# Intentionally Overstocking



## bmlbytes

Just for the sake of discussion, I wanted your thoughts on this concept.

What do you guys think about the concept of intentionally overstocking an aquarium? This does not specifically include overstocking to reduce aggression in certain species. This can include overstocking for aesthetic reasons.

Obviously, if you plan to overstock an aquarium you will also over-filter it and do more frequent water changes.

What do you guys think about this idea?


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## Ghost Knife

bmlbytes said:


> Just for the sake of discussion, I wanted your thoughts on this concept.
> 
> What do you guys think about the concept of intentionally overstocking an aquarium? This does not specifically include overstocking to reduce aggression in certain species. This can include overstocking for aesthetic reasons.
> 
> Obviously, if you plan to overstock an aquarium you will also over-filter it and do more frequent water changes.
> 
> What do you guys think about this idea?


I know several local restaurants that do this and they seem to keep the same fish alive so I am sure they are cleaning or having someone clean the tank regularly. I suppose it could work if you kept the water clean and could avoid aggression problems.


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## emc7

Overstocking to 'spread out' aggression between aggressive mbuna is common. The concept is that there are so many fish to chase, there isn't time to concentrate on killing one specific fish. With some fish, it is almost necessary. Over-filtering and large water changes are the way to keep the water quality good.

Overstocking increases the risk of catastrophic water quality problems like pH crash and coming home to a tank full of dead fish. It also makes stunting more likely.

Except for mbuna, I prefer not to overstock because it is less work for me to under-stock. But it happens despite my best intentions (say when I have a breeding pair of convicts). 

You'd have to test water and watch the fish to tell if a tank was "manageable overstocked" (crowded but clean and healthy) or "cruelly overstocked" (bad water, stress and aggressive damage). Similar younger that breeding age fish of similar size are the most likely to thrive despite temporary overstocking. Breeding fish are more likely to be aggressive and stressed by crowding.

If you are going for aesthetics, and the fish don't suffer when crowded, you could keep the water quality up by having a large, hidden sump. Or do temporary crowding like they do in display tanks at shows. Not good long term, but pretty for a weekend. 

I don't like putting in a lot of different fish just to look at. For that, buy a DVD and play it on a big screen. Crowding assortments of fish seldom ends well. Schools of like fish or similarly sized SA cichlids may work out a pecking order and get along, but only mix fish of different aggression levels and sizes (or even growth rates) with extreme caution. 
IMO, happy, healthy breeding fish in a 'natural-ish" surrounding are the most aesthetically pleasing. One fish or pair of fish persistently nipping the tails off stressed, clamped-fin fish hiding in the upper corners of the tank is downright ugly.

Natural bodies of waters are seldom as densely populated as our aquariums. Some local places are crowded for short times during dry season, breeding season, etc., but constant crowding that never lets up has got to be stressful for non-schooling fish.


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## Guest

That's like saying a betta in a jar.
U ppl already crying over a betta in a jar.
Think of 20 fish in a 10 gallon, u ppl will probly cry an ocean.


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## bmlbytes

We are not talking about beginner fishkeepers. This would only be for the experienced. It would certainly be possible to keep a betta in a 1G bowl if the water were changed regularly. A proper external filter and a small heater would make it an acceptable tank for a betta. Many beginners just put them in those 1G because they don't know better. Most experienced don't put them in those tanks because it is difficult to find the proper equipment and do the water changes for it. Also, the small tank would allow for toxins to more quickly overcome the aquarium. However, I think it would be entirely plausible to keep a betta in a 1G aquarium.


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## lohachata

hmmmmmmm...intentionally overstocking a tank........so what's the big deal..lol
i think everybody does this at one time or another...they may know it isn't right but they do it because they want the fish and don't want their tank to look empty....
i see a lot of people on here that do kind of flip out if they see someone has a couple too many fish in their tank..but they don't have that much knowledge of the industry..they only know from their own experience...
they would probably have a stroke at a breeding facility....500 angelfish in a 75 gallon tank....and there are a couple of good reasons for doing this....obviously one of them is the available space issue....now breeders could do it right and allow 5 gallons for each fish...but then you would be paying $25.00 for that cute little silver at the LFS...
but there is another really sound reason for it....when young most fish will school for safety reasons..in breeding we keep them in tighter quarters so they have to eat aggressively in order to survive...it also reduces food waste...but these days in many breeding facilities they also accelerate growth in this by doing 100% daily water changes along with 5-6 feedings a day....
for a few months i kept about 200 young common plecos in a 20 long...the biggest fish was about 3 inches long..still major overstocking but........50% water changes twice a day....and about 600GPH or so filtration rate....
you can bend a lot of the rules if you really know what you are doing...
one of the big problems is that some kid is not going to understand why he can't keep 20 goldfish in a 10 gallon tank....
i used to have a 30 gallon long planted tank....8 corydoras rabauti....10 botia sidthimunki and 100 cardinal tetras.....it was a stunning tank...never had a problem with it..every monday , wednesday and friday i did a 50% water change...a bit more work ; but well worth the extra effort...and not everybody is willing to do the extra work...

maintaining proper water quality is always the key...


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## emc7

Its a "Do as I say, not as I do" thing. I want to be honest, but I don't want to encourage stocking like the pictures on the nano-tank box. Sure betta breeders keep hundreds of males in pint cups, but it doesn't mean you should. Leave it to the pros. A store's dream customer repeatedly overstocks and buys more large fish every time the condition kill them.

Unhappy fish are ugly, no matter how many you put in a tank.


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## Mikaila31

ForMany said:


> That's like saying a betta in a jar.
> U ppl already crying over a betta in a jar.
> Think of 20 fish in a 10 gallon, u ppl will probly cry an ocean.


lol 20... I've had over 100 in a 15. Cry me the seven seas lol. When I got tired of it, someone in the local club ended up with a free bucket of 100 endlers. They were a cichlid keeper.... doubt that ended well for those fish lol. 

Big question is what is overstocking. If a tank looks crowded its not necessarily over stocked. If you can maintain it and the fish stay healthy then IMO its not over stocked at all. It depends on a lot of variables. There is nothing wrong with 20+ neons in a 10 gallon IMO, provided the tank receives the proper maintenance. Tetras are not bothered by levels that would be over crowding to some other fish. I couldn't tell you how many fish are in each of my tanks, I don't pay attention. To me stocking has nothing to do with numbers, but with behavior of the fish in the tank and the water quality.


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## TheOldSalt

I don't like it, but I've done it, so who am I to complain? I will say that I've had a lot more hassle when doing it than when I wasn't.


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## FrichKazzone

The concept is that there are so many fish to chase


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## bmlbytes

Yes, if you are doing it for reduced aggression.


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## emc7

You can do a lot of things 'outside the lines' if you are willing to spend a lot of time and/or money making it happen. I look at the benefits vs. effort and wonder who would even think of some of things I see on the web. Just because it can be done doesn't mean its a good idea.


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