Fish load for a 50 gallon tank

[fauxjargon]

I have a 50 gallon planted tank: CO2, EI, modest biological filtration (about 250 gph through a diy internal filter full of bioballs) and another 50 or so gpm of water movement from a small powerhead.

Right now the tank has a L168 Butterfly pleco, a pair of kribensis, about 10 wild-caught (well, descendants of wild-caught) guppies and 5 SAEs.

I would like to stock the tank with mostly checker barbs with a small number of cherry barbs and cories thrown in for variety.

If I want to have 6 cories (these will most likely be salt and pepper cories, so quite small) and a dozen cherry barbs how many checker barbs can I add assuming I keep the guppy population under control?

 

[Gerryd]

Hi,

I would say a dozen or so maybe 15. A lot depends on your bio and mechanical filtration...guppies are harder to control as I am sure you are aware

You may want to add a simple sponge or two NOW, so you have a bit more bio-bed when you get the fish....

Checkers are smaller barbs, but larger than cherries if I remember correctly. Has been some years since I kept both..

 

[1077]

Had a pair of breeding Kribs (Adults at nearly five inches) that kicked the snot out of cory's who are/were either incredibly stupid, or persistent with respect to avoiding nesting sites of the Kribs.Kribs were very small when purchased, and I did not intend to purchase a male/female, it just ended up being a pair who quickly grew larger than the cory's and seemed to dislike them immensly once the cory's began venturing close to nesting sites.

 

[dutchy]

Here in The Netherlands we keep an average of 1 gallon per fish with tetras, barbs etc. So that's 50 fish total.

regards,
dutchy

 

[kerryhomes]

I know bare bottom is best, but my apartment complex has a 50 gallon limit and I have a 50 gallon tank so...I know discus do better in groups of five or six. Would I be safe to add one or two more discus to my tank or would I be better off sticking with the four I got? If I should add more would one or two more be better in my tank? If I do add one or two more is my water change routine.

 

[kerryhomes]

I know bare bottom is best, but my apartment complex has a 50 gallon limit and I have a 50 gallon tank so...I know discus do better in groups of five or six. Would I be safe to add one or two more discus to my tank or would I be better off sticking with the four I got? If I should add more would one or two more be better in my tank? If I do add one or two more is my water change routine.

 

[Gerryd]

Hi,

IMO 4-6 adult discus in a 50 gallon is just too many and will result in stunted and/or unhappy/unhealthy fish...

You need to think about how big they WILL get when sizing even though 6 fit in their nicely....

A pair in a 50gal is tight, forget 4-6...You are just looking for trouble..

That said, I have never kept discus, but fish mass is fish mass.....

 

[150EH]

I always though the rule was 1 inch of fish per gallon of water, calculate at the size of the adult fish.