joshman1204 Posted June 21, 2010 Share Posted June 21, 2010 I have been wondering how many fish is too many. I currently have two O. Clowns, a purple fire fish, and 4 blue/green chromis in my 40g. I am running a 40 breeder display with a 20 long sump that is holding 15 gallons for a total system volume of 55 gallons. I am using a Precision marine redline 150 skimmer and running ROX 0.8 carbon and will probably be adding GFO in the near future. I would like to add a pink spotted goby and a blue spot jawfish as my final two fish. I know this is probably considered a very heavy bio load but I would like to know if it is possible with the setup I have. Thanks, Josh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caferacermike Posted June 21, 2010 Share Posted June 21, 2010 I'm not going to enter the battle since you seem quite aware that you are probably past your maximum, however I will say this, good luck keeping a blue spot jawfish from jumping out of your 40g tank. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Will Posted June 21, 2010 Share Posted June 21, 2010 if you did water changes on a very regular schedule you could probably do it, but 9 fish in a 40 gal is alot. also there is a different question of whether our not you will be able to get away with it (you probably could), but in that size tank, crowding may cause alot of stress in your fish Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toxiq Reef Posted June 21, 2010 Share Posted June 21, 2010 +1 on jawfish comment Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joshman1204 Posted June 21, 2010 Author Share Posted June 21, 2010 I have already lost one bluespot in my 24g so I will make sure that I have a very tight fitting lid before adding one to my 40g. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timfish Posted June 21, 2010 Share Posted June 21, 2010 That doesn't strike me as too many fish for your system. I think the number of fish you can put in a tank depends entirely on the fish not on some arbitrary quantity or "inches per gal" rule. I wouldn't have a problem putting a dozen 2" fish in your system but there's no way I'd put a single 10" grouper or lion fish in it. Definitly keep in mind the adult sizes, a 2" to 3" Coral Beauty can reach 5" in 2-3 years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toxiq Reef Posted June 21, 2010 Share Posted June 21, 2010 Always best to judge fish/tank based on adult fish size Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GKarshens Posted June 21, 2010 Share Posted June 21, 2010 Always best to judge fish/tank based on adult fish size Great advice! I hate when I see people put a fish in a tank too small for the fish and say "I'll just get rid of it when it gets too big". The fish doesn't know that. In the meantime he is growing in a tank too small and getting increasingly stressed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Posted June 21, 2010 Share Posted June 21, 2010 As long as the fish aren't fighting then all should be fine. I keep a fairly stocked tank and do not have any problems with the water being out of spec. The best thing you can do is just do your water changes, make sure everyone gets dinner, and watch out of aggression. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caferacermike Posted June 21, 2010 Share Posted June 21, 2010 Per above comment, I don't think I'd be that worried about them getting food. It's the nutrient export that I'd be more concerned with. 40g is not that much water and can foul very quickly. Even if the water appears clear, it may still be polluted enough to cause stress on the many inhabitants. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crab Rangoon Posted June 22, 2010 Share Posted June 22, 2010 if you did water changes on a very regular schedule you could probably do it, but 9 fish in a 40 gal is alot. On the contrary, one could run a nitrate reactor to keep the waste side of things in check, and simply keep up with the water changes on a monthly basis to replenish all sorts of other nutrients which would are regularly used up by your invertebrates (assuming you're dosing calcium as needed). Just presenting another option that is often overlooked. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joshman1204 Posted June 23, 2010 Author Share Posted June 23, 2010 ok so down to 3 chromis now ... I cant find the missing one anywhere. Is it possible for large LTA to eat a chromi? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toxiq Reef Posted June 23, 2010 Share Posted June 23, 2010 Mine ate a medium tang, so I'd say, yes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timfish Posted June 23, 2010 Share Posted June 23, 2010 ok so down to 3 chromis now ... I've tried Green Chromis in a lot of tanks over the years and have always had problems with them dissapearing. I long term survival rate definitely went up when I started using a autofeeder feeding small amounts 4 - 8 times a day. Your long tenticle may be the culprit but I'd be inclined to think it's a social or dietary issue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+KeeperOfTheZoo Posted June 23, 2010 Share Posted June 23, 2010 I thought chromis were supposed to be pretty hardy. I've had an adult pair for a few months. They're pretty voracious eaters! Always the first to the chow. When you say 'long term' survival, at what point did you loose the fish and consider it early demise? I'm still adjusting to how long saltwater fish live vs most freshwater fish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GKarshens Posted June 23, 2010 Share Posted June 23, 2010 From what I have seen over the years of watching the boards is that people buy Chromis for their shoaling quality and then slowly watch them disappear until there is just one or two. I think they are aggressive toward each other and slowly pick off the weakest ones. There are a pair of clowns at Gallery of Pets that are over 25 years old. SW fish will live a long time if they are kept properly. That is why it irritates me so much when I see people put fish in a tank that is too small, or too many fish in a tank. After 6 moths they say everything is happy. 6 months is barely a beginning. Too many of us look at things too short term in keeping our tanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mhart032 Posted June 23, 2010 Share Posted June 23, 2010 Im very opinionated on this subject i think that for every 20g 1 fish just to give them some room to do there thing. when i had my 90g i only had 4 fish and 2 were paired clowns and a pink spot goby and a sixline wrasse. and i thought it was perfect amount for that size tank. Ya i wanted a couple tangs and some other fish but i myself didn't feel that i had the room to make them all feel comfortable. think about this have you ever had to share a room with a brother? that's 2 people in about 300sf (at least mine and my brothers room) area and there is always fights! now imagine even 4 people tring to live in the same area, and btw the fish cant leave the room like i could.. just my thoughts Matt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timfish Posted June 24, 2010 Share Posted June 24, 2010 One thing I'm surprised I haven't seen over the years is a reef tank without any fish at all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GKarshens Posted June 24, 2010 Share Posted June 24, 2010 I actually have seen that. It was a nano tank but it had no fish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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