick question, does anyone know roughly how much ammonia builds up in a fish bag over the shipping process?

Too many variables to give a close number

 

[beehive124]

Too many variables to give a close number

That’s what I figured.

Thanks tho!

 

[gbroadbridge]

Good news! Got some bacteria

Quick question, does anyone know roughly how much ammonia builds up in a fish bag over the shipping process?

The greater concern is the CO2 buildup in the bag which reduces the pH and subsequently the amount of free ammonia.

When you open the bag CO2 disspates causing the pH to rise causing a free ammonia spike.

To counter this, you can cut a small opening with a knife and add a drop of Prime/Fraction before opening the bag
The Prime will detox the ammonia by converting it to ammonium