# Overstocking Tetras?



## HypnoticAquatic (Feb 17, 2010)

they need swimming room imo that is way to small, just cause you can keep 20 in there with frequent wc doesnt mean you should and if you have it planted you have even less than 10g prob 8or less so if you want more imo get a bigger tank.


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## doncityz (May 17, 2011)

10gal seems to be plenty of space even for a 20 tetras. They always swim together and doesnt seem to have any territory area. 

I mean, what could possibly happen to them? stressed out that they jump out? I think im gonna add gradually, like 10,15,etc. I mean, I've seen a few 8g and 10g at the LFS that stocks 20+ tetras... with no visible problems. I mean I go to that LFS often, and all of them seems to be ok for quite a long time already.

Im just gonna do it. :icon_smil


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## Patriot (Dec 22, 2010)

I have about 10 or 12 in a 20 gal. I started out with more but they died out. I guess one was sick and it spread to the others. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## jkan0228 (Feb 6, 2011)

I have 20 harlequins in a 95G which is totally understudied. But I'll be increasing them to 30,40,50,60 eventually. 

I think you should do maybe 10-15 maximum. Too many fish don't look good in a small tank.


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## doncityz (May 17, 2011)

jkan0228 said:


> I have 20 harlequins in a 95G which is totally understudied. But I'll be increasing them to 30,40,50,60 eventually.
> 
> I think you should do maybe 10-15 maximum. Too many fish don't look good in a small tank.


Yeah... 20 is probably pushing it. im gonna add them 3 at a time.. and see how it goes... 15 seems like a nice number after looking back at my tank.


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## HypnoticAquatic (Feb 17, 2010)

doncityz said:


> 10gal seems to be plenty of space even for a 20 tetras. They always swim together and doesnt seem to have any territory area.
> 
> I mean, what could possibly happen to them? stressed out that they jump out? I think im gonna add gradually, like 10,15,etc. I mean, I've seen a few 8g and 10g at the LFS that stocks 20+ tetras... with no visible problems. I mean I go to that LFS often, and all of them seems to be ok for quite a long time already.
> 
> Im just gonna do it. :icon_smil


 a lfs overstocks due to the fact they are not permanat homes they are temperary holding until sold off, and yes they can get stressed an die, also overstocking any fish greatly incresses your chance for the tank to crash due to to much waste which corrilates stress = dissease. i still highly reccomend going against overstocking... can i ask why are u looking to increase your population so much?


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## Chrisinator (Jun 5, 2008)

By the way, what type of tetras are we talking about?

Neons you could probably get away with 15 but anything bigger, I wouldn't.


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## TactusMortus (Jun 28, 2011)

OP keep in mind you need to take into account the full adult size of the fish and stock accordingly. I agree with one of the other posters when he said to many fish in a small tank like that do not look good anyway.


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## doncityz (May 17, 2011)

Chrisinator said:


> By the way, what type of tetras are we talking about?
> 
> Neons you could probably get away with 15 but anything bigger, I wouldn't.


Chrisinator, Cardinal Neon Tetras... 

HypnoticAquatic, i like more fish in my tank because I love how they flock by the many... 

anyway thanks all for your inputs.


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## wetworks (Jul 22, 2011)

It is not a matter of how many can fit into the tank, but rather how comfortable an environment you can provide. Let's take an average apartment-sized bedroom, 15' by 12' by 8'. Sure you could probably put several tiers of bunk beds in the room, but would you really be comfortable sharing that living space with, say, ten other adults? Probably not. Tetras are schooling fish, which means that they swim from side to side in your tank. Too many in there and you will end up with very unhappy pets. This is just my personal opinion, of course, but just because you technically can do a thing does not mean that you should. The best thing you could do is to buy a larger tank.


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## reignOfFred (Jun 7, 2010)

A 10 gallon tank really is tiny for these fish and you will find the undersized space will take it's toll over time and they will most likely start to drop off long before they near their real potential size and lifespan. This is something you may need to experience before you believe it.

Also seeing a big school of small fish swim together across a nice long tank is beautiful, while seeing a big jumble of fish with nowhere to swim just looks like a fish store tank. If upgrading the tank is not an option then shrinking the fish would make the tank bigger - going say with chili rasbora instead.


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## jkan0228 (Feb 6, 2011)

You can try espei rasboras.


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## astrosag (Sep 3, 2010)

Almost all tetras get to be over 1" (if not all) and most get to nearly 2". I would not keep them in a 10G tank.

Go for the smaller rasboras species..espei, even chili rasboras or galazy rasboras. 

For schooling fish of that size, even 10G is a bit small imo...they need horizontal swimming space.


