# How many ???



## 55gal (Jan 19, 2009)

To me it seems like everyone has their own view on how many fish belong in a particular size aquarium.

Some say that you should overcrowd your tank; some say you shouldn't overcrowd your tank.

Some say that 1"/gal is old school, you never seem to get a specific answer.

Does anyone out there have the answer to this question? :-?


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

Depends on the fish and the tank size. The cookie cutters are a good guide. The one inch rule is good if you have neons, but that's about it!


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## Joels fish (Nov 17, 2007)

That's because there is no specific answer. The 1" per gallon rule doesn't really apply to cichlids because they don't behave like "community fish". They need more space for their size since many species establish territories , and many can be highly aggressive or grow extremely large. They produce more waste and require beefed up filtration to match that. A lot of the overstocking assertions though are a matter of personal oppinion ,much of which is based on the experience of the person giving the advice.

Overcrowding works for some species ( Mbuna for instance) to spread out aggression between many individuals so a few fish dont beat the snot out of each other. It doesn't really work that well for most New world Cichlids though.

Again though the statement that fish A cant fit in tank B is often the oppinion of the person giving the advice . This doesn't mean that the advice should be ignored. As mentioned before this is based on our experiences with keeping the species in question. However a certain amount of these fish A in Tank B, how many is too many , and will this work with that questions can be self answered with a little research . Otherwise you get bombarded oppinions which is more confusing than helpfull sometimes.


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## 55gal (Jan 19, 2009)

Being a novice at this, it was a bit confusing trying to find an answer to this question, because everone had a different opinion.

I guess that clears things up ??????? there really is no one specific answer, you just need to continue to do your research and learn what works for others.

Thanks, it looks like I found an answer I can live with.


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

If you give your tank size and the specific species you are interested in, the members can narrow it down for you.


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## Toby_H (Apr 15, 2005)

55gal said:


> there really is no one specific answer


Different species work better in different ways... also different species intermix with differrent species in different ways...

When dealing with living things creatures as diverse as our Cichlids are there is simply no way to rely on a single 'rule of thumb' for stocking...


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## jschall (Apr 2, 2009)

1" per gallon would have me keeping a full-grown blue whale in less than 3000 gallons of water.

I bet a blue whale pisses 3000 gallons at a time.


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## 55gal (Jan 19, 2009)

I have a 55 gallon tank, a Aqueon 55 power filter, 2, Zoo Med power heads, one on ea. end of the tank.
I have a Yellow Lab, white Albino, a couple of peacocks, a red top hongi, and a couple of small unidentified Cichlids, for a total of 7 at the moment, this is an all male tank.

I am trying to keep the max growth no larger then 5"

I think I can maybe add 2 or 3 more Cichlids to the tank without over crowding or without performing additional maintenance to the tank.

25-30% WC/wk
Vac 1/2 tank, 1/month

Thanks for your views


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## Cook.MN (Mar 11, 2008)

Here's a basic run down, some species break this rule so research is needed on the type of fish you want to keep.

African Cichlids - Overcrowd the tank to spread out aggression.

CA/SA Cichdlis - Understock the tank so each fish can establish their own territories.

Again, this is just a real general rule of thumb that I have found for Cichlids.


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

All male mbuna in a 55G is a little specialized, especially mixing peacocks with aggressive mbuna like hongi. Maybe try posting in the Malawi section, and with luck a mod or one of the experienced all-male-mbuna keepers will respond.

You want to keep your bioload low to maintain the level of pwc and vacuuming you are doing (more usual is 50% pwc and vacuum weekly). Yet you risk aggression because you won't be able to overcrowd your fish.

If what you have is working now...keep it!


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## Joels fish (Nov 17, 2007)

Mixing Mbuna with peacocks and haps is a risky proposition at best. Generally Mbuna will shred peacocks and give haps a real hard time as well. If you want an all male setup my suggestion is to choose either Mbuna , haps ,or peacocks, and maybe haps and peacocks but no Mbuna. Mbuna are far too territorial for the other two groups. Also if going all male with haps and peacocks try stocking with species that don't resemble each other when mature. That can help reduce conspecific aggression lateron and try to get them as young as possible . This helps some too. If you go mbuna Try some of the dwarf mbuna species . They stay relatively small and are very attractive. P. Demasoni are very cool and easy to breed and care fore (but most mbuna are :lol: ) P. pollit are another attractive smaller growing species. I'd repost on the malawi forum and they should be able to give you more specifics.


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## 55gal (Jan 19, 2009)

My Red Top Hongi gets along fine with the others in the tank. Yes, as we know they are naturally aggressive that's normal, but there are times that even my Lab getsa bit aggressive towards the Hongi. But overall the all seem to get along fine, no bullies so far. Even my White Albino who is the least aggressive in my tank is not bothered by the Hongi.

They all seem to be happy the way things are, but that all could change when I add a couple of more fish.

My once a week 30% WC and my once a month vac. seems to be working fine so far, but I sure that will change once more fish are added.

Thanks


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## Joels fish (Nov 17, 2007)

If things are working, then it might be advisable not to change things. Adding more fish can upset the balance that you currently have and the whole thing could go to **** quick.


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