[Wet Thumb Forum]-Something is wrong in paradise

[Roger Miller]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>the reason why i thought my bioload was small was cuz in the same tank, before i had plants, i kept 40 fish in the tank (my lfs told me 1 inch per gallon) ... <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
Take this rule and toss it out the window! It's very decieving and misused so much that it's meaningless. The amount of fish you can keep in your tank is much more complicated then just the potential volume of water a tank can hold. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
I agree that it should be tossed. More importantly, we shouldn't even be asking how many fish a tank *can* hold. We should be asking how many fish a tank *should" hold. I think the number and size of fish that a tank should hold for long term good health and maintenance is a lot lower than the number and size of fish that a tank can hold.

The old "X inches of fish per gallon of aquarium" is a self-serving rule of thumb used by fish stores to sell the largest number of fish possible to people who don't know enough to ask the right questions.


Roger Miller

[Cougra]

What kind of fish do you have? How long have you had them in the tank?

What are your ammonia, nitrite and nitrate readings in the tank?

When you got the fish, were they extremely colourful and vibrant looking?

[Roger Miller]

Your description is very non-specific. Do the fish die with their jaws wide open? I've read that is a consistent sign that they died of suffocation, but I'm not sure that they always show that symptom.

Do the fish die at night, or during the day?

Have you had any leaks of the yeast mixture into the tank?

Are the plants growing well?

Have you checked the circulation? Is the filter running well?

20 fish in a 40 gallon tank is not a real small bioload. Depending on the size and nature of the fish and the amount you feed it could be a high bioload. That's about the highest load I keep. I like low bioloads.. My 55 gallon tank has 9 fish. My 150 has 14 fish.


Roger Miller

[hubbahubbahehe]

Hi all, I'm writing cuz i got a long long problem that has been occuring and i need your help. Here are the symptoms, I'm hoping someone has had this problem and knows how to solve it:

Not all fish are showing signs of stress. It's more like 1 at a time. one fish will just hang out near the surface of the water and be absolutely still and stay in one place...then a few days later, he will die....and then another one does this....and it keeps going on. my malaysian trumpet snails are all dying and their empty shells are on top of the substrate. when i crush the pond snails shells, they are extremely soft. i have a 40 gallon tank with only 20 fish in there, so the bioload should be real small. i got a eheim ecco filter 2231 filled with lava rock and filter floss, my ph from tap is 8.0, kh and gh is 10.. i add diy co2 bottle. my lighting is a coralife 2 x 65 watt.

if there is anything else you would like to know, let me know.

is it lack of oxygen? too much nitrates or ammonia? HELP PLEASE!