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## saltydad (Feb 8, 2011)

I have a tetra tank (20 long), planted, that is no doubt* way *overstocked. It started as helping a friend hold some extras, but they are all doing so well, and for quite some time now (over a year) that I've left it be. 7 neons, 5 black neons, 4 lemons, 4 white tips, 4 silver tips, 2 flames, 3 glowlights, 4 blood fins, 3 red eyes, 1 emperor, 1 pristella, 4 corys, 1 clown pleco, 3 otos, 1 SAE, and 1 forktail rainbow. Not sure how it stays healthy; I do water changes every 2 weeks and feed sparingly. Obviously the plants help rid the nutrient level of toxics. The tank has eco complete as a substrate, and 2- 24" HO bulbs and 4 LED moonlights. I add flourish, excel and florapride, but at reduced levels. Filtration is an aqua clear 50. I have ended up loving my tetra tank. It's not flashy like my marine and reef tanks, much more subtle and my only FW tank. But the fish are fascinating to me.


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## saltydad (Feb 8, 2011)

I have a tetra tank (20 long), planted, that is no doubt *way *overstocked. It started as helping a friend hold some extras, but they are all doing so well, and for quite some time now (over a year) that I've left it be. 7 neons, 5 black neons, 4 lemons, 4 white tips, 4 silver tips, 2 flames, 3 glowlights, 4 blood fins, 3 red eyes, 1 emperor, 1 pristella, 4 corys, 1 clown pleco, 3 otos, 1 SAE, and 1 forktail rainbow. Not sure how it stays healthy; I do water changes every 2 weeks and feed sparingly. Obviously the plants help rid the nutrient level of toxics. The tank has eco complete as a substrate, and 2- 24" HO bulbs and 4 LED moonlights. I add flourish, excel and florapride, but at reduced levels. Filtration is an aqua clear 50. I have ended up loving my tetra tank. It's not flashy like my marine and reef tanks, much more subtle. But the fish are fascinating to me. BTW the singles were singles from the getgo, not surviving members of a larger group.


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## mgamer20o0 (Mar 8, 2007)

> By the way, what type of tetras are we talking about?


great question



> Cardinal Neon Tetras


there are cardinal tetras which get larger then neon tetras but they are 2 different fish.


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## Fahnell (Jan 20, 2011)

*Hyphessobrycon amandae is a good option.and yes tetras need long tanks .
as for my tank. it is a 15 gls with around 100 fish..and they are tetras (tetras that i did breed). but i will not advise to do that overstocking experiment.

20 ember tetras in your tank will be ok
also i will say that i am against blue tetra or hasemania nana.they are way too active and need a 150-200 cm long tank 

anyway you will be surpised how hardy tetra are in a fully but FULLY cycled aquarium. 
*


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## doncityz (May 17, 2011)

saltydad said:


> I have a tetra tank (20 long), planted, that is no doubt *way *overstocked. It started as helping a friend hold some extras, but they are all doing so well, and for quite some time now (over a year) that I've left it be. 7 neons, 5 black neons, 4 lemons, 4 white tips, 4 silver tips, 2 flames, 3 glowlights, 4 blood fins, 3 red eyes, 1 emperor, 1 pristella, 4 corys, 1 clown pleco, 3 otos, 1 SAE, and 1 forktail rainbow. Not sure how it stays healthy; I do water changes every 2 weeks and feed sparingly. Obviously the plants help rid the nutrient level of toxics. The tank has eco complete as a substrate, and 2- 24" HO bulbs and 4 LED moonlights. I add flourish, excel and florapride, but at reduced levels. Filtration is an aqua clear 50. I have ended up loving my tetra tank. It's not flashy like my marine and reef tanks, much more subtle. But the fish are fascinating to me. BTW the singles were singles from the getgo, not surviving members of a larger group.



Holy mother !! that's wayyyy overstocked! Can you post a pic of that tank? love to see it with so many fish inside..!!


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## Fahnell (Jan 20, 2011)

his problem is not exaclty overstoking...it is more like....too many species of tetras with too little of individuals in each species
do not forget. in the wild tetras live in banks of hundreds or thousands.
in time i realised that the common "get at least 6 tetras" is not a good rule. a more realistic one is 30-50...if your tank can handle it


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## saltydad (Feb 8, 2011)

Fahnell is exactly right; there should be shoals of tetras of same species. But as I explained, this was a temporary favor that turned into a permanent tank. I can't really get rid of some to add others, so I'm just letting it be as it is. I've been rather surprised at the stablity of the population; the only fish I've lost was one emperor tetra, and that was back when it was in a q tank. The only pic I have is from when it was much less planted.


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## Nubster (Aug 9, 2011)

IMO, fish like tetras can survive in a small tank like a 10g but will they really be happy with that? I have a small school of tetras in my 75g tank and they use the entire tank. If they only stayed in one small area of my big tank then I would be more inclined to think they would be ok in a 10g tank. But since they swim all over, I personally just don't think 10g has enough room especially for a school of 15-20 of them.


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## saltydad (Feb 8, 2011)

Sorry guys, I've tried to post a pic of my tank but w/o sucess. I read the article but no dice. Strange, since another forum I'm in has the same software and I have no problem there. Will keep trying.


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## doncityz (May 17, 2011)

saltydad said:


>


There I fixed it for ya.

Awesome tank, but u should take the photo without flash.


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## saltydad (Feb 8, 2011)

That pic was before eco complete, etc. aadded. What did you do to fix it? Thanks, I'll try a newer pic.

There's some better pics of this tank, as well as a host of garden, pond, etc. pics at my photobucket account.

http://s751.photobucket.com/albums/xx151/saltydad/


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## jcgd (Feb 18, 2004)

I dunno, I've seen different species shoal together. My flames and harlequins always did. 

If there is no ammonia or dying fish, the tank isn't really overstocked in nitrogen cycle terms, only in crowding. I say don't fix what ain't broke.


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## saltydad (Feb 8, 2011)

Duh, finally figured it out. :redface:


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## devlyyn (Dec 7, 2007)

That's an epic sword back there. How long did it take to grow that big?


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## saltydad (Feb 8, 2011)

Thanks. Actually only about 6 months. And I prune it to keep it submerged. And remember, this is a 20 Long.


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## adamprice271 (Jun 10, 2006)

Op, you also have to remember that most LFS tanks are running on a system. Those fish may all be crammed into a 10-15g tank but it probably has a few hundred gallons going into it.

the old LFS I worked at had a wall of 15g, 83 to be exact and yeah, we would keep 75 lemons in one tank, but it was on a 1,245g system with each tank turning over approx. 7 times an hour. You cannot do that at home with good results.

Adam


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## NStarr (Jun 3, 2011)

Throwing a bunch of random tetras in a rather small tank is not a smart idea.


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## Craigthor (Sep 9, 2007)

I've got an overstocked tetra tank but all mine are in schools of 40+ and the interaction is great with large schools.

Craig


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## doncityz (May 17, 2011)

adamprice271 said:


> Op, you also have to remember that most LFS tanks are running on a system. Those fish may all be crammed into a 10-15g tank but it probably has a few hundred gallons going into it.


Nope. The tank I mentioned is a stand-alone-for-show type. It is about the same size of my shrimp tank (3-4g), and it runs with a simple HOB filter. It's been there for as long as I can remember (I started PT on May this year).


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## doncityz (May 17, 2011)

Craigthor said:


> I've got an overstocked tetra tank but all mine are in schools of 40+ and the interaction is great with large schools.
> 
> Craig


Wow I love your tank.... I bet you can put more tetras in there. :icon_wink


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## Craigthor (Sep 9, 2007)

doncityz said:


> Wow I love your tank.... I bet you can put more tetras in there. :icon_wink


:biggrin:


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## saltydad (Feb 8, 2011)

Believe me, I agree with you in theory. I had a maintenance business (reef tanks) for 5 years and have always preached understocking. On the other hand, this is factually in front of me- 1+ years of healthy fish. I've even had spawning in the tank! I'm not looking to change anyone's mind. I'd just like some input as to why this works in this one case.


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## aman74 (Feb 19, 2007)

astrosag said:


> Almost all tetras get to be over 1" (if not all) and most get to nearly 2". I would not keep them in a 10G tank.
> 
> Go for the smaller rasboras species..espei, even chili rasboras or galazy rasboras.
> 
> For schooling fish of that size, even 10G is a bit small imo...they need horizontal swimming space.


Did you mean the 10g is too small for the rasboras as well, or were you still referring to the Cardinals? I'm wondering as I'm looking into some of the Micro Rasboras.

I thought you liked to overstock? 

http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/1527281-post14.html

I had asked in that thread if all that was really in a 20g, but maybe you missed my post. I know I can't keep up with all the threads I'm in sometimes.


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## Ziggy (Sep 2, 2011)

For what its worth my current setup is the proverbial 10G (low tech planted) and I have a 7 Neons and 3 Corys. I would not even consider adding anything else, and in fact fully intend to swap up to either a 15 or 20 (long) as soon as logistically possible to give them more "distance" to play in.


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## doncityz (May 17, 2011)

Ok, I just added a few more cardinal tetras in my tank. now i have 3 green neon, and 13 cardinals. Im loving it!! 

Total: 
3 green neon
13 cardinals
2 oto
1 malaysian trumpet snail (was a hitchhiker)


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## Method (Feb 13, 2011)

doncityz said:


> Ok, I just added a few more cardinal tetras in my tank. now i have 3 green neon, and 13 cardinals. Im loving it!!
> 
> Total:
> 3 green neon
> ...


I was once in your exact shoes. Having kept fish for a few more years now, I'm of the opinion that fewer fish make a tank look bigger. The fish also seem happier. I have 9 tetras and 15 pygmy corys in a 55g, and they spawn every 2 weeks or so.


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## doncityz (May 17, 2011)

I manage to have 16 tetras now in my tank. Seems everything is doing ok... i love the way they shoal around. I think I will stop adding any more.


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## Agoh (12 mo ago)

Fahnell said:


> his problem is not exaclty overstoking...it is more like....too many species of tetras with too little of individuals in each species
> do not forget. in the wild tetras live in banks of hundreds or thousands.
> in time i realised that the common "get at least 6 tetras" is not a good rule. a more realistic one is 30-50...if your tank can handle it


No need to over exaggerate for the sake of it


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## LidijaPN (12 mo ago)

sounds like a sardine can situation to me but you do you


